How To Hit A Hybrid Golf Club

The hybrid is an innovation that came to golf a few years ago, and for this reason, it has players who support its use and others who refuse to abandon the two traditional options made of iron and wood. In principle, it was recommended for amateur players, although today its use has been extended to professional players. In this article we will teach you everything you need to know about how to hit a hybrid golf club.

Last update on 2024-11-10 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

When playing a hybrid, you should keep in mind the following aspects:

1. The stance’s width should be the same as a hit with a long iron.
2. Transfer the weight to the left foot during the descent, allowing the right foot to come upon the toes as it moves through the striking zone.
3. Watch the rotation of the hips: This should be done aggressively to the left during impact, shifting the weight to the left side; the effect: a correct sweep of the clubface during impact, carrying the ball thanks to the angle of the club.
4. Stay close to the ball; in this way, the rod will be more vertical, allowing you to reach the ball “fully.”
5. Ensure your wrists don’t buckle during the shot, adding too much loft to the club or the ball will jump.
6. The most common mistake when playing a hybrid is keeping the weight on the right foot during the descent, thinking that we will help the ball lift more when moving away from the target. In doing this, the club usually touches the ground before reaching the ball, which means that it is rising when the ball is struck, with the club’s edge being the point of contact.

Without a doubt, their unique characteristics make them very easy to play clubs. The advantages that they can bring to your game are many:

The increase in weight in the head means that the shaft can be shorter than that of wood, and that undoubtedly represents an improvement in terms of the precision achieved with the blow (it is easier to hit the sweet spot of the face when playing with a short rod than with a long one).

Unlike what happens when hitting the woods, the ball lands on the green at a much more vertical angle, so it stops earlier and does not roll excessively.

 Even hitting the ground slightly behind the ball, the club will still get through it (impossible if you hit with a long iron).

For all this, the most normal thing is that hybrids are associated with the player with a medium-high handicap. Without a doubt, this type of player can take advantage of the advantages offered by these clubs, but that does not mean that the low handicap player should put them aside; on the contrary, hybrids can offer a magnificent combination of distance and control, something that no doubt all the players appreciate it.

Hybrids: the best option for long-distance games

Hybrids are the best option for long-distance games since it is possible to reach long distances without rolling on the green with them.

Compared to iron clubs, with hybrids, the ball lands at a more vertical angle and stops without as many bounces. Likewise, the player has greater manipulation when executing swings and, therefore, the greater possibility of successful hits.

Different types of hybrids

The types of hybrids vary according to the degrees of their load. So it is easy to find 16-17 degree hybrids that replace a 2 iron, 19-20 degree hybrids that replace 3 irons, and 22-23 degrees that replace 4 irons. The versatility of hybrids allows them to be used in the fairway, rough, or starting point.

Full range of hybrid golf clubs

In this sense, the players who are skeptical about the use of hybrids argue that with this type of club, it is impossible to achieve the same precision achieved with iron. Besides, they consider that when the player’s swing speed is very fast, hybrids only provide a greater effect on the shot, not what is sought.

How are hybrids handled correctly?

To handle hybrids correctly, it is worth doing a few tricks that will allow you to have better results:

• The ball must be in front of the player’s stance and aligned with the front foot.
• Backward movements should not be accelerated.
• In the downswing, you should not drop sharply. The flexibility of the hybrid is what gets the job done.
• One of the most common mistakes when it comes to handling the hybrid is related to how you keep your right foot on your way down, assuming that will make the ball rise higher as you move away from the target.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWV0GxIomGU

When playing a hybrid, we must bear in mind the following aspects:

• The ball should be in front of our stance, aligned with the bottom of our front foot.
• The stance’s width should be the same that we would use for a hit with a long iron.
• It is convenient to transfer the weight to the left foot during the descent, allowing the right foot to come upon the toes as it moves through the striking zone.
• It is very important to watch the hips’ rotation: it should be done aggressively to the left during impact. In this way, the right heel is pushed off the ground, shifting the weight to the left side; the effect: a correct sweep of the clubface during impact, carrying the ball thanks to the club’s angle.
• The backward movement with the stick doesn’t have to be accelerated… Let’s take it out slowly and let the stick do the work.
• Let’s not go down too sharply; let’s swing the club with the rhythm with which we would with a long iron.
•  Stay close to the ball; in this way, the rod will be more vertical, allowing you to reach the ball “fully.”
• Make sure your wrists do not bend during the shot, as this will add too much loft to the club, and the ball will jump.
• The most common mistake when playing a hybrid is keeping the weight on the right foot during the descent, thinking that in this way we will help the ball lift more when moving away from the target. In doing this, the club usually touches the ground before reaching the ball, which will mean that it is rising when the ball is hit, with the edge of the club being the point of contact—the result: a blast.

Finally, when hitting the ball, we must resist the temptation to see the ball fly immediately. As a general rule, let’s keep our chin slightly pointing behind the ball until we contact.

Different situations with a hybrid

We can almost do any kind of hybrid hit. By removing the putt strokes or those from bunker to green, the rest of the strokes on our route could be done with a hybrid if we know how to do them correctly. Here are several examples:

• From a tee: In this situation, the first thing to keep in mind is the need to “sweep the ball” as if hitting a fairway wood. The clubface should cover most of the ball: one-quarter of the ball should be on the face.
• From the street: On the street, what we must bear in mind is that the hybrid is usually shorter in length than street wood and, therefore, we will have to modify our stance. The correct thing to do is to position yourself as if you were hitting a 3 iron, not a wood; This means staying closer to the ball since everything we have to stretch to reach the ball will decrease our chances of making solid contact with it.
• Rough: Perhaps this is one of the strengths of a hybrid as it is a club perfectly capable of passing through the rough. We simply need to be aware that the rough will always offer us some resistance that we must fight against.
• From the sand: From the fairway bunker, the most important thing to consider is the attack angle. About this, we must play the ball slightly behind the center in the stance and then make a flat trajectory on the ball.
• The chip: To play the hybrid as a chip, you must develop a halfway shot between the chip and the putt: bend your wrists as you bring the club back and try to hit with your lower body completely still.
• Edge of the green: Make no mistake, here you don’t need a hard shot but a soft one; the basis is to make a longer backswing, with gradual acceleration.
• Problem areas: Without a doubt, the hybrid is the ideal suit whenever we are forced to get out of a “rush.” The reason is simple: thanks to its special design, the stick’s edge does not get tangled in the same way as iron would. If you have to scoop the ball out of leaves or out of a sandy area, grip your hybrid slightly lower and play by placing the ball on your back foot. When striking, try to keep your legs still and exert maximum power with your upper body, arms, and hands.

How to hit a hybrid golf club – Conclusion

Care must be taken in the direction of the hip itself’s rotation movements, which should be directed to the left side during impact. Thus, the right heel is pushed off the ground and shifts the weight to the left side to achieve a correct face sweep and carry the ball, according to the direction of the club’s angle.