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Fairway woods- Does anybody care?

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McLovin

McLovin

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I feel like I'm constantly searching for the magical fairway wood. That one that gets great distance off the tee, elevates really well off the deck, is super forgiving, and might actually give me some opportunities to get on par 5s in two. Basically, something that will turn me into a tour player!

But I feel like even though THP does a great job starting threads about new equipment and trying to keep us informed about the latest and greatest, the buzz is pretty much never there for a fairway wood. Driver, hybrid, iron, wedge, putter, ball, even shaft threads can be very active. But are there any examples of fairway wood threads with a lot of activity?

I'm just as guilty of it. When I play golf with somebody new, I'll peak at their driver, irons, wedges, and putter, but rarely do I ever look at what fairway wood they have.

So my question is does anybody really care about fairway woods? Why don't we banter more about these clubs? Are they just too hard to hit? Do gains in irons and hybrids make fairway woods less of a necessity?
 
As a horrible driver of the ball I care a LOT about fairway woods. I reach for mine about 90% of the time instead of the driver. Why we don't talk about them that much is beyond me though.
 
For my part I have combed the fairway threads fairly thoroughly. I like fairways. So I guess I care!

I use a 3/4w so much off the tee, that its as important to me as driver. Also have endless cycle of contemplation going regarding adding a second 18-20* 5w instead of/addition to a 3h. In that sense I've spent more time thinking about fairways than driver.
 
Could it be that there are a lot of people that don't carry them? I am sure I have seen threads in the past where people will have a driver and then the next club in the bag is maybe a 3/4 (or even 5) hybrid

Personally I have both a 3W and 5W and they are primarily options for off the tee, but I will hit the 5W off the deck if I have a nice lie and feel that the shot has a chance of making it to my target
 
I just think a lot of people shy away from FW or game a few seasons old ones because of the comfort level. IMO FW arn't about getting max distance, more so accuracy and usability off the tee/deck. Also I think club technology for the time being has sorta maxed out.
 
I love my fairway but it can be a double edged sword on some days. It can make or break a round if I'm not hitting it well. It certainly takes pressure off my iron game if I'm hitting it well because if I can elevate it properly and find good contact then it transfers over to my irons.


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I've been looking for that same 3 wood for 3 years! I don't think it exists ( for my swing). I agree there doesn't seem to be as much as buzz as the other clubs.
 
Absolutely. In fact it's probably my favorite Club in the bag. I just picked up the Cobra F6 Plus 3/4 wood and let me tell you it is hands-down the most versatile Fairway Wood I've ever hit. Maybe it's because it's adjustable more so than my old one but I have as much confidence in that club in the Fairway as I do off the tee and it's very long. If you get a chance to test one at your local shop I would highly recommend it.

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My 4 wood is the oldest club in my bag. It was custom fit for me, and I really have just hit bullets with it since the day I got it.
 
I love a good 3w. I still miss the Bio Cell I used to own. I've been searching ever since. The M2 and the Vapor Fly are good. The Srixon F65 looks very promising.


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Fairway woods- Does anybody care?

Fairway is the one spot in my bag I jut can't figure out right now. I want to play a 3/4 wood above my heavenwood but just can't perform on the course yet.
I love the heavenwood but now it is overlapping to much with my hybrids.
For me the fairway wood would be an off the tee option and a great lie in the fairway type club. However I just can't find something consistent enough for me.
I really put a lot of attention to the threads on here and what people play in that spot.


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I think people care but fw off the deck is a hard **** for some amateurs especially a 3w and that includes for good players. Many opt for 4 or 5w or as we have seen the heave wood and divine 9 and because if length or lack of off the te many ams don't always go for par5s in two.

its also part of the bag I think many ignore when it comes to a fitting and jut end up tinker with til the find a suitable option and then continue to tinker.

i was one who rarely hit fw off the deck and dropped to a 5w as a tee option along with hybrid or utility iron. Thanks to Danny Le I now have a 3hl in the bag that I love along with a shaft that makes the combo work great for me.

like any spot in the bag if one takes the time to get fit and works on the game they can find what they are looking for.
 
I don't think that "nobody cares", but I do think they get reduced focus because the average golfer does not hit a lot of fairway woods if he is halfway decent with his driver. I know that's true for me - I hit anywhere from 8-14 drivers a round typically, whereas I probably only hit 4-5 shots a round with BOTH of my fairway woods on average. That's not to say they aren't important clubs, they're just for a specific purpose.

As for me, I recently spent a lot of time researching and providing feedback on fairways because I was looking for a solid 5W, and virtually no time thinking about drivers because I'm set for a while there. So I think it just depends what you're looking for ATM.
 
I love my fairway woods. I have taylormade jetspeed 3w and 5x High Loft. Let me tell you, I haven't hit them bad yet. I hit the great off the tee and great out of the fairways. I get great distance from both. I hot my 3w about 240 off the fairway so most par 5s are reachable in two for me pending I hit a good drive, which is consistently around 275 and I play from the blues.

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I went from the normal 3-5 combination to a 4-7 this year. Love the 7 wood which I hit almost as far as the 5 but with more confidence, and hit the 4 farther than my old 3 wood.
 
I think they are one of the most difficult clubs for amateurs to hit, and that plays into it all. Most of that though, comes from people not playing a high enough loft in a fairway, I adamantly believe the average amateur would benefit GREATLY from playing a 4w rather than a 3w.
 
I care and I happen to love my fairway wood, Alpha 815. I can hit it off the deck, off the tee doesn't matter. I probably should hit it more off the tee than I currently do, but hitting driver with a custom shaft is so much more fun!
 
Jman said:
I think they are one of the most difficult clubs for amateurs to hit, and that plays into it all. Most of that though, comes from people not playing a high enough loft in a fairway, I adamantly believe the average amateur would benefit GREATLY from playing a 4w rather than a 3w.
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And I agree with this. As I mentioned, I hit my 4 better than my old 3.
 
GBB Heavenwood is the answer! And I think FWs get somewhat overshadowed by hybrids, but they are still very important. I played yesterday and didn't have one in my bag since I'm waiting on HW v3.0 and there were several situations I wished I had one. I think they get love, but just not as much as other equipment categories.
 
I do, but I'm beginning to be convinced that many fairway woods I could hit just fine.....with the right shaft in it to achieve my ball flight goals.

~Rock
 
I just don't hit mine very often. I am fairly straight with my driver, so feel confident hitting it on most holes, and I am not a long hitter, so I don't usually try to hit par 5s in 2, usually just laying up to 100 yards. Probably the reason I dont talk about FW's very much.
 
A good fairway wood is worth its weight in gold. My current set up is average at best. I need a higher launcher with some added distance. On the search now!!
 
Tadashi70 said:
A good fairway wood is worth its weight in gold. My current set up is average at best. I need a higher launcher with some added distance. On the search now!!
Click to expand...

i completely agree. it can be a great club, and i'm always on the search for a perfect combo. the FIRST place i search is thp. hear my clearly: i'm not saying thp doesn't give us info and reviews. it just seems like there isn't nearly as much feedback from people about fairway woods as there is every other spot in the bag. i'm just curious why that might be.

and i completely agree with jman, most of us would benefit so much more from 4w or 5w than 3w. i read one of those short articles in golf digest MANY years ago where butch harmon was saying very few amateurs swing fast enough and correctly enough to maximize the benefits of a 3w, so the longest they should consider is 4w. i now only look at 4w and 5w.
 
I think it's because FWs are a funny category of club. Most amateurs (myself especially) have no business bagging one but we all do anyways because we need something to fill that gap.
Like I said to Terry at Ben Hogan, I don't hit my 4 wood any straighter than my driver on average and since it has a small face my really bad swings can result in wiffs, tops, and hosels.

I think this is the last season i will game a FW even though my M1 is amazing when well struck. I'm going to try an all hybrid setup soon.
 
c.a.eleric said:
i completely agree. it can be a great club, and i'm always on the search for a perfect combo. the FIRST place i search is thp. hear my clearly: i'm not saying thp doesn't give us info and reviews. it just seems like there isn't nearly as much feedback from people about fairway woods as there is every other spot in the bag. i'm just curious why that might be.

and i completely agree with jman, most of us would benefit so much more from 4w or 5w than 3w. i read one of those short articles in golf digest MANY years ago where butch harmon was saying very few amateurs swing fast enough and correctly enough to maximize the benefits of a 3w, so the longest they should consider is 4w. i now only look at 4w and 5w.
Click to expand...

I hit my current 3w extremely well more often than not, but that being said several years ago during a trackman session I was hitting Rocketballz FW's and actually hit the 4w farther than the 3w. Loft up ftw!
 
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