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The 8 hybrids and utility irons our staff loved during testing
Welcome to Fully Fit 2026, GOLF’s new platform for providing you with real-golfer insights into what 2026 gear might be best suited for your game. To this end, we assembled six GOLF content creators of varying abilities and ran them through the gauntlet of six full-bag fittings (driver to putter!) at six major club manufacturers in Phoenix and Carlsbad, Calif. Our hope: that you might see shades of your own game in one of our panelists’ and take some learnings and inspiration from their fitting experiences. In this installment (below), check out the hybrids and utility irons that each of our Fully Fit 2026 panelists chose for their golf bags. You may browse each of our panelists’ full 2026 dream bags here:
Jake Morrow (0 handicap) | Johnny Wunder (2) | Wadeh Maroun (2) | Jack Hirsh (2.4) | Maddi MacClurg (5.6) | Sean Zak (7.8)
MORE FULLY FIT: Fully Fit hub page | Why we’re ‘testing’ golf clubs differently this year | Inside 6 days of fittings and testing | Browse 2026 drivers | Browse 2026 irons | How 5 days of club fittings changed my mind on golf equipment
The spot between a player’s fairway woods and irons can be tricky, and for many of our Fully Fit panelists, hybrids and utilities were where they had to make the toughest decisions.
This category is crucial for players to gap out the rest of their bag. Have a utility club that goes too far and you’ll struggle to gap your iron set after it. Have one that goes too short, and you’re going to be left with lots of awkward fairway wood yardages.
Not everyone will need a club in this space, but all six of our panelists did.
Everyone was looking for something different. Johnny and Sean wanted 4-iron replacements that went higher and farther. Johnny stuck with his longtime gamer hybrid, while Sean found a new utility iron. Wadeh and I were looking for secondary wood options that we can land softer than our mini drivers.
There was something for everyone.
After fittings with six manufacturers, here are the hybrids and utility irons our six panelists chose for their bags in 2026.
Jack Hirsh’s 3-Hybrid
Jack Hirsh/GOLF
Head: Ping G440 3H
The G440 hybrids appeal to a variety of skill levels, each engineered to deliver different ball- flight characteristics – from the slightly fade-biased 2 hybrid for off-the-tee performance to the draw-inducing 5, 6 and 7 hybrids that help optimize gapping. They all share a new, shallower and thinner face design, which improves face contact for more ball speed and higher-launching shots that hit and hold the green.
Shaft: Nppon N.S. Pro Modus3 GOST Hybrid TX
Loft: 20 @ 19
Trajectory Tuning 2.0 Setting: Flat –
Length: 40.25″ EOG
Tipping: 0″
Swingweight: D3
PING G440 Custom Hybrid
FLIES HIGH LANDS SOFT
Optimized launch and spin ensure distance with stopping power.
FREE-HOSEL DESIGN
Saves weight to lower CG, optimize launch/spin and increase forgiveness.
ROUNDED SOLE
Ensures pleasing face angle in all hosel settings
CARBONFLY WRAP
Lightweight carbon crown saves weight to increase MOI, lower CG.
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore
Why it’s in my bag: I struggled to find a replacement for my 3-wood for a long time until I got fitted for this hybrid last year at the Proving Grounds. Surprisingly, during Fully Fit 2026, I walked away with three other really good options for this spot in the bag, including a 21-degree Callaway UW, an 18-degree Cobra OPTM hybrid and a 19-degree TaylorMade Qi4D hybrid. But honestly, the G440 has such an advantage with a year of playing with it already in my back pocket.
I’m stoked to have four great options here, so while I’m happy with the Ping right now, I wouldn’t be shocked if I make a change when I start playing more regularly again in the spring. I do have some lead tape on the toe just to guard against that left miss, but for the most part, it keeps me on the right side of the golf course. This thing also explodes off the face.
1 key data point: 254 to 224 yards carry distance. That big of a carry dispersion is usually not considered a good thing, but the fact that I’m able to dial up a 250-plus carry out of a club that fills my 240 gap is super advantageous when I’m far away from the green. While I’m rarely hitting the mini off the deck, knowing I can still get pretty close to the target if I’m just inside a comfortable yardage and even chase it up with the hybrid is awesome. That shot is pretty low spin, but when I’m trying to close the gap between my Mini driver and 4-iron, versatility is key.
Jack Hirsh’s Utility Iron
*Utility Iron swapped for hybrid on a course/conditions-dependent basis
Jack Hirsh/GOLF
Head: Titleist U505 3-iron U505 plays like an iron but performs like something more. From threading the needle off the tee to getting home from unfathomable distances, U505 gives players the speed and control to hit clutch shots with confidence.
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Hybrid Gen. 4 80 g 6.5
Loft: 20˚
Lie: 58.5˚
Length: 39.25″ EOG
Swingweight: D4
Titleist 2025 U•505 Custom Driving Iron
Pure Muscle Look
A hollow high-strength steel body concentrates immense power in a pure package.
Long-Range Speed
A new forged L-Face design heightens ball speed and launch to take on distant targets with confidence.
Consistent Performance
Improved Max Impact Technology helps generate consistent launch, speed, spin, and carry to expand your shotmaking ability.
Controlled Trajectory
Split high-density tungsten produces optimal CG with high stability for more forgiving shotmaking.
Iron Set Blending
The U505 and T250U feature a player-preferred profile with minimal offset, allowing you to blend into the top end of a mixed setup seamlessly.
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore, Titleist
Why it’s in my bag: If I’m going to play a utility iron, then I want it to actually be a utility club and not a one-trick pony. Yes, hitting it high is almost never an issue for me, but the shots I can hit with the U505 are just silly. I can hit as high as all of my other irons, and I can hit down below 70 feet when I need to hit a frozen rope into the wind. I really just didn’t hit anything that has come close to it. I got fit for this club when the 2025 T-Series was launched and it took about three swings.
1 key data point: 157 mph ball speed. This was the fastest ball speed number I’ve recorded with this 3-iron. I was trying to get this number, but I’m more typically in the lower 150s. Just to be able to have that kind of speed with an iron tells me I can hit it off the tee and not have to worry about leaving myself way far back.
Jake Morrow’s Driving Iron
Head: Ping iDi #3 The iDi marks a big step forward in driving iron and long-iron performance, giving better golfers the flexibility of three loft choices to fit their distance number and trajectory window.
Shaft: Ping Tour 2.0 Black 90 X-Stiff
Loft: 20º
Lie: Black Color Code – 59º
Length: 39.25″
Swingweight: C9+
PING iDi Custom Driving Iron
Loft offerings are optimized for launch and spin in 2, 3 & 4 irons with a thinner, forged maraging steel face that flexes to increase ball speed and distance. The 2 is a traditional driving iron, delivering low launch and spin. The 3 (mid launch, mid spin) is designed as a driving iron or long-iron replacement. The 4 launches higher with more spin, making it easier to hold greens and is also recommended as a long iron replacement.
The 17-4 stainless steel head is both deeper front to back and shallower, which allows for 15% higher MOI on high/low impacts, and makes room for the new inR-Air technology. inR-Air is a pocket of air in the clubhead that damps sound and improves feel. The covered cavity and i-Beam structure help reduce vibration. In addition, iDi is shorter heel-to-toe to make it easier to tun over. For control in shot making, each iDi is approximately 1/4″ shorter and 1° flatter.
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore
Why it’s in my bag: I haven’t had a driving iron in the bag for a while. I’ve toyed with the Mizuno FliHi (the new one is really good, fyi) and the older Ping iCrossover (of which I was internally at Ping called the biggest fan of), but they just didn’t really stick after I found love in the Qi35 5-wood and a Ping G440 hybrid. When we tested the iDi, though, it just felt super easy. I could choke up and hit low cutty fairway finders or play it at length and hit super high draws. It also feels much better off the face than you might expect. I have to give credit to Adam Harding on the Ping PGA Tour truck for this. He’s the one who told me that I absolutely needed to hit it, and that’s really the only reason that I did when we went for our fittings. Turns out, he was correct.
1 key data point: Not really a data point, but how easy it is to change flights is what ended up selling me. The one downside to hybrids is that they are sort of one-trick ponies. Into the wind, or shots where you have to make a certain flight happen, aren’t really their strong suit. The iDi checks that box.
Johnny Wunder’s 4-hybrid
Head: Ping G430 4H
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI HY 9X
Loft: 22
Setting: Flat
Length: 39.5 EOG
Tipping: 0
Swingweight: D3
PING G440 Custom Hybrid
The G440 hybrids appeal to a variety of skill levels, each engineered to deliver different ball- flight characteristics – from the slightly fade-biased 2 hybrid for off-the-tee performance to the draw-inducing 5, 6 and 7 hybrids that help optimize gapping. They all share a new, shallower and thinner face design, which improves face contact for more ball speed and higher-launching shots that hit and hold the green.
FLIES HIGH LANDS SOFT
Optimized launch and spin ensure distance with stopping power.
FREE-HOSEL DESIGN
Saves weight to lower CG, optimize launch/spin and increase forgiveness.
ROUNDED SOLE
Ensures pleasing face angle in all hosel settings
CARBONFLY WRAP
Lightweight carbon crown saves weight to increase MOI, lower CG.
View Product
ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore
Why it’s in my bag: Security blanket. I’ve had this in the bag for two seasons now, and it’s become my favorite club. It can get up, go down, hold ball speed up and down the face, and it spins. It’s the most efficient 4H I’ve ever tested, and I really tried to kick it out. Contenders were Cobra OPTM (really close) and a TaylorMade Qi4D (also really close). Where they fell short was on their ceiling, with the 430, I can chip it and hit it 205, or munch it and hit it 225. The other had the floor, but the ceiling was 218. I’ll take the extra few yards.
1 key data point: 138-143 mph, 4200-4800 RPMs, 212-225 yard carry
Maddi MacClurg’s 4-hybrid
Adam Christensen/GOLF
Head: Callaway Quantum Max
Shaft: Denali Frost Silver 70G 6.0
Loft: 21º
OptiFit4 Setting: NS
Lie: 59.375°
Length: 40.125″
Swingweight: D2
Callaway Quantum Max Custom Hybrid
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore, Callaway
Why it’s in my bag: I’ve never had the kind of reliability with other hybrids that the Quantum Max gives me. Standing over shots, I feel confident because I don’t have to worry about my ball speed dropping on off-center hits. It also launches the ball high with a penetrating trajectory, making it easier to carry hazards on the course. Between the forgiveness, consistent speed and high launch, I can see this quickly becoming a club I rely on round after round.
1 key data point: I’ve always struggled with consistency when hitting hybrids, especially on off-center strikes. But the Quantum Max was a different story. Even on shots that were slightly off the toe or low on the face, the ball still carried with consistent, predictable speed. This makes it easy to trust the club from both the fairway and off the tee. That kind of reliability will be a game-changer for me —especially in competition rounds.
Sean Zak’s Utility Iron
Head: TaylorMade P-UDI 4-iron
Tour inspired shaping for a playable and balanced look at address. Strategically positioned CG for a penetrating ball flight with backspin for players who demand shot making with long irons. OPTIMAL LAUNCH AND FORGIVENESS THRU-SLOT SPEEDPOCKET
Shaft: KBS Tour Lite S
Loft: 22°
Lie: Standard
Length: 38.75″
TaylorMade P-UDI Custom Utility Iron
INDIVIDUAL MASS OPTIMIZATION
Featuring advanced thick-thin back wall construction, sound stabilization bar, and deliberately distributed mass to maximize forgiveness. Each iron is uniquely designed with every gram strategically placed to achieve specific performance goals with premium forged feel.
Designed to deliver easy launch, increased forgiveness and enhanced consistency. The new internal weighting structure combines with proven technologies such as the forged 4140 OptiFace, Speed Pocket™ and up to 26g of tungsten.
The Thru-Slot Speed Pocket™ provides increased face flexibility while preserving ball speed and distance on low face strikes.View Product
ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore, TaylorMade
Why it’s in my bag: I play a lot of golf in Scotland. Have been making the annual (and privileged) Open Championship pilgrimage for the last four years, and I find myself hitting a lot of 4-irons on that trip. It’s such a great exercise — to play firm courses for weeks at a time. It forces you to understand your carry distance, but also to understand how far your shots can run if you just get them started on the right line. So I really enjoy having a club I can hit extra shots with, low and hooking at times, higher and fading at others. This club has a good bit of meat on the bone, if you will. Some real mass that sits behind the clubface and helps me launch it. But I can also get plenty of distance out of that mass simply by pulling it back in my stance a bit and stinging one low and striking. Versatility is what we love.
1 key data point: This may not feel like a data point, but there is something particularly pleasing about just filling in the gap, loft-wise, in my bag. If we were to remove that Adams driving iron, which I really should have done years ago, then there was about a 13-degree gap in my set when it came to modern clubs. The 22-degree 4-iron (and the 16.5-degree 5-wood) work hand-in-hand to make my gapping more sensical. We like that!
Wadeh Maroun’s Hybrid
Wadeh Maroun
Head: Callaway Apex UW 2021
The Apex UW is designed for serious, avid golfers seeking the perfect blend of a fairway wood’s power and a hybrid’s versatility. Engineered with Tour feedback and loaded with performance technologies, it delivers a higher, more neutral ball flight with the control all players demand.
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7-X
Loft: 19˚
Length: 41”
Tipping: 2”
Swingweight: D0
Callaway 2025 Apex Custom Utility Wood
TUNGSTEN SPEED WAVE
A dynamic, 41g+ tungsten wave structure positions mass low and forward, enhancing ball speed and launch—particularly on low-face strikes where players tend to lose distance.
STEP SOLE DESIGN
A redesigned sole with a stepped geometry reduces turf interaction, helping to maintain swing speed through impact and promoting more consistent contact across different lies.
TRIAXIAL CARBON CROWN
The lightweight carbon construction allows for strategic weight redistribution, creating a more forgiving clubhead while refining launch and spin for greater shot-making control.
TOUR-INSPIRED SHAPING
Designed with input from the world’s best, the compact, refined shape and neutral face angle inspire confidence at address and deliver workability from tee to turf.
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore, Callaway
Why it’s in my bag: This has been in my bag for three years now, and it is my most trusted club in there. I use it for 240-yard distances, mostly hitting into greens on par 5s. The new 2025 UW is great. I just have so much confidence in this club; I didn’t feel the need to make a switch.
1 key data point: The north and south dispersion is so tight that a fitter from a different OEM, who will not be named, said, “If anyone tries to tell you they can beat this club, they are lying to you.”
Wadeh Maroun’s Utility Iron*
Wadeh Maroun
Head: Srixon ZXiU
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-VF Hybrid 95-S
Loft: 18˚
Length: 40”
Swingweight: D0
Srixon ZXiU Custom Utility Iron
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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA Tour Superstore, Srixon
Why it’s in my bag: Living in Arizona, you play a lot of desert golf, which usually means tight and hard fairways. I have this in my bag for when I am playing tight courses where I need 240+ off the tee and I know it is going to go straight. I do not use this a lot as it’s very much the “15th” club and used on a course-by-course basis.
1 key data point: Ball speed was the highest out of any of the driving irons I hit. I also love the mirror on the back, which removes the bulk through an optical illusion.
*Utility iron goes in for UW based on course/conditions
Watch Fully Fit 2026 below!
Ready to overhaul your bag in 2026 like our Fully Fit panelists? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.
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