Fairway Wood vs Hybrid
When putting your golf bag together, one of the biggest differences between amateurs and professionals is how fairway woods and hybrids fit into their club set.
While pros prefer the versatility of fairway woods, hybrids are easier for amateurs to hit but are limited in their workability.
Putting handicap aside, golfers regularly ask, “Which is better for my game?”
In this head-to-head article, we’ll discuss the benefits and drawbacks of each golf club and give you insight into how you can maximize these clubs to shoot lower scores.
Comparison of Fairway Woods and Hybrids
While fairway woods and hybrids might share the same territory regarding loft, both golf clubs offer their pros and cons for golfers.
In this comparison, we’ll compare and contrast these golf clubs in three areas: design, shaft length, and where they work best on the course.
Fairway Woods
Design
The biggest difference when looking at the fairway wood is the size and footprint of the club head. The fairway carries a low profile with a wide, inviting hitting area.
Although rescue clubs are more forgiving on the whole, the fairway wood does provide exceptional forgiveness on off-center strikes due to the width of the sweet spot.
Shaft Length & Adjustable Features
The shaft length of a fairway wood is more similar to that of a driver than that of long irons. The longer shaft helps generate more swing speed but requires a more rounded swing path to the golf ball.
Fairway woods also offer the most adjustability compared to hybrids. Modern fairways utilize sliding weights and loft sleeves to customize the shot shape for each skill level.
Course Conditions
Fairway woods are ideal for shots from the fairway, but they also work extremely well off the tee when you need more control and are facing a tight chute to get the ball safely on the short grass.
From the light rough, the rounded sole of the club improves turf interaction, allowing you to slide the face under the ball without the hosel snagging in the grass for pure, ball-first contact.
Hybrids
Design
Hybrids feature the loft of long irons but the roundness and shape of a fairway wood.
While the club head isn’t as bulky as a fairway wood, the golf club utilizes a lower center of gravity to take advantage of the club’s higher lofts to produce a tall ball flight that lands soft and with spin at the target.
Shaft Length & Adjustable Features
With shorter shafts, the hybrid golf clubs offer a more compact swing, much like long irons.
For higher handicappers, the shorter shafts help create a shallow swing path to the golf ball, making hybrids easier to hit for players compared to the average fairway wood.
Hybrids don’t carry as many adjustable features as a fairway wood, but it’s common to see a loft sleeve that can adjust the face to different lofts.
Course Conditions
Hybrids work great from the tee, fairway, and light rough.
Their rounded shape allows the club head to move through the grass easily, and the higher lofts get the ball skyward immediately to help golfers get out of trouble areas on the golf course.
Choosing Between Fairway Wood vs Hybrid
When choosing between fairway woods and hybrids, several essential factors must be weighed before making your final decision.
One of the biggest factors is your handicap level. In this section, we’ll provide some tips and tricks for each skill level and which club will help you the most.
Low Handicappers
Due to their distance and workability, fairway woods are ideal for low handicappers. With a low-penetrating flight, the fairway wood utilizes its longer shaft to generate staggering length with a lower loft.
This combination is perfect for advanced golfers who need controlled ball flight to attack each hole.
Mid Handicappers
For mid handicappers, we recommend a nice mix of fairways and hybrids to take advantage of each of their benefits.
Since these players typically don’t carry slower swing speeds, they can maximize their distance with the fairway wood while getting the forgiveness benefits of hybrids.
High Handicappers
We recommend leaving the fairway wood in the garage for these golfers and only carrying hybrids to the course.
With their shorter shafts and higher lofts, hybrids are much easier to hit and provide the forgiveness that all high handicappers need to lower their scores.
Fairway Wood Characteristics
Main Features
- Wide sweet spot, forgiving hitting area
- Low, penetrating flight
- Multiple adjustable features (Loft sleeve, sliding weight)
- Low profile gets face under the ball
- Lofts range from 13° to 27°
Benefits
Advanced golfers prefer fairway woods to hybrids because they deliver more distance, better control, and higher workability than the easier-to-hit hybrids.
With a lower flight, fairway woods offer more rollout off the tee box when compared to hybrids.
Drawbacks
With the fairway wood, there’s a higher degree of topping or mis-hits with higher handicappers and beginners.
To hit fairway woods cleanly, you need a rounded swing path to the ball, unlike hybrids that can handle a steeper approach and deliver quality contact.
Hybrid Golf Club Characteristics
Main Features
- Much easier to hit than fairway woods
- Higher lofts help improve the launch
- Great for older golfers
- Produces straight ball flight
- Lofts range from 20° to 45°, similar to all irons
Benefits
Hybrids offer a smooth entry into the ball with high launch and straight flight with superb forgiveness. It is great for golfers with slow clubhead speed who need to boost their distance and improve their accuracy.
Drawbacks
With higher lofts, you’ll find hybrids limit distance to a certain degree. But since they are designed to take the place of your long irons, they are built to hit the ball high and straight with minimal workability.
Golf Bag Setup Recommendations
When setting up your golf bag, you have some important choices to make. Fairways and hybrids offer benefits and drawbacks but can tremendously help on long par 4s and 5s.
But how should you set up your golf bag?
Here’s a few tips to help you create the right mix to attack the course with confidence
Importance of Club Confidence and Comfort
Before you start putting clubs in your golf bag, we always believe golfers should only play a golf club they feel comfortable with and have total confidence in executing the shots they need on the golf course.
You can mix and match these clubs or just play a straight set of each in your bag.
Below, we’ll provide a few thoughts on each setup, plus give you some insight into how these choices could ultimately affect your shot-making on the links.
Fairway Wood Only
Carrying a 3-and 5-wood only in your golf bag offers more options on longer courses. For example, you can take fairway bunkers out of the picture off the tee box by hitting mid-range drives.
You can also give your tee box game more control, with slightly less distance than your driver.
If you are a high handicapper and your regular golf course is wide open (meaning broad fairways with few hazards), then playing with a fairway wood-heavy set can pay dividends in terms of distance.
Hybrids Only
If you are looking to use only hybrid clubs in your bag, chances are you have a high handicap and are looking for clubs that can generate distance similar to long irons but are much easier to hit.
Many golfers can find more confidence on tee shots and from the fairway by using hybrid clubs.
Mixed Set
Carrying both types of clubs provides advantages for experienced golfers. For example, older professional golfers love using the mixed set to their advantage.
Instead of their long irons, they’ll use hybrids to get more backspin and higher ball flight to land softly on the green.
Since they are easier to hit than long irons, these hybrid clubs are versatile tools that help you hit straight, even in very windy conditions.
Amateurs who want the lower loft of a fairway wood to power balls down the fairway and the versatility of hybrids to get the same distance they get from their long irons will love utilizing a mixed set for their golf game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should you get a hybrid or fairway wood?
You should play the club that matches your handicap and preference. Most advanced golfers prefer fairway woods due to their size and forgiving nature, while high handicappers like the easier to hit hybrids.
For golfers with slower swing speeds, the hybrids tend to easily lift the ball and provide better control than fairway woods.
Is a 3 hybrid equivalent to a 5 wood?
No, the 3 hybrid clubs have more loft on the face, creating higher ball flight with less distance than 5 woods.
While the loft difference is closer between these golf clubs than, say, a 3 fairway wood and 3 hybrid, hybrids tend to hit the ball higher and with more spin than the penetrating ball flight created by fairway woods.
Are a 7 wood and 3 hybrid the same?
In terms of loft, the two clubs will provide similar distance as they both carry a loft of around 21 degrees.
The key differences between the clubs are that the fairway wood has a larger head, while hybrid golf clubs are smaller and more slender along the face, helping amateur golfers get under the golf ball to easily lift it into the air.
Can a 3 hybrid go as far as a 3 wood?
No, a 3 hybrid cannot go as far as a 3 wood due to the loft on the face. A 3 hybrid typically carries a 20 to 22° loft along the face, while a 3 wood provides a 14 to 16° loft for golfers.
The hybrid hits the ball higher with more spin than the fairway wood, meaning you’ll get more distance from the 3 wood.