Chipping with a hybrid

[GolfSpy WD]

I've started doing this recently when my ball is on the skirt with a lot of success, though it takes some practice because the ball flies off the face.

 

I'm curious, for those who do it, what situations do you use your hybrid to chip and what situations do you prefer a putter or wedges?

[hckymeyer]

I've experimented a little with this. I typically use it when I'm only a foot or less off the green, but in the rough. On a tight fairway I'll still either putt or bump and run with a wedge or 7i.

 

It has basically replaced the bladed wedge for me. I would sometimes have issues with double hitting the bladed wedge from just in the rough, and I have no distance control with a regular pitch or chip from that close. The hybrid pops it out of the rough nicely and gets the ball rolling.

 

I agree it takes a lot of practice to realize how hot the ball comes off the face.

[JBones]

I will only use the hybrid on a lie that dictates it; for example, yesterday on a par three I hit it through the back of the green and was only about 4" off the fringe, but I was sitting slightly up in the rough and had a downhill lie. The chances of hitting a good shot with a wedge from that lie were slim.

[Super Tuna]

Never.

 

I either find that there's enough green after the rough that a wedge or iron suffices or there isn't and I'm always better to use a putter.

[Kanoito]

All the times I've tried this, I've failed miserably.

I guess I'm just used to the heavier weight and feel of a wedge/iron.

[The Dansome]

I used to use a 5 wood a lot to do this. I liked having that little bit the loft to get it on the green and rolling. I do use my hybrids from time to time but find they really seem to jump and it's hard to get used to how soft to swing it.

[BK in TEXAS]

All the times I've tried this, I've failed miserably.

I guess I'm just used to the heavier weight and feel of a wedge/iron.

When I try to chip with a hybrid it's lousy. But....if I putt with the hybrid, it's usually pretty good. I'm talking about the exact same shot....just mentally thinking about the stroke as a putt, not a chip.

[GolfSpy WD]

When I try to chip with a hybrid it's lousy. But....if I putt with the hybrid, it's usually pretty good. I'm talking about the exact same shot....just mentally thinking about the stroke as a putt, not a chip.

 

Agreed, I treat it like putting. I call it chipping though since it's not on the green...

[ZenGolfer]

I used to chip with my hybrid when my ball was on the fringe and and there was rough close enough behind the ball that I didnt feel comfortable trying to putt with it.

Now, I just carry a chipper and am much happier.

[revkev]

I use this shot - allot!!!!! It's a great shot for me - I use it if I'm just off the fringe in another length of grass (rough or semi rough). I use it if I'm into the grain and have to transverse fairway length grass to the green and finally I use it if I'm up against the collar.

 

It takes a little practice - not tons of practice but a little practice to master the shot but it's really quite easy - I used to use a 7 wood for that type of shot prior to the advent of hybrids - but now I'll always reach for the 4 hybrid for the types of shots described above - I've even used it for down hill lies out of packed sand where there was no lip on the bunker.

[RoverRick]

I have putted with the hybrid from time to time and was really quite good at it, with just a little practice. However, a lot of the time now I do not have a hybrid per se. I have the Mizzy Fli Hi's that I carry most of the time so they do not have the explosive face of the FM's or Hybrids.

[Shambles]

I used to practice some with my fairways but in the end gave it up as too limited in use and needing way too much gentle feel to work properly. I settled for using a selection of short irons, depending on needed shot. You get to hit the ball a little harder and end up with more brakes on the landing so that the roll out isn't so much and reasonably predictable.

 

I consider the wood chip essentially a trick shot needing too much skill and feel.

 

 

Shambles

[RookieBlue7]

If the greens are in good shape, and it's open, I will use the hybrid chip whenever I can. It's reliable and I want the ball rolling as quickly as possible.

[Firstkart]

I do not do this. I like the spin I generate with my wedges.

 

AJ

[sparnar]

I have wanted to test this for quite a while, and have only attempted it once during around. This was when the ball was in the second cut, and I didn't quite feel comfortable getting enough club on the ball, and I had PLENTY of green to work with.

 

I played a pretty decent shot, but it still ran about 4/5 feet past the hole. I managed to drain the putt coming back for a good up and down.

 

Although that was a good result, I actually practised this hybrid chip last week, and felt I couldn't quite get a handle on the "spring-iness" of the face. I had some shots that ended up short, and others ran quite a bit past the hole.

 

While I think it is a great shot to have in the arsenal, it will be in the same drawer as the lob shot for myself, he only-play-it-when-there-is-absolutely-no-other-choice drawer.

 

I do still think it is a great option to explore, and will try to develop some feel for this shot in future.

 

But right now I am chipping really well, and I don't want to lose that feel by trying a shot that I won't use as much.

 

I have recommended this shot to a hacker friend, that has a older 7 wood. The face isn't as hot\springy, and he should be able to judge distance fairly easily.

[ZenGolfer]

I do not do this. I like the spin I generate with my wedges.

 

AJ

Its much easier and more consistent to chip with a hybrid and roll it up to the hole than to try to use a wedge because with the wedge it can be difficult to control distance and spin. If you get either the distance or spin wrong, the shot wont end up close to the hole. With a hybrid or FW though, you can just use a putting stroke and you take spin out of the equation, so its a much easier shot to control and predict.

[Shambles]

Its much easier and more consistent to chip with a hybrid and roll it up to the hole than to try to use a wedge because with the wedge it can be difficult to control distance and spin. If you get either the distance or spin wrong, the shot wont end up close to the hole. With a hybrid or FW though, you can just use a putting stroke and you take spin out of the equation, so its a much easier shot to control and predict.

 

Sounds to me as if you're talking more about putting from off the green with a wood rather than chipping, and if so, the hybrid or fairway serves fairly well. Chipping is another matter and I consider that rather difficult to control.

 

 

Shambles

[revkev]

You need to hit higher up on the ball to control the distance sparnar - a slight blade if you will.

 

Actually whoever mentioned spin this is one of the shots I hit when I don't want spin - when it's open between me and the pin spin becomes the enemy.

[sparnar]

You need to hit higher up on the ball to control the distance sparnar - a slight blade if you will.

 

Actually whoever mentioned spin this is one of the shots I hit when I don't want spin - when it's open between me and the pin spin becomes the enemy.

 

Ahhh, ok... Thanks, revkev! I'll give that a shot next time I'm at a practice green.

[revkev]

Like most things practice is the key with this shot - it very much replaces the bellied sand wedge concept that Seve had all of us playing back in the 80's - you had to be very precise and really work at that one - this is much, much easier and takes much less practice but it does take some.

[jayhawker]

I never have and never will. I will use high irons, up to a 5 iron and thats where I max out. Depending on how far I am from the green I will use the loft I believe is required to get it onto the putting surface. I just give it a putting stroke, and it becomes nothing more than a lofted putt. For me, a hybrid is WAY too much loft to chip with. If you can use a hybrid to clear it onto the green then I just use a putter. If it is in thick rough, I will still use an iron or wedge. Way too much room for error when using a hybrid.

[Ice]

I never have and never will. I will use high irons, up to a 5 iron and thats where I max out. Depending on how far I am from the green I will use the loft I believe is required to get it onto the putting surface. I just give it a putting stroke, and it becomes nothing more than a lofted putt. For me, a hybrid is WAY too much loft to chip with. If you can use a hybrid to clear it onto the green then I just use a putter. If it is in thick rough, I will still use an iron or wedge. Way too much room for error when using a hybrid.

 

If its a really long one I want to roll there I like hybrid because you don't need to hit it hard because the face is so hot.

[jayhawker]

If its a really long one I want to roll there I like hybrid because you don't need to hit it hard because the face is so hot.

I guess if that floats your boat. I can't say I've ever seen a situation where a 5 or 4 iron isn't hot enough to get it there easily.

[revkev]

The principal betwee using a 5 iron, hybrid or fairway wood to chip with is basically the same, get it rolling like a gut with as little back spin as possible. However there is a subtle difference in that the hybrid or fairway wood is a far better choice out of some rough or a fluffy lie because of it's girth - it glides through the grass easier - you might try it some time jayhawk - it will add another weapon to your arsenal.

 

I've got another question for folks who use hybrid to chip with. What loft do you use? The past 6 years I've carried 3 hybrids - 20, 23, 27. I've always used the 23 to chip with. However I just came from the range where I made the "mistake" of hitting my new fli-hi. It looks like it has a very real chance of making it into the bag - it's somewhere inbetween a traditional 4 iron and a 4 hybrid for me in terms of trajectory which means it's probably about like a 4 iron really should be - bottom line is that I suspect I'll be able to control it better than the 23 degree hybrid.

 

So does anyone chip with a 20? I've tried it a few times and prefered the 23 but I can always practice around that particularly if the fli-hi turns into the club that I think it can.

[RookieBlue7]

Rev, I only carry a 4/21* (well, I've put the Fourteen Hi-660 in now in 18* but I'm not sure it'll stick). I have another shot I found a few months back when hitting this shot, I literally belly it (use it like a belly putter). I've always just kind of skimmed it like a putter, but this one allows me to pop the ball down into the back of the ball at a sharper descent angle. Found it practicing doing it against the collar one day before a round (I'd had 3 shots my previous round where I was against the collar that gave me trouble). That allowed me to hinge my wrists enough to get it out and create a sharp descent angle into the ball with control. I've only used it once on the course thus far, but it does work well.

[jayhawker]

The principal betwee using a 5 iron, hybrid or fairway wood to chip with is basically the same, get it rolling like a gut with as little back spin as possible. However there is a subtle difference in that the hybrid or fairway wood is a far better choice out of some rough or a fluffy lie because of it's girth - it glides through the grass easier - you might try it some time jayhawk - it will add another weapon to your arsenal.

 

I've got another question for folks who use hybrid to chip with. What loft do you use? The past 6 years I've carried 3 hybrids - 20, 23, 27. I've always used the 23 to chip with. However I just came from the range where I made the "mistake" of hitting my new fli-hi. It looks like it has a very real chance of making it into the bag - it's somewhere inbetween a traditional 4 iron and a 4 hybrid for me in terms of trajectory which means it's probably about like a 4 iron really should be - bottom line is that I suspect I'll be able to control it better than the 23 degree hybrid.

 

So does anyone chip with a 20? I've tried it a few times and prefered the 23 but I can always practice around that particularly if the fli-hi turns into the club that I think it can.

It definetely does make sense with the girth, but I guess it depends on what type of chip swing you use. Personally, while I use basically a putting stroke, I like to get the club right in to the ball and out quickly, so I use a steep attack. I don't like having to factor for resistance of the grass or surface, so in using an iron or wedge I try to make as little contact with the less predictable rough as possible.

[revkev]

Could be that we play out of very different rough - the rough down here is very tough - it will grab and twist an iron in a heartbeat.

 

Up North the rough tends to be higher but not as thick - I didn't really play this shot when I lived in Wisconsin - Hybrids were just coming to the fore as I moved down here - I used the bellied sand wedge at that point.

[kygolfer1980]

I went to Scotland in 2006 and practiced extensively before with the hybrid. I was using it from 50-100 yards out for that trip and generally was getting as close as I would with any other club while decreasing my chance for error. As JBones can attest, our conditions around here vary and it's not always possible to use it anywhere other than the fringe. I still enjoy using the hybrid when the situation allows though. Def takes some practice for me to keep my touch with it.

[RoverRick]

Like most things practice is the key with this shot - it very much replaces the bellied sand wedge concept that Seve had all of us playing back in the 80's - you had to be very precise and really work at that one - this is much, much easier and takes much less practice but it does take some.

 

 

You can not belly a sand wedge or a hybrid or any other club if the USGA has their way.

[revkev]

Now that's funny RR.