sipsong

I played with a 3 hybrid for about 5 years and found them easy to hit rather than long irons. Two years ago I went to an outdoor Ping fitting site in Scottsdale and spent a while hitting various heads and shafts as part of the fitting process for new clubs. Watching the ball flight and looking at trackman data I switched to the 5 wood in my new set as the gap between 3 wood and the other hybrids. I had similar distances with the 5 wood and 3 hybrid but consistency was better with the 5 wood. I would recommend trying both and see what you are most comfortable hitting as having confidence in a club is a key to getting desired results.

Your club specs will depend on your specific swing. If lessons result in significant changes to the swing then best to refit and adjust clubs as appropriate. If your swing instructor also does fittings and/or has demo clubs on hand you should incorporate that into the lessons to have the most appropriate equipment for the lessons. I would purchase equipment after the lessons as shafts are an expensive replacement option. Forged club heads can easily be changed for lie angle so less of an issue. Cast club heads are harder to adjust so best to wait to purchase them after fitting. As others have noted the two are interrelated but you need a starting point which is your old clubs.

I play the same ball until lost or it becomes scuffed/cut which is about 3-4 rounds. I keep about a dozen in the bag so not necessarily the exact same ball each time but just an average time before they are replaced. I have a couple of brands in the bag but only play one brand on the day. I like to use different brands to experiment around especially when not in a competition.

Many years ago I did a three day school which also offered one day and one week options. We did half day lessons, drills, range, etc and then played in the afternoon. We found that if you are not used to hitting hundreds of balls every day you will get blisters, sores on your hands and may even wake up at night with cramps in forearms, etc. It is very different from what most people do everyday playing golf. Was very glad we did not do the full week session. If you sign up for a multi day school suggest you prepare ahead by hitting lots of balls and training yourself to take the stress and strain on your body. Otherwise you will not get the most out of the experience.