Does the reason change if they are blended into the iron set at standard iron length (club head weight adjusted) , Vice the standard hybrid / recommended length?
Britt Lindsey Answered question June 8, 2023
Does the reason change if they are blended into the iron set at standard iron length (club head weight adjusted) , Vice the standard hybrid / recommended length?
It really comes down to the what you need and the kind of shot/performance you are wanting to get out of the club. I am a good example of someone who prefers the FDI. I play the #3 and #4 and have them in my set of TS4’s 5-GW. they provide the distance gapping I need and I can control the trajectory better than with a traditional hybrid like our Tour TC. I hit those well, but I hit them higher, which I really don’t need. I do have a gap between the FDI #3 iron and my only fairway wood (TC #3 fairway), but I can actually throttle down the #3 wood when necessary. Probably could and will add a #5 wood to fill the distance gap between the FDI #3 iron and the TC Fairway #3. The more traditional shaped hybrids like the TC’s are designed to hit the ball higher than comparable long irons. My FDI’s are blended lengths into my set, so standard #3 iron length and #4 iron length. The head weights are kind of set up to do that with the FDI’s. You can do it with TC’s as well, but just be aware of the head weights when determining what length you are going to make them. Most tend to make traditional hybrids like the TC’s a little longer, maybe 1/2″, than the long irons they are trying to replace. Again, the length you make them should be driven by what fits you and what provides the best performance and distance gapping you need for your set.
Britt Lindsey
Thanks for the comments. I really don’t feel we have any gaps in offerings. The Tour TC Hybrids, if you consider them the more traditional type hybrid, are as good as any and have the lofts and weight offerings that will help fill a lot of gaps. As far as the more toe weighting, our designs will have the mass and dimensional characteristics where they should be for the design. Of course, every player may prefer a little more weight in the toe, or a little more in the heel, etc. to enhance their performance. All I know is the overall performance for the majority of players is outstanding with the models we have.
The Hyway’s are a nice “in-between” option and we designed those to be alternatives to higher lofted fairway woods that could be made a little shorter in length. They are a little hard to find, so thanks for that heads up.
As far as my bag, my set make up on any given day revolves around the course, the conditions and to some degree how I am striking it. Most times I play I play one course and the 3,4 FDI’s with the TC #3 wood are in the bag. The slightly larger gap I see between the #3wood and the #3 FDI is not an issue on this course. IF I ever needed to alter the make up, I would most likely pull the #3 FDI and put in a #5 wood (18 deg) or possibly a TC 3H (19 deg). Whichever one I felt at the time provided me the trajectory and distance I needed for the course and conditions I was playing.
We are working on new traditional hybrids for 2024, along with new fairway offerings.
Britt Lindsey
Britt, your bag make-up issues are very similar to mine, i.e., should we go with hybrids in the 19-22 Degree range or long irons and a 5 wood? What do we take out of the bag to add a 5-wood? I’m interested in what you intend to do to add another club.
I’ll be placing my TS-4 order today but am still wrestling with this part of the bag. I do think it is a “gap” that Golfworks could address a little better. (Your irons are simply unmatched. Could not be happier with the selections.)
I have struggled with most hybrids over 20 degrees, not because they are difficult to hit, but because they tend to be hook-happy, shallow, upright, and with not enough toe weight. The peer-shaped nature of a golf club (more mass in the toe relative to the heel) for some reason tends to disappear in a lot of these designs.
I also don’t have the same feeling with component hybrids and fairways woods in my bag in this range because they typically don’t show on the USGA’s approved club list, even though I know they are compliant.
My favorite hybrid design was by Jeff Sheets Circa 2006 (ASI originally intended for elite Golfsmith Clubmakers). These were easy to customize but by today’s standards are rather “dead” — no high strength steel in the face. They had heel/toe weight screws, a bendable hosel, an onset leading edge like a high-lofted fairway wood, and a nice pear-shaped appearance at address. Easy out of rough but almost as good as a driving iron for tight tee shots — no ballooning.
I guess the closest thing you might have would be the older Hyway metals (which by the way were hard to find on your website). These are light enough that one could shorten the shaft and add a lot of hot melt to customize any fade/draw bias.
I am hoping that your next hybrid offerings will address these issues. The Hyway seems to be a good compromise between a fairway wood and driving/long iron. Just needed one more (lower) loft option. I like that it takes a 335. Years ago I would make customized “hybrids” by adding a lot of weight to a fairway metal and then shortening the shafts, but all of those clubs feel dead in comparison to current offerings.