Understanding The Hybrid Club In Your Golf bag

For all intents and purposes "utility clubs" and "hybrid clubs" are terms used interchangeably by golfers and manufacturers. Hybrid/utility clubs correspond to those clubs that combine the elements in design of the traditional golf woods and golf irons into their construction.

The biggest feature that comes from this combination of traditional golf clubs is the ability for the ordinary golfer to get his ball airborne a little easier, to eliminate the possibility of making a bad shot with an off center stroke on the ball as well as add some often needed distance to their game. Hybrid clubs can combine the best of irons and woods to make your golf game better. And here is something even better. You get these advantages without having to change your swing in any way. That is a big plus because changing and/or messing up your swing is not something you want to do.

Some hybrid clubs even come with a couple of weights inserted in the read of the club head to give more movement of inertia [MOI] and allow for straighter shots by preventing the club head from twisting at impact. But you can also get extra weights that can change the MOI even more or put it off balance to allow for a draw or a fade shot whenever necessary!

Quite often you can replace the lower lie irons [3,4,5] that are harder to hit for most golfers with a hybrid club with a larger head and that MOI that will give you longer and straighter shots because of the design.

If you find that you cannot get a good, complete back swing because of physical limitations, try a hybrid club. If you have a slower swing speed. the hybrid club will give you longer, more accurate  drives. The long, narrow face and wider sole of the hybrid creates the lower center of gravity required to drive the ball further with less effort.

The face of the utility/hybrid clubs is usually also made of a harder steel than a golf iron [more like a wood] to also add to the factors that give more distance on your shots. You can also get the loft of a 3 or 5 wood but with a shorter, more manageable club.

With the higher loft of a hybrid club, you can also get the ball to stop much quicker without the roll that might put you back in trouble.

Hybrid clubs can used from the tee, the fairway or even the rough. There are no limitations.

Jim Furyk used a Nickent 3DX, 20 degrees hybrid club in winning the 2006 Wachovia Championship.

Bobby Wadkins used a TaylorMade Rescue Dual, 16 degrees hybrid club in winning the 2006 Boeing Championship.

Jay Haas used a Titleist 585, 21 degrees hybrid club in winning the 2006 Senior PGA Championship.