Fairway Woods

The 5 most consistent 2023 fairway woods, according to robot testing

By: Jonathan Wall November 10, 2023

Ping's G430 Max fairway wood allows you to hit it off the toe or heel and see similar carry distances.

GOLF

Ping G430 MAX fairway wood on a golf course — Ping's G430 Max fairway wood allows you to hit it off the toe or heel and see similar carry distances.

GOLF

If you’re like most weekend golfers, the driver sees more action off the tee than any other club in the bag. Boasting the largest sweetspot and potential for game-changing distance, it’s no surprise golfers lean heavily on the big stick.

But what happens when the driver misbehaves? In most cases, a 3-wood is the next club to get the call. As we learned from the latest round of robotic testing with Golf Laboratories’ swing robot, some 3-woods are designed to provide driver-like mishit protection across the entire face. Yes, that means the heel and toe.

If you’re in need of a strong secondary option off the tee but don’t possess consistent impact, these 5 options are worth consideration and further testing.

(Testing protocol: Each 15-degree fairway wood was tested with the swing-robot at 95 mph using the same stiff-flex shaft and attack angle. Golf balls were hit out of the geometric center, high-toe and low-heel to determine an average distance dropoff.)

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1. Ping G430 Max (3.7 yards of distance dropoff between geometric center and high-toe/low-heel)

2. TaylorMade Stealth 2 HD (4.3 yards)

3. Cobra Aerojet (4.4 yards)

4. Tour Edge E723 (4.9 yards)

5. Srixon ZX MKII (5.8 yards)

Srixon ZX MK II Custom Fairway Wood

Long game versatility is critical. ZX Mk II Fairway Woods carry as much power off the deck as they do off a tee, giving you ball speed and great distance wherever you need it. REBOUND FRAME Rebound Frame’s Dual Flex Zones focus more energy into the golf ball at impact, creating a purer energy transfer that instantaneously increases ball speed and distance on every strike. CANNON SOLE A dynamic, floating weight pad moves the weight right where you want it without reducing COR, optimizing launch while also allowing space for improved face flex and ball speed. Especially helpful for shots struck low. CARBON CROWN The 3-Wood and 3+-Wood use a strong but lightweight carbon crown instead of a metal crown, repositioning mass low and maximizing COR as well as pushing MOI up for increased forgiveness on every shot.

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