Am I misguided carrying a 3 iron?

[James_Black]

if your handicap isnt a 5 or less your longest iron should be a 5 iron

If I didn't have my 4 iron I wouldn't have gotten my first eagle.

Just because you can't hit anything higher than a 5 iron don't say that everybody else can't

[FHopper]

it depends on what course i am playing with high rough i will take the 3i out and put the 3h in and with low rough the reverse. mainly because of how the grass will grab the longer hosel of the iron thus making the hybrid out of the rough a little easier and smoother and just as good in the fairway. you can still do anything you want with a 3h that you can with a 3i though

That seems counter intuitive. I would think and iron would "cut" it out of high rough better. My TM rescues have a very large footprint and I have shied away from them in deep rough. I will give the rescues a try in the deep stuff.

[James_Black]

That seems counter intuitive. I would think and iron would "cut" it out of high rough better. My TM rescues have a very large footprint and I have shied away from them in deep rough. I will give the rescues a try in the deep stuff.

The wide sole works great to cut through the grass.

Don't know if they'd work if the ball is really sitting down in the rough though, havn't tried.

[Shanks A Million]

No, never use a long iron in heavy rough. A hybrid is best because it glides through the rough. A long iron cuts it, and gets stuck. The only way to hit a long iron from the rough is really, really hard.

[jrm1493]

One other thing that a 3 iron is good for is if you play in the wind. I hit my driver and hybrid about a mile in the air but I can keep the 3i low by putting it back in my stance. We often have 30+ mph wind here at the confluence of the gulf coast and great plains and it is very useful. Of course I carry both a 3H and 3I because of the different shots you can play; I find that there is a small distance gap with no wind but the ball flight difference is quite pronounced (hybrid is 19° and iron is 21°). I don't believe in lob wedges which is why I have room for both 3 iron and hybrid.

[mrt10x]

Of course the "anything more than a 10 handicap should use a 3 wood" and "dont carry a 3 iron unless you are a 5 handicap or better" rules are generalizations and do not apply to everyone. As shown here, there are clearly folks that these rules do not apply to. However, like many generalizations, they will apply to the vast majority of golfers. I have a square to square putting stroke, yet put better with a heal shafted non-face balanced putter, this makes me an exception to the rule. Doesn’t mean most folks with a square to square stroke shouldn’t use a face balanced putter. I stand by my statement. I can hit my 3 iron pretty well... draw it, fade it, hit it about 220 on the grooves. However, I hit the rescue 3 more consistently, longer, a bit higher for a softer landing on the green.

I did spend some time on the 2nd hole at Waialae during the Sony last week, which was playing 210yds into a 10-15mph wind. 90% of the players were hitting 3 or 4 irons, the others highbreds,, I would expect that the preponderance of steep faced irons was due to the windy conditions here in HI.

[sean_miller]

Of course the "anything more than a 10 handicap should use a 3 wood" and "dont carry a 3 iron unless you are a 5 handicap or better" rules are generalizations and do not apply to everyone. As shown here, there are clearly folks that these rules do not apply to. However, like many generalizations, they will apply to the vast majority of golfers. I have a square to square putting stroke, yet put better with a heal shafted non-face balanced putter, this makes me an exception to the rule. Doesn’t mean most folks with a square to square stroke shouldn’t use a face balanced putter. I stand by my statement. I can hit my 3 iron pretty well... draw it, fade it, hit it about 220 on the grooves. However, I hit the rescue 3 more consistently, longer, a bit higher for a softer landing on the green.

Riding a tricycle is easier than riding a mountain bike.

[WUTiger]

Originally Posted by WUTiger Have given some thought to getting an old Ping I3 12* strong 3W head - with newer shaft - if I can't straighten out the Driver. Would keep 15* as true 3W.

I think this is a bit misguided. If your driver spot is open, I would suggest going with a weak-lofted driver (e.g., 12° or higher) instead of a 3W as a tee club, simply because the head for a driver is far more forgiving than a 3-Wood. The key for hitting such a driver is the same as hitting 3W off the tee: instead of attempting to maximize distance, try instead to hit to a specific distance (whatever that is).

I would have to disagree with you on several points.

1. First, I have not dumped my driver yet. The shaft is 45.5 inches long, which may be a bit long for control purposes. I'll work with it this spring (I had surgery for an abdominal muscle tear from this summer, so that healing up may help.) 2. Next, I don't agree that the head for a driver is far more forgiving than a 3-Wood. What about people who "play it safe" on tight par 4s with a 3W off the tee? The shorter shaft and higher loft make the 3W easier to control. 3. The Ping I3 strong 3W from around 2000 came with a rather large head compared to recent 3Ws. If shafted with a somewhat longer shaft, it would be the equivalent of a Thriver. (3W with a driver shaft). Google to find out about the Thriver concept.

[Shindig]

2. Next, I don't agree that

The playing it safe comes from the days when the driver wasn't as forgiving as the 3W, and the extra loft on the 3W was the difference. It also comes from that lots of people try to hit the driver as far as they can, while they hit the 3W to a particular distance.

[mrt10x]

The playing it safe comes from the days when the driver wasn't as forgiving as the 3W, and the extra loft on the 3W was the difference. It also comes from that lots of people try to hit the driver as far as they can, while they hit the 3W to a particular distance.

Which days would those be? These days? yes.. the 3w is still more forgiving than the driver.. at least standard drivers... a 13 degree driver maybe the exception. They are more forgiving because of the increased loft. I think if I make a few examples, I'll show my point better: Consider a ball hit with a short iron (something like an 8 or 9 iron) with 8000 rpm of backspin and 500 rpm of sidespin. This is equivalent to 8015.6 rpm of spin on an axis tilted at 3.57 degrees off of vertical. The lift force from the spin works in that direction. Instead of the lift force pushing on the ball straight up and down, it it pushing mostly up but slightly to the side, too.

Now, compare that with a driver hit with 2500 rpm of backspin and 500 rpm of sidespin. That is equivalent to 2549 rpm of spin on an axis titled at 11.31 degrees off of vertical. The lift force is directed more than 3 times as far off of the vertical, even with the same amount of sidespin. So, the more loft a club has, the more backspin is generated which reduces the effects of the sidespin in terms of how much the ball will slice or hook. This is because will more backspin, the spin axis is going to be closer to vertical.

[Shindig]

Which days would those be? These days? yes.. the 3w is still more forgiving than the driver.. at least standard drivers... a 13 degree driver maybe the exception.

The issue is that the loft isn't the only difference between the driver and the 3W. Back when Jack would carry a 3W as a backup driver, his 3W was a shorter shafted, higher lofted, easier to hit version of the driver. Today, with the huge effective sweet spot on the driver, there just isn't as much real estate on the 3W. I'm pretty sure also that the larger face makes it more resistant to twisting on off-center hits.

[WUTiger]

The issue is that the loft isn't the only difference between the driver and the 3W. Back when Jack would carry a 3W as a backup driver, his 3W was a shorter shafted, higher lofted, easier to hit version of the driver. Today, with the huge effective sweet spot on the driver, there just isn't as much real estate on the 3W. I'm pretty sure also that the larger face

By Jack, if you mean classic Jack Nicklaus, you need to read his book

Golf My Way . In the 1970s, he generally carried the 3W as his sole fairway wood. Back then, he also was notable for trimming his driver shaft to shorter than standard to get control. in GMW , he talks about having a 42.75-inch driver shaft, back when the standard driver was about 43 to 43.5 inches long. Also, for a tee-shot alternative to a driver [wouldn't call it a "backup driver"], Nicklaus was just as likely to use a 1-iron on tight and/or windy holes as a 3W. If you don't understand the role of the 1-iron, you don't understand the classic Nicklaus. As for modern jumbo drivers, there's some merit in your statement that the larger heads makes it more resistant to twisting on off-center hits . This feature has been negated, however, by the marketing guys putting 45+ inch shafts on stock drivers because the longer shaft means more distance. Too much of a good thing. Poor control puts you deep in the rough, wondering whether to hit a Hybrid or a 5W for your escape.

[sean_miller]

Does the average player's preference for a 3-wood or a driver have any bearing on their use of a 3-iron?

[WUTiger]

Does the average player's preference for a 3-wood or a driver have any bearing on their use of a 3-iron?

No, not really. We have drifted off-topic.

[Shanks A Million]

Both cases are right. The driver is more forgiving on off center hits, but the 3 wood is more forgiving direction wise. Those who hit their clubs on the center of the face will prefer the 3 wood, those who don't will prefer the driver.

[James_Black]

Both cases are right. The driver is more forgiving on off center hits, but the 3 wood is more forgiving direction wise. Those who hit their clubs on the center of the face will prefer the 3 wood, those who don't will prefer the driver.

A 3 wood is shorter though.

Which means you have more control. And are you saying a 3-wood is LESS forgiving than a driver?

[Shanks A Million]

A 3 wood is shorter though.

The effective hitting area of a 3 wood is smaller than a driver, yes.

[Big_M]

3W v. Driver... as has been said you can't really say one is more forgiving than the other... Driver is MUCH more forgiving on off center hits. 3W is more forgiving of misdirection. I would venture to guess that most high handicaps struggle with finding the sweet spot... thus if they are playing a tight hole, they should probably just go buy a 13* driver and split the difference (best of both worlds).