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Utility Iron resurgence? Why are YOU using it?

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sleuth

sleuth

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There appears to be a small resurgence in the utility iron this year. I know they've been around for a while but they've taken a back seat to hybrids. This year I'm actually seeing them in B&M shelves which I haven't seem for a long time. So this kind of peaked my interest, just a little. Why would you guys use a Utility iron over a hybrid?

I was actually contemplating a 3/4 Callaway Utility iron for my XHot set, because the XHot's are so strong lofted. Not sure I would be able to flight the XHP 3 or 4 iron. Then I did a double take, why would I not just use a hybrid for the added forgiveness and versatility? Utility iron conceivably provides more control, but I'm not good enough to attack greens from that distance :beauty:

So why would YOU use it? I'm curious to see the pros and cons.
 
Good question,
I have actually been pondering one for the 3h spot for some time now. I currently have a 3h that is 20* and "older" technology, and mt TM Rocketbladez 4i is 21* goes about 30yds longer on average with better control and flight. I've been in ponder mode on the xutility, but haven't been able to find one to hit around here, mainly because the looks suit my eye and I have come to enjoy hitting the longer irons. The newer utility irons seem to have (through reviews I have read) better forgiveness and versatility to the hockey sticks of the past.
 
I'm considering going to a utility iron. I just can't hit my 2-iron as consistently as I'd like and with par 3's and second shots getting longer and longer I'd like to be able to worry more about placement than ball striking.
 
Just seen this old thread and figured Id give it a nice bump. So if you have issues with a hybrid and woods is a utility the best option for you or is it harder to hit? And would it really replace a hybrid or fairway wood, or could it do both. Obvisously I am clueless on these guys, but deffiantly interested in them.
 
If you can't hit a Game Improvement long iron with some reasonable consistency/success, then a club like a utility is likely not for you. If you can, you may find something that works.
 
I got no idea Hawk never hit one before. I always like hitting a 3/4 iron off the tee on short par 4's. Would that be kind of similar. And I hit my Srixon 5iron like a champ. It's deffiantly my par 5 second club choice when I need a nice 180 lay up.
Hawk said:
If you can't hit a Game Improvement long iron with some reasonable consistency/success, then a club like a utility is likely not for you. If you can, you may find something that works.
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coers said:
Just seen this old thread and figured Id give it a nice bump. So if you have issues with a hybrid and woods is a utility the best option for you or is it harder to hit? And would it really replace a hybrid or fairway wood, or could it do both. Obvisously I am clueless on these guys, but deffiantly interested in them.
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Utility iron is going to have less forgiveness than a hybrid. A utility iron, in my opinion, is for players who want something in between a hybrid and an iron. I have often thought about getting a utility iron to replace my hybrid, and that is solely because unless I mis-hit the hybrid, I have a hard time keeping the flight lower. However, when I think to the amount of times I need to keep it lower versus the amount of times I just swing away, I just can't get myself to buy a utility yet.
 
Yes, they are similar to game improvement irons. Small differences here and there, including sole width, appearance, maybe some more weighting down low, but to me they are like the Adams dHy. Basically an expensive game improvement iron.
 
Something like a Cleveland MT would be a cheaper alternative but essentially the same thing.
 
I don't get this, I feel like Hybrid's are easier to hit
 
sleuth said:
There appears to be a small resurgence in the utility iron this year. I know they've been around for a while but they've taken a back seat to hybrids. This year I'm actually seeing them in B&M shelves which I haven't seem for a long time. So this kind of peaked my interest, just a little. Why would you guys use a Utility iron over a hybrid?

I was actually contemplating a 3/4 Callaway Utility iron for my XHot set, because the XHot's are so strong lofted. Not sure I would be able to flight the XHP 3 or 4 iron. Then I did a double take, why would I not just use a hybrid for the added forgiveness and versatility? Utility iron conceivably provides more control, but I'm not good enough to attack greens from that distance :beauty:

So why would YOU use it? I'm curious to see the pros and cons.
Click to expand...

I probably wouldn't, to be quite honest. I dropped a 3 iron a long time ago in favour of a hybrid, and with what I have in the bag right now, there's no way any type of utility tech would justify the change. Maybe it's a touch better out of the rough, but I play my hybrid a heck of a lot more off the deck or tee than i ever would out of the rough.
 
I used one for a while strictly off the tee. More forgiving than a 2i, but still keeps the ball lower than a hybrid. Now I am back to 4w to 3i which does leave me a bit of a yardage gap, but not one that comes up more than once during a round.
 
So would miss hits with a utility iron be more offline than a hybrid or not. Always felt my misshits were way gone compared to a 3/4 iron.
 
coers said:
So would miss hits with a utility iron be more offline than a hybrid or not. Always felt my misshits were way gone compared to a 3/4 iron.
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My uneducated opinion:

Hybrid miss will have more offline deviation than an utility iron.

Utility iron miss will stay in play better but shorter distance wise than a hybrid miss.
 
What is the difference between a utility iron and a hyron, maybe something like an MPH4?
 
#Cookie said:
My uneducated opinion:

Hybrid miss will have more offline deviation than an utility iron.

Utility iron miss will stay in play better but shorter distance wise than a hybrid miss.
Click to expand...
Sounds like a better option than a hybrid
 
tequila4kapp said:
What is the difference between a utility iron and a hyron, maybe something like an MPH4?
Click to expand...
Nothing really except maybe a lower CG in the MP-H4.
 
I think that the utility iron clubs look neat, but I've yet to find one I can hit reliably any better than a low iron. Hybrids it is for me...
 
I have had an 18 degree Callaway Prototype Utility in my bag for the past year. It gives me a nice piercing ball flight and I can work it both ways without having to worry about my shot ballooning or getting blown off of its line.
 
#Cookie said:
All comes down to how good of a ball striker you are IMO.
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Common what kind of question is that??? I know I'm not no hole in one master!!!
 
My hybrids produced a higher trajectory and are easier to hit / more forgiving. My MPH4 3 and 4 irons (pseudo utility clubs) produce a more piercing trajectory and a bit more control. I wouldn't say they are hard to hit, just not quite as forgiving as the hybrids.

To the OP's question of "Why?"... I bought them at a time when I thought I didn't like looking down at the offset of my hybrids (read: stupid). I still game them, but only in unique situations such as playing in a lot of wind, otherwise I'm a hybrid guy. Some people don't like hybrids. Some people want the ability to shape shots. I think the utilities are in their wheelhouse.
 
I have one that I mess around with but a hybrid is a much better option for my game.
 
As someone who went from a hybrid to a Utility iron for me it was a better, more consistant ball flight and more confidence. I felt like with the hybrid I was one swing away from hitting the ball 2 miles left. I felt like I had to make some swing/grip changes to avoid the lefts with the hybrid. And this was with a Rescue 11 adjusted slightly open. With the Utility Iron I don't have those changes. I just get up and swing away. My misses aren't any worse, I don't find it any less forgiving or any harder to hit off the deck. Its been a great move for me and one, that frankly, I wish i had made earlier.
 
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