What is your low 20 degree club of choice? Set Iron, Driving Iron, 4 Hybrid, 7 Wood, something else?

[Drivingrangehero]

Driver 

5W 18° 

7w 21.5°

4h 24.5°

5i 26°

 

i had a 16.5° 4w, but hit I hit my 18° 5w off the deck much better, and don’t lose much distance off the tee compared to the 4w, so I dropped the 4w all together.
 

 It opens up a spot for me, so not sure which way I’ll go, mini driver, which is a draw off the tee only set up, or a 20° hybrid that I essentially hit the same distance as my 7w, but the hybrid is better off the tee for a few long par 3’s I play, because it’s easier to control distance with it over my 7W,  or a 64° wedge I have lying around which may help me with some chipping/pitching yips, or leave a ball mark on my forehead ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 
 

 

[Bobb3rdown]

20 hours ago, Urb said:

Thriver

19* UW

23* TSR1 hybrid aka my 8 wood

Irons

If my 20° tsr1 work out well, I may have to look into getting the 23° and the same shaft. Will find out tmw

Edited June 1 by Bobb3rdown

[Thrummyfox]

Over the years I’ve built up an arsenal 🤣 My art 4i is an i200 which is nowhere near the bag! 
 

To give some context I m in the doldrums a bit and currently use Brnr Mini off tee as driver (G410 waiting for return to form), when it happens MD will become second tee club.

 

Next few slots depend on course and conditio. Generally carry G400 5w at 17.5 (so a 4w in my mind). 
 

Then either 2h at 17, 3h at 19, 7w at 21 or Ping G crossover at 21. 
 

Dependant on conditions these all make a genuine contribution. 
 

Next club is G410 4h at 22. If I use this it’s generally off the floor even off tee to take out risk of left miss (apart from par 3s left is trouble on 14 holes at my home course). 
I do have a Ping Rapture 2i but a real lack of confidence at the minute and it’s unlikely to appear unless I improve and get to a links course soon. 

[Cirno]

I go Driver (10.5), 5W (19), and set 4i (22). I only carry 13 clubs and I think I'll eventually fill the gap between Driver and 5W with a second tee-only club.
Driver carry is 270, 5W is 230, and 4i is 200.

I don't mind hitting the ping g440 5W off the deck. If a fairway is really tight I'll probably play conservatively with the 4I over the 5W. I'd rather hit 4I twice than lose a ball.

[bgfgolf]

21 degree 4h goes 220-230 for me. 

[NRJyzr]

Posting to add on to my "something else" vote.

 

My 20° club is usually a 2 iron (Golden Ram, TA 986 Tour) or 3 iron (Maltby TS4, Ram FX Nickel, Mizuno MS-11/MP37).  In spite of my diminishing speed, I still feel quite comfortable hitting those clubs.

 

My go to for alternate tee shots has been a 2h or 3h (older model King Tec), and now might range to 5w or even 3w; see above comment about diminishing speed.

 

I am close to assembling a driving iron in the 18° range, largely because I seem to be better with an iron than a hybrid.  When I goof around with a Golden Ram 1 iron, I find I hit it better than the hybrid, except the hybrid reacts better to the odd hoselus lateralus, which is an occasional problem so far this season.

 

Edited June 1 by NRJyzr

[Ben B]

I carry 3 clubs in the 19-22° range.

 

Callaway OG Apex UW @ 19° (though I would be surprised if it is stronger than 19°). This club is built like a utility iron, 95 gram shaft at 40.25". I use this club off the tee a lot. It is a mid flight, lowish spin rocket. Great club when it is windy. Off the deck it carries 230ish and can hold the green if it is soft. 

 

Mizuno MP 18 Fli Hi 4 iron @ 22°. Tee club and off the deck. No problem holding greens. 210-220 carry.

 

TM Qi10 21° 7 Wood. 210-225 carry. Great club out of the rough, off the deck or par 3s.

 

The 7 wood has been a great surprise to me. So versatile. And nearly point and shoot moonballs. 

 

 

[sergizmo]

20° hybrid fills 3 iron spot.

23° hybrid replaces 4 iron. Set 4 iron is 23°.

5 iron is at 26°.

 

A lot of this depends on what the iron set is. Traditional forged blades or cavities 20° would replace a 3 iron spot. In a players distance/power iron that would be a 4 iron.

 

Also swing speed dependant: higher ss players would gravitate towards a driving iron over hybrid while average ss players it would be the opposite. See PGA vs LPGA as an example. Not 100% but a general trend.

 

 

[Red4282]

Used to be hybrid, but for last year its been a utility iron. Really really love it off the tee. For approaches its ok, i just find it lacking a little punch for my gapping, need like that extra 5 or so. May try 7 wood if I can find the right one.

[Poor Mans Ty Webb]

I feel like it’s rare to see just one club that does it all in this space, but if I needed a do-it-all it would probably be a 20ish degree hybrid/7w. I don’t personally love hybrids, but I’d try to find one that could work in a 12 club bag after a Driver/mini.

 

In a 14 club bag, I kind of bypass low 20s - I like a 7w in the 19-20* range, then a “hot” (i.e. hollow-bodied) 4 iron at 24*. Gives good variety because I’ve got one club I can hit higher and one I can hit lower. These clubs are options 3 and 4 off the tee, and the 7w would be the ‘go zone’ club from off the deck.

In a different world, I’m going 5w at 18* and a long/utility iron or hybrid at 22*, but same high/low theory applies. In this setup, the 18* FW might be my longest after driver, and I’d think about a 50-54-58-62 wedge setup. 

 

[dsmil]

My set 4 iron (ZX5) has been money for me. If I’m dropping down from driver, I use that club almost every time.
 

At my course I’m really only hitting a shot at that distance from the tee. If I played somewhere where I needed to hit into green from 200+, I’d probably mix in some 7 woods.

[gumpy]

My 4h has a disproportionate level of use vs my 3h and 5i. 
 

it’s one of those clubs i will never part with. 

[Scrubby]

Playing 20.25° 7wood (230-yard carry), 20° 3 iron (213 carry) then 26° 5 iron (188 carry).

 

I could use a 4 iron (200 carry) instead of the 3 iron, but the 3 iron is great for low, drawing stingers off the tee and super low punch shots out of the woods/hazards.

[SwingBlade]

PING 440 MAX 4W, 7W & 9W.  All reliable for approach or tee shots when driver is too long or FW is tight.  5 iron when lower shots, trees or wind, are needed.  

[jtmagic]

Callaway Heaven wood, 20 degrees.  Basically a strong 7 wood.  Appreciate the utility of this club to hit high or low.  

[AC-Golf]

Been with the same setup a few years now.  Really love my 4H. I couldn't survive long par 3s without it.  

 

6i 28*

4U 24*

4H 21*

2H 17*

[RolandofGilead]

 

I used to play a 2 iron but then I found this (I call it a 6 wood). Next longest is a 4 wood and I’m comfortable hitting that off the deck. I only hit this off the tee if there is a forced layup - I generally hit as much club as possible for scoring purposes. 

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

For the last few years, I played a 21° 7w and 23° hybrid, but recently I noticed that distance with the 7w was inconsistent in windy conditions, and I wasn't using it so much at my home course, so I bought a 20° hybrid to try out.

 

In my most recent round, I hit a couple of beauties with the new hybrid, one of which I probably wouldn't have even attempted with the 7w.

 

However, I also hit a couple of stinkers. The 7w is easier to hit reliably, so I'll use it when conditions aren't too windy.

[MrCook]

Strong opinion, but in my book for anyone in the 190-200y camp for that spot, the iron options should be out of consideration. I'm a firm believer in ball speed gapping and playable ballflights, means once a club doesn't keep proper ball speed gapping and peak height, it's time to go into the next 'tier' of head type.
 

For me personally, I'm right in that 190-200y camp and my 20 degree is a lofted up 5w. I play my woods at 16,5, 20 and 23 degrees respectively before going into a 25* 5 iron.

 

Off the tee on tight holes it's either 5w or 5 iron for me. 3w (really a 4w) is the longest club I'm confident hitting off the turf, though there's rarely a situation on my home course that calls for it. I don't use it off the tee on tight holes either, and it's my least used club in general. I mainly use it off the tee on one spefific hole where driver puts a pretty mean bunker into play that pretty much auto adds a stroke to the card if I happen to land in it.

 

I have been playing hybrids between longest fairway and irons in the past, but I've found fairway woods to be more consistent and fun to play.

Edited June 3 by MrCook

[AU_Matt]

This spot is a spot of constant flux in my bag, trying to fill a gap between my 13.5 mini driver (generally 250ish off the tee, rarely if ever hit off the deck) and set 4i (21.5 deg, reliable 220 tee, 210 fairway). Right now I’m playing an OG Apex UW at 19 degrees, but not loving how low it launches. Have an adjustable paradym TD 5w on the way to see if a bit more rearward of a CG at similar loft will bring my flight up some.

[Mych]

I picked 4 hybrid, but I really use a 3 hybrid (19*). Surprised to see the number of people saying 7 wood, I don't seem to see a bunch of 7 woods when I'm out playing. 

Edited June 3 by Mych

[alittleoverpar]

Up until about 4 years ago I carried Driver then 2-W and no fairway woods.  I could hit the long irons just as far as a fairway wood and they gave me more options for flighting the ball.  Fast forward to my current setup where I've replaced several irons with fairway woods.  Currently, bagging:

 

Driver 10.5

5 Wood 18

7 Wood 21

9 Wood 25

I'm reasonably happy with this setup, but would like a little more flexibility.  I may try going with 3H, 4H, & 5H.

 

 

[Ty_Guy]

18 hours ago, Mych said:

I picked 4 hybrid, but I really use a 3 hybrid (19*). Surprised to see the number of people saying 7 wood, I don't seem to see a bunch of 7 woods when I'm out playing. 

 

I agree. At my club, 4h is still the most common choice I see.

[boggyman]

7 wood

[Urb]

On 5/31/2025 at 8:11 PM, Bobb3rdown said:

If my 20° tsr1 work out well, I may have to look into getting the 23° and the same shaft. Will find out tmw

Be curious to hear your thoughts on the 20* vs 23*.

 

UW comes out a touch low and the 20* TSR1 turned to 19* might solve a problem.

[me05501]

My 4 hybrid goes 185-190 in the air off the deck. It slots pretty perfectly between my 5 iron and 4 wood. 

 

I also use it for low running chips from tight lies as well as recovery shots. 

 

I don't have the speed for a 4 iron and I've passed on 7 woods because I already have one highish-lofted fairway wood in the bag (my 3HL is set at 17.5*). 

[Bobb3rdown]

3 hours ago, Urb said:

Be curious to hear your thoughts on the 20* vs 23*.

 

UW comes out a touch low and the 20* TSR1 turned to 19* might solve a problem.

Didn't have the best swing on Sunday. But the tsr1 is definitely more left biased than the uw.

 

With the uw my miss is a big slice. The tsr1 was very straight flying, but had the pulls that day. Hopefully get out again soon.

Edited June 4 by Bobb3rdown

[AC-Golf]

I find the tsr1 to be really straight.  I tried the 20* hybrid, and it went a little higher than I wanted.  I would really love a 17* TSr1/GT1.  But I know they want me in the GT2 line at that point.

[phizzy30]

Driving iron fills this spot for me.  I use it mainly from the turf.  I actually feel more comfortable using 3 metal/2 hybrid off the tee for short/tight holes or where driver will run out into trouble.  

[zengineer]

Callaway Paradym Super Hybrid 4 is 21 degrees.   Above it are Driver of course and either 3W set at 16 degrees or Super Hybrid 3 at 18 degrees.