Getting to Grips with a Hybrid Golf Club

As a newbie to the game of golf a couple of years ago, I started out like many others with a driver, a couple of irons and a putter. As my ability to hit the ball in the desired direction improved, so did my need for a better quality driver and putter, as well as a fuller set of irons. However in spite of having the best set of golf clubs I could afford, I still found myself stuck in the rough or in some other tricky situation where I just didn't seem to have the right club for the job. “What's a hybrid?” was my obvious response when a golf buddy suggested I needed a hybrid club.

A hybrid, with regards to golf is a club which is part iron, part wood. The long irons, being numbers one to four have a low trajectory and a small face which some players, myself included find a little tricky to use. Often I'll try a fairway wood if I don't feel comfortable with one of the long irons, but this has its own disadvantage being the shaft is a little too long, especially when trying to punch the ball out from beneath a tree with low hanging limbs or branches. A hybrid club is essentially a fairway wood with a shorter shaft. However there's a little more to it than that as the club head has also been modified to allow the stroke to cut through long grass.

After a little saving up, I invested in a hybrid club called the 'Mashie', from Cleveland golf. There were plenty other hybrid golf clubs to choose from, but having a full set of Cleveland golf irons which I’m very happy witch swung it for me (pun intended). I was even given a 10% off voucher for Cleveland golf accessories! Like a kid with a new toy I went out with my trusty set of Cleveland golf clubs, hoping I’d screw up a shot and end up in a situation where my new hybrid club would prove its worth. Unfortunately for me I managed to avoid any really heavy rough and had no opportunity to 'punch out'. I did however give it a go when I would have normally chosen one of my long irons and I was suitably impressed with its performance.

So far I've still not been in the same situation for which the hybrid club was recommended for. It has however become an invaluable addition to my now comprehensive set of Cleveland golf clubs, so much so some of my long irons are all but obsolete and the Cleveland 'Mashie' is pretty much my favourite Cleveland golf club.