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Callaway Elyte Fairway Woods

SuperStroke
Jtubb17 said:
I’m stuck here with a rainy couple days not playing so I’ve been taking some time to reflect on my testing thus far.

Fairway woods can be tricky, especially when hitting off the turf. Too much turf interaction, and you risk digging or losing speed. Too little, and you catch it thin or struggle with consistency. But with the Callaway Elyte X 3W, the Step Sole technology makes that problem disappear.

Callaway states that “the Step Sole reduces the sole contact area by 57% compared to a traditional design, minimizing drag and skidding for cleaner strikes and improved center-face contact.” Based on my time with the club, I can confidently say this isn’t just marketing talk, it’s exactly what I’ve experienced.

Take my recent round for example. On a par 5, I caught one thin into the wind. Normally that’s a disaster. Low launch, loss of speed, and nowhere near the intended target. But not with the Step Sole and Tungsten Speed Wave working together. The ball still got up, carried a solid distance, and stayed online. It turned what should have been a throwaway shot into one I could still work with.

In another round, I had to hit one from a downhill lie, a situation where keeping balance and making clean contact is a real challenge. The Step Sole allowed the club to glide through the turf without digging, making a tough shot feel routine. The ball launched cleanly, held its line, and even stopped on the green.

Then came the opposite challenge, an uphill lie into an elevated green with the wind in my face. Typically, the club would have a tendency to dig or cause a ballooning flight, but instead, the Step Sole kept the interaction smooth, allowing me to strike the ball cleanly and chase it up near the green. No drama, no struggle, just a reliable and repeatable result.

Even on the range, I’ve seen how the Step Sole works on different surfaces. Hitting off mats, where clubs can sometimes bounce or skip unpredictably, the Elyte X still delivers solid contact shot after shot. I’ve also watched my playing partners try it, one of them who hasn’t carried a 3W in years because he never trusted the ability to hit it consistently picked it up and immediately launched two perfect shots in a row. His reaction? “I can’t believe how easy that was.”

That’s the power of the Step Sole! It’s not just about making clean contact, it’s about making clean contact consistently, no matter the lie. The Elyte X isn’t just a fairway wood that performs when you hit it well, it’s a fairway wood that helps you hit it well even when conditions aren’t perfect.
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I had a ball nestled down in the rough. With my previous super hybrid I could never go after it. The 5ti is kind of magical for that type of lie. The club didn’t twist and I made a little bit of a thin strike but it still got a low laser of a ball out 220. It was a rather unreal shot.
 
outlawx said:
On previous 3 woods what was your miss? Also you said you never really pulled it on #3 so does this mean you’re also seeing long distances from the TD?
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Previous 3 woods I'd either hit this super low rocket that wouldn't carry very far (I'm talking like 20-30 feet high maybe), or I'd lay it way high and right like waaaay right. I've never had a low spin model (like a triple diamond) be so easy to launch, at least for me

And I'm getting right around 240-245 carry from this 3 wood I'd guess...should move up a little bit as it warms up and the ball fly's a little better and I get more in game shape. It's just a much higher ball flight than I've had from 3W, but it flat out goes
 
bsbmike said:
Previous 3 woods I'd either hit this super low rocket that wouldn't carry very far (I'm talking like 20-30 feet high maybe), or I'd lay it way high and right like waaaay right. I've never had a low spin model (like a triple diamond) be so easy to launch, at least for me

And I'm getting right around 240-245 carry from this 3 wood I'd guess...should move up a little bit as it warms up and the ball fly's a little better and I get more in game shape. It's just a much higher ball flight than I've had from 3W, but it flat out goes
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That’s also with the stock shaft as well? 🤯
 
outlawx said:
That’s also with the stock shaft as well? 🤯
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Denali Charcoal is damn good...damn damn good. I'm sure the Mitsubishi crew will sway me, but other than being at experience with them I don't think I'd change it out

Shoot I ordered a 5 wood with the charcoal in it
 
outlawx said:
I had a ball nestled down in the rough. With my previous super hybrid I could never go after it. The 5ti is kind of magical for that type of lie. The club didn’t twist and I made a little bit of a thin strike but it still got a low laser of a ball out 220. It was a rather unreal shot.
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I’ve had a couple in some thick rough that I went after with the Elyte X. It’s pretty surprising how well it will get through that thick stuff without tangling or twisting.
 
bsbmike said:
Denali Charcoal is damn good...damn damn good. I'm sure the Mitsubishi crew will sway me, but other than being at experience with them I don't think I'd change it out

Shoot I ordered a 5 wood with the charcoal in it
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Meme Reaction GIF by Robert E Blackmon

I have the Blue Board at home just waiting to get the call for the 3W. The pairing of the Denali Charcoal just works so damn well though. I ordered the same exact setup for my 7W.
 
outlawx said:
That’s a launcher of a shaft though. Given the design of the elyte and its ability to launch naturally are you afraid of moon balls?
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Not really. I've played the same shaft in a 4w and it worked out well. It was just a happy accident I stumbled upon it and I think that particular shaft works well with my swing in terms of timing so figured why not?
 
Jtubb17 said:
Meme Reaction GIF by Robert E Blackmon

I have the Blue Board at home just waiting to get the call for the 3W. The pairing of the Denali Charcoal just works so damn well though. I ordered the same exact setup for my 7W.
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I will be giving the Denali Charcoal a full run when my Ti 5W arrives. It hit it really well at my demo.
 
Jtubb17 said:
I think that’s my favorite part since most of my rounds are in So Cal and Arizona. I get a lot more of the hard fairways with risk of bouncing. The forgiveness I get there is invaluable.
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music to my ears!!!
 
mtbloco said:
I will be giving the Denali Charcoal a full run when my Ti 5W arrives. It hit it really well at my demo.
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It's so good...and excellent stock offering with this line
 
mtbloco said:
I will be giving the Denali Charcoal a full run when my Ti 5W arrives. It hit it really well at my demo.
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I am looking forward to trying the Ti 5W. That could cement the fate of the 2h 🤯
 
This talk about the step sole has me thinking about it as well. When am looking at a fairway, turf interaction is not usually at the of the top for me top priorities for me because it's not a shot that comes up too often and also hitting a fairway off the deck is something I am comfortable doing. That being said, I am legitimately impressed with how smooth that contact is, especially when contact isn't perfect.

This time of year, with dormant Bermuda, there is a high chance I'm going to be hitting off a bare lie. Or if I am in the rough, it's just weird. I can think of one shot from the rough where I thought I topped it based on how low on the face I hit it, but while the trajectory was much lower than normal it was not a top. It probably went 10 to 15 yards shorter than a regular shot. For that swing, I would guess that good result would be attributed to not just the step sole for helping get through the rough with minimal drag, but also the tungsten speed wave.

Otherwise, there is a sense of the club being unencumbered by turf in a way I don't think I've noticed in a club before when I hit it off the deck. I keep coming back to two words: clean and smooth. I don't feel the club getting hung up, slowed down, or twisted on less-than-ideal swings. It does this without creating higher than desired ball flight, which for someone like me, who wants to keep things on the lower spin side and does not need help elevating the ball, it gives an extra layer of confidence. For someone who may need help with contact off the deck, this should be a huge advantage and a reason to look into trying one.
 
bsbmike said:
Denali Charcoal is damn good...damn damn good. I'm sure the Mitsubishi crew will sway me, but other than being at experience with them I don't think I'd change it out

Shoot I ordered a 5 wood with the charcoal in it
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It's funny how one shaft works for some and not for others. As I am in the process of reviewing the 3W, I find myself fighting the shaft a little. It's not overly stiff or too weak, there is just something in the transition that I cannot get along with. I am making good contact, but as I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, I find myself fighting it a little from a timing perspective.
 
MikeG said:
It's funny how one shaft works for some and not for others. As I am in the process of reviewing the 3W, I find myself fighting the shaft a little. It's not overly stiff or too weak, there is just something in the transition that I cannot get along with. I am making good contact, but as I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, I find myself fighting it a little from a timing perspective.
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Are you planning on going to the Red LIN-Q for it?
 
bsbmike said:
Are you planning on going to the Red LIN-Q for it?
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I think I am going with a White or a Purple (if i can find one). The Red offers some launch that I don't need with this one. The ball gets up to it's apex in a hurry without any issues, so I would not want to see it start launching too high and killing my carry.

I've played the white before and I like the trajectory, the purple is another I think might be that middle ground in terms of launch.
 
The Elyte 3W journey continues. THP has given several of us the opportunity to put the new Elyte fairway wood through the paces and offer our individual feedback. So far, this review has been a lot of fun to be a part of for THP. It has been challenging at time to convey my thoughts because I am not sure there ever has been a club to revolutionize a golf club segment like the Elyte line. If you missed them or are joining us for the first time, here are the links to my previous reviews:
Turf Interaction refers to how the club interacts with the grass/soil during a golf swing. It can impact shot accuracy and distance.

Circling back to the sole on the Elyte 3W at its core Callaway R&D came up with technology to improve turf interaction. Improving the strike point wasn’t enough, a quick search and I found details that Callaway wanted to innovate sole design to reduce the sole contact area by 57% compared to traditional designs. The result is offering a club with the ability to minimize skidding and drag to ensure solid strikes. I have no clue if the 57% is achieved or if it’s better than that, all I know is that the magic works. I have hit some bad golf shots with my mediocre talent and the step sole has given me some results that I have not seen from other clubs or even thought were remotely possible.

As amateur or recreational golfers, fairway woods often present some issues that don’t always work well with our swings. Steep swings, fast tempos and over the top tend to hang out in our neighborhoods. Combined they make consistent golf the white rabbit we all chase. Depending on how you deliver the club at impact, you can risk too much turf interaction and lose a lot of ball speed and ultimately distance. Thinking back to the previous fairway woods I have played, they all offered something for forgiveness, but off the deck was not as automatic in terms of providing the best contact. Most recently the Cobra DarkSpeed Max 3w was great off the tee and decent from the turf, but you did run the risk of digging or “chunking” the club at impact resulting in some temporary shame and another chance to swing better. Before the DS Max, I have the Mavrik Max 3+ in the bag for my 3W. The biggest difference is the footprint at address. The Mav Max was a lot deeper and presented a little bit of a mini driver kind of vibe. Again, off the tee, no issues, but from the turf I felt like you needed to be close to perfect to maximize the strike. As someone who “sweeps” through impact with my fairway woods, this was not an issue most of the time, but bad swings were not rewarded at all.

The success so far with the Elyte 3W has been eye opening and welcomed. The Step Sole technology is something I am still trying to wrap my head around because quite honestly, I am baffled how I am getting away with less-than-ideal swings. I know the Tungsten Speed Wave and the AI 10x face are contributing to the overall success of this club, but I do not think those two can shine if the Step Sole doesn’t do its job and to promote solid strikes. It’s one thing to make clean contact on heavier turf interaction, it’s another thing to do it consistently every time. As I continue to review this club, I keep coming back to the Step Sole always being there when you need it and a design element that I find myself taking for granted. There is a big forgiveness component here and I don’t think there is a lie on a golf course that I am afraid of or would be hesitant to use the Elyte 3W.

The club inspires confidence knowing even the bad swings will be rewarded. No twisting or the club entering the hitting zone in a weird way giving way for too much spin or low launching shots. If you are a player who maybe has sworn off fairway woods who has a steeper angle of attack or needs some help elevating the ball at impact, go try the Elyte line. It may not work out, but I have a sneaking suspicion you will come away impressed and find a club that can make golf easy and more important fun.
 
Sooooo..

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