Ladies Hybrids

Imagine: 206 yards to a pin that is stuffed in the front left corner of the manicured green. There is an ominous tree only thirty yards shy of the green, with it’s outstretched branches longing to swipe at any ball that comes near. Between this tree and the green lies 6 in. deep rough, leading to a deep, powdery sand bunker that promises nothing less than a bogey. If this scenario were presented just ten years ago, the chances of landing the ball anywhere within 25 feet from the hole would be miraculous. To even consider carrying the tree and the bunker would be a golf-score-suicide.  But Y.E Yang would consider no other option because he was armed with a club that allowed him to imagine such a shot. His weapon? A 3-hybrid that he was able to hit high enough to clear the tree and with enough backspin to take two short hops and stop dead in it’s tracks on the tightly mown green. He landed only 8ft. from the pin, sank his putt, and went on to be the only player in history to defeat Tiger Woods in the final round of a major championship, with Tiger starting the final round with the lead.

More than multi-layered golf balls and oversized drivers, the hybrid is the single most beneficial piece of equipment. Today, it is rare for companies to release iron sets with anything more than a 5 iron. Almost every golf club manufacturing giant offers some sort of set where the longer irons (3-5 irons) are replaced with hybrids. This is even more common in stes for women’s golf clubs. But the questions remains, what exactly is a hybrid and what are the benefits?

A hybrid is essentially a long iron replacement. Long irons are traditionally one of the most difficult clubs to play effectively. But hybrids offer a specific head design that utilizes a deeper face, lower center of gravity and higher moment of inertia. This translates into a head design that produces a higher ball flight, that is more forgiving and stable on impure hits, and is easier to hit off of flat surfaces (as opposed to tees).

Hybrids differ from fairway woods not only in head shape, but hybrids match the shaft length of the iron that it replaces (so, a 3 hybrid will be the same length as a 3 iron). Having a shorter shaft length dramatically increases accuracy. That is why the single club that requires the most accurate shot, the putter, also has the shortest shaft length (with the exception of belly and long putters).

Compared to men’s hybrid golf clubs, ladies hybrid golf clubs have higher lofts, softer and lighter shafts, larger heads, shorter shaft length, and thinner grips. But be warned, do not purchase hybrids based on their lofts. Many companies will take loft off of a club to produce a lower ball flight. For example, a typical 3 iron has 20-21 degrees of loft. Many companies will manufacture a 3 hybrid with 19 degrees to compensate for the naturally high ball-flight from the head shape. Wise counsel suggests that consumer purchase hybrids according to the designated iron it replaces, not off of the degrees of loft. Companies spend countless hours in research and development to produce the right combination of loft and head shape to produce the right distance.