Video summary
The speaker argues that many golfers unnecessarily ignore the 9-wood, mistakenly viewing it merely as a walking stick for seniors rather than a high-performance club capable of lowering scores. He emphasizes that club selection should not be dictated by traditional age-based stereotypes but rather by open-minded evaluation of performance data and personal preference. By comparing a 9-wood with a 5-iron, both sharing the same 24-degree loft, he demonstrates that while their distance capabilities are similar, the 9-wood offers superior forgiveness, better ball flight characteristics, and more consistent results due to its larger head size and center of gravity placement.
Beyond raw distance, the speaker highlights critical differences in launch angle, descent angle, and spin rates that favor the fairway wood over the iron. He explains that the larger profile of the 9-wood helps get the ball airborne more easily without requiring maximum effort or extreme swing speed, allowing players to maintain confidence even when not swinging at full power. This psychological advantage is crucial; having a club one trusts eliminates the need to break one's neck to achieve impressive shots, thereby simplifying decision-making on the course and reducing pressure during play.
The video concludes with a strong recommendation to re-evaluate existing equipment rather than dismissing clubs based on outdated perceptions or pigeonholed roles. The speaker asserts that modern fairway woods and hybrids have evolved significantly over the last fifteen years and should be judged by their current performance metrics rather than historical usage patterns. Ultimately, he suggests that the choice between an iron and a wood often comes down to mentality and ego, urging golfers to drop the loft of their thinking and embrace data-driven insights to discover hidden benefits in their bags that could lead to positive surprises in their game.
Read the full video transcript
You know, one thing I've learned over
the years doing YouTube is I'm not sure
which is bigger at times, people's egos
or their handicaps.
Now, if like many you think golf clubs
should be selected by well, depending on
how old you are, then uh this video is
probably not for you.
But if you're open-minded enough, then
stick around and I think you'll realize
that perhaps
you're ignoring a vital club in the bag
that could help you lower your scores.
Seriously. Now, lots of golfers think
this club should be used as a walking
stick for old men. And let me tell you,
they're all wrong. So, in today's video,
with the help of FlightScope, I'm going
to show you the difference between a
9-wood and a 5-iron. Two clubs with the
same loft, but very different results.
And the question is why should you be
seriously considering one over the
other?
You're going to have to forgive me if I
suggest that that
is an alternative suggestion
that I don't get people understand or
ignore. It drives me crazy.
And it's not just better off that tee.
Look at that ball flight from the rough.
And look how far it's gone. So, the
question for me is why are people
continuing to ignore this club? And can
I show you in data on the golf course
what it actually does and why it's so
beneficial? I still don't think you'll
listen. So, the first reason I choose a
golf club for for my own use is well,
it's quite basic logic first of all is
that is this the best alternative to
cover the distance that fits a gap in my
bag. That's dead straightforward. I
don't care what it is, 9-wood, 7-wood,
11-wood, 5-iron, 5-hybrid. It makes no
difference to me. I want the very best
club that performs the most often, the
most consistently, with the best set of
data numbers to back it up. That's
straightforward, isn't it? I've then got
a second part of the equation, and that
is do I like this thing? Do I like it
sat behind the ball? Does it inspire
confidence? And again, compare it to my
alternative options at this distance,
which would I prefer to be using? Right
now, all I'm looking down on is a
fairway wood.
I've no idea what number it is. I've no
idea who it's supposed to be for. All I
do know is I like the look of it.
And better still, I always like the
performance of it. And finally, I add
another bit of logic to my equation.
Now, I know people aren't really keen on
logic, but it's the way I work. And
there's two simple things that I look at
in these two clubs. They're both 24°, so
loft-wise they're identical. But that's
about where the similarities end because
there's a big difference in the profile
of the club, the size of it, the mass.
And a big thing that's important to me
is the CG placement cuz I like a little
bit of help in getting the ball
airborne. Now, it could be suggested
that the slower you swing, the more help
you need. I get that. Maybe that's part
of the equation, too.
But I also know the overall ball flight,
launch, descent angle, spin, all those
things matter. And all those things are
going to be helped better achieve with
that larger head of the 9-wood. So now
we've got the common sense applied, and
I've got a club that I think might be
worth considering based on some, well,
simple straightforward logic. I now need
to get FlightScope on, and I need data
to help me understand what this club
does and whether or not I should
seriously be considering dropping an
iron, dropping a hybrid, swapping it out
into that 9-wood. Once again, no
interest in what the number is on the
club.
Just a real interest in the performance.
>> [snorts]
>> Now, let's say it's hopefully a good
five-wood, a five-iron rather.
And that's a That's a really good
five-iron.
I'm happy with that. Delighted with it
in fact. And I can still hit a
five-iron. I've got plenty enough club
head speed to get this ball launching
high enough. So, okay. Why do you want
to change?
Well, because
that's as good as I've got with a
five-iron.
And if I don't get it quite right, then
the numbers will drop off significantly.
Cuz it hasn't got the forgiveness that
this thing will offer.
But it also hasn't got the ball flight
characteristic
that this thing offers either.
And that
is bloody brilliant.
So, the interesting thing was that those
two balls, well, they finished about 15
yd apart to be fair. The nine wood being
15 yd longer, but what I was more
interested in was the ball flight
between the two. There's a different
launch angle. There's a different
descent angle. And then we're still
getting 15 yd further. And we're getting
quite honestly a better spin number as
well.
So, from the tee, I'm not really sure
what the option is or why I would
consider hitting a five-iron as opposed
to a nine wood. It's one all day long.
But it's not just that fact, is it?
Because the thing is, I talk on this
channel about
not swinging at 100% all of the time,
swinging within yourself.
And what I've got when I've got a nine
wood in hand is something that I've got
plenty of confidence with that I don't
have to
put all kinds of effort in, break my
neck to make it do very
impressive things.
It blows my mind every time I see it, to
be honest with you.
So, the objective of all my videos
always been the same. It's try and
present you with options that I think
potentially make the game easier.
It's dead simple and straight straight
forward. I'm not suggesting an iron wood
is for everybody and all of a sudden you
should drop your five iron. That's not
what I try and do on this channel. What
I'm suggesting you do is not dismiss a
club because you've pigeonholed it into
something that you think it is or it
traditionally was.
Because trust me, this any club, any
fairway wood, and any hybrid is very
much different than it was maybe 15
years ago.
So, I think it's more than worth
spending a little bit of time examining
the performance of clubs and what they
really do in terms of not just how far
they go because that's just one part of
the equation, but it's how they get
there. And the sooner more golfers
realize that, I think the better.
So, when I walk up here, I've got well,
on the limit, we've got couple of
hundred up the hill.
Do I fancy a five iron or do I fancy
this thing?
And we've gone after that one.
That's a great way to finish the video.
Oh, I still come up just a tad short.
Love that. I love it in this thing. It's
the one club that I just cannot get out
of my bag and I can't see it budging, to
be honest with you. It's a no-brainer.
So, lesson is nothing to do with an iron
wood, it's more to do with your
mentality, your ego. Drop the loft and
have a little bit more of an open mind
when you picking your golf clubs next
time around and you might get a few
surprises on the positive side.