woods vs. hybrids

[Gaviao]

So what is the difference between hybrids and fairway woods?

Awhile back I asked what other clubs I needed and the overwhelming response was to get a 56 wedge and a 3/5 wood. However when I've gone to a sports store looking at clubs there are a TON of hybrids compared to 3/5 woods... this also means that there are more on sale

Should I consider getting a hybrid instead of a fairway wood? Or is this a personal preference thing?

Lastly I noticed that hybrids are classified by degrees, so what would be the hybrid equivalent to 3 wood and a 5 wood?

p.s. I got the 56 wedge

[jeffrey r]

At its most basic, it comes down to the loft of the club, and the size of the club head. For example, with my Wilson Fybrids, my 3 wood is 15*, 5 wood is 18*, bridge club is 19.5* (intended to replace 7 wood, 2 hybrid and 2 iron), 3 hybrid is 21* and 4 hybrid is 24*. The club heads on the fairway woods are bigger than on the hybrids, primarily because the fairway woods are woods, and hybrids are intended to be iron replacements. The fairway woods are generally intended to be hit off the tee on occasion, or to let it rip from the fairway after a tee shot. The hybrids obviously function just as the corresponding iron would, so if you are bagging a 4 hybrid instead of a 4 iron, then you'd hit the 4 hybrid when a shot is appropriate for a 4 iron.

Any of these are viable clubs, but in most cases, one would have to pick and choose some but not all of them to bag for a round to keep within the 14-club rule. So you have to look at what works best for you. Some people have trouble hitting fairway woods (especially the 3 wood), and some people have trouble hitting hybrids. You've got to try some out to see where you fit in. I used to have trouble with different sets of fairway woods and hybrids until the Wilsons, which I can hit well.

[WUTiger]

Of the three types of clubs, this is the general trend: FW are the longest shafted, irons the shortest shafted, and hybrids in between. Hybrids tend to have smaller heads than FWs.

The hybrids obviously function just as the corresponding iron would, so if you are bagging a 4 hybrid instead of a 4 iron, then you'd hit the 4 hybrid when a shot is appropriate for a 4 iron.

This is where things get tricky, which hybrid matches which iron. A 4H generally falls between a 4W and a 4i in how far it will hit the ball. In another thread, one poster said he carried a 4i and a 4H, and that the 4H went longer and higher, while the 4i flew lower and was much better going into the wind.

That said, some recent hybrids are billed as "iron replacements," basically you use these IR hybrids instead of a 3i or a 4i. The 3H I tried last year I used instead of a 5W, but I had trouble hitting it, and found that the 5W went 20 yds. farther.

... So you have to look at what works best for you. Some people have trouble hitting fairway woods (especially the 3 wood), and some people have trouble hitting hybrids....

One deciding factor involves how far you hit the ball. Some posters who hit the ball a long way carry either a 3W or 4W, and then go into hybrids. Or, others have driver + some hybrids, no FWs.

I'll be hitting the 3W and 5W, as I need the extra distance. (I've found I can hit Edge Tour and Adams hybrids OK, I just don't have the $$ to buy any.)