5 Wood vs 4 Iron – Which Club Is Better To Carry

Having a limit of 14 clubs can be a bit of a conundrum sometimes. It’s incredibly important to have the right set up in your bag.

There are a few things you need to consider when picking which club setup you are going to have. The first question is ‘do I have the ability to hit the club’, there is no point in having a club in your bag if you struggle to hit it.

The second question is ‘will I need to use it’, if you hit a 5 wood 230 yards, but you never need to hit it that distance, then there is no point in having it in your bag.

 

5 Wood vs 4 Iron – Which Club Is Better To Carry

Fairway woods

As mentioned above it all depends on if you can hit the club and if you need to hit it. We recommend a 5 Wood or even a 3 Hybrid over a 4 Iron. A 4 Iron is a very difficult club to hit as the head is quite small with not much forgiveness.

A 5 Wood or 3 Hybrid may be a bit longer in length, but the size of the head more than makes up for that. Club manufactures can pack much more technology into the club compared to an Iron.

With an Iron the center of gravity is very close to the face and toward the middle of the club, this makes it hard to get the ball up into the air and not very forgiving.

A 5 Wood or Hybrid has the center of gravity away from the head and lower, helping you hit the ball up into the air with loads of forgiveness.

 

What’s Better From The Fairway

A 5 Wood will be much easier to hit off the fairway, the flat and shallow profile allows the club to slide along the ground clipping the ball off the turf with ease.

A 4 Iron if caught slightly off will either dig into the ground if you come down before the ball, or catch the ball thin if you come up on your shot.

 

What’s Better From The Rough

Going with a 5 Wood or even better a Hybrid out of the rough is much easier than a 4 Iron.

The 4 Iron will get caught in the long grass causing your shot to lose a lot of distance.

A 5 Wood or Hybrid will cut through the long grass helping you make solid contact with the ball, this will help you hit the ball the desired distance.

 

What’s Better From The Tee

Again going with the 5 Wood off the tee is going to be the better option if you are looking to get maximum distance.

The 5 Wood will go much further than a 4 Iron, therefore it will be the better choice.

If you are looking to keep the ball low off the tee, or anywhere else on the course hitting a 4 Iron is the way to go, it is much easier to hit a 4 Iron low compared to a 5 Wood.

 

Loft & Distance Comparison Table

 

Game Improvement 

Players

Length

5 Wood Loft

18 Degrees

18 Degrees

43.25 inches

4 Iron Loft

19 Degrees

21 Degrees

39 inches

 

As you can see the lofts are the same for 5 Woods, but the loft is different for Game Improvement and Players Irons. This is because Iron sets have gotten stronger over the years for Game Improvement Irons to help them hit the ball further, whereas better players don’t need that assistance.

You will naturally hit a 5 Wood farther than a 4 Iron even if the lofts are the same, a 5 Wood has more muscle (creates ball speed) behind it and will launch the ball higher, both of these things will make the ball go further.

The length of the 5 Wood will also make you hit it further than the 4 Iron, a longer shaft will generate more clubhead speed, and therefore more ball speed, making the ball go further.

 

Why Do Players Still Carry A 4 Iron

Tiger Woods Iron

Some better players even still use a 3 Iron. An Iron is much easier to shape from left to right and right to left, as well as hit high or low.

A better player likes to be able to do this, they are not worried about forgiveness as they are good enough ball strikers.

When the club becomes more forgiving like a 5 Wood or Hybrid, you lose the ability to shape the ball.

 

4 Iron Advantages And Disadvantages

Pros

  • Easy to shape and work the ball
  • Looks more traditional

Cons

  • Not very forgiving
  • Difficult to hit from all lies
  • Doesn’t go as far as a 5 Wood

 

5 Wood Advantages And Disadvantages

Pros

  • Easy to get the ball up into the air
  • Very forgiving
  • Goes much further than a 4 Iron
  • Easy to hit out of all lies
  • Lands softly when it hits the ground

Cons

  • Difficult to shape and work the ball

 

Our Favorite 4 Iron 

Callaway Mavrik Max

Callaway Mavrik Max

The Callaway Mavrik Max Irons are incredibly forgiving, and if you are a 4 Iron fanatic then these are the Irons to go for. 

The Flash Face Cup technology uses Artificial Intelligence to design the face, this increases ball speed and spin.

The Tungsten Energy Core positions the weight low and far back to optimise launch conditions.

And finally the Urethane Microspheres absorb unwanted vibrations, creating an unbelievable feel off the clubface.

Pros

  • Extremely forgiving for an Iron
  • Incredible feel off the clubface
  • Use AI to optimise ball speeds
  • The tungsten weighting makes launching these Irons very easy

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Might not be able shape and work the ball as much compared to other Irons

Overall Score: 95/100

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Our Favorite 5 Wood

TaylorMade SIM2 Ti 

The TaylorMade SIM2 Ti 5 Wood is one of the hottest clubs on the market at the moment.

It is the only 5 Wood that is made from Titanium, this creates incredible ball speeds off the face for unprecedented distance.

Their V Steel technology helps with turf interaction and allows them to place the CG low and back in the head making it extremely forgiving.

It’s made from multiple materials, this allows them to save weight where it is not needed and put it where it can benefit the golfer. 

Pros

  • Extremely forgiving
  • A Titanium face for crazy distance
  • V Steel technology to help with turf interaction
  • An 80g tungsten sole plate makes launching this club a breeze

 

Cons

  • Harder to work and shape the ball

Overall Score: 96/100

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Conclusion

Both clubs can be used, you as a player need to determine if you are able to hit it and if you will ever need to hit it.

There is no point in having a club in the bag if you are not able to hit it well and especially if you are never going to use it.

You need to way up the pros and cons and make your decision from there.

If you are looking for something more forgiving then a 5 Wood or Hybrid is the way to go, or if you are looking for a club that you can work and shape then you must go with a 4 Iron.

For the average golfer like most of us, the 5 Wood or Hybrid is our choice for you.