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New Looks: Equipment
Hidden Benefit
Don't overlook the fairway wood
By Mike Stachura
Photos By Jim Herity
July 2009
Although the rash of promotions offering free fairway woods with the purchase of a new driver signaled some measure of desperation in the golf industry, it might have been a suggestion that the appeal of the fairway wood has been waning, and anything to prop up interest (including giving them away) couldn't hurt. The truth is, fairway woods have been overshadowed by the intrigue over hybrids in recent years. But maybe you should revisit fairway woods.
"They're sort of this forgotten segment, but people ask a lot of their fairway woods," says Alan Hocknell, vice president of innovation and advanced design at Callaway. "If you compare equivalencies, such as a 3-iron versus a 3- or 4-hybrid versus a 7-wood, the 7-wood's always going to go higher and a little bit longer."
Here's a refresher in fairway-wood technology:
Length: There's little doubt that the modern 3-wood is a greater challenge for average golfers to hit. At 43 inches, the 3-wood's length is what a driver used to be. One solution: Adams Speedline series is designed as a "hybrid fairway wood" with a shaft that's half an inch shorter than usual.
Loft: Another idea is to consider the 4-wood, which many average golfers might find easier to hit with its shorter shaft and more loft. Ping's G10 and Rapture V2, TaylorMade's R9 and Tour Edge's Exotics XCG-V all feature a 4-wood option with a loft in the 17-degree range, and Titleist's 909F2 3-wood head has an extra half a degree of loft.
Options: Along with the adjustable design of TaylorMade's R9, Nike's SQ Dymo line includes a square version designed with a deeper center of gravity, and Adams' Speedline, Callaway's Big Bertha Diablo and Ping's G10 feature draw models.
Hybrid-like: Consider higher wood lofts as a better alternative to hybrids. Callaway, Cleveland (Launcher), Cobra (S9-1), Ping and several others are marketing woods with lofts in the low or even mid-20s.
Tip Plus: See A Video On Hitting Fairway Woods
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ADAMS SPEEDLINE
- July 2009
- The extended rear corners of the "boxer" shape are intended to stabilize performance on off-center hits. The shallow-face incorporates the low center of gravity of a hybrid ($180, standard and draw, three lofts, adamsgolf.com).
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CALLAWAY DIABLO
- There are two versions: The N (neutral) features a shallow face based on tour input. The D (draw) is taller and has a draw-bias face angle ($180, seven lofts, callawaygolf.com).
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EXOTICS XCG-V TOUR
- The multimaterial head features the same titanium cup face, large steel sole plate and light magnesium crown as the original XCG-V, but it has a larger face ($369, four lofts, exoticsgolf.com).
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NIKE SQ DYMO
- Designed to combat the turf interaction problems of larger-headed fairway woods, the angled sole is intended to limit surface contact ($230, five lofts, nikegolf.com).
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TAYLORMADE R9
- The adjustable-hosel design features eight settings that change the face angle, lie and loft. Ball-flight options range from neutral to a slightly higher, draw bias to a slightly lower, fade bias ($230, four lofts, taylormadegolf.com).
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TITLEIST 909F2/F3
Two options are designed to accommodate two ball flights. The tour-inspired F3 head shape produces a lower flight. The F2, with a wider and more shallow face, has a lower CG and higher lofts to launch the ball higher ($200, three lofts, titleist.com).
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