5 Wood Alternative

[Elmer]

I have a Taylormade Burner 18 degree 5 wood. This club is absolutely not behaving and is close to being benched.
Couple things to note, this club was free when I purchased my Burner driver back in '09. The 5 wood is also now the only regular shafted club in my bag.

I have always had issues hitting woods. I have never been extremely comfortable with the sweeping motion that woods that require. I would almost rather hit my 5 iron, even though there is a loss of distance.

Luckily my 5wood only comes into play 4 times on my home course, twice off the tee on short par 4's and for a second shot on long par 5s.

Yesterday guys in my 4 some were telling me to shelve the 5 wood and get a 3 hybrid. This would leave my bag with driver 3 hybrid, 4 hybrid and then 5 iron......

is a 3 hybrid (19 degree) a good replacement for a 5 wood?

It doesn't help that PXG is having a sale on their hybrids right now. Which is a better option than what my buddy suggested. Which was to scour ebay and buy a club to see if I like it.
I really don't have that kind of time and patience.
 

Thanks for any advice!

[TourSpoon]

 

1 hour ago, Elmer said:

Luckily my 5wood only comes into play 4 times on my home course

So this tells me that its really important to address, because 4 shots that you know about are critical to you being successful. I always have set my bag up around the courses I play. At one point in the late 90s I had a short par 4 with trees left and right that bent right to left (draw). I went from a 2 iron, 2 hybrid, to a 5 wood and couldn't find that perfect 225 club. I eventually went with the 2 hybrid as it was a great tee club but not so great on the fairway.  I recently went back to a 5 wood and love it from the fairway and learned to hit it from the teeing ground (I have a shorty par 4 that I need that 225 shot at my home course). I just tee it like I would for an iron and act like its off the turf. 

So to help us out, what is your biggest complaint with the 5 wood? And how do you get along with your hybrid? Your buddies are right, because those 4 shots you know you have are costing you more shots. The 3 hybrid at 19* is probably a good starting point, but remember the 5 wood has a longer shaft. For reference, my 18* 2H is very similar in distance to my 5W. The main difference is that the hybrid has a more boring, lower flight.  

 

 

[Elmer]

21 minutes ago, TourSpoon said:

So to help us out, what is your biggest complaint with the 5 wood? And how do you get along with your hybrid?

I get along fairly well with my hybrid. I can say my miss-hits have better results with my hybrid than with my 5W.

My complaints about my 5W (and I realize most of these maybe operator blaming his tools.
the 5W has a small head and I therefore have little confidence making contact.
When tee'd up I hit behind or to the side (which tells me I am making awkward swings)
Off the fairway I take big divots
If and when I do make good contact the ball flight pulls to the left
The club feels long- I have my driver and then aside from 5W everything else is iron. So the 5W is just a different feel.
The miss-hits provide terrible results ( In the case I get good distance, I can be 50 yards to the left or right of target)

 

[TourSpoon]

2 hours ago, Elmer said:

I get along fairly well with my hybrid. I can say my miss-hits have better results with my hybrid than with my 5W.

I would try the hybrid for sure. Golf is about managing misses and if the 5W can bring disaster then its not worth having in the bag. Hybrids are shorter length, are hit more like an iron, and can bridge that gap between irons and woods. So get to ordering! 

[Vinsk]

I’ve come to believe that the shaft can considerably affect a club’s performance for me. You said it’s regular shaft..are your other clubs stiff? I’d consider trying a different shaft before getting rid of it.

[phillyk]

2 iron? 😉

[Elmer]

Stopped by the local golf place.
found a Cobra 3Hybrid on sale for $99, but it is offset.
Even though I hit it ok, none of my other clubs are offset.

[billchao]

@Elmer a 2h is a better replacement for a 5w for gapping. The 5w has more loft but is also a longer club.

[onthehunt526]

On 6/9/2023 at 8:31 PM, billchao said:

@Elmer a 2h is a better replacement for a 5w for gapping. The 5w has more loft but is also a longer club.

Well, Bill that depends on how the 2H is designed, what handicap it’s designed for, and if it’s adjustable, how the player configures it. I carry a Callaway Apex UW 2H and I hit it almost as far as my 4W (3HL). My UW has 17° loft and a 41.5” playing length, so it’s a 7-wood length and trajectory with a 4-wood loft. 
 

@Elmer I don’t suggest you go out and buy a $300 UW (I had trade in credit only reason I got it. Bill’s correct where a 2H would fit the gap better, but if you’re going to go that route, I’d try maybe a 7-wood, or the Cleveland Halo Hywood (18° it’s a cheaper option than the APEX UW).

[Elmer]

On 7/14/2023 at 2:23 AM, onthehunt526 said:

Well, Bill that depends on how the 2H is designed, what handicap it’s designed for, and if it’s adjustable, how the player configures it. I carry a Callaway Apex UW 2H and I hit it almost as far as my 4W (3HL). My UW has 17° loft and a 41.5” playing length, so it’s a 7-wood length and trajectory with a 4-wood loft. 
 

@Elmer I don’t suggest you go out and buy a $300 UW (I had trade in credit only reason I got it. Bill’s correct where a 2H would fit the gap better, but if you’re going to go that route, I’d try maybe a 7-wood, or the Cleveland Halo Hywood (18° it’s a cheaper option than the APEX UW).

I have an old Callaway 7 wood. 
I can try adding that back into the bag.

[SEMI_Duffer]

My experiences with woods...

The bag full o' clubs I was gifted consisted of 4i-PW, 7w, and 5w that are, near as I've been able to determine, TaylorMade Burner knock-offs.

I was never able to hit either the 7w or 5w worth a damn.  At the LGS one day I spotted a used Ping G SF Tec.  They let me try it on their range.  Seemed to work for me.  After I bought it, it didn't, anymore.  I also had a matching Ping 3w that had been gifted to me.  Couldn't hit that, either.

I'd about given up on woods when along came the Callaway Mavrik and Mavrik MAX lines.  Soon started reading about guys who'd never been able to get a ball off the deck with a wood to save their souls having great success with the Mav MAX woods.  "So easy it feels like cheating."  So I bought a 7w and 5w from CPO.

Darned if they weren't right.  And, not only could I get 'em off the deck, but, they moderated my most common miss: Turning slices into fades and fades into nice and straight.

But note: I've only had mine on the range, off mats.  I have not yet played with them.

CPO doesn't have any Mav MAX fairway woods, currently, but, they do have their successors: Epic MAX woods.

[David L Yskes]

On 6/8/2023 at 10:08 AM, Elmer said:

I have a Taylormade Burner 18 degree 5 wood. This club is absolutely not behaving and is close to being benched.
Couple things to note, this club was free when I purchased my Burner driver back in '09. The 5 wood is also now the only regular shafted club in my bag.

I have always had issues hitting woods. I have never been extremely comfortable with the sweeping motion that woods that require. I would almost rather hit my 5 iron, even though there is a loss of distance.

Luckily my 5wood only comes into play 4 times on my home course, twice off the tee on short par 4's and for a second shot on long par 5s.

Yesterday guys in my 4 some were telling me to shelve the 5 wood and get a 3 hybrid. This would leave my bag with driver 3 hybrid, 4 hybrid and then 5 iron......

is a 3 hybrid (19 degree) a good replacement for a 5 wood?

It doesn't help that PXG is having a sale on their hybrids right now. Which is a better option than what my buddy suggested. Which was to scour ebay and buy a club to see if I like it.
I really don't have that kind of time and patience.
 

Thanks for any advice!

I'd go with a hybrid, look into one of the Cleveland xl launcher hybrids, they are so easy to hit... I tend to hit them easier than my 3 wood....  I have the 3 hy-wood,  3 hybrid and 4 hybrid..

I've been looking into maybe a 5 wood or 7 wood, but I keep on sticking with the hybrids

[ChiTown]

Top of my bag is Driver, 3W, 4H, 4I …. I really like playing the 4H.  I tend to go for my 4H when I’m playing into a tight fairway or the lie is light rough, etc. Highly recommend you giving the hybrid a try. 

[Elmer]

I ended up buying a PXG 0211 3 hybrid (19 degrees). It was a complete late night impulse purchase. No fitting, just picked out a stiff shaft and ordered. After shipping and everything it was around $200.

The 3H is a little shorter than my 5W (205 vs 215). However I am getting in less trouble.
My 5W, when I crushed it would go 215+. However there was a good chance that I would hook it left, slice it right, or just straight up duff it!

When I really think about it, I am aspiring to be a solid bogie golfer. So only need the hybrid 2 maybe 3 times a round.  But more importantly, I need the ball to be forward and findable. So the 3H provides this over the 5W.

Now since I only play with 13 clubs, I have room for a 3W or 5W  or 2H if I ever come across the new fancy name brand clubs, and can afford them.
And considering I have yet to use my 54 degree all year, I could make space for both a 3 5 or 7.

Who knows,

But thank you for all the advise. 

[3jacker]

On 7/14/2023 at 2:23 AM, onthehunt526 said:

Well, Bill that depends on how the 2H is designed, what handicap it’s designed for, and if it’s adjustable, how the player configures it. I carry a Callaway Apex UW 2H and I hit it almost as far as my 4W (3HL). My UW has 17° loft and a 41.5” playing length, so it’s a 7-wood length and trajectory with a 4-wood loft. 
 

@Elmer I don’t suggest you go out and buy a $300 UW (I had trade in credit only reason I got it. Bill’s correct where a 2H would fit the gap better, but if you’re going to go that route, I’d try maybe a 7-wood, or the Cleveland Halo Hywood (18° it’s a cheaper option than the APEX UW).

I have one that I think is 19*.  Love that club.  But combined with the shaft, it was embarassingly expensive.  Most expensive club in my bag.  

 

Thank God I love it.

[mdl]

At a 16 handicap it may not be the right answer for you, but I think it's worth hitting a few 2 irons! I currently only carry 13 clubs, and the only club between driver and 4i is my 2i!

I should probably get fit for a 3w. But for me my driver and wood swing quality/results on a given day are much more correlated than my driver and 2i results. So if I'm wild with the driver, I've generally been wild with the 3w. But I might not be with the 2i. On days when I'm hitting my long irons solid but not the driver, the 2i is a clutch tee club.

You say you feel better over your 5i than your hybrid or you 5w, so maybe a 2i would work for you?