How often do you use your 4 iron?

[anotherday]

I took my 4 iron out the other day just for the sake of hitting it. I hardly ever use it.

I'm looking at getting a new set of irons and I'm not even sure if I should include the 4.

Anyone else finding that your 4 iron just takes up space in the bag?

[B of H]

I hit my 4 iron a few times a round but only when i'm at that distance out which isn't all that often, I just don't seem to have that distance very often.  I use my 2 and 3 irons a lot more because I use them off the tee on position holes and a few par 3's on every course seem to play between 210 and 240 around here.   Every once in a while on a real windy day i'll have a handful of 4-iron shots into greens on par 4's playing into the wind.

If you don't have to hit a shot that distance very often or don't have confidence in that club then you should ditch it for sure.   If you are buying new clubs and don't hit long irons well then buying them is a waste of money.

[arogolf]

swapped mine for a 23 degree hybrid with a mid flight / mid weight shaft and haven't missed the 4 iron much. 10 more yards, same consistency for me. What would you replace it with?

[B of H]

Originally Posted by arogolf

swapped mine for a 23 degree hybrid with a mid flight / mid weight shaft and haven't missed the 4 iron much. 10 more yards, same consistency for me. What would you replace it with?

if you get 10 more yards then what do you use in that gap between your 4 and 5?  What is your gap to the next club?  (just curious)  I expect my 4 iron to go 12 yards longer than my 5 iron and 12 yards shorter than my 3 for instance.

[arogolf]

I should clarify, my stock 4h is about the same distance as my 4i - but I feel I can go after it for another 5-10 yards with more consistency with a desirable flight.   It took an adjustment period but the gap is about the same now.  If a specific course calls for a 4 iron, I might put it back in the rotation.

[anotherday]

Sending back a request for a quote on some Mizuno JPX 800 Pros 5-PW. Plus checking on how much the single 4 iron would be if I missed it and wanted it back in the bag. haha.

These clubs tested out longer anyways, which would put my 4i a little too close distance wise to my 3h. Plus, 4i and I don't really get along well.

[arogolf]

There you go, those are nice looking sticks.  Now you can start carrying 2 drivers!

[zeg]

I use mine fairly often.  It's my lowest iron (next club is a 3H) and I hit it quite reliably.  Probably most often on par 3s, but I use it a lot for punches out of trouble and fairly often on approaches where I'd rather err short.

[clubchamp]

I switch between a 4h and 4i depending on the course I'm playing. I like hitting my 4i but I know it's limitations and the 4h gives me the few extra yards when I need it. It's hard to say how much I use it because if I play a course with a lot of 195 to 205 yard par 3s I'd be using it quite often.

[max power]

Depends on the course, but quite often actually.  I'd say at least twice a round on average.

[ochmude]

I use mine quite about actually these days.  You know how you often read on this forum that high handicappers should just leave the driver in the bag and play a 3w off the tee?  Well, I use that advice, except the 3w for me isn't the bastion of consistency that people make it out to be.  Neither is the 5w...or the 3h (on bad days).  If I'm having an off day I'll leave all woods and wood relatives in the bag and play my 4i off the tee, even if it's a par 5.  It's much better having a really long second shot from the fairway than a really long second shot from the rough after you sliced your tee, provisional, and 2nd provisional into the woods, lost them all, and said screw it and took a drop.  Yeah, I've done that before.

[Gerald]

I actually use the 4i quite often, but that is bc. it just is my longest iron and I am more precise with my irons than with my hybrids, also the distance control is better as there is more variance in the hybrids (is it me?) ..... if at par 5's I like to pinpoint my second shot to a certain landing area (course management) I prefer the long irons above the Hybrids or Fairway woods.

[inthecup]

I use my 4 iron fairly often also.  My course has a couple narrow par 5's that I will sometimes hit a 4 or 3 iron off of.  It also has some sort par 4's that I can not reach so I put a ball out there for a wedge in.  There are also some 190-200 ish par three's that it comes out for.  I like my 4 iron, I hit it pretty well and when I catch it pure it feels great.

[Kieran123]

I use mine often seeing as it;s my longest iron. Longer than average 3 irons actually. And longer than my old 3 hybrid.

[WUTiger]

I switched irons at Christmas, and they came with flighted shafts. Flighted gives you a little boost at liftoff on longer irons, so I have had better luck with 3i and 4i recently.

That said, I will probably drop the 4i out of the bag, and go with 3i, 5i. Difference loft difference between 3i-4i and 4i-5i is only 3*, so I will probably lengthen 5i 1/4 inch and leave 4i in trunk. Having trouble with distance compression down in 3* land.

[showtime583]

4 iron is probably in play 2-3 times each round. Either on a long par 3 or 4....I hit it about 200-205....my next option is an adams 3 hybrid which is a reliable 220....the problem lies when I'm in between 210 and 220 and have to decided between stepping on the 4 or feathering the 3h....I usually try to step on the 4 and end up just short - when i lay off the 3h I generally end up pulling it left - not sure why...

[TourSpoon]

It is my 200 carry club or I use it into the wind from 180.  Either way it probably sees action once or twice a round.  I hit my 3h 215.

[mdl]

Mine sees action a couple times a round.  I feel like this is totally dependent on your distances and the courses you play often.  On my home course there's 2-3 par 3s (depending on the wind) that call for my 4i.  Generally I find there are a couple par 3s on many courses that call for a carry of 195 or so, which is about what I hit my 4i off the tee or fairway.

Personally I'd be careful dropping it.  Most courses I play don't have super punitive rough, but I've found that when the rough is thick and hard to hit out of, my 4i is much easier to hit than my 2h (my only hybrid).  On courses with thick rough, I'd be unhappy to have to choose between 5i out of the rough distance and hitting with a hybrid out of the rough if I drive a par 5 into the thick stuff.