Anyone ditch the 3 wood for a 4 wood?

[chadly643]

Good evening WRX. I wanted to hear some stories of folks that have ditched the 3 wood and what they’ve replaced it with. I have a XR Pro 3 wood that’s always been really good to me and held its spot in my bag for a long time now. I just don’t find myself using it all that much though. Off the tee, it’s not too far behind my driver, so I usually just pull driver. In the fairway, I’m usually either to far to reach with the 3 wood or close enough to reach with hybrid or less. So it’s this weird spot in my bag that I’m considering changing. What are some paths that others have gone down?

[LeftyMatt24]

Yeah I agree fully. 4 wood flies a little higher and lands softer. Fits a better window than a 3 wood which is basically tee only. 

[596]

I use either a ping k15 16* 3 wood or a tour exotics 16.5* 4 wood.  The 4 wood actually goes further.  Both are high and land soft.  Use depends on how I'm hitting the ball at the time.  K15 ìf not so well and the TE when I'm playing well.

[whiteshark]

Needed to drop one club from my bag.  Couldn't decide whether to leave out the 3 wood or the 5 wood.  Decided to drop both of them out and replace them with a TE 4 wood (16 1/2 degrees).  One of my few good golf decisions.

[animalgolfs]

With the invention of multiple hosel settings....3hl & 5wd are basically ye ole 4wd of yesteryear 

 

 

[lefthack]

I am thinking about going 5 and 7 turned up to be more like 4 and 6. I just need to buy the 7 wood to try first. 

[Wasabi]

I'm not carrying a 3 wood now but am thinking about moving my G400 5 wood from 17.5 to 16.5.

[Wasabi]

1 minute ago, lefthack said:

I am thinking about going 5 and 7 turned up to be more like 4 and 6. I just need to buy the 7 wood to try first. 

 

I'm going to do the same to my 5 wood and am looking for a 7 wood to do the same.

[chadly643]

9 minutes ago, animalgolfs said:

With the invention of multiple hosel settings....3hl & 5wd are basically ye ole 4wd of yesteryear 

 

 

This is an excellent point! I didn’t think of it. Buy a 5-wood, turn it down 1.5 degrees and enjoy the open club face. I’m going to demo this soon!

[ChipNRun]

Uhh, like in 2012. I have had some variation of 4W + 7W since then.

 

In a fitting in late 2008, I had done well with the Calla HyperX Tour driver in R-flex. So, I picked up the X.Tour 3W the following year. But, I seemed to have iffy trouble with the 3W.

 

Reality hit me one day when I bombed a drive on a 500-yd. par 5, and ended up 220 yards out going uphill. I took out the 3W and hit it dead-solid-perfect... but, the ball clipped the top of the hill and ricocheted 90 degrees right OB.

 

It turns out I didn't launch the 3W as well as I thought I did. Home course practice range comes off a hill, and the nearest driving range had a 5-foot high berm for the hitting area. I had an exaggerated sense of how high I launched the club... hence iffy trouble.

 

In a fitting spring 2012, I got the new TaylorMade RBZ 3W/HL (4w) and 5W/HL.

 

Following year, I traded in the TM RBX for Tour Edge Exotics XRails 4W and 7W at a demo day. The Tour Edge rep had willing golfers hit both the 3W and 4W version of the new Exotics version. The majority of us hit the 4W more consistently - and sometimes longer - than the 3W. This includes a couple of long bombers who carried their driver shots 280+.

 

The friendly XRails eventually got two seasons of competition from more aggressive Calla 815 Alpha. I split the difference when I got the Rogues (see below).

 

For the 4W, a little extra loft helps launch and the shorter shaft helps control. Several studies show that the average golfer does much better with a 4W than a 3W.

Edited February 27, 2022 by ChipNRun
Correct spelling.

[lefthack]

Just now, Wasabi said:

 

I'm going to do the same to my 5 wood and am looking for a 7 wood to do the same.

 

The problem is I have rounds like today when my 3 wood is money. But the 5 wood is more consistent, that's what started it. 

 

The PXG 0211 7 wood comes in lefty and is 1.5* adjustable.

[hammergolf]

40 minutes ago, chadly643 said:

Good evening WRX. I wanted to hear some stories of folks that have ditched the 3 wood and what they’ve replaced it with. I have a XR Pro 3 wood that’s always been really good to me and held its spot in my bag for a long time now. I just don’t find myself using it all that much though. Off the tee, it’s not too far behind my driver, so I usually just pull driver. In the fairway, I’m usually either to far to reach with the 3 wood or close enough to reach with hybrid or less. So it’s this weird spot in my bag that I’m considering changing. What are some paths that others have gone down?

I went the other way 2yrs ago and have regretted it ever since. This spring there will be a 16.5* wood in the bag and the 14.5* wood will be out. I’m trying to find a hotter, lower spinning fwy wood with a flatter lie option. 

[jbandalo]

12 minutes ago, lefthack said:

I am thinking about going 5 and 7 turned up to be more like 4 and 6. I just need to buy the 7 wood to try first. 

That’s exactly what I did. Best decision ever. 

[mxskier]

I’m going from 15/19 F8+ and will be gaming 16.5/20.5 Stealth+ this season. Mainly to get some more spin for the 3/4W and then gap better with the 4i. 

[eric61]

I'm doing a 16.5 degree TSi3 with an AD DI 7X and I love it. It goes a little higher and spins a little more than might be ideal ... but it's super workable and controllable, and I trust it. I hit it better than I've ever hit any fairway wood. 

 

For me, the difference isn't just the added loft, but shortening the shaft by 0.5". You could do that with any fairway wood, regardless of loft, obviously. But for whatever reason this combo at 42.5" just works really, really well for me. I've found that I do all right at 42.75" too, but -- and I have no idea why -- 43" and up on a fairway wood is just much more difficult for me to control and make really good contact on a consistent basis, which turns it into almost exclusively a tee club. That's not what I want, so I'm happy to sacrifice a few yards for the 42.5" shaft.

 

I have an Apex UW 19* that goes nearly as far. But the Apex UW's flight is a lot lower, so they sort of do different things.

[JAMH03]

"Anyone ditch the 3 wood for a 4 wood?"

Only the cool guys.

[bvanlieu]

One of the ways a launch monitor helps dial it in for each individual. 

 

For years I did game a 3w (even a strong one) but little did I know my mechanics was presenting a bit of an open face to path and adding loft, effectively gaming something higher anyway (not to mention glancing blow syndrome). 

 

I always liked a 4w just for the added confidence of a bit more loft and went with that a few years back in conjunction with working on my game with a pro and neutralizing that poor delivery I don't feel super confident trying to launch a 15d wood from the deck. I am at the edge of having the speed to do it but 1.5-2d more launch is a good thing for me. 

 

The data is all there in the LM output and I can dial in what works best for my delivery. I wish my 5w was 19d (older Rogue was, newer cally is 18) as its pretty close to my 4w in loft but I do have a shaft length difference there as well. 

 

LIke ChipNRun I bag a 4 and 7w right now and when I want to carry just 1 have that 5w.

 

I miss a 3w never 🙂

 

 

Edited February 27, 2022 by bvanlieu

[bryanwmilburn]

I go driver, 4 wood (Sub 70 Pro Tour) then 2 iron. It's the best decision I've made in a while at the top end of my bag. Much better off the turf and still awesome off the tee. Plus controllable distance. 

[VanTheMan0519]

Ping 5 wood playing at 16.5

[lefty74pgh]

I made the switch back in 2008 to the TM Burner TP 17.5 and have played 4 wood/20* hybrid since.  4 wood is easier off the deck and just as effective off the tee.

 

Over the years I have mainly played Titleist 4 woods and currently have a TS2 16.5 and a Adams Pro 20* hybrid.

[mikewilliams29]

I have been thinking about switching out my 3 wood for a 5 wood. I did just have a PXG 7 wood come in yesterday so going to give that a shot too. 

[Mob]

I am just addressing this now.  I lack confidence hitting a 3 wood into a green; basically the ball could go anywhere.  I am pleasantly surprised when it goes straight, which doesn't seem like a good club to have in the bag.  I traded in a bunch of old clubs that were collecting dust in my office and just bought a Stealth + 5 wood, which ended up costing me $40.  My plan is to turn it down 2 degrees and play it at 17 degrees with flatter lie angle.  I kept my 3 wood, as I like it, but if this can more consistently hit fairways and greens, which I expect should be the case, then it will be hard for the 3 wood to get back into the bag.

[northlake]

Replaced my 3 wood with a 4 about 10 years ago.  One of the best decisions I've made.  

[Ephemerlol]

I was carrying 3w 5w for a while until I realized I just never really hit the 3 very well.  I'm playing a 16.5* TSi2 now and it has been excellent.  I don't generally hit fairway wood off the tee and this setup is much better for attacking par 5s from the fairway.

[amace04]

Yep. 

 

My local course has little use for a 3w.  My yardage with a 3w is about 270, and there's very few times if ever I need that off the deck.  I've got a 5w that I've cranked up to 17* with a 5w shaft.  Bit less club speed, shorter shaft for better control.  Still get good distance, but it seems to spin up a touch more and land softer.  If there's a hole that I'm not going to hit a Driver due to the risk, a 3w is no better an option for me.  I've got a 2i for the low controlled tee shots if necessary.

Edited February 27, 2022 by amace04

[bvanlieu]

3 hours ago, Mob said:

  I kept my 3 wood, as I like it, but if this can more consistently hit fairways and greens, which I expect should be the case, then it will be hard for the 3 wood to get back into the bag.

 

There are two distinct things in here which has been discussed in other threads a lot: 

 

1. hitting fairways

2. hitting greens

 

For the first, length of shaft is the #1 issue. If you are using a tee and have problems controlling the face and strike, shorter is better and you are not going to lose much distance going 1" shorter vs. better ball speed from strikes.  I am a huge proponent, especially from the deck, of shortening these stupid long fairway and hybrids. 

 

For the second, in combination with the length, if you have issues elevating the shot from the deck to get a useful enough land angle or carry,  then loft is your friend. 

 

Combine both benefits of a 5w and people will say 'I hit the 5w better then my 3w'. Yes. Yes you do. But the reasons may be two fold 🙂 

 

- b

[ezra76]

I've thought about it but for now I'm keeping the 3wood as my driver play is not great. I use a 3w off the tee a lot. I pretty much never hit a 3w off the ground. If I'm that far out I'm laying up. I have an 18* 5w I hit around 220 and even that I rarely use off the ground unless punching something out. Probably in a few years I'd get stronger irons and go with the 4w and 20 degree or so fairway or hybrid as I'll need to reach longer par 4's. 

[HappyGilmoresBoots]

When I bought my woods a few years back, the guy set me up with a driver, 4 wood, and 4 hybrid instead of driver/3/5.  He said the combo of driver/4w/4h was generally better or more useful for high handicappers like myself.

[NoTalentLefty]

Get a Adam’s Tight Lie 3 wood. It’s 16 degrees and easy to get airborne, plays  like a 4 wood. 

[Hickory4ever]

I have been playing for fifty years and with few exceptions have only carried 2 woods, a Driver and a 16-17 degree FW wood. The higher lofted FW has always been easier to hit, especially from the FW. My next club is a 20 degree hybrid which is very reliable. Though there is a gap between the FW and hybrid, I just grip down slightly on the FW, it has always worked well.

 

I have always favoured control over distance, even though I am an old geezer now. I have built my bag starting from the green and working my way back to the tee. As I aged and my swing speed decreased, I have added loft on the woods and it has helped me maintain consistency as long as I play the appropriate tees.

 

My vote is for the 16-17 degree club with a reasonable shaft length, whatever the manufacturers want to call it (3HL or 4W).