Bag Setup (What clubs to go between D and 5H?)

[westcyderydin]

I want to get new clubs to cover the space between my 5H (200yds) and my Driver ((270+(mostly)).

The driver is a Callaway RAZR Fit 9.5* .  The 5H is a Nickent 3DX Utility DC 19* which I can easily hit from 180-200 yards off the tee, but goes a little lower and farther when I hit if off the ground.

I am looking for outside opinions on which two clubs I should be looking for to bridge the gaps between these two clubs.  I would mostly be hitting them off the ground (as opposed to off the tee), and need them to be easy to get in the air.

I am looking for an optimal setup for any course I might play, not just one that fits my home course.  I am more interested in the distances I should be aiming to cover or what type of clubs I should look at (3w, 2H, etc.), but also would be interested to hear which brand or models anyone might recommend.

Thanks!

[dave s]

I'm not a long hitter, so keep that in mind.  Between my driver and a 5-hybrid, here's what I have:

3w - high launch.  My home course has a 200 yard par-3 that plays due west and into the wind under normal conditions.  I use the 3-wood almost exclusively for that hole only. Once in a blue moon, I'll pull it out on a par-5 for a 2nd shot.  Then I remember why I only hit it off a tee!

5w - high launch.  Used primarily for 2nd shots on par-5s and long par 4s.  Goes about 180-190 for me.

#4-hybrid - Used on par 3s that are in the 170-175 range.

More personal thoughts:  A high-launch 5 wood works much better for me than a #3 or 2 hybrid.  Had a #3 hybrid, but the HL 5-wood is much easier to move down the fairway at 180 yards than a 3 hybrid, let alone a #2 hybrid.  I like clubs that get the ball up and flying as easily as possible.  In my case, HL 5w works much better than the lower lofted hybrids.

dave

[Tat14]

What tees do you play from? The point being that your typical distance remaining on a par four is probably inside your hybrid distance.

I would add a 3W. Mainly for a safer shot option from the tee, or reaching a par five when practical.

Go Cubs.

[westcyderydin]

What tees do you play from? The point being that your typical distance remaining on a par four is probably inside your hybrid distance.

I would add a 3W. Mainly for a safer shot option from the tee, or reaching a par five when practical.

Go Cubs.

Usually the back tees.  It isn't the par 4s that I need a wood for its the par 5s...or maybe a long par 3 into the wind from time to time.

I would like to get a 3w to get out to 250 if I need to, but is that extra distance worth the control or height I might gain with a 4w?  Is there that much of a difference between the two?

[trickyputt]

I found my 3w solution in a TM stage 2 17 3HL that is a little longer than normal at 44", but on a really stiff shaft because it is used for accuracy shots. I play it around 235-220yds. At 215-200yds I have a 2hy (tm stage 2) that is adjusted up in loft to 17. At 195-185 I have a TM udi #3 which is lofted like a 4 iron but on a longer shaft. The 5i for 175 and so on...they will all go a little longer or shorter dependant on the draw or fade in the shot.

[WUTiger]

For first club, consider the 3W or 4W. If you can hit a 3W well, go with that. If not, try a 4W.

With a 270 yd. drive, you have a good amount of clubhead speed.

But that's not all the determines whether it should be a 3W or a 4W. It depends in part on how you come into the ball.

At a golf demo day, the Tour Edge rep - a former club pro - was having people test out the Exotics FWs. Among the long hitters like you, several people just smoked the 3Ws off the deck. Others had trouble getting the ball up, and did much better with a 4W, even through they were clearly long hitters.

Also, you need determine best head/loft + shaft combination, and best internal head design...

A head with a higher, more forward Vertical Center of Gravity (VCOG) will give you a hotter, "more boring" ball flight, as the ads say. Examples:

• Tour Edge Exotics CB Pro // Exotics E8 Beta
• Callaway XR Pro, and XR Deep

One with a more rearward, and lower, VCOG will give you a higher launch and more spin.

• Tour Edge XRail
• Callaway Big Bertha V series / Callaway XR series

TE Exotics E8 splits difference, had low and forward VCOG.

For the second club, split the distance between the FW and the 5H. If you pick a 4W, you might try out the 7W. ( dave s , with his RBZ 3HL and 5HL has what other kingdoms call a 4W and 7W).

If you go 3W you might try 3H or 7W.

(Do you carry a 5H instead of a 5i, or a 5H and a 5i?)

[westcyderydin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by WUTiger

For first club, consider the 3W or 4W. If you can hit a 3W well, go with that. If not, try a 4W.

With a 270 yd. drive, you have a good amount of clubhead speed. But that's not all the determines whether it should be a 3W or a 4W. You need determine best head/loft + shaft combination.

A head with a higher, more forward Vertical Center of Gravity (VCOG) will give you a hotter, "more boring" ball flight, as the ads say. Examples:

Tour Edge Exotics CB Pro // Exotics E8 Beta

Callaway XR Pro, and XR Deep

One with a more rearward, and lower, VCOG will give you a higher launch and more spin.

Tour Edge XRail

Callaway Big Bertha V series / Callaway XR series

TE Exotics E8 splits difference, had low and forward VCOG.

Also on the 3W vs. 4W? It depends on how you come into the ball. At a golf demo day, the Tour Edge rep - a former club pro - was having people test out the Exotics FWs. Among the long hitters like you, several people just smoked the 3Ws off the deck. Others had trouble getting the ball up, and did much better with a 4W, even through they were clearly long hitters.

For the second club, split the distance between the FW and the 5H. If you pick a 4W, you might try out the 7W. (dave s, with his RBZ 3HL and 5HL has what other kingdoms call a 4W and 7W).

If you go 3W you might try 3H or 7W.

(Do you carry a 5H instead of a 5i, or a 5H and a 5i?)

Thanks for all the good info here.

My 5i goes 180, 5H goes 200 from the tee and a little lower and more like 210 from the ground (has a very shallow face, low center of gravity).  The 5H has been a key club on my home course because of all the 185-210 yd par 3s.  I started scoring a lot better after I put the 5H in my bag and benching the 4i (190 yds).

I like the idea of finding the 3/4 wood first, then filling the gap between it and the 5H.