4 woods hard to find

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By OnePutt

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  1. OnePutt

    OnePutt
    AURORA, CO

    I have read a few articles saying most  amatuer golfers would be better off getting a 4 wood instead of a 3 wood. But finding a good 4 wood isn't that easy these days, as most OEM's don't make them. What do you recommend for golfers to do? Does Titleist offer any good 4 woods?

  2. This is a very good question.  Titleist does not currently make a "4" wood.  We do however offer fairway woods in lofts ranging from 13*, 13.5*, 15*, 15.5*, 18*, 18.5*.  In the 80s and 90s Titleist made what would have been considered a 4 wood.  The loft on these different model 4 woods ranged from 17* to 19*.  Traditionally, a 5 wood was lofted around 20 - 22 degrees.   

    As technology has progressed and allowed more golfers to get the ball up in the air easier there has been a movement towards stronger lofts in order to help create more distance.  In today's standards a 5 wood is closer to the loft of what use to be considered a 4 wood.  

    I would recommend visiting a Titleist fitting expert to help determine where your long game yardage gaps lie and fill your bag accordingly based on the longest iron you like to play in your bag.

     

  3. OnePutt

    OnePutt
    AURORA, CO

    Thank you for your quick reply. Currently I'm hitting my 15* 5 wood very well, better than my 3 wood. Mostly due to not working with the 3 wood as much. This is why I'm looking to add a 4 wood to my bag, to replace both my 3 wood and my 5 wood. Since my 3 wood is 15*'s and my 5 wood is 18*'s. I'm thinkig of adding a 16.5* 4 wood. Not being able to find a good 4 wood. i've decided to convert a used 18* 5 wood into a 16.5* 4 wood to see how it works out for my bag. My thinking is that if I can gain 10 to 15 yards with the 4 wood over my current 5 wood, and still hit it as well. i'd be hitting one less club for my next shot into the green. I've come up with an easy way to do the conversion to a 4 wood. and I'll let you know how the experiment turns out. Thanks again for your reply.

  4. LEROY P

    LEROY P
    elmwood park, IL

    i have a titleist 4 wood 980f 17 degree loft. to me this is the best fairway wood you can find!!  great distance, feel and the shape of the head is like a bobby jones hybrid. it easy to hit off tight lies and from of the fairways. you can't make a mistake with this club. ebay has them most of the time. lee p

  5. OnePutt

    OnePutt
    AURORA, CO

    Thanks for your reply Leroy. I picked up a used Cobra 5 wood for $25 and converted it to a 16.5* 4 wood. So far it's working out as I had hoped. Last fall I was averaging 255 yards with my 18* 5 wood. and thinking a 4 wood might just get me an extra 10 or 15 more. After not finding much it the way of good 4 woods, I decided to pick up a spare 5 wood and convert it to exaxtly what I wanted, a 16.5* 4 wood. It's just as easy to hit as my current 5 wood, with a slightly lower ball flight. I need to hit it some more on the course to get an average yardage with it, but going by the lower ball flight and stronger loft, I think it's working out as planned so far. Now that I know how to do the convertiion, I might see if any of my playing partners might want a 4 wood for their bags.

  6. Brendon W

    Brendon W
    tokoroa, 0

    Hi I wood buy the Titleist 17 degree fairway wood I am going to get one I made the mastake of getting a 3wood I cant hit it very well of the deck even with it adjusted to 16.5 degree when i get my 17deg wood I will adjust it up to half a degree and its going to be  easy to hit of the tee and fairway I can hit my 3 wood 215 metres from the deck  with my 17 degree fairway wood I will loose 10 metres hope this helps and good golfing

    Brendon

  7. DON F

    DON F
    AURORA, CO

    Military

    I just picked up a used 3 wood and converted it to a 16.5* 4 wood. I've got a way of doing this without having to try to bend the short hosel. It's working out very well so far. It's a bit easier to hit than a standard 3 wood, and longer than a 5 wood distance wise. I built the club to be the same length as a 5 wood so it's just as easy to hit well. Just more distance. Hard to beat it.

  8. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    Even my dad mentioned in 2007 that his local pro recommended a 4 wood and 7 wood. I carried 975F 16.5 and 20.5 w/ DG R300 for 3 years. 15 fairway not easy to hit off the deck. Mathematically, the 17* is 5-7 yd shorter than 15* and same distance longer vs 19*. I found for me that I hit an 18 fw the same as a 15 off the tee.  The 17 fw is only 1/2" longer than the 19.  For me, 43" is way too long for a fww.

  9. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    I tried a bunch of 3 Woods, buying used locally and the internet.  My longest club has always been a 7W (910 F 21).  Tried 19 degree hybrids (910 and the slotted TM) with no improvement.  We tried fitting the 913F 17 degree, but the one that worked was the 913F 15 set to 16.5.  #6 is the charm.  My driver is about 220 and the 3W is over 200.  The 7W is about 175.  My original intention was for off the tee, but we went wtih the Basarra in a lighter flex for off the deck.  I would not have picked the combination - but my fitter did...

  10. DON F

    DON F
    AURORA, CO

    Military

    I carry a 24* 9 wood that I hit 205 carry, a 21* 7 wood that I hit 220, a 18* 5 wood that gives me 240 and a 15* 3 wood that I seldom hit. This is why I'm leaning toward a 16.5* 4 wood. I little more carry than my 5 wood but just as easy to hit, since it's the same length as my 5 wood. I'm hitting the 4 wood I just built fine so far, just haven't had a chance to see how much distance I'm getting with it out on the range or the course. It's kind of a shame more companies don't sell 4 woods today. But I'm not complaining as it gave me a good reason to work out a method of converting used 3 or 5 woods into 4 woods. and now I have all the tooling and fixtures to do the job.

  11. Craig P

    Craig P
    Shawano, WI

    I consider my 17 degree Titleist fairway metal to be a "4" wood. Off the tee it goes 180 yds. fairway lie 170 yds. (I am 72 years old with a driver swing speed of 75 mph.

  12. DON F

    DON F
    AURORA, CO

    Military

    4 Wood loft will vary depending on the 3 and 5 woods you might have. Most 3 woods have 15* of loft while some 5 woods have 18* and others have 19*. So if you want a 4 wood half way between a 3 and a 5, you will want either a 16.5*  or a 17* loft. Since my 5 wood has 18* of loft I built a 16.5* 4 wood.

    I'm 66 years old and my driver swing speed is 105-107 MPH.  I can get up to 77 MPH with my wedges as of last Friday when I measured my swing with a Swing Speed Radar unit.

  13. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    With other companies, their so-called "5 woods" are actually a 4 wood loft by old standards (18*).

    I was thinking about 17* and 21* fairways but the difference either side of my 19F is 5 yards.  I do have a gap of 20 yards between the 19F (A3 setting) and 27H and I have pretty much mastered a 1/2" choke down shot to hit the 19F 175 yards.   I've thrown in the towel on trying to use a 19 or 21H and there is little distance gain between the 24H and the 27H.

    The 17 would be considered the "4 wood".

    I've found there really isn't a point to carrying a 15* fairway since I can hit an 18F just about the same distance.

     

  14. Hi,

    According to their web site, Titleist does offer a 17 degree loft version of the 913F. The 13.5 and 15 are the strong 3 and 3 woods, the 19 is the 5W so I'm figuring the 17 must be their de facto 4W.

    As highly as I think of Titleist clubs, my current golf game prefers a different fairway wood. I hit the Titleist woods well but I could clearly hit the current offering from another brand better. I'm bumfuzzled as to why.

  15. DON F

    DON F
    AURORA, CO

    Military

    I'd be willing to BET that the reason you can hit this other brand of club better than the Titleist you tried is the SHAFT. you might want to try installing a good after market shaft in the Titleist club and try again. While the head can be important, the shaft is more so.

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