The best hybrid for your game is going to be the one that gives you the greatest opportunity to both score and save shots during your round of golf.

In 2022, we have seen a continued expansion of hybrid options from every manufacturer with models designed to fit golfers of all skill levels and clubhead speeds to the point that some manufacturers offer models all the way down to 8-iron-replacement lofts. These hybrids all utilize new technology and manufacturing methods to launch golf balls higher, faster, and farther, while also offering forgiveness. It’s now easier than ever to find the right one that matches your swing and fits into your set.

You have to think of your set of clubs like a toolbox with a 14-tool capacity. It’s extremely important to make sure each and every tool has a defined role to make navigating around the course as stress-free as possible. Hybrids play an important part in that selection process.

That being said, ultimately the best way to find the best hybrid or hybrids for you is to work with a professional fitter using a launch monitor and gap them accordingly. The difficult part is a lot of people don’t have easy access to fitters, launch monitors, and club builders—so at GolfWRX, we have done a lot of the work for you.

The methodology is simple: We want to give you the tools and information to go out and find what works best for you, and we’re offering recommendations based on exactly what you need from your hybrids.

GolfWRX best hybrid of 2022: Meet the fitters

Nick Sherburne: Founder,Club Champion
Clare Cornelius: Fitter, Cool Clubs
Eric Johnson: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Shaun Fagan: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Kirk Oguri: PGA Professional/ Club Specialist, Pete’s Golf
Sue O’Connor: Fitter, Cool Clubs 
Scott Felix: Owner, Felix Club Works
Mark Knapp: Fitter, Carls Golfland
Ryan Johnson: Fitter, Carl’s Golfland
Eric Hensler: Manager & Fitter, Miles of Golf
Brad Coffield: Fitter Carl’s Golfland
Nick Waterworth: Fitter,Haggin Oaks Golf Super Shop
Scott Anderson: VP of Sales, Fitter, True Spec Golf
Matthew Sim: Director of Operations, Modern Golf
Shawn Zawodni: Fitter, Miles of Golf
Ben Giunta: Owner,The Tour Van
Matt Decker: Head Fitter and Builder, The Fitting Lab – Baltimore
Jason Bodey: Head Fitter and Builder, The Fitting Lab Pittsburgh
Bradley Harrelson: Fitter, 2nd Swing Golf
Alex Dice: Fitter, Carl’s Golfland
Matt Mora: Director of Club Fitting, Urban Golf Performance
Jordan Patrick: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Gus Alzate: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Carmen Corvino: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Blake Smith: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Marc Roybal: Fitter, True Spec Golf
Shaun Fagan: Fitter, True Spec Golf

Best hybrid of 2022: The categories

We have broken our 2022 best hybrid list into two categories.

1. Best hybrid for golfers seeking forgiveness 
2. Best hybrid for golfers seeking versatility

We selected this format for hybrid clubs because every golfer fits into one of these two “want” categories, regardless of age, handicap, or gender. For many golfers, forgiveness is the number one factor when selecting the hybrids that will go into their bag.

Before we started building the survey, we reached out to our trusted fitters to discuss how they sort through the hybrid club options available to golfers. Forgiveness and versatility were the highest-ranked choices.

We can’t thank the fitters enough for their time, and we hope that in your search for your best fairway wood for 2022, we can help you find it.

Most forgiving hybrids 2022

Ping G425

The best way to describe the Ping G425 hybrids is as mini iron-replacing fairway woods. The hybrids share all of the same Facewrap and Spinsistency technologies as the G425 fairways but are intended to launch higher and stop faster to create playable trajectories for golfers who need stopping power—all the way down to a 7-iron-replacing 34 degree.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Ping G425 launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “Super forgiving but doesn’t look like that. It sits square, not closed, and great adjustability. Love that I can get it flatter and make it more anti-left for some of the higher speed players. The utility wrench of the hybrids, it is unbelievable the range of players it can fit.”
• “This should be a go-to hybrid for anyone buying off the shelf because of its extremely stable performance and the ability to adjust the hosel to reduce dispersion.”

TaylorMade Stealth

The Stealth Plus Rescue contains an iron-like high-toe profile and overall compact footprint in a bid to provide controlled trajectory and shot shape while maintaining added forgiveness.

A redesigned V Steel sole positions weight low in the club to encourage optimal launch properties and enhance turf interaction, while the Stealth Plus also features an adjustable loft sleeve that provides +/-1.5 degrees loft so players can optimize trajectory.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our TaylorMade Stealth hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “It has been testing longer than SIM2 Max for us, almost 2-3 yards longer. The Speed Pocket on the sole really ads some speed to shots, especially ones low on the face.”
• “The face is super hot and fits a lot of golfers. So easy to hit with tons of forgiveness, we have seen a lot of players gain more distance and tighten up their dispersion.”

Titleist TSi1

Titleist has never put a large focus of its R&D into hybrids designed for moderate speed players. Instead, most of the work has been used to focus on hybrids designed for higher speed golfers—that is until now. Like the rest of the TSi1 metal woods, the hybrids are about greater MOI and launch, and the new TSi1’s are the highest MOI hybrid Titleist has ever built. They are on average 20 grams lighter than a standard hybrid and feature a larger profile “wood-style” design to generate more green holding spin.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Titleist TSi1 hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Titleist TSi1 is one of the lighter weight hybrids on the market. This club is designed for players who need high launch, and need a club that’s light weight. The lofts on this club are weaker to help increase launch for players who don’t create a ton of club head speed.”
• “You can almost think of the TSi1 hybrid like a mini fairway wood—it just wants to go high and straight. If you find yourself hitting shots on the front portions of greens and they are rolling all the way through the green then you need more spin and a steeper descent angle and you will get that with these hybrids.”

Callaway Rogue ST Max OS

The new A.I.-designed Jailbreak system has been redesigned and will create increased speed and more stability. The two Jailbreak frames are pushed to the perimeter, providing stiffness. This will allow for higher ball speeds, according to the company.

A.I. Face optimized for speed, launch, and spin: From Callaway’s high strength 455 Face Cup, there is new A.I. face optimization that is set to improve speed, launch, and spin. The face pattern is customized for each model and loft.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Callaway Rogue ST Max hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Callaway Max OS hybrid is very forgiving. The lofts on this model of hybrids are weaker than some of the others on the market. This hybrid is large in terms of its size compared to others on the market. These hybrids are more draw bias. Players who tend to struggle with launching a hybrid, or are slow swingers these hybrids are great to help get the ball air born.”
• “The Jailbreak technology gives it a very hot face and it has a much more refined design. The MOI seems a little higher and the center of gravity a little lower, making it easier to hit hit. It also is nice to have the OS and OS Lite, just helping to fit a wider range of players.”

Cobra LTDx

The LTDx hybrids are Cobra’s first to feature PwrShell Technology, which utilizes an L-cup face design that is forged from a thin and strong stainless steel to generate up to 17% more flex in design for faster ball speed and higher launch across the face.

The hybrids contain the brand’s PWR-COR and H.O.T. Face technologies while also featuring Hollow Split Rails that aim to improve turf interaction and allow the club to glide out of the fairway, tight lies, thick rough and even bunkers.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Cobra LTDx hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “Just like the rest of the woods, the LTDx hybrid packs a ton of technology into a rather compact head. Great ballspeed no matter where you hit it on the face and the modified rails on the sole make it easy to hit from the fairway or rough.”
• “The LTDx is just a solid hybrid that is an improvement over last year’s model. The face seems hotter and shots low on the face still go and get up in the air easily. It is another hybrid this year that can fit a wide range of players and I have seen it go into scratch players bags as well as high handicaps.”

Most versatile hybrids 2022

 

Ping G425

The best way to describe the Ping G425 hybrids is as mini iron-replacing fairway woods. The hybrids share all of the same Facewrap and Spinsistency technologies as the G425 fairways but are intended to launch higher and stop faster to create playable trajectories for golfers that need stopping power—all the way down to a 7-iron-replacing 34 degree.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Ping G425 hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Ping 425 hybrid is very versatile. This hybrid is great for players of all skill levels. This hybrid has a great feature of being able to flatten the lie angle. This is helpful for those players who don’t want to see the ball hook. The 425 hybrid is our easiest hybrid to hit.”
• “Not all, but a lot of hybrids have a tendency to want to be draw-biased, but you don’t get that with the Ping G425. Its flight is neutral, and you can seriously increase the fade bias with the flat setting on the hosel.”

Titleist TSi2

The TSi2 (and TSi3) hybrids feature a forged carpenter 455 steel face, which, much like the previous generation, has allowed the designers to save mass and reposition it around the head to maximize the playing characteristics for each model, which is particularly important considering how much design separation has been created.

The TSi2 is a hybrid designed with the perfect balance between optimizing forgiveness while also offering playability for golfers with a more shallow delivery into the ball. Compared to the TSi3, which is one of the smallest hybrids Titleist has ever produced, and the TSi1 which is the largest, the TSi2 fits comfortably in the middle in terms of size and has low and deeper CG to create higher launch conditions for those who need it.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our 2021 Titleist TSi2 hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Titleist TSI2 hybrid is a a little bit bigger hybrid in terms of head size compared to the TSI3 hybrid. The Titleist hybrids have always been some of the best on the market. The TSI2 hybrid gives a player the ability to hit shots low, high and shape shots. The TSI2 hybrids offer players the ability to hit different shots out of different lies.”

TaylorMade Stealth

The Stealth Plus Rescue contains an iron-like high-toe profile and overall compact footprint in a bid to provide controlled trajectory and shot shape while maintaining added forgiveness.

A redesigned V Steel sole positions weight low in the club to encourage optimal launch properties and enhance turf interaction, while the Stealth Plus also features an adjustable loft sleeve that provides +/-1.5 degrees loft so players can optimize trajectory.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our TaylorMade Stealth hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “It has been testing longer than SIM2 Max for us, almost 2-3 yards longer. The Speed Pocket on the sole really ads some speed to shots, especially ones low on the face.”
  “The face is super hot and fits a lot of golfers. So easy to hit with tons of forgiveness, we have seen a lot of players gain more distance and tighten up their dispersion.”

Titleist TSi3

The TSi3 hybrid is the most technology-packed and adjustable hybrid Titleist has ever produced. Like the rest of Titleist’s metal woods line, the hybrid features the familiar SureFit hosel system as previous generations but also includes the newly optimized SureFit adjustable CG (center of gravity) track to help fitters and golfers alike dial-in preferred shot shape and reduce dispersion. The TSi3 hybrid uses the same weight as the TSi3 fairway wood to achieve this adjustability.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Titleist TSi3 hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Tsi3 hybrid is designed for players who have speed, and like to really work the ball. The TSI3 is a lower launching lower spinning hybrid that has characteristics of a driving iron/fairway wood in a small compacted shape of a hybrid. The TSI3 hybrid is a smaller compact shape, that has the weight port to allow for more shot shaping ability. Players who have played driving irons in the past have gravitated towards the TSI3 hybrid. Players who play hybrids off the tee tend to gravitate towards this.This is a lower launching, low spinning ball speed monster.”

Callaway Rogue ST Pro

The Rogue ST Pro is most definitely geared to the low handicapper. It features a fairway wood/compact shaping, shallow face, and neutral CG for the most workability in the Rogue ST line.

For the full technology breakdown, check out our Callaway Rogue ST hybrid launch piece.

Fitter Notes

• “The Callaway Rogue ST Pro is designed to sit a little open at address. The Rogue ST Pro is a fade bias hybrid. Players who tend to gravitate towards this club are players with speed. This hybrid is a lower launching, lower spinning hybrid. This club is great for those who use a hybrid off of the tee.”
• “There is definitely a good mix of old and new in the Pro. The shaping reminds me a little of the old Adams “peanut” while the Jailbreak and other technology make it long and easy to launch. The Pro sits well with better players because of it’s low spin and straight ball flight.”

Conclusion

The fitters consulted for this piece have accumulated data from thousands of fittings with golfers just like you. From beginners to tour players, their feedback and information can’t be undervalued.

Now it’s your turn: Everybody swings the club differently and everybody has their own experience. We want to hear from you. What driver are you using? What did you switch from? What performance gains did you find in your own game? Share your experience to help others.