Illustration: Matthew Cooley

Hybrid Theory

Do these things really work?

Manufacturers are making them. Tour players are using them. Instructors, equipment gurus and even some golf publications are recommending them. The question remains, though: Do hybrids really work?

Gene Parente, Golf Digest Technical Advisor who orchestrates the testing at his San Diego-based golf research firm, Golf Laboratories Inc., has seen how hybrids work on his swing robot. “We’ve done a fair amount of testing where you set up our machine to mimic a swing that has a hard time getting long-iron shots in the air,” Parente says. “We’ve seen higher trajectory and overall better hits when we change the club to a hybrid.”

Mark Myrhum, an independent designer who has worked on hybrid designs for Tour Edge and Dynacraft, says how well hybrids work depends on a few factors, which means they may be right for you or they could be wrong for you.

“Because the center of gravity is farther back, there’s a higher launch angle, and because of the flat face, the ball spin rate is higher versus a regular iron head,” he explains. “The ball may carry slightly farther for average and lower swing speeds. The roll distance may decrease. These conditions are ideal for many slower swingers and those who do not consistently hit the center of the face. Now, for the better player to tour level, this increased spin and launch angle is not needed and makes the player a little shorter with these clubs.”

Golf Digest endeavored to give all that hybrid theory some real-world application. In a limited trial, we had a group of 12 amateurs test hybrids against their long-iron counterparts. What we found was more evidence that hybrids might be better for your game than long irons — even long irons that are designed to be forgiving.

The amateurs, selected from the Golf Digest Schools location at PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., ranged in handicap from 7 to 37. For the test, players hit 3-, 4- and 5-irons and their hybrid equivalents taken from the Tour Edge Bazooka JMax Combo set. (The Tour Edge set is one of the few on the market in which the hybrid and iron versions of each club are designed to be interchangeable.)

On average, shots from hybrids outperformed their long-iron counterparts in distance and accuracy. About two of every three shots hit with hybrids flew farther than those hit with the corresponding iron.

Furthermore, hybrids on average were nearly eight feet closer to the target line. (See chart on previous page.) The hybrid hits were closer to the target line an average of three out of every four shots.

What can we conclude from this research? This was an isolated test, featuring only one manufacturer’s clubs and a small group of players. What it suggests is that hybrids are a viable option. If you’re not consistently hitting crisp shots with your long irons, anything might be an improvement, and hybrids might be the quickest short-term fix in the game.

So what’s a confused golf consumer to do? Consider all the data, the recommendations and, yes, even the advertising claims, and then go out to the range and the golf course and give several products a decent trial. Maybe the answer to your long-iron woes isn’t a hybrid. Maybe it’s a lofted fairway wood or a more forgiving collection of long irons. Maybe you would score better if you decided to lay up every time you’re 175 yards or more from the green. A lesson couldn’t hurt, either. If your long irons don’t work anymore, the clear move is to store them in the garage with the scythe, the basin-wrench and all that other equipment you never use, and find something you can use.

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