Gapping in Clubs

[CSTACK]

I have been having trouble properly filling my gapping when I get over 200 yards right now I am hitting my 4 iron 205 and my 3 wood goes 240. I am currently playing a 3 hybrid but I don't like the feel of it. Im thinking about adding maybe a 5 wood. i have a three iron currently out of my bag because it is difficult to hit and it only goes about 210 right now.

[WUTiger]

4i = 205... 3i = 210 with difficulty... Congrats, you have given yourself a gap analysis of your long clubs!

A couple of things you could try:

• Softstep your 3i shaft, or switch over to graphite shaft in 3i. Are you having trouble getting a good 3i launch?
• Try a 5W or a 7W. See what numbers you get.
• Try out some different 3H and 4H models. Not all hybrids are created equal. (What is problem with current 3H?)

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Note: Once you reach 10 posts, create a signature line and include What's In My Bag info. If we know your current club mix, we can get an idea of how you approach the game and give you more insightful advice. And... welcome to TST!

Edited July 5, 2016 by WUTiger
Add hybrid comment

[Buckeyebowman]

If you don't like the feel of your current 3 hybrid, what's wrong with finding a 3 hybrid that you like?

[onthehunt526]

  On 7/5/2016 at 2:22 AM, CSTACK said:

I have been having trouble properly filling my gapping when I get over 200 yards right now I am hitting my 4 iron 205 and my 3 wood goes 240. I am currently playing a 3 hybrid but I don't like the feel of it. Im thinking about adding maybe a 5 wood. i have a three iron currently out of my bag because it is difficult to hit and it only goes about 210 right now.

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You're looking for a 220 yard club? So your 4i goes 205 and your 3i goes 210 with difficulty? 

What is your issue with your 3h? Are you pulling it? (I do that sometimes).

This is going to seem like an unrelated question... But it is related... How far do you hit your driver? Considering you hit your 3-wood 240 yards...your 4-iron 205 yards... Your first instinct of switching to 5-wood isn't a bad one. 

I personally carry a 4-wood... I'm not good with FW but the 4w is the only FW I can hit with any sort of results... I'm not saying that you should necessarily carry a 4 wood... But it works with my gaps... Driver goes 250, 4-wood goes 225 3-hybrid 210 4-hybrid 195.... That's pretty consistent gapping...

In your situation... since you hit your 4i well, have you thought of a 3i Utility Iron... Let me explain... They look like an iron but they have a hollow head like a hybrid or fairway wood...

[CSTACK]

  On 7/5/2016 at 4:35 AM, onthehunt526 said:

You're looking for a 220 yard club? So your 4i goes 205 and your 3i goes 210 with difficulty? 

What is your issue with your 3h? Are you pulling it? (I do that sometimes).

This is going to seem like an unrelated question... But it is related... How far do you hit your driver? Considering you hit your 3-wood 240 yards...your 4-iron 205 yards... Your first instinct of switching to 5-wood isn't a bad one. 

I personally carry a 4-wood... I'm not good with FW but the 4w is the only FW I can hit with any sort of results... I'm not saying that you should necessarily carry a 4 wood... But it works with my gaps... Driver goes 250, 4-wood goes 225 3-hybrid 210 4-hybrid 195.... That's pretty consistent gapping...

In your situation... since you hit your 4i well, have you thought of a 3i Utility Iron... Let me explain... They look like an iron but they have a hollow head like a hybrid or fairway wood...

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I've had a hard time keeping my 3h from completely ballooning in the air. i hit my driver 260 and i have always hit woods better than hybrids. what utility iron would you recommend? i did consider one because of the added forgiveness.

[IanW]

  On 7/5/2016 at 3:35 PM, CSTACK said:

I've had a hard time keeping my 3h from completely ballooning in the air. i hit my driver 260 and i have always hit woods better than hybrids. what utility iron would you recommend? i did consider one because of the added forgiveness.

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I had the same problem. So I went to a fitter and got fit for my woods. The resulting set was a bit surprising but very effective. The shaft makes a massive difference. I ended up with a driver at 10.5degrees, a 4w at 17 degrees, and a hybrid at 21 degrees. These values gave me maximum carries.

I also tested a 13.5 and 15 degree 3 wood which I hit the same distance as the 17 degree wood, but with less carry. Carry, IMO, is king for approaching greens.

I then tested a 4 iron, 3 iron, 2 iron, 6ish wood, and a couple of hybrids. The 21 degree hybrid and the 4 iron gave me the best gapping. 

I strongly suggest you go for a proper fitting. The $100 I paid for mine was the best investment for the money in my golf game ever. There has not been a single time where I have felt I got so much for such a small amount of money. It also gave me confidence that I have the exact clubs for me and took the club excuse out of the equation.

 

If this helps, the trick for me to hit the hybrid well was to hit it just like an iron. Forgive my likely poor technical terms, but I think 'hit down and take a divot' rather than 'sweep with a little grass nip'. hybrid = down + divot. 4w = sweep grass nip.

 

I also suggest trying the hybrid, woods, and long irons off a short tee. As I developed into a better golfer I started playing from longer tees which often have a 220 yard par 3. Carrying onto those greens without 20 yards of rollout became very important. 

 

My thoughts

Ian

 

 

[Dave2512]

Probably due to swing flaws rather than gap issues. I am all over the place with longer clubs. I know how far it should go but getting it there is the difficult part. Mishits are more obvious with longer clubs, travel further off line and distance control is erratic.

I don't over think it because nobody should face an abundance of 200 + yard shots where getting it to the number matters. We have one par 3 over 200 and there are times I find myself that far from the green on the two longest par 4's. I play tees where my so-so drives leave me approaches in the 6-PW range. Game Golf tells me just how bad I am from 200 out.

[CSTACK]

  On 7/5/2016 at 4:50 PM, Dave2512 said:

Probably due to swing flaws rather than gap issues. I am all over the place with longer clubs. I know how far it should go but getting it there is the difficult part. Mishits are more obvious with longer clubs, travel further off line and distance control is erratic.

I don't over think it because nobody should face an abundance of 200 + yard shots where getting it to the number matters. We have one par 3 over 200 and there are times I find myself that far from the green on the two longest par 4's. I play tees where my so-so drives leave me approaches in the 6-PW range. Game Golf tells me just how bad I am from 200 out.

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I know it's due to swing flaws with my 3i and probably my hybrid but that doesn't mean I can't get results from a different club with my swing 

[onthehunt526]

Apex UT, Titleist 712, 714 U or 716 T-MB, Exotics CB Pro or Pro Tungsten are just a few of the better.

[Dave2512]

  On 7/5/2016 at 5:22 PM, CSTACK said:

I know it's due to swing flaws with my 3i and probably my hybrid but that doesn't mean I can't get results from a different club with my swing 

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Sure and I do this as well but it's more a conviction thing than anything. Certainly there are some clubs I don't like, either the looks or sound is wrong for me or maybe it has more offset than I'd like but by and large with decent strikes the results loft to loft are somewhat consistent.

But what kills most amateurs, myself included, is shots from those distance typically mean we hit the previous shot poorly and are trying to recover. The expectation is to perform as well as we can but reality is from that distance we struggle considerably more than say 120 yards. The data shows our misses typically are short. To combat that when I am sitting there at 210 or whatever I don't think on the range hitting my best shot with club X this will get me there. I think I know from looking at my stats the results will be less than optimal so I better take measures to get my miss close as possible. I can't rely on perfection and I'll chance a miss long with more club. Usually because the previous bad shot didn't leave me a great opportunity anyway.

In other words my 210-220 club(s) are everything from 6i to 4w. Haven't really been able to nail that one down like a shorter club and how well I feel about my swing any given day plays a part. I take the lie, expectation for how to score best possible going forward and best worst case scenario miss into consideration in picking an area where I think the ball may land and hit the shot. Find something that appeals to you and hope for the best while you practice to improve.

[CSTACK]

What do you all think of the small head hybrids? I feel like they look better at address but I haven't hit too many yet. I'd like to test those side by side to driving irons and see results.

[WUTiger]

  On 7/5/2016 at 3:50 PM, IanW said:

...I strongly suggest you go for a proper fitting. The $100 I paid for mine was the best investment for the money in my golf game ever. There has not been a single time where I have felt I got so much for such a small amount of money. It also gave me confidence that I have the exact clubs for me and took the club excuse out of the equation. ...

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CSTACK,

Looks like you're at the point of really fine-tuning your club mix. I follow club tech, went to a fitting school, and hit a lot of demo days (and take notes). Still, I find a good fitter can help me in considering options. (My current driver and 4H are both head-shaft combos I would not have considered on my own - the fitters saw what I needed).

If you have trouble with the 3H ballooning, it might be a shaft problem. Hybrids have been tagged unwisely as being the magic club that will save us all, BUT... it has to be the right hybrid.

Try some different shaft and head combos in 3H, and see if things improve. If you have a standard head and shaft, try out some pro or tour models. Also, if the 3H balloons, consider a 2H - you may have enough clubhead speed to launch a 2H.

[onthehunt526]

  On 7/6/2016 at 12:05 AM, CSTACK said:

What do you all think of the small head hybrids? I feel like they look better at address but I haven't hit too many yet. I'd like to test those side by side to driving irons and see results.

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Usually the "Pro" or "Tour" models are smaller heads and have less offset. So therefore they do look better at address. 

I personally don't own one but have hit them before. I tend to not pull them as much as I do hybrids...

In your situation, it would probably be a good idea to give them a try.