3 Wood Versus 5 Wood

[gkcapers]

I am curious if many golfers are replacing their 3 wood with a 5 wood.  I struggle to consistently hit my 3 wood off the fairway and I feel more comfortable/consistent hitting my 5 wood.  Last year I removed my 3 wood and now use my 5 wood as my “go to” fairway wood.  Do you carry and use a 3 wood?

[M-in2Golf]

I swapped it out, 

But grip down before you give up on the 3w if you need the distance (for longer courses)

For me 5 wood and 7 wood interchange depending on the length of the course. 

I'm finding 7w used more lately, even have a 9 wood now to reduce roll-out when going for a green.

I think I was only using 3 wood once or twice a round at best, some times not at all.

[J.B. TexasEx]

I carry a 3, 5, and 7-wood now, but I rarely hit the 3-wood off the deck unless the lie is perfect. It's for steer-job, tee shots on tight holes.

Edited May 10 by J.B. TexasEx

[RickyBobby_PR]

More loft make sit easier to hit especially for those with slower swing speeds. 
 

Removing a 3w for something with more loft will make the game easier for most golfers and they won’t sacrifice much distance because the consistency of contact with the 4 or 5 wood will benefit the ball flight 

[NCDuffer]

I tried a 5W and still have it.  In the bag is a 4W.  Off the tee it is much better for me than the 5W as the 5W off the tee was way too high.  Off the deck it’s easier to hit the 5.  With the 4W when I choke up a little things are OK.  If I don’t choke up, I can pull it low left or if I hit it higher it’s a slight push fade.  I don’t know why 2 degrees of loft and a 1/2” makes that big a difference.  I have a 3H that is good to me and it’s about the same distance as the 5W.  Off the tee I can hit it low with run or high.  I think the shorter shaft helps my contact.

[Wakit300]

I took out my 3 wood a couple of seasons ago and changed to 5-wood (turned down to 17.5°) and have no regrets whatsoever. I don't get quite as much distance when I flush it but I hit the 5-wood consistently where the 3-wood was hit or miss.  Love it!

[Shrek74]

I play a 3w & 5w currently, but that may change to the point I add a 7w or 9w to the list. I hit my 3w all the time, both on the tee and off the deck. I find myself being a bit rare in the fact I love my 3w and hit it well 90% of the time. The other 10% if typically a top or thin.

[ClarkWGriswoldIII]

I bailed on the 3-wood before last season.  I sold the damn thing to take the temptation out of the bag!  I've gone to a 5-wood turned down a degree that goes nearly as far with much more control and a 7 wood with a 5-wood length shaft.

[Josh Parker]

I play the 4w cut down to 5w length currently.   

[THE GOLF GUY]

I have the 13.5* mini driver (my 3 wood )and a 5 (18*)&7 (21*)wood . I can hit the mini off the deck with a decent lie and it’s even better off the tee ,so  do I don’t need a 3 wood . At my home course the 5&7 woods get me home on the par 5’s for the most part .

Edited May 13 by THE GOLF GUY

[Haile]

I have a 3 wood turned up to 16.5 degrees, so it's more like a 4 wood. I do not currently carry a 5 wood because for me, it doesn't make much sense gap wise. I will say that the 3 wood is the club that I struggle with the most in my bag. At first it was just striking in general. Now I overcook the draw on it pretty consistently. I don't want to call it a hook just yet. But man, is it left. I get plenty of distance out of it. I'm currently toying with the idea of turning it back into a 3 wood and putting a 5 wood in the bag. I just haven't run into many situations where I needed it. But, in my humble little opinion, it is the most difficult club to get the hang of. 

[RangerGrey]

I just got a Cobra Darkspeed Max and this is so easy to hit off the deck and the distance is much better than I anticipated. I'm now curious about the darkspeed hybrids 

[WWeppler]

For years I had both in my bag which made decision making much harder. Midway through last season I decided to take my 3 wood out after a suggestion from a friend and haven’t looked back! I love having the higher loft on my 5 wood which makes it much more consistent. Plus, for the course I play at, driver compared with 3 wood vs 5 wood isn’t a huge difference in ball placement off the tee. That being said, I still have my 4 hybrid in my bag (instead of my 3) as the wood doesn’t help me anywhere expect off the tee. 

[RetiredBoomer]

On 5/10/2024 at 6:22 PM, gkcapers said:

I am curious if many golfers are replacing their 3 wood with a 5 wood.  I struggle to consistently hit my 3 wood off the fairway and I feel more comfortable/consistent hitting my 5 wood.  Last year I removed my 3 wood and now use my 5 wood as my “go to” fairway wood.  Do you carry and use a 3 wood?

I do not. 
My five-wood is 18º. 
I'm not going to hit anything stronger than that off the deck.
For every heroic shot, I'd hit three crappy ones.

My driver, however...a new BRNR...is for all intents and purposes a 2-wood.

[JRCorb]

I have a 3 wood that is adjusted to one notch of more loft and a 5 wood that replaced my 3 hybrid.  I can get about 15 more yards with the 3 wood off the fairway.  Consistency between 2 clubs close, so I use 3 wood more often on the fairway.  In the rough I use the 5 wood as it is much harder to hit from the rough with the less lofted 3 wood.

[RetiredBoomer]

6 minutes ago, JRCorb said:

I have a 3 wood that is adjusted to one notch of more loft and a 5 wood that replaced my 3 hybrid.  I can get about 15 more yards with the 3 wood off the fairway.  Consistency between 2 clubs close, so I use 3 wood more often on the fairway.  In the rough I use the 5 wood as it is much harder to hit from the rough with the less lofted 3 wood.

The original TaylorMade Pittsburgh Persimmon 3-wood had 17° of loft, and while I could hit it off the deck, it was hardly automatic like the 20º 4-wood or 23º 5-wood back then. Those old wooden club lofts on metalwoods didn't last very long, as we of course know.  Young people probably don't believe that they ever existed.

 

The modern 15º 3-wood, although laden with helpful tech, is not a useable fairway club for me at this stage of my game.

[MN Loon]

No 3W for me.  I carry a 16.5 “4-wood” instead, although I generally hit my 19 degree hybrid for shots of 180+ yds.  Thinking about switching to an 18 degree 5-wood, but afraid to lose the hybrid consistency.

[RetiredBoomer]

43 minutes ago, MN Loon said:

No 3W for me.  I carry a 16.5 “4-wood” instead, although I generally hit my 19 degree hybrid for shots of 180+ yds.  Thinking about switching to an 18 degree 5-wood, but afraid to lose the hybrid consistency.

I don't think you'll get the same distance gapping going to an 18º fairway wood from a  shorter-shafted 19º hybrid.  It would be too close to the four-wood, I'm guessing.

I guess you can't know for sure until you try, but you seem to be doing well with what you're hitting now.

[agram57]

I still  carry my 3 wood but rarely use it. The 5 wood is easier to hit and a flushed 5 goes further than a mis hit 3 wood.

[hkim]

22 hours ago, Haile said:

I have a 3 wood turned up to 16.5 degrees, so it's more like a 4 wood. I do not currently carry a 5 wood because for me, it doesn't make much sense gap wise. I will say that the 3 wood is the club that I struggle with the most in my bag. At first it was just striking in general. Now I overcook the draw on it pretty consistently. I don't want to call it a hook just yet. But man, is it left. I get plenty of distance out of it. I'm currently toying with the idea of turning it back into a 3 wood and putting a 5 wood in the bag. I just haven't run into many situations where I needed it. But, in my humble little opinion, it is the most difficult club to get the hang of. 

Adding loft theoretically closes the clubface a bit which could be the cause of the draw. It might be worth exploring buying a 16.5 lofted fairway would straighten you out. I currently use a 16.5 and 20.5 fairway and the gapping works out for me.

[Haile]

35 minutes ago, hkim said:

Adding loft theoretically closes the clubface a bit which could be the cause of the draw. It might be worth exploring buying a 16.5 lofted fairway would straighten you out. I currently use a 16.5 and 20.5 fairway and the gapping works out for me.

My 3 wood will go down as far as 14.5 I think being that it's adjustable. I still have to toy around with it. Part of the overdrawing is my swing. I make a hard left turn and tend to have a very closed face. I'm working on it. But if it works out after I turn it back down, then adding a 5 wood could probably make sense. But, just gotta play around with things and find out what works best. My 4 hybrid is 205-210 on just about every swing. The 3 wood is around 235 on a good swing. 240 flushed. Hit softly I can get 225 out of it as it sits. So I'm only looking at a 15 to 20 yard gap on soft hits. So that's I why I say it doesn't make a ton of sense to add a 5 wood as it sits. Who knows though, I may add a 5 wood, find it's much easier to hit and just forget about the 3 wood unless I'm trying to make a long par 5 in two. The process is where the fun is at for me.

[warrenator8]

I have a 3-wood in the bag, but I mostly use it as a back up driver for when it misbehaves for me. I tend to hit my utility iron (which I also use off the tee) more from longer distances out off the deck.

[KevB_44]

Interesting topic.   I have a 3 and 5 wood.  I am pretty discriminant about when I use the 3 wood---tee box, fairway when I am way far out on a very long Par 5 or if I didn't get what I should have gotten from the driver.   The 3 wood is just too difficult to hold a green if I hit it so I have to be short of the green and bounce up and on.   I guess I am fortunate to not see that often.   The 5 wood is just more effective for me for holding a green.  Last week I had 235 to the center of the green and I hit the front, bounced 2x and I was putting for eagle.   A couple holes later I used the 3 wood from the tee to play short of a pond at 265 and it worked beautifully.   

I have always struggled with certainty with these longer clubs.   I used to have a 3 wood and a heaven wood.  I got an iCrossover and didn't use the heaven wood as much and thought the 5 wood would have me a little more and it has.  Now I sometimes wonder if I would be a little better off with a 4 wood and a 7 wood or would that overlap with the iCrossover (or is it another option for a different shot at a similar distance).  I don't know, but I feel fortunate to see these issues as the problems I need to find answers for.   I need counsel.

[gkcapers]

Thanks for your insight. There have been lots of interesting discussions on the topic.  I personally am very happy with my choice to game my 5 wood and new 7 wood after removing my 3 wood.  Happy golfing!

[Micah T]

Off the deck I carry my 3 wood about 5 -7 yards farther than my 5 wood. It’s not a club I have 100% faith in off the deck. 3  wood rolls out more, but really I use it off the tee when Driver is on timeout or the ball cannot move right. Really the only time I’m going to hit a 3 wood off the deck is a scramble, or maybe while I’m on vacation playing at sea level. Some would argue that having a club be that specific is wasting a spot in your bag, but it depends on your setup, what shots you tend to leave yourself, and of course how far you hit your Driver and your longest iron/hybrid. 

[itsteetime]

Just this year, I started wondering why I have a 3-metal in my bag.  It is more inconsistent than my 5-metal.  Also, may be because of confidence, I get more distance from my 5-metal.  I have thought about changing the club setting to something more like a 4-metal.  However, I have not tried that adjustment on the practice range yet.

[Nolan220]

I swapped out the 3W for the 5W ... 5w is easier to hit lost little distance but make better contact