The past three releases of Tour Edge’s Exotics lineups have been met with nothing but superlatives, truly becoming lineups to which “if you know, you know” applies quite aptly. While the momentum continues to build for the company as a whole, there are many who have been waiting for the company to return to its Exotics roots and unleash a fairway wood the likes of which put them on the map. Well, the wait just might be over with the new C722 fairway wood.
Quick Take
The C722 fairway is old school Tour Edge Exotics in a new school way. It is a rocket launcher that oozes everything the company has that put them on the map. Though tested in the strong 3 model, it showed versatility, surprising playability on misses, and a plethora of speed potential. From tee or turf, this one absolutely needs to be on your short list to hit in 2022.
What Makes the C722 Fairway Different?
Before I get into the performance of the C722 in my testing, I do want to discuss the design itself. What with Tour Edge taking the things they have learned with their Hot Launch offerings and how having two options within one lineup amplified their fitting potential to much more of the golfing bell curve out there, the move to have an E722 and C722 is brilliant.
While the E focuses on being the max forgiveness, easier launching, shallower faced friendly fairway for the masses, the C quite frankly is all about filthy speed and absolute distance wrapped up in a package that will impress even the pickiest players. Am I billing it up too much? We will get to that in the performance section, but the answer is absolutely not.
The C722 fairway is Tour Edge’s titanium players fairway wood, and to be frank, the aesthetic of the tech will draw comparisons to some other titanium driven fairways that have been immensely successful and wildly popular. Congrats to Tour Edge for not being afraid to take a design principle and add their flair to it. With that said, this most certainly is not the same thing in a different dress, it is truly its own thing.
That similar visual element you see is the 90g sole plate design which is part of what Tour Edge is calling Ryzersole Technology, and while the name might be a little much, the premise is rock solid. That 90g weight at the front (80g tungsten and a 10g adjustable weight) is as low as possible and forward, pushing the CG extremely low to maximize stability and launch. The central section of the weight is shaped to be part of singular “sole rail” from leading to trailing edge. Add it all up and Tour Edge claims easy launch with low spin and smoother interaction with the turf off the deck. It is also worth noting, no other fairway on the market has put this much weight in this location.
Rounding it all out is a carbon fiber crown on the 6-4 titanium body which is part of a much more compact and deep total design. All of this lends to the power and feel which Tour Edge is trying to establish in its Exotics lineup once again. Not to be forgotten, Diamond Face VFT brings forgiveness that aims to rival anything with 61 individual diamonds on the rear of the face in five different thicknesses which has been pushed further to the edge than Tour Edge has ever done before. Mix in the C722 offering full hosel adjustability for the first time in a Tour Edge Exotics (TEE) fairway since 2016 via a new more compact and lighter adapter, and there is no doubt no stone has been left unturned.
But what did I see on the course? Read on.
Tour Edge Exotics C722 Fairway Wood
I was pretty pumped when I found out I’d be reviewing it because not only have I either tested or played the last four Exotics fairways, but the general design premise in terms of that beefy sole weight is one that I have historically gotten along extremely well. For those curious, I worked with the strong 3W which is a 13.0 setup for this review. For me, this was exciting as a strong 3 has become a staple of my setup. For full clarity, I tested the 13.0 paired with a Kinetixx Ballistic KG70 F40 which has been used in my gamer 3W the past year.
Before I talk data, I want to get into the looks. The C722 is one dynamite visual package. Not only has the overall finish and aesthetic of the sole been turned way up from the C721 with this having arguably the most shelf appeal in a fairway from Tour Edge and their Exotics line since the EX10 Beta, but it screams quality. At setup, this one isdefinitely on the deeper end as far as face depth goes and it’s blended with a super traditional shaping and compact overall footprint. The star, however, is the carbon fiber crown and the way they blended it to the titanium body, it just pops in the light and looks exponentially better without the Ridgeback of the C721 last year. Setting up neutral to open, this is a player’s fairway through and through when it comes to the aesthetic side.
I worked this one out on the course as well as indoors on the Foresight launch monitor, and quite frankly, it performed staggeringly well in spite of all of the snow driven winter rust on my swing. Given that it is a low lofted 3-Wood, that makes it predominantly a tee club for me in which I want maximum ball speed potential with a flat flight and low spin to ensure the greatest total distance numbers I can get. The C721 delivered on that for me as you can see in the Foresight data set below:
That club and ball speed for me at this time of year perks my ears up to say the least, not to mention seeing more than acceptable peak heights for what I expect in a strong-3 as well as low, yet absolutely playable, spin numbers. What doesn’t show up in the data is that massive sole weight absolutely made this useable for me off the turf even at such a strong loft. The other thing which the data doesn’t show is just how well the Diamond Face VFT works. I want to add that in terms of sound/feel, this doesn’t have the carbon crack which one might expect given the crown, instead it has slightly hollow but solid feedback, which is unique to the C722, in a good way.
I have long been yelling from the rooftops that Tour Edge’s Diamond Face tech is the real deal, and it is one of the most efficient face designs on the entire market, and the C722 fairway definitely delivers. Though the profile means it is still going to have the normal spin-ups and drops depending on strike location, I did take note that the way the spin axis is tilted on misses to the periphery is not as significant as I expected. Overall, I came away feeling like the playability and launch here with the C722 get top marks for the category, combine that with it reigniting the ball speed driven history of the TEE fairways and this is sure to turn a lot of heads in 2022.
Will the C722 fairway wood make your short list to try this season? What do you think of the design and the performance we saw? Jump into the conversation below as well as on the THP Community and be heard!
The Details
Availability: Now
Price: $299.99
Options: 3W (13.0°), 3W (15.0°), 5W (18.0°)
Adjustability: +/- 1.5°
Shaft Options: Fujikura Air Speeder, Fujikura Ventus Red, Mitsubishi Tensei AV RAW (Orange, Blue, White)
I think an E722 21° would be a good contender for that spot…it will have a really shallow face, but that’s better for off the turf
That’s not an easy one to answer. I was looking over the options on Tour Edge’s website and there are plenty of them.
Off the tee ( the 2nd hole #1 handicap, on the course we play is where this got the most usage) into the wind, narrow landing area, miss right you have trees, miss left, you have thick rough, sloped lie towards a pond. The C722 performed beautifully. Of the 9 times I used it I was 6/9 with fairways hit. Very penetrating ball flight, distance was comparable with the driver (around 230 average).
From the fairway, this club did exactly what you hope a fairway wood should do. Easy to pick from the fairway, great distance, allowed me to “shorten” the long par 5’s and gave me chances at GIR all week long.
The rough… this is where I was very pleasantly surprised. The rough was thick, where the ball settled down and made it hard to see unless you were right on top of it. The C722 got through the rough with no issues, the ball would “pop” right out with good distance and held its line beautifully. Distance was obviously shorter than from the fairway but the ease that this club cut through the rough instilled a great deal of confidence. Even the couple of balls I chunked came out easily and straight ?.
A couple of my playing partners asked about this and even put a few swings on it themselves. They came away very impressed with one saying “ well, looks like I’m getting a new fairway wood when I get home!”
In my bag right now is a Tour Edge XCG7 21 degree 7 wood. It is one of my favorite clubs. It is much easier to hit off the fairway than any other club I’ve tried. It is an extremely reliable club. 8 out of 10 times I hit it well. Arccos tells me that over the last year my Smart Distance is 205 yards and my Smart range is 197-209 yards.
It will soon be replaced by a Cobra LTDx 22.5 degree 7 wood that will be set at -1.5 For the Morgan Cup.
I will admit that the thought of replacing the Tour Edge 7 wood causes me some real anxiety and fear because it has been so good.
I seem to catch one or two of these per round that are just silly long.
Still playing it at the 13° loft or have you adjusted it?
I switched it up a little higher on the sim, and ended up keeping it at 13*. I think that’s the best setting for me.
With a 30 playable guarantee it was a no brainer. Heck, the UPS label TE uses has the return label incorporated in it.
First thoughts is that is has has the EX10 Beta look to it – Like the full face of white lines.
Should be able to get out on Sunday to a TopTracer Range and compare the two.
Looking forward to your thoughts. The 30 day playability is an awesome feature.
Well my first range session with this club did not go as planned.
About halfway through the session, the shaft snapped in half.
TBH it wasn’t unexpected.
When I first got the club, I bent the shaft (Like we all do) to feel the flex. I heard a distinct ”Crackling“ noise. Thought that was weird to hear that. I assure you I’m not @blugold ”Strong”
Called Tour Edge and they are sending me a new shaft, this one will be a Tensei Raw Blue 65 R. No questions asked.
I play 55 in my driver so I think I read a tweet from @vgolfman that the unwritten rule is that your fairway should be 10 grams heavier than your shaft in your driver.
The other Rogue ST I’m testing are in the 60 gram range and I seem to hit them better.
Should see it next week.
TE customer service is very good…sucks that the new club broke so quickly ?
I broke the shaft in my E722 driver. Maybe, you are blugold strong.
Only shaft I’ve ever broken is a gap wedge recoil shaft…at the connection to the club
Digging trenches with it?
No, it was only a dozen or so swings at a driving range. I’m guessing it was just one that made it through QA that shouldn’t have, oh well
General guideline that often works, including for tour players, is to take a driver shaft you love and use the 10 gram heavier version for your fairway woods. Very safe starting point to a fitting and the safest ending point if you are not able to test/get fit for your fairway woods. Not that anyone needs to do what I do, but I have a 60g shaft in my driver, 70g in the 3-wood, 80g in the Apex UW (which is basically a shorter 5-wood for me), a 95g shaft in my ? 4-iron and then 110g shafts in my 5-9 irons/wedges, all graphite.
The club itself might be too much for my puny game but man it sits so nicely when you set it up. It screams hit me!!
Use their 30-day trial period to find out.
Don’t be intimidated by it. I’m not a long hitter by any means, this club is easy to swing and it gets the ball airborne effortlessly.
Great advice to use their 30 day playability guarantee.
You’re lucky you’re still playing golf…
I should have qualified that statement. It’s been a few weeks since I’ve played. Hit it on the sim today and that’s where I need to play it.
With all of the new stuff coming out, I have no desire to upgrade my 3w from the C722. It’s that good.
It’s probably the only safe spot in the bag. The C722 3w just flat out performs!
I think you need to play it in the driver then…make it like Cobra’s Tour Length version
It’s a thought. Hahaha
fairway finder
It could be an interesting experiment.
Where’s that C723???
I know. I’m so curious as to what they have in store for the new model. I hope they keep a similar look to the C722.
I think the fairway woods were solid in the 722 line, not sure what could be done there other than minor tweaks
There was a picture of the C723 driver posted on the TEE social media from Weir’s solid performance…tough to tell exactly, but I think the 723 driver has some very noticeable differences ?
Color me intrigued
That’s a steal.
Why wait?
I don’t actually “need need” it. So, if it’s still there then it was meant to be!
Also, off topic, I’m going to get one of those Loggerhead Golf headcovers at some point…they’re just too cool
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That good sir, is a steal.
Can’t wait to hear your thoughts.