Southern California's No. 1 Golf Source
STROKE OF THE DAY |
"A good golf course makes you want to play so badly that you hardly have the time to change your shoes. " |
-Ben Crenshaw |
SITE
SEARCH
GOLF
CALENDAR
Dr. Golf
|
||||
 Justin Hicks is a PGA teaching professional at San Diego’s Stadium Golf Center. He can be reached at (858) 277-6667. Age: 33 Current handicap: 9 Lowest handicap: 8 Plays: Three or four times a month Practices: Twice a month Ailment: I see companies are offering hybrids to replace long irons. Is it as simple as taking a 4-hybrid to replace my 4-iron? What are the positives and negatives when replacing long irons with hybrids? Prescription: When adding hybrids to your bag, it’s best to know the loft on the club you’re going to replace. A 4-iron loft can vary among manufacturers. I suggest getting a hybrid that has a little more loft than the iron you’re trying to replace. If your current 4-iron is 23 or 24 degrees, you want a hybrid between 25 and 28 degrees. Because of the way a hybrid is designed, it will almost always fly higher and longer than a traditional iron, so you don’t want to create too big of a yardage gap between your 4-hybrid and 5-iron. A clubfitter can see how far you’re hitting the club you want replaced and find a hybrid that will accurately fill that gap. Patient: Male Age: 52 Current handicap: 14 Lowest handicap: 10 Plays: Four or five times a month Practices: Occasionally Ailment: The hardest shot for me is the long greenside bunker shot. Can you explain how to hit this shot with a club other than a sand wedge, and how do you decide which club to use? Prescription: A great way to hit this 30- to 40-yard bunker shot is with a club with less loft, like a 9-iron. Play the shot as you would a normal sand shot, but don’t set up with either the clubface or your body very open to the target. Setting up that far open will take off the distance gained by using a less-lofted club. Take about a three-quarter swing and contact the sand about an inch or two behind the ball. The club you use will depend on how high you must carry the ball to avoid the lip of the bunker and how far you want the ball to roll when it hits the green. In most circumstances, a 9-iron should do the trick. |
||||
RSS Subscribe
Digg This Article
