My history with hybrids is a bit different than most. I still carry a 3-iron and can’t see giving it up any time soon. I generate enough swing speed and hit with the right amount of downward and sweeping action that I can hit a 3-iron just fine. This same swing tends to produce some poor results when I put a hybrid intended to replace the 3-iron in play.
As such, for years, I’ve relegated the hybrid to a spot between my 3-iron and my 3-wood. Hybrids from various makers, from about 16 to 18 degrees in loft, have occupied this slot at various times. The Titleist 503.H, more like a 2-iron than a hybrid, held the role until I moved onto the much-adored TaylorMade Rescue Dual TP. After realizing that I had a hard time keeping the ball down, I switched back to Titleist’s PT 585.H.
The 585.H was a great hybrid: it looked great, it felt great, and most importantly to me, I could adjust the trajectory to suit my needs. If it had a down-side, it’s that it was prone to the occasional snapper, as I often discovered on my home course’s long par-three seventh hole.
So when Titleist introduced the 909H, I was intrigued. As I stated in our widely read Sneak Peek, the 909H improves on the 585.H by offering progressive head sizes, shapes, offset, and CG to further optimize launch conditions across the range. A little birdie told me, too, that the tendency of the club to go left fast was reduced. I was pumped.Construction and Esthetics
The 909H, like the 585.H before it, borrows heavily from from Titleist’s fairway wood and driver lines, but takes the visual integration even further. If I’m not mistaken, the 909 line is the first Titleist line to share a visual style, name, and technology.
On the technology side, the 909H improves on the 585.H by being “progressively” better. Unlike – or at least to a greater extent – the 585.H, the 909H features a progressive head size, shape, offset, and center of gravity (CG) throughout the available lofts. The progressive features optimize the launch angle, spin, workability, and trajectory control throughout the offerings much better than with 585.H.
These are both the 17° models. The 909H looks squarer and a bit larger. Note the paint flecking.
That sounds like Titleist marketing talk, so what’s it mean to you? Lower lofted hybrids (like my 17° model) have a larger profile and less offset so that they match up with fairway woods. Higher lofted clubs have a smaller profile and a bit more offset to better match irons. This eases the transition into your other clubs at both ends. Every 909H has a deeper CG for added stability (and bye bye snap hooks!) and increased MOI. The head size across the lineup is slightly larger, with a longer face and a squarer, “Tour-approved profile for a more confident appearance at setup.”
The 909H’s body is made of 1704 cast stainless steel – a change from the 585.H’s softer 431 stainless steel body. The face is built with the same 455 carpenter steel. Titleist reportedly spent a fair amount of effort improving the the construction so that the ball felt as if it stayed on the face a bit longer with 909H over 585.H.
Righties and lefties can pick up 909H in lofts of 15, 17, 19, 21, and 24 degrees (lie angles 58, 58.25, 58.5, 59, and 59.5 degrees). All have a 0.5° open face and silver paint highlights. Stock shafts include the Aldila Voodoo Hybrid and the Diamana Blue 85 Hybrid. I tested a 17° model with both the Aldila Voodoo Hybrid shaft as well as the UST ProForce v2 (104g) that I had in my 585.H.
Of course, the most startling change is to the appearance of the club. The new shiny, silver-pronged sole matches that of the sister fairway and driver models. Though I’m sure this will be seen as a positive move, I greatly preferred the more understated satin appearance of the 585.H.
I’m in the minority here, I realize, but I preferred the more subtle 585.H sole over the shiny 909H.
Fans of the 585.H will notice that Titleist has moved away from the bore-thru design found on the prior generation. This should make things a bit easier for club tinkerers, and results in the little black circle on the sole.
The changes continue on the crown, where Titleist has gone part of the way back towards the silver flecked appearance found on older drivers. It’s several shades darker than that, but at the same time noticeably lighter than the 585.H or 907/906 metals. In bright sunlight, the finish sparkles. It doesn’t distract, fortunately, and the lines remain clean.
At address, the 909H retains the clean lines typically found on Titleist clubs. Like the 585.H, the 909H remains easier to align than the curved, two-tone TaylorMade hybrids. The head is noticeably longer and a bit more square. The slightly open (0.5°) clubface looks square, unlike many hybrids that present themselves awkwardly. The rolled leading edge and slightly wider face do look a bit less equipped at picking the ball off a tight lie, but my observational opinion was quickly overruled by experience.
Performance
If the 909H did nothing but offer the same performance characteristics minus a bit less of the lefts, I’d have been happy. It turns out the 909H improves – subtly, mind you – on a whole heap of things.
In my test round, I didn’t have a hybrid shot for quite awhile, and the first time I faced one was from the tee of a long par three. I found that the squarer, larger clubhead improved confidence. Some hybrids perform terribly from the tee, but the 909H performs well whether you need to tee it high and carry it or tee it down and fire a bullet.
The weight port you see here can be adjusted to maintain the desired swingweight.
Most will use the 909H from the fairway, of course, and again the squarer, larger clubhead is a welcome confidence booster. The wider face framed the ball a little bit and the finish, again now slightly lighter and more flecked, probably did their parts to make the clubhead appear larger than the matte black 585.H.
My earlier concerns about the seemingly more rolled leading edge were proven silly: the 909H is every bit as good at lifting the ball off a tight lie as the 585.H. Given Titleist’s demand for PGA Tour testing, it’s a safe bet they’ll never release a club that can’t pick a ball from tight lies.
I described the feel and sound of the 585.H as “simply divine,” so I was prepared to be disappointed by the 909H. Turns out I was. While the 585.H had a perfect blend of “forged iron” and “solid steel fairway metal” feel, the 909H leans a bit more towards the fairway wood feel. Feel is mostly sound, and the 909H has a higher pitched sound at impact that, though not bad at all, simply didn’t match the near perfect “crack” the 585.H delivered.
Titleist expanded the 909H both out and back, improving MOI and boosting confidence.
Initially, I tested the vaunted Voodoo shaft. It’s a 92 gram shaft that should perform admirably in a hybrid. I’m sure that for many, it will, but the shaft wasn’t for me. I had trouble keeping the ball down when I wanted – every shot wanted to get up in the air rather quickly. Once there, they carried nicely and without even a slight hint of ballooning – it’s just not the trajectory I prefer. No matter what I tried, every shot seemed to come off within a very narrow window.
I switched back to the heavier (104g) UST ProForce v2 – not a stock shaft this time around – and found the club performed quite a bit better. I could hit keep the ball down when I wanted or put a floater up in the air to carry greenside ponds or bunkers. I didn’t have quite as much variation in height as I did with the 585.H, likely due to the deeper CG, but I had more than with the Voodoo shaft.
As a brief aside, if I may… the ProForce v2 is probably one of the most overplayed shafts in recreational golf. It suits my game, but based on the golfers I see regularly, I believe Titleist has made good choices with their stock shaft offerings. Regardless, Titleist would encourage you, as I do, to get fit.
It took me awhile to realize it, but after ten rounds or so I grinned from ear to ear as I realized one key thing: I hadn’t faced a quick snap with the 909H. I’d hit one maybe once every 20 or 25 shots with the 585.H, but I’d yet to experience anything more than a small tug with the 909H. Given that my only real complaints are with the sole graphics and the sound, I’ll gladly trade those to lose that once-in-awhile poor shot.
As with the 585.H, workability exists in both dimensions. The curvature is softened just a bit – you’ll have to work a bit harder to hit the same fade or draw as you did with 585.H – but that has its upside as well in terms of helping you to avoid unintentional draws and fades. Again, the deeper CG and higher MOI are likely factors here.
With either shaft, mis-hits still felt like mis-hits, but the 909H improves on previous generations in terms of both distance and direction: the ball flies farther and straighter thanks to the improvements in 909H. For better players, you can still tell where you caught the ball on the face. The club can dig the ball out of trouble or be played with a sweeping swing equally as easily. Like most hybrids, the face seems extremely hot even with half and three-quarter swings. I’ve punched out from beneath trees and still had the ball carry 150+ yards. A three-quarter swing produces a ballflight that just bores through even a stiff headwind, which comes in handy on the longer par threes we often see these days.
Specifications
Righties and lefties can pick up 909H in lofts of 15, 17, 19, 21, and 24 degrees (lie angles 58, 58.25, 58.5, 59, and 59.5 degrees). All have a 0.5° open face and silver paint highlights. Stock shafts include the Aldila Voodoo Hybrid and the Diamana Blue 85 Hybrid. I tested a 17° model with both the Aldila Voodoo Hybrid shaft as well as the UST ProForce v2 (104g) that I had in my 585.H. The standard grip is the Titleist Tour Velvet Rubber (with the logo underneath).
As with all Titleist clubs, a wealth of shaft options are available, including various weights of the Aldila NV Hybrid, the VS Proto, the Fujikura Sppeeder, the Graphite Design YS-Hybrid, Project X steel shafts, the NS Pros by Nippon, the UST iRod, and the UST ProForce V2 Hybrid.
MSRP is $208, but the street price is $189 for graphite only. For more information, please listen to our special edition podcast.
The headcover’s a bit of a pain to get on, but it looks really cool. I can live with that tradeoff. 🙂
Conclusion
I thought the 585.H was the best hybrid on the market two years ago, and the 909H tops it. It’s not a huge step, but it addresses enough for me to make the upgrade worthy.
If you’re at all like me, a mid- to low-handicapper who is looking to replace either some shorter fairway woods or some longer irons, the 909H deserves a serious look. Unlike many of the more “game improvement” hybrids, Titleist – true to form – strikes a blend of providing enough help without taking away all of your shotmaking capability.
I tried the titleist hybrid and agree that it performs fairly well but I still don’t think it outperforms the Adams Pro Gold hybrid line. Adams continues to dominate the hybrid market and I don’t see that changing much with the 909H.
I would be with out my hybrid at all!! transformed my game!I like my Cobra baffler. tried the Cleveland one not bad. will try the Taylor made and Ping next. Thanks cory i’ll over there soon so I’ll add the Adams to my list to try.
Excellent review, i cannot wait to demo one now…if only golfers warehouse had them in stock. 😥
ya, why dont they have it? i asked them in november and they said two weeks and everytime i go back they say that were shipped and will be soon, but still arent there.
Good review, honest. I feel you may be back to the 585 soon. Us Titleist guys like ‘serious’ club for golfers. This recent release, AP1, AP2, 909 is just horrible, and not Titleist at all. Get rid of the shiny stickers, fancy graphics please
How does the 17* in this Titleist 909H compare with the 17* Mizuno CLK Fli-Hi? Much of what you say I identify with from strikes with my above described Mizuno. I just thought perhaps you have demo’d both. Thanks
I don’t think shiny stickers and fancy graphics affect the performance of a club very much, and I’ve found the AP2s to be a heck of a golf club. You must have missed my review of those.
I don’t foresee switching back to the 585.H any time soon.
This is the kind of review I like to read.
Well done.
I tried the 909 Hybrid, 21 degrees, Diamana shaft yesterday, on the range. It was easy to hit, with a more boring trajectory than my Cobra DWS hybrids. I liked it very much but, not enough to replace my Cobras with it.
Fine review, Erik.
I also tried the 909 15.5 degree fairway metal, again with Diamana shaft. This is one sweet club.
Great review as always-can’t wait to give these a try!
i was most interested in the part that mentioned the face had less curvature- because i do find that my 585 does shape the ball too easily for me— looks like the 909h will be a little more forgiving and help me hit more greens with confidence. Like the looks too.
Now i gotta decide whether to stay with the dg s300..
I think the 909H is a little more forgiving, yes. Not enough to warrant much discussion in the review (primarily the “anti-snap-hook” stuff), but you do have to work a little harder to shape the ball. Not much – and less so than in the fairways/drivers – but a little.
Love the 17DEG HYBRID I just purchased it . It is the real deal for me.Titleist for life!
I have had the 909H 21 degree in the bag for over six months now, and here are my thoughts. This club is just as easy to fade as it is to draw. No hook bias….none. Also, it looks great in the setup position, and feed back is perfect. I know when the ball was struck well and when it was not. The #3 actually replaces your #3 iron, unlike cobra and some other brands that are at least one club longer than the number on their sole. Try it!
I agree with others that this is a very good review, however I purchased one of these clubs for $260 in Australia to replace my Acer hybrid. I have gone back to using the Acer as I hit it longer and straighter. Big names and big dollars does not always mean better. Having said that I love my Titleist 909 Comp driver, best driver I have ever owned.
Great review as always! I found it particularly helpful, as I am currently hitting the 585 H with the V2 104 shaft…21 degree though.
I bought if off a guy who hit it for for 4 rounds and sold it for 120 bucks CND, so i settled for the 21 degree. Previous to that I was hitting the Taylormade TP Burner 19 degree (64 gram shaft). I like this club but found that it got up in the air too quickly, leaving less control.
After switching over to the 585H I found to have much more control over the ball flight with this club, however being that it was a 21 degree, my distance has sacrificed significantly. I often find from the fairway I would just as soon hit my 4 iron (Titleist 735 CM, but from the rough there is no comparison) I have the V2 shaft in my D2 driver which is amazing, and i am currently also playing the F2 Titleist 15.5 3 wood with the Voodoo shaft. I love this 3 wood and find the ball ignites off the face.
So I am now highly considering the 909 H, either in the 19 or 17 degree loft with the voodoo shaft, in order to fill the gap between my 3 wood and my 4 iron. Any recommendations? I only carry two wedges (52 and 56), so I do currently still keep the 3 iron in the bag, however its mostly used for punching out from under the trees on a tee shot that gets away, or on a longer par 3 when the wind is up.
J.
Purchased a 909H 19 degree last week and love it. Off the tee, off the fairway or out of the rough it’s straigt and workable. Actually I was here looking to see what other lofts are available
Finally picked up my 909h w diamana s. Love it and it does everything I expected. My shaped shots are less shaped and the lighter shaft compared to my s300 feels good too. Yesterday there was a 195yard par three that I didn’t want to hit a four iron on, so I decided to take some off my 19 deg 909h by playing a ten yard fade. Put it six feet from the whole and Scotty sunk the put. Love the club. Maybe I’ll miss the extra shapedness wheni need a craZy slice Round a tree or something but that shot doesn’t come up much. I want to get the 909 d2 now !
I just purchased a 17 deg 909H with a PX6.5 shaft and it goes a mile.
Although an unusual combination it actually performs brilliantly – you can feel the weight of the head, but the shaft feels relatively light and the ball just screams off the clubface.
If you like steel in your hybrids this is a great combination
HELP!!!
I have been using a 909h 24 degree and can’t seem to stop either pulling the pull or hitting an unwelcome draw at the worst times. Equally, I have a new 19 degree Taylor Made Rescue TP and do not have the same issues with this club. Could it be the ball position in my stance that is causing this problem?
The clubface appears closed at address, but I’m not sure if that contributes to this. I switched from a 585h 24 degree for the very same problem as I could never seem to get the hang of that club either. Any assistance regarding my problem would be greatly appreciated!
Ball position could be the problem, the lie could be too upright, or the shaft could be causing the problem. My 21 degree isn’t going anywhere. I have the VooDoo “R” flex and it works fantastic for me. I feel there are two clubs in the bag that you absolutely do not want to over swing, the wedge and the hybrid. Most people make the mistake of getting a shaft that is too stiff in these clubs. They reason hybrids have a reputation of being hook machines, so I will get the stiffer flex to reduce the spin. They end up over swinging and pull hooking worse than ever. Go a touch lighter in these clubs and swing smoooooth!
Mark…You say ball position could be the problem. I believe you to be correct in your assessment. My issue, now that I see it and realize it is that I have been placing the ball at the front of my stance, like you would with a driver or fairway wood. By placing the ball a few inches back from the original position I was able to see improved results.
Thank you for pointing this out. Your other points, I am more mindful of them (swinging the club too fast).
I have been using a 909h 24 degree and can’t seem to stop either pulling the pull or hitting an unwelcome draw at the worst times. unwelcome draw at the worst times.
Generically speaking, the “unwelcome draw” or “pull”, comes from playing a hybrid too far forward in the stance. This occurs as you are hitting the ball when the club face is closed.
See if this helps
I hit my driver pretty well, and my 2 iron as well, but i juust cant hit a 3 wood, do you think i can replace my 15 degree 3 wood with the 909 H 15 degrees, (Distance), better control for sure, (easier to hit?)
WOW- ok, first of all I must say that I have been a golf professional since April of 2007 and I have NEVER hit a hybrid club in my life until I bought this Titleist 909H left handed hybrid club yesterday.
I first tried it out on a simulator at the store to make sure that I had distance to fill the gap that I was pushing for and to also check the distance/roll/ball speed/etc.
I was trying to switch out a 7 wood that I had (TaylorMade TP 21 degree fairway wood) but because the shaft is shorter with a hybrid club, I was getting lower numbers with a 21 degree so I purchased the 19 degree instead (for distance purposes). I have to admit, I was a little concerned about the trajectory I would have with a 19 degree but I went for it anyway. Here comes the CRAZY part..
So I went to the driving range today and after warming up I took my first swing with my new 909H. I had picked out a flag that was 202 yards away….The ball EXPLODED off the club face and AIRMAILED the flag and landed PAST the 2nd flag that was over 240 yards away!
My jaw DROPPED and after taking a few seconds I hit another one. Then another one. Consistently this happened and NOW I’m going to leave my 7 wood in my bag and take out my 5 wood!
So what did I learn today? 2 things mostly; 1. That you can’t trust a simulator at a store (lol) AT ALL and 2. That the Titleist 909H hybrid club is AMAZING and SO easy to hit. I recommend this club to ANYONE who is a low handicap player. It’s worth it’s weight in diamonds! (FYI- I’m going to have to get the 21 degree one now so I can hopefully fill that gap for my 7 wood now! Maybe that’s what the guy at the store was trying to do? Get me to buy not just one 909H from him, but 2 lol!)
I am very interested in purchasing the 909H but am perplexed at which loft to get. I plan on replacing my 3 and 4 iron with the 909H. Can i get away with just getting one club to replace the 3 and 4? If so with the 21 or 24 loft. I carry a driver, 3 wood and 5 wood and hit them very well. Thoughts/help?
Thanks
Erik, this was far and away the best review of a golf club I’ve ever read. I’m sure I will study many more now that I’ve discovered this resource.
As for why I wound up here…
I’m currently hitting a 585.h 21 with the NV hybrid stiff shaft. 80 I think. Or is it 85? anyways.
I’m hitting it like a dream off the tee. 200-215 straight as an arrow. The feel and sound of it is so good. So now I’m thinking I should get a lesser lofted club to go for more distance, while hopefully maintaining the consistency that I’m currently in love with.
I understand that extending length automatically brings a certan degree of decreased straightness and that’s fine. But what would be best here…getting a 585.h 17 to keep the situation as similar as possible (is the offset a contributor to my success?) or would the 909.h in 17 or 15 bring me better results? I’m talking in a purely “off the tee” situation.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Matthew
Erik – great review – I purchased the 909H in 17* with the stock VooDoo and I agree with you. I hit it very high and straight but each time I need the ball down I cannot get it to do it. I use the V2 76g in my 905R so do you think the V2 in this hybrid would help me out a lot. I hit the driver with this shaft incredibly well and can work the ball however i want. I still have some time to return the club and trade it in and think I might do the same 17* head with a V2 – thanks for a great review.
Being a lefthander, club selection is really burdensome to me particularly living in this part of the world(Malaysia- to order it takes 2 months for delivery). i have in my bag, 909H(24deg) and 585H(21deg) to substitute my iron 4 n 3 respectively…is it a good decision? Im using Prov1x balls n hitting average 165 to 170 metres using iron 5.
I’m currently a 14 handicapper, and after switching from Maruman n Cleveland, I become more confident with my shots.
I just ordered AP2 from 5 to PW(currently AP1) and Driver 909F3, I hope my dream to be a single handicapper by next year, will come thru.
Anyway, I love reading your reviews and keep it up the good work.
I just bought the 909H in a 21 degree as a recomendation to replace a 3 or 4 iron. I don’t carry a 3 iron but am looking to bridge the gap between my 5 iron and 5 wood as I play irons well but never hit my 4 that crisply. Pro recommended the 21 but suggested that I check out the distance as most people tend to hit the hybrids longer than the equivalent long iron simply because they can strike them better. Planning on using this to replace the 4 iron (and/or the invisible 3) and maybe then getting a 19 to take out my 5 wood if its as good as they say they are. Compare them with your irons like for like on the range and decide then. Hope that helps.
Solid review…and I do respect your opinion, but this club is really not for me
I have the 585 and its perfect, and I never have that occasional snapper with it. it has the aldila nv shaft
I had a hard time hitting the 909 solidly everytime…i had a lot of worm burners with it even though it felt like a good hit
I am using AP2 2008 Titleist 4 iron with project X rifle shaft 5.5 with no problem, but not really satisfied with my 3 iron with the same shaft. Should I replace these clubs with 909H hybrids? and what the benefit? anyone can suggest me? Thank you.
Asep, replace your high lofted fairway wood and your 3 iron with the 19 and get another wedge. 200 yard approaches are a crapshoot anyway, and you’re going to need that wedge if you try that stuff. Heck, you’ll need it if you don’t.
Oh, and these are very easy to hit hybrids. As easy as the Cobra DWS, just with a touch lower ball flight. No such thing as a “players” hybrid unless you’re using a telephone pole for a shaft. If you can’t hit these get a 7 wood.
Ghetto Prez, thank you for your suggestion. What shaft should I use if compared to my Project X 5.5 for irons?
I have some difficulties deciding which loft to choose, I currently play the new Wilson Tour FG irons and my average 4 iron is about 185 yds.
So I am looking for a 909H for about 200 and 220 yds.
I currently carry a Taylormade Burner Rescue 19*, but trajectory is so hard to control, some high in the air, some very fine low, slightly draw, and some severe hooks now and then.
It is said that most hybrids are 15 yds. longer than comparable lofted irons, but it is also said that the 909H equals the irons.
So will it be a 21* plus 19* or a 24* plus 21* ?
Maybe best to buy the 21* play it for a while and later decide to go for a 19* or 24*
Also I think of upgrading to the 909 D2 from the 907 D2, but will that really be upgrading ?
Any help welcome ……
I’ve been a Titleist guy for years with a low single digit handicap (1 to 3). I bit the bullet about a couple of years ago and went to a 5 wood instead of a 2 iron. My playing friends have alll gone to hybrids years ago and make fun of me for not going to them. I am considering making a switch and replacing my 3 iron. Which Tilteist hybrid fits the bill to at least give a look? What loft is equitable to the 3 iron?
Two years on, I cannot resist commenting that the reviewer is absolutely correct about the differences between the 909H and 585H. I use the 909H 19 deg. as a 5 wood / 2 iron and the 585H 21 deg. as a 3 iron. The 585 is more of a true iron-replacing hybrid whilst the 909H is more “woody.” I see no reason to upgrade as this combination works well – as well as the Hogan Apex Edge Pro irons I still use and do not want to replace.
This site has some excellent reviews.
Took my 3 iron in to the golf store and compared it with Cleveland Mashie and Titlest 909 wood and hybrid on the ball flight computer at the store:
909H generally about 200 yards and 3 iron about 190 yards.
Add to that, I usually get a pretty big chunk of sod with my iron, I think this review closed the deal. Already have a higher loft 24 Mashie, so unmatched stuff in the bag, but…..
Go by and buy tomorrow… thanks.