In an automatic it makes very little difference (at least to me) in the way a pistol handles between wood and rubber, or even plastic. But wood has em beat by a mile for looks.
Now in a big caliber revolver that has really heavy recoil, rubber grips make a big difference in helping you control the recoil and keeping the gun from moving in your hand.
Still on anything below 44 mag (assuming it`s not an alloy frame snub .357) I prefer wood grips if they fit my hand well.
This is largely personal preference and you will find a lot of different opinions on this.
The most important thing is that the grip fits your hand well regardless of what they are made of.
