Best Fairway Woods Ever

We all possess different characteristics in our game. When we do not factor these in our decision-making process we tend to lose out. Buying a golf club should be a deeply personal affair.

If you can understand the features that each club that you are considering has, it would make your choice much easier.

Our process was fairly straightforward. We took the fairway wood to the task. Starting with no expectations at all, we sought to discover some gems or to prove that the ones that the manufacturers have been touting as the best are indeed the best.

Experience has taught us never to take them at their word. After hours of research and testing. We were finally able to come up with a list of the 5 that we would recommend.

1. Callaway Golf 2019 Epic Flash Fairway Wood - TOP PICK

They sell this one as “A Revolutionary Ball Speed Package With Flash Face Technology”

The flash face technology’s creation is based on the data that Callaway have gathered using artificial intelligence and machine learning. They have applied that data to this flash fairway.

This is built for golfers of all swing speed. It is geared to get golfers more distance off the tee despite their swing speed. To achieve this Callaway used what they have called the jailbreak technology.

In essence, it works by more impact load in the area of the club that is going to come into contact with the ball. It makes use of 2 bars that are contained within the body.

Making use of the Carpenter steel construction ensures that you get the same results no matter what part of the 455 clubhead you strike the ball with. The hosel system has also been recreated to be shorter and lighter. There is therefore increased centre of gravity. Your shots are higher and longer carrying.

The shafts are designed to minimise the number of hindrances that are encountered as you swing. This results in more energy being built up to be released when you strike the ball.

The torque is lower. There are both mid-low spin and mid-stiff bend which gives you more control and stability on the green. The sole weighting is adjustable. As a result, you can control the spin and the trajectory at which you hit the ball.

As far available flexes are regular, stiff, light, women’s clubs and x-stiff. You can also select the shaft material from the Mitsubishi Tensei AV Blue that weighs 70 grams, the Project X that is Even Flow Green that weighs (40 grams/50 grams/60 grams), Project X HZRDUS Smoke (70 grams) and the Project X HZRDUS (80 grams). 

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2. Pinemeadow Excel EGI Hybrids

There is also the added advantage of getting to choose the loft that you think would be most suited to the fairway. With that in mind, we have this as one of our top picks.

There are 8 clubs that you can choose from. All of their features except for the loft angles are identical. You can get these at a #3 with a 19° loft, a #4 with a 22° loft, a #5 with a 25° loft, a #6 with a 28° loft, a #7 with a 32° loft, a #8 with a   36°, a # 9 with a 40° and a PW with a 45° loft.

Our favourite feature on all of the hybrids is the sweet spot. The entire head of the club is weighted to ensure that your mis-hit are converted into hits. This is a feature that is enhanced by the shape of the clubhead.

The shaft of all of the hybrids is made out of Pinemeadow’s graphite. They are then connected to a stainless steel clubhead. The shaft allows for some feel to be passed onto the hand on impact. This helps with your shot choice and judgement as you go forward and get accustomed to the clubs.

You will receive a headcover with any of the clubs that you purchase from this line. These will make sure that there are fewer mishaps when your clubs are in transit.

The only things that should be causing any scratches to the club are your ball and the tee. This is essentially a fairway wood with a shorter shaft. Both right and left-handed players can purchase one of these.

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3. Founders Club Fresh Metal Golf Clubs Fairway Woods

There is a slight offset that is placed on the clubs to make sure that they minimise the risk of slicing the ball and give you more shot control.

Whether you are playing off the tee or down the fairway, this is a club that you can always depend on.

It is a utility club that can pull you out of the rough with one stroke if you use it well.

You can purchase these in either the right or left-handed variation. The flexes are either regular or senior.

They are all equipped with Founders Club’s very own easy lie soles that make shot alignment a breeze.

There are 8 clubs available as part of this range. These are the 3 wood that has a 15-degree loft, the 5 with an 18-degree loft, the 7 with a 21-degree loft, the 9 with a 24-degree loft, the 11 with a 27-degree loft, and the 13 with a 30-degree loft. The shaft of each club is made out of graphite.

They have low torque. We also loved the dual material half cord grip. You will get a headcover to go with any of the clubs that you purchase.

4. Callaway Golf Men's Rogue Fairway Wood

To achieve this Callaway employs the same Face Cup technology that we discussed earlier. This makes this one of the most powerful fairway woods that they have ever brought onto the market.

The Jailbreak technology makes use of two steel bars that make the body stiff. They place increased impact load on the face of the golf clubs to promote speed and distance.

Your balls will shoot off the tee and go a long way. 

The Rogue fairway have internal standing wave technology. It gives you more precision due to the positioning of the centre of gravity shifting to the point of impact.

You will get good loft and low spin off your shots. These are always accurate indicators of distance.

Aero package technology was used to encourage the flow of air and allow you to generate more swing speed. You can get this club for both right-handed and left-handed players.

There are 6 shafts to choose from. They differ in material and in weight. The flexes can be chosen from regular, stiff, extra stiff and senior. There are also 8 loft angle configurations that you can choose from.

These range from 15 to 23 degrees.

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5. TaylorMade Golf M6 Fairway Wood

The face of the club has an unusual curvature that partners with a corrective face angle to give you the most out of your mis-hits. They have also focused on making sure that the twist they create does not result in an increase in sidespin. As a result, your shots are straighter.

The face of the head is deeper than you would find with most other golf clubs. It uses the large carbon crown to deliver more distance and make this a utility iron in its own right.

They have also incorporated the advanced speed pocket design. It gives you more flexibility to give you club more coefficient of restitution. The result of this is better shots when you do not quite catch the right. This is more useful in the instances where your club is angled downwards as you strike the ball.

The head of the club is made out of a powerful steel frame. It encapsulates the Twist Face. This is the combination that gives you more distance, forgiveness and feel with each shot that you take.

To get you this forgiveness is a result of an inertia generator that is contained within an aerodynamic sole. It generates more speed for your clubhead.

This club is available for both left and right-handed players. The flexes can be selected from regular, senior, stiff or extra stiff. There are 4 loft angle configurations to choose from. These range between 15 and 24 degrees increasing in multiples of 3.

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Best Fairway Woods Ever Buyer’s Guide

Having presented you with 5 incredible fairway woods you are spoilt for choice. You could either take our top pick or any of the other 4 contenders. That way you are guaranteed to have a top-performing club on the fairway. We understand that some readers will feel that they would like a bit more information before they can commit to any of the clubs that we have presented. Rest easy. That is what our buyer’s guide is for. We have gathered together some of the things that we consider when shopping for a fairway wood. This will include terminology as well as some technical aspects. Our goal is to make it a section that equips you to make a more informed decision when it comes to making the purchase.

Loft

The loft is the angle at which the ball is directed off the ground when you hit it. You will have seen that all of the clubs that we have reviewed come with various lofts that you can choose from. This can become very confusing. The easiest way that people often pick their loft is by deciding on the goal that they have for the fairway wood. If the are more focused on getting the distance they would usually go with a club that has the least loft. The reasoning behind this is that all of the power they generate with their swing will be used to push the ball forward instead of upwards.

On face value this makes sense. However, when you consider gravity you will realise that this is not always the best way to do things. If the ball is hit with little to no loft it will go at great speed but have a minimal carry. This means that it would be back on the ground sooner than if it had more loft. Once on the ground, friction would become a massive drawback to distance. The best way to go about this is to try to strike a balance. If in doubt, depending on your swing speed. Get the most loft available and make sure that the distance is generated from your swing.

Shaft Length

Unless you are particularly tall or short you will barely give shaft length a second thought. Most of us just buy regular shaft because that is what we do. You would continue to do so without ever testing different length to gauge how they influence your performance. What you want to avoid is a shaft that is either too long or too short. A shaft that is too long will limit the amount of swing speed that you can generate. You would also have to stand in some awkward positions just to pull off the shots. When the shaft is too short you will also find that it negatively impacts your shots. It will mean that you would need to bend down into a more unnatural position than you should.

What is the Coefficient of Restitution?

We mentioned COR in the article but did not go into any detail. Let’s make sure we all understand what it is in golfing terms. We will not delve into the physics side of things. No one has time for that. Coefficient of Restitution is a measure of energy transfer when two objects come together. It considers the ability of the golf club to transfer energy to the golf ball upon impact. What you would want off your drives is a high COR. This would tell you that all of the energy that you generate with your swing is transferred from the club to the golf ball. This would obvious result in getting you more distance.

When competing in a USGA regulated event you cannot use a golf club that has a COR that is greater than 0.83. If this was allowed we would see some ridiculous distances being achieved off the tee. This regulation by the USGA and various other golfing associations across the world creates a level playing field. We do not want to end up being like formula one where the car plays such a massive role in the winner.

Preparing for a perfect fairway wood shot

There are several mistakes that golfers will make when they are lining up to take a fairway wood shot. The usual routine of setting up a shot involves taking a few swings at the air. Most golfers would perfect their swing at the air before they go for the ball. One of the most common mistakes that are made with this routine is swing at the air without making contact with the ground. That sort of swing would only be an accurate representation of the actual shot if there is a tee underneath the ball to give it some elevation. When there isn’t a tee striking the ground as part of your swing is the closest motion to the one that you are after.

Once you have gotten this right you shot should fall in line. The second mistake that could be made is that of not following through on your shot. Your swing should not be cut midway. Cutting your swing midway will usually result in the inaccuracy of the shot. This is largely because there is a twisting motion when you are trying to force the swing to stop. This would invariably affect your shot control.

Where distance is concerned you want to make sure that you are fully extended throughout your shot. If your arm is to bend midway through the shot there is energy loss. This will negatively impact the distance that you can get off the shot. As you are doing your practice shot, this is one of the things that you should monitor. The more you do this the more it becomes drilled into your being. It may be hard to get rid of the habit initially. Be patient with yourself.

Final Words

If you have been reading from the start you will have come across our top picks for the best fairway wood ever. Any of them would make a great addition to your golf set. When considering the timeline that should fall under “ever”, we came to the conclusion that it simply had to be the best. Technology has moved on at lightning speed in the last few decades. This has been mirrored in the progress that our golf sets have made as well in that time. With all the testing that is involved in making today’s golf clubs, there is no doubt that we have the best fairway woods ever today.

You will also have come across our buyer’s guide just above this. It is written for those that would like to put some context to some of the choices that we have made above. We encourage you to read through it as well. Whether you will be taking one of our top five picks or taking some time to consider other options, having the right information is important. If you are to go into a golfing store, the information within our buyer’s guide will allow you to be able to ask the right questions.

Let us summarise some of the key things that you should not miss out when choosing your fairway wood. We covered the importance of loft, COR and the length of your shaft. To add to these you could also consider the shape of the head and perhaps pricing. You are encouraged to read the reviews above and cross-check them with the buyer’s guide. Otherwise, off you go! Happy Golfing!