Best Hybrid Golf Clubs 2021

What were the best hybrid golf clubs of 2021?

This is the ONLY place you’ll find all of 2021’s hybrids tested and compared against each other, with published launch monitor data and recommendations of the best performers (find out more about how we performed this test and analysed the data).

For 2021, the top-performing clubs received a Best of 2021 Award. These are the cream of the year’s offerings; they highlight which hybrids will perform for you, golfers, based on data from our launch monitor.

‘But why would I buy an older model?’, we hear you cry. Well, firstly, the fact a model is a year or more old doesn’t change the numbers it produced in testing. Secondly, if you’re playing clubs that are several years old, then a much newer club will inevitably have better technology and help improve your performance. And, thirdly, clubs that are no longer a brand’s current model often drop significantly in price, meaning you can pick up some bargains.

Of course, if you’re in the market for any of this year’s new equipment, make sure you read our guides to the year’s best drivers, fairway woods, irons, wedges and putters.

We’d recommend that you use our guides to help narrow your shortlist down before heading to your pro or nearest golf facility and getting fully fitted for your clubs as that’s the only way to optimise new models for your game.

Despite none of these hybrids being female-specific golf clubs, all of them can be played by women. If you do want to take a look at female-specific hybrids then check out the best ladies’ hybrids.

PXG 0211 hybrid

RRP £160 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 19° / 22° / 25° / 28° | Stock shaft: Aldila NVS Orange, Mitsubishi MMT 70g, Project X Riptide 85g

Today’s Golfer test verdict: PXG’s new lower-priced 0211 family has caught golfers – and the industry – off-guard. It’s an unexpected move that now repositions PXG products right among market-leading models, and for many golfers there’s now a serious decision to make between going mainstream or PXG in 2021.

We love how the 0211 hybrid has a slightly wider head than the brand’s narrow body 0317 X Proto. The head has full face grooves which you don’t always get on hybrids and there’s a really friendly look, it’s also super easy to launch. See the 0211 as easier too hit traditional long iron replacements and you really won’t go too far wrong.

You should never buy hybrids based on distance alone, as they need to fill yardage gaps in your game, but by a single yard the PXG 0211 was our test pro’s longest hybrid of the year.

The 0211 created our fastest hybrid ball speed and with a drop-off of 7.2% in carry distance it was 6^th best at protecting carry distance. That is is award-winning performance in anybody’s book.

TaylorMade SIM2 Max Rescue

RRP: £229 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 3-19° / 4-22° / 5-25° / 6-28° / 7-31° | Stock shaft: Fujikura Ventus Blue 7/6/5

Today’s Golfer test verdict:  The SIM2 Max has massive shoes to fill as both Rory and DJ unexpectedly were huge fans of its predecessor (SIM Max Rescue). TaylorMade Rescues have mopped up top spot for distance in our hybrid tests for a few years now so it’s no surprise to see this new model bubbling away at the top of our charts again.

Just like its older sibling the SIM2 Max hybrid is a looker. The head sits very square at address, and we love the chalk top edge and black crown which marries beautifully with the drivers and fairways.

Our data has the SIM2 a single yard back on our longest hybrid (PXG 0211) but that could easily be switched on a different day’s testing.

If you need help choosing between this and the new SIM2 Rescue, TaylorMade say the Max is a more distance focused model (we saw 10 yards of carry distance difference), where SIM2 is a ‘players’ hybrid with a flatter, more iron like face and narrower body.

RELATED: TaylorMade SIM2 Max irons

Honma T//World GS hybrid

RRP £249 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 21° / 24° / 27° | Stock shaft: Honma Speed Tuned

Today’s Golfer test verdict:  Slow swing speed players are well catered for nowadays when it comes to drivers and irons, but if your swing speed is moderate it can be a real challenge finding decent looking hybrids and fairways that don’t have massively offset hosels or very low-profile heads. This, though, is an area that Honma (who have so much experience designing clubs for average swing speed Japanese players), are exploiting. Good looking, slow swing speed gear is one string of Honma’s bow and they play the game better than most.

The GS hybrid isn’t for everyone; it has a 55g shaft – 25g lighter than most, and often a driver shaft weight. But what average speed players do get is a really attractive wide body head that’s not offset in the way that Callaway’s B21 super game-improver hybrids are.

Just like the model it replaces (last year’s XP-1) the Honma T//World GS gave our test pro his smallest carry distance drop-off of our whole golf hybrids test. It means the GS is great at protecting ball speed and carry, which is just what average golfers need when facing long approaches over hazards. 

RELATED: Honma’s T//World GS irons

Ping G425 hybrid

RRP £249 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 2-17° / 3-19° / 4-22° / 5-36° / 6-30° / 7-34° | Stock shaft: Ping Alta CB Slate, Ping Tour

Today’s Golfer test verdict: If you’re a fan of how Ping’s aerodynamic crown Turbulators frame the ball at address you might be a little disappointed to hear they’ve gone on the G425 hybrid. Ping’s reasoning is that a new wrapped face joins the body right where the Turbulators used to be, so they removed them.

Instead, the G425 gives you additional ball speed and more spin consistency between high and low face strikes. Ping G hybrids have been a brilliant choice for a few years and the new model is no different. This is really solid, and we love how the adjustable hosel and five different shaft options allow you to get exactly the club and ball flight you’re after.

Like Ping’s 2021 drivers, the G425 hybrid isn’t quite the longest (it was eight yards back), but it’s so forgiving and playable – just what a lot of club golfers need.

RELATED: Test your new hybrids on one of Golf World’s Top 100 Best Courses in the UK and Ireland

 Callaway Apex 21 hybrid

RRP £249 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 3-19° / 4-21° / 5-24° / 6-27° | Stock shaft: UST Recoil Dart 75g

Today’s Golfer test verdict: Callaway hybrids have been a bit hit and miss over the last few years. Last year’s Mavrik Pro was a shape we warmed to, but there was no getting away from it being aimed at ‘players’ much more so than average club golfers.

Golf club head shape is important here at TG, because if we’re shelling out £250 for a new club we need to like the way it looks. Thankfully the Callaway Apex 21 hybrid hits that button.

The Apex 21 is almost twice the size of the Apex Pro at address, but it sits really nicely alongside a set of Apex 21 or Apex 21 DCB irons.

The Apex 21 was comfortably inside our longest five golf hybrids of the year, more importantly though, its adjustable hosel it can be tailored to fill very specific yardage gaps within your bag and help dial in the shot shape or ball flight you’re after.

RELATED: Callaway Apex 21 irons review

 Srixon ZX hybrid

RRP £229 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts:  2-16° / 3-19° / 4-22° | Stock shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80

Today’s Golfer test verdict: Srixon woods and hybrids don’t get anywhere near the credit they deserve but, like the company’s forged ZX irons, they’re really good.

We’re suckers for cute little fairways and hybrids, the sort that make you smile every time you pull them from the bag. And so often they’re the models that go on to be long-term favourites and stay in the bag for years. The ZX is one of those clubs; it’s just cracking.

The tiny head won’t be the best fit for golfers who spray shots all over the face, there’s bigger headed models that can help with that. But for reasonably consistent ball strikers the Srixon ZX hybrid is a beauty.

This sort of head size is perfect for rifling through rough, nipping shots off the top of sand in a low lipped fairway bunker and, according to our data, it will get you out there alongside the best from tee, fairway and on a par 3.

2021 Golf Hybrids Test: Best of the Rest

PXG 0317 X Proto hybrid

RRP £205 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 2-17º / 3-19º / 4-22º / 5-25º / 6-28º | Stock Shaft: Project X Riptide / Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black

The Proto is PXG’s brand new hybrid for 2021. Three sole ports allow a 15g weight to be switched between low spin, draw and fade settings (which is ideal for golfers who find hybrids go left).

The 0317 X has a narrower more compact body profile than the brand’s 0211 hybrid but it doesn’t feel like an unfriendly ‘player’ model at all.

Our data has the X Proto down as our third longest hybrid of the year and fifth best at protecting ball speed, and that’s an outstanding performance from what many would think is a less forgiving, narrow hybrid.

TaylorMade SIM2 Rescue

RRP £259 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 2-17° / 3-19.5° / 4-22° | Stock shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei AV Raw Blue HY

We hear club designers talk lots about how above average golfers complain about losing hybrids left of their intended target. Models like the SIM2 are a direct reaction to those types of comments.

Where the SIM2 Max hybrid targets raw power and distance, TaylorMade SIM 2 Rescue is much more about giving decent golfers the ball flight and workability of an iron.

Better players will like the more compact head shape and the heavier Mitsubishi Tensei Blue shaft, and from our experience they’re just the type of players who won’t mind that the SIM 2 hybrid gives up a bit of carry to get them.

TESTED: Best Irons 2021

Cobra King RADSPEED hybrid

RRP £189 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 2-17° / 3-19° / 4-21° / 5-24° | Stock shaft: UST Recoil 480 ESX

Last year Cobra’s Speedzone hybrid wasn’t our longest or most forgiving, but thanks to a cute little head shape, and a friendly look at address, we thought it was a very good performing, reasonably priced option for club golfers. Our thinking hasn’t changed in 2021. The Cobra King RADSPEED hybrid didn’t rip up any trees in terms of performance data, but you can’t fail to like it.

We feel the RADSPEED hybrid inspires confidence and gives the impression that it’s not going to let you down, no matter whether you’re using it from the fairway, rough or on a tee. And that’s the sort of feeling most club golfers will benefit from when faced with long approaches, and most of us rarely experience when hitting a long iron.

Callaway Apex 21 Pro hybrid

RRP £249 | VIEW OFFER
Lofts: 2H-18º, 3H-20º, 4H-23º, 5H-26º | Stock shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 70g/80g

If you’re buying a set of players irons in 2021, you really should explore how a players hybrid compares to the long irons. Players hybrids (often called narrow body hybrids) give extra forgiveness and launch over a traditional long iron, but not quite as much as wider body alternatives.

The Apex Pro 21 hybrid will make an excellent players’ long iron replacement, especially if you heap premium on hybrid workability and control over flat out distance. Our test pro believes some will find the narrower head shape intimidating, but that’s exactly why there’s a wider body standard Apex 21.

If you’re considering the Callaway Apex Pro as a standalone hybrid (without buying the matching irons) you really should look at the TaylorMade SIM 2 Rescue, too.

2021 Golf Hybrids Test: Launch Monitor Data

Our carry distance drop-off data shows the difference between our pro’s longest to shortest carry distances, indicating how forgiving each hybrid is.

TESTED: Best Drivers

How we performed our Best Golf Hybrids 2021 test

We asked all the major equipment manufacturers to submit their 2021 hybrids for testing. We created a controlled test environment indoors at Keele Golf Centre and used Callaway Chrome Soft X premium golf balls.

We selected this ball because not only is it played by some of the world’s best players (Jon Rahm and Xander Schauffele included) but our test pro Neil Wain was a big fan of it when we hit it against his usual Titleist Pro V1 last year (see the results here), and he’s looking at switching to it in 2021.

We collected a ton of data from every shot hit, using a Foresight Sports GCQuad launch monitor.

BUY NOW: Callaway Chrome Soft and Chrome Soft X balls

How we analysed our Best Golf Hybrids data

Before we came to any conclusions, we analysed the data for each club tested; on distance, spin rates, forgiveness. The latter we refer to as drop offs; the differences in ball speed, spin and carry between our test pro’s on- and off-centre hits.

This insight gives a reliable indication of how forgiving each model will be on the course, as we’ve argued for years that dispersion can be very misleading as it’s based on how you swing on a particular day. We analysed all that data before choosing winners.

READ NEXT: Best Golf Hybrids 2022