The best fairway woods combine hot faces and ultra-low weighting to maximise distance. We considered 28 models; 13 made the list.
GOLD
LISTED ALPHABETICALLY
Callaway
mavrik • sub zero • max
Innovation ★★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★★
Demand ★★★★★
VERDICT
The right fairway wood isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s why Callaway offers 16 fairway woods accounting for multiple lofts across three head styles. The Mavrik’s low-spin and maximum-forgiveness models differ not only in loft and shape, but in intended ball flight, forgiveness and spin. That individual attention extends to the face design, which has variable-thickness conceived through artificial intelligence and contoured for each head style and loft.
COMMENT
“It was easy to get it up in the air – even when I hit it off the toe. Awesome driver alternative.”
Cleveland
launcher hb turbo
Innovation ★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★
Demand ★★★
VERDICT
Cleveland focuses on what average golfers need in a fairway wood: help launching the ball. The stepdown crown lowers the centre of gravity so shots launch higher with less spin. The cupface design offers more rebound across a wider area of the face to improve mis-hits, and the counter-balanced shafts are designed to help you swing faster, with more weight in the hands for control.
“Easy to frame the ball at address. It felt quick through the ball with plenty of weight underneath. Giant sweet spot. Good results from my mis-hits.”
Cobra
king speedzone • tour • big tour
Innovation ★★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★½
Demand ★★★
VERDICT
Cobra’s distinctive rails are multi-faceted. Externally, they help the sole move through the turf across a variety of lies, but internally, the front part of the rails is hollow. This reduces stiffness in the sole for better flex in the lower part of the face. The back section of the rails is solid, so there’s more weight towards the rear
to increase forgiveness. A compact Tour model and low-lofted Big Tour feature front-weighting for low spin.
COMMENT
“The carbon fibre and colours give off a cool, aggressive vibe. Those split rails power through anything.”
Mizuno
st200 • ts
Innovation ★★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★½
Demand ★★
VERDICT
Materials drive the pursuit of more distance and higher launch, crucial to what you want a fairway wood to do. Used previously in Formula One race-car engines, the high-strength steel alloy in the face produces better flex in a new variable-thickness insert. Meanwhile, the carbon crown is thinner and lighter than past versions to lower the centre of gravity. The two versions include a more compact TS model that adjusts from 13 to 17 degrees.
COMMENT
“Lively face, boring trajectory, satisfying sound – everything you want in a good fairway wood.”
PXG
0341 x gen2
Innovation ★★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★½
Demand ★★½
VERDICT
For some golfers, the challenge isn’t launching a fairway wood, it’s reducing spin so the ball spends more energy going forward than up. These models use mass saved from a carbon-composite crown in an internal weight pad closer to the face to produce a low centre of gravity for less spin. The moveable weights in the sole let you add forgiveness or dial in a draw or fade.
“Compact, but I don’t have to muscle it to make it go. It also had more forgiveness than I expected, and I liked the versatility in ball flight.”
TaylorMade
sim
Innovation ★★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★½
Demand ★★★★
VERDICT
This fairway wood features a titanium body that’s 40-percent lighter than the typical steel fairway wood, a carbon-composite crown that weighs less than a 10-cent coin, and an alloy for the face that’s 20-percent stronger than the titanium used in a driver. This combination generates better speed off the face and saves enough weight for an 80-gram sole plate that lowers the centre of gravity for improved spin and launch.
“Confidence-inspiring. You can feel the weight low. I had a good sense of where the club always was.”
TaylorMade
sim max • max d
Innovation ★★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★★
Demand ★★★★★
VERDICT
Forgiveness comes in multiple forms. First, the sole’s V-shape and rounded leading edge limit friction with the turf. That means you’ll lose less clubhead speed coming into the ball. Second, the face’s asymmetrical curvatures help off-centre strikes curve back to the target. Finally, with their larger size, there’s ample perimeter weighting to manage misses. The Max D is designed to combat slices.
“The sound and feel are pure and forceful. It’s soft yet powerful. The spin rate is low, which translates into a nice mid trajectory with no ballooning.”
Titleist
ts2 • ts3
Innovation ★★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★★
Demand ★★★★½
VERDICT
Like the TS drivers, these woods are thinner in the crown, so there’s more weight low to help launch shots higher and farther. A thin, high-strength steel face insert reduces weight and provides flex upfront. Titleist repositions that mass for forgiveness in the TS2 and adjustability in the TS3’s sole cartridge. A deeper channel cut through the sole amps up ball speed.
COMMENT
“It’s simple, elegant and has a crisp crack at impact. Very satisfying club to hit. The distance was there, and it went high without ballooning.”
Tour Edge
EXOTICS EXS 220
Innovation ★★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★
Demand ★★½
VERDICT
What makes a face work is the technology inside. The backside of this face is cross-hatched with rows of diamond-shape thick-and-thin sections. Think of it as 44 mini-trampolines. This design allows for better flexing on off-centre locations and reduces the weight of the face by 14 percent. Carbon-fibre panels in the heel and toe of the sole help push weight to the rear for higher stability and better speed on mis-hits.
COMMENT
“Simple but beautiful crown – glossy and reflective. The sole rails help: my fat shots aren’t punished.”
SILVER
Cobra
f-max airspeed
Innovation ★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★
Demand ★★★
VERDICT
Designed for the moderate-swing-speed player, this wood family achieves the neat trick of reducing weight without sacrificing forgiveness and easy launch. The club’s lighter weight (20 grams less than its predecessor) offers slower swings more potential to swing faster, but the carbon-composite crown lowers the centre of gravity and pushes weight to the perimeter for more stability on mis-hits. The offset hosel adds height and helps combat a slice.
COMMENT
“Gave me a repeatable right-to-left ball flight. Would probably be a dream for a slicer.”
Srixon
z f85
Innovation ★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★
Demand ★★½
VERDICT
This straightforward look will likely appeal to better players, but it’s full of technological tweaks that make these heads more powerful than simple. The two 3-woods have a weight-saving carbon-composite crown and high-strength steel cupface that gets as thin as a 5-cent coin. The result is more distance and discretionary weight to reposition for forgiveness. On all the lofts, the crown steps down for a lower centre of gravity and less spin.
COMMENT
“Easy to hit off the tee and off the deck. I love how square the compact head sits. Sleek-looking, too.”
Sub 70
pro
Innovation ★★★½
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★★½
Demand ★
VERDICT
Like a bespoke tailor, this website’s direct-to-consumer offering focuses on experienced consumers who know what they want. Don’t go looking for any anti-slice 11-woods in this collection. This is all muscle in a compact shape for the player who wants to work the ball. The switchable front and rear weights (nine and two grams) let you tweak trajectory and feel. The high-strength-steel cupface is specially heat-treated for extra flex.
COMMENT
“Easy through the turf with a piercing ball flight. The no-frills look of the crown inspires confidence.”
XXIO
x (2020)
Innovation ★★★★
Look • Sound • Feel ★★★½
Demand ★★
VERDICT
These slightly lighter fairway woods feel more substantial because extra weight in the grip end gives you more control, especially at the top of your backswing. Inside the head, the internal weight pad is forward and angled up to help you launch the ball. It allows for the larger cupface to wrap deeper into the crown and sole so there’s more flex on mis-hits.
“Effortless to hit. Consistent and good ball speed. Has a really loud crack at impact. Good feel back to your hands. Just make your swing and pound it.”
