Am I misguided carrying a 3 iron?

**DiverDown** · January 13, 2010

I carry a 3 and 4 iron, the two most commonly replaced clubs with hybrids..... at least in my opinion. I shoot in the 90's, mostly because of my short game, but I still can hit a fat shot with the irons and put a drive in the woods. That is getting better, and I'm working on distance control on the short game.

I recently purchased a 3 hybrid, but have not intended to pull the 3 iron from the bag. The hybrid will be used for shots out of the rough or handling a distance gap between the 3 iron and fairway wood. I've always considered that being able to hit long irons is the mark of a better golfer, which is something I'm trying to achieve.

Is this misguided? Are long irons becoming antiquated and I'm leaving shots on the course by not using the hybrid in place of the 3 iron? I find myself questioning whether holding onto the long irons will help me achieve becoming a better golfer, but I'm uncertain.

**WUTiger** · January 13, 2010

I carry a 3i, and mainly use it as a driving iron to keep the ball low. Also, I use it to hit punch draws and punch fades to get balls under tree branches coming out of the rough. I practice both of those, because I often need them.

I use 3i three of four times a round for different things.

**DiverDown** · January 13, 2010

I carry a 3i, and mainly use it as a driving iron to keep the ball low. Also, I use it to hit punch draws and punch fades to get balls under tree branches coming out of the rough. I practice both of those, because I often need them.

You may have just answered my question for me. I just realized in my last round I used my 3 iron twice for punching out and having to go under a branch.

**Chief Broom** · January 13, 2010

I love my hybrids and use them as direct substitutes for the irons they replace (3, 4, & 5). I find them easier to hit than their respective iron. I can hit long irons, but through trial and error I've found that on less than perfect hits the hybrids give me a better end result. I've also found the hybrids to be more forgiving from less than ideal lies. Whether it be from the rough, hardpan, an ackward stance hybrids make hitting a decent shot much easier.

It doesn't matter to me what club a person uses. I bought my first hybrid (a 3) when the last iron set I purchased only went up to 4i. I needed something to fill the gap so I bought a hybrid. It didn't take long for me to see that the hybrid was a good fit for me and so I added the 4 and then the 5. I've seriously considered adding the 6, but I hate to spend the money when I can hit my 6i fairly well consistantly, but if money were no object I'd pick up a Nike Sumo^2 6 hybrid!

**murphmjm** · January 13, 2010

if you feel confident using your irons then go with that, but why not give the hybrid a try on a practice round or two hitting both back to back 3i and 3hybrid? I tried using a 3 hybrid for a while but just couldn't hit it like my irons so got rid of it. But that's my individual experience, maybe you will absolutely fall in love with the hybrid and grab a few more. I also shoot around 90's and really haven't considered adding hybrid's, although if it works for you why not.

**mirv** · January 13, 2010

i, too, carry a 3i and use it mostly for low punches. maybe once every three or four rounds i'll actually pull it out with the intention of using it for a full swing, but it's mostly a "keep the ball low" club.

**FHopper** · January 13, 2010

My Taylormade hybrids look a lot like fairway woods so I prefer to use a long iron out of deep do do. I think the style of hybrids determines where it performs best, also notice that TM recently introduced a deep grass hybrid to address the short comings of the ones like mine. So depending on you style of club you may or may not do well with hybrids only. A shorter club is easier to punch too so the irons seem a better fit for that. being a high handicapper I consider my 6 iron to be my long iron and carry both the 6I and 6H.

***iacas*** · January 13, 2010

I carry a 3 and 4 iron, the two most commonly replaced clubs with hybrids..... at least in my opinion.

I can't answer for you, but I know that for me I'm better off with a 3-iron than a hybrid. Hybrid distances vary a good bit for me, while my 3-iron is both more versatile (shot shapes, height, etc.) and tends to go a more consistent yardage.

I swear I posted somewhere a long time ago about how I wish people would stop telling me how many shots I'm leaving on the course by not having a hybrid instead of my 3-iron and 4-iron. But who knows where that post is now, or even if it was in the forum or the main site.

**sean_miller** · January 13, 2010

I've always considered that being able to hit long irons is the mark of a better golfer . . . Are long irons becoming antiquated . . .

How far do you hit your driver? Your woods? Your 3 - 6irons?

Are you often left with 3-iron yardage and have trouble getting your current 3-iron to the hole / fairway / ladies tee? It's hard to say what you should do, and even if I had a valid opinion, the last thing I would ever do is tell someone they should not play a certain type of club. If I ever do that, please give me a slap.

**RandomRaiderTTU** · January 13, 2010

I bought a 3-hybrid and tried it thinking it would replace my 3 iron, but finally gave it up.

3 iron stays in the bag. I hit it well and it's my 210-215 (carry) club. The hybrid I had, although they were the same loft went about 225 and that's just too much gap between my 4 iron and the 3.

I use it a lot on short par 4's, punch shots, and since I play 6700-7000 yard courses, I get a lot of par 3s in the 190-225 range.

Now, I will say this, part of the reason i got rid of my hybrid was because it was offset a lot and i kept hooking the everliving piss out of it. It wasn't reliable enough off the tee for me whereas even if I hit my 3iron badly, I'll still get 200 yards out of it with roll.

There are two holes on my home course that I hit it religiously on. A par 4 severe dogleg right that is about 380 and a par 4 around 360 that is pretty tight and has water that is reachable with driver. I typically have 7-PW in for the first instance, and 8-GW for the latter.

Have to have the 3iron.

**mrt10x** · January 13, 2010

Take a look at the Whats in the bag section of the golf magazines.. most pros no longer carry a 3i. Only person I see above ^^ who should be carrying a 3i is IACAS with his 1.6 index. I carry a 2 rescue and a 3 rescue. My 4i is plenty steep for punch shots, forced hooks and fades around trees etc. Real easy to play the 4i back in my stance and shut the face down to a 2i or 3i loft. If you are not a 4 handicap or better you would be better off with a hybrid. Of course you will not believe me and continue on you path of destruction.. same thing with 3wood vs driver. Most folks higher than a 10 handicap should hit 3 wood off the tee... but it never happens.

**jamo** · January 13, 2010

I can't answer for you, but I know that for me I'm better off with a 3-iron than a hybrid. Hybrid distances vary a good bit for me, while my 3-iron is both more versatile (shot shapes, height, etc.) and tends to go a more consistent yardage.

Agreed. I have a 2 hybrid that I can hit all of the "rescue" shots with. The 3-iron fills my distance gap nicely.

**sean_miller** · January 13, 2010

. . . even if I had a valid opinion, the last thing I would ever do is tell someone they should not play a certain type of club. If I ever do that, please give me a slap.

PS. Right in the face - a good hard smack.

**pittpanther** · January 13, 2010

I recently purchased a 3 hybrid, but have not intended to pull the 3 iron from the bag. The hybrid will be used for shots out of the rough or handling a distance gap between the 3 iron and fairway wood. I've always considered that being able to hit long irons is the mark of a better golfer, which is something I'm trying to achieve.

You can be a good golfer with hybrids, you can be a good golfer with long irons. It really doesn't matter. What is true is that switching from one to another will not automatically make you improve. If you're comfortable with your long irons, then switching to hybrids would seem (to me anyway) way down on the priority list of things for you to do. If you sometime hit fat with your 3I, you can and will sometimes hit fat with a 3H. The key is to stop hitting fat, not to change clubs...

Is this misguided? Are long irons becoming antiquated and I'm leaving shots on the course by not using the hybrid in place of the 3 iron? I find myself questioning whether holding onto the long irons will help me achieve becoming a better golfer, but I'm uncertain.

If you were just now learning the game, you would probably not have a 3I. But since you already are comfortable with 3I and 4I, I see no particular reason for you to change.

**ControlJunkie** · January 13, 2010

Take a look at the Whats in the bag section of the golf magazines..

The argument about pros no longer carrying a 3i always drove me nuts. Different pros have different strengths and weaknesses just like we do. If the OP hits the 3i well, more often than he hits the 3h well, he should carry it. If he's able to punch out with the 3i better than any other club, why should he scrap that, just to learn how to hit the same shot with a hybrid? Because that's how some pros do it? Doesn't make sense to me. You play to your strengths, and play away from/work on your weaknesses.

I don't agree that Erik is the only one who should be carrying a 3i. My handicap sucks, especially compared to his, but I consistently hit my 3i well, in a number of situations. Why take a club out of my bag that I hit well? Because Golf Digest says so? If I followed what they said, I'd change my swing on a monthly basis

Same thing goes for your statement on driver vs. 3W. I hit both very well, and I let the yardage and where I want to be in the fairway decide which one I'm using. Again, why pull a club out of my bag that I hit consistently well? Because I have a handicap over 10? What about the fact that off the tee, I'm in the fairway at least half the time? My point is that different people arrive at their handicap different ways. Some can't drive, some aren't accurate with their irons, some have no short game, and some cant putt. You just can't throw a blanket statement out there because we're all different and have various strengths and weaknesses. I also don't agree with playing the 4i back in your stance, as anything much past halfway leaves an awful lot of room for error, but that's for another thread I guess.

**James_Black** · January 13, 2010

Well I've got a 21 degree hybrid that's the same length as my current 4 iron that I hit pretty well most of the time
I like my 4i better though, I prefer the ball flight.

I might be a bit biased because I got my eagle with a 4i.

**ks8829** · January 13, 2010

I say, why not unless you are at 14 clubs and not able to carry 3 or 4 wedges in your bag to help your short game.

**GaijinGolfer** · January 13, 2010

Thats really a decision that only you can answer for yourself. Yes, hybrids are all the rage these days, but if you hit your irons well and like your irons, its not as if there is some rule that you MUST switch it out for a hybrid.
I tried hybrids, found that I like irons better and pulled the 17* hybrid out of the bag in favor of a 2-iron. I couldnt be happier.
Just because all the magazines say you should be swapping out your long irons for hybrids, that doesnt make it so.

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Am I misguided carrying a 3 iron?

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