CRITERIA
Our judges evaluated Hot List candidates in four areas.
- Performance ( 45%)
What happens to the ball when it’s struck by the club. - Innovation ( 30%)
How a ball’s technology, advances the category. - Look/Sound/Feel ( 20%)
What the golfer experiences before, during and after impact. - Demand ( 5%)
The relative interest in a product and its reputation.
(L) Low-Handicapper | (M) Mid-Handicapper | (H) High-Handicapper
Callaway
Big Bertha Fusion ♦
Performance 4½ stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 4 stars
Demand 3½ stars
VERDICT If you’re looking for forgiveness and help getting the ball in the air, this fairway wood is your club. The crown is made of a lightweight carbon composite. The weight that’s saved is moved to the back and perimeter, making it easier to launch the ball high. Also, the triangular shape is more stable so you lose less ball speed, especially for hits low on the face.
COMMENTS (L) It’s a little bit lighter than others, but once I adjusted, it was very consistent, and I was able to hit high, tight draws. (M) Definitely a high-launching monster. (H) The ball gets up in the air quickly and stays there. Perfect interaction with the turf.
Callaway
GBB Epic/Sub Zero ♦
Performance 5 stars
Innovation 5 stars
Look / sound / feel 5 stars
Demand 3½ stars
VERDICT Both versions (standard and Sub Zero) feature the company’s signature face that wraps around the crown and sole. The edges of the face function like hinges to expand the flexing to a wider area. Weight is saved through the use of a carbon crown to lower the centre of gravity, compared to last year’s Great Big Bertha. That makes these adjustable heads more stable and easier to launch off the ground with less spin.
COMMENTS (L) The sole is so nice. You can hit this from deep grass or a hard lie. (M) It’s like dynamite on a stick. Great distance, but effortless to hit. (H) A game-changer: forgiving, easy to launch and powerful.
Cobra
King F7 ♦
Performance 5 stars
Innovation 5 stars
Look / sound / feel 4½ stars
Demand 3½ stars
VERDICT The King F7 is the more forgiving of the two Cobra fairway wood entries. It does all the big things right (high-strength steel face, movable weights to control launch and spin, and super-easy adjustability). But the key is the technology on the bottom. Two rails taper from front to back for a smooth and easy delivery into the turf. Having the rails extend towards the back creates increased stability on off-centre hits.
COMMENTS (L) The head shape is a little more compact, and the feel and sound are outstanding. (M) The face is unbelievably electric. (H) The turf interaction was effortless.
Cobra
King Ltd Black ♦
Performance 4½ stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 5 stars
Demand 2 stars
VERDICT The “spaceport” not only looks cool, it saves four grams by removing the need for glue. What’s saved is used for a tungsten weight that’s low and forward to power shots with less spin. Combined with a carbon-fibre crown, this creates a centre of gravity that’s lower than other fairway woods. The centre of gravity lines up with the centre of the face for optimal energy transfer and low spin.
COMMENTS (L) The head shape suits my eye. It’s easy off the deck, and I had good ball speed on a launch monitor. (M) This club finds that extra gear: the ball just kept rising. (H) Tinkering with the lofts tuned its performance. Feel is substantial.
Ping
G ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 5 stars
Demand 4 stars
VERDICT Many struggle with fairway woods because they catch the ball too low on the face. Ping’s solution? Move the leading edge closer to the turf, which improves impact by moving it higher on the face for better launch and more speed. A thin crown results in a lower centre of gravity so shots launch with less spin for extra distance.
COMMENTS (L) If you can’t hit a fairway wood off the ground, this is the club for you. (M) There’s a crushing sensation at impact. It’s long and forgiving. (H) The crown turbulators help with your aim by drawing your attention to the middle of the face.
TaylorMade
M1 (2017) ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 5 stars
Look / sound / feel 4 stars
Demand 4 stars
VERDICT The black-and-white look is familiar, but this next generation M1 uses a new sole design. The track with a moveable 25-gram weight is longer (to correct a larger range of draws and fades) and has been moved farther back. This opened up space for a sole slot to help the face flex, increasing ball speed, boosting launch and decreasing backspin.
COMMENTS (L) Off the tee, this is an animal. Even shots low on the face performed. (M) The head size is perfect: It’s compact but not too small. Keeps you honest, but the forgiveness is good. (H) The notch in the white is a nice frame for alignment. Definitely a more centred mass behind the ball.
TaylorMade
M2 (2017) ♦
Performance 4½ stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 4½ stars
Demand 5 stars
VERDICT The M2 looks a lot like the M1, but that’s where the similarities end. The M2’s slot stretches nearly the entire length from heel to toe to help the face flex near the USGA limit. The variable-thickness face has an “inverted cone” shape to improve speed on mis-hits, especially those lower on the face. A redesigned fluted hosel helps all that power sound a little smoother.
COMMENTS (L) Well-struck shots have a very neutral flight and seem to hang in the air. (M) More of a crack at impact, and it definitely has a motor in it. (H) There’s a tonne of forgiveness, with a really meaty feel.
Titleist
917F2/F3 ♦
Performance 5 stars
Innovation 5 stars
Look / sound / feel 5 stars
Demand 4 stars
VERDICT Titleist is expanding its adjustability beyond the hosel. A new cylindrical weight along the sole flips to change the behaviour of the club. Heavier on one end, it lets you promote a fade or draw. Meanwhile, all that direction gets a power boost with a newly designed (and covered) channel that’s cut through the sole to provide more rebound. The larger F2 is more forgiving and launches high; the smaller F3 is more workable.
COMMENTS (L) Stable flight. It just looks like it’s holding a perfect pattern in the air. (M) A shockingly easy club to hit – like Titleist for the masses. (H) It just explodes at impact, and it was incredibly easy off the deck.
Honma
TW737 FW/FWC ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 3½ stars
Look / sound / feel 4 stars
Demand 1 star
verdict The two models here evoke a throwback look with their non-adjustable hosels. But the classic shape adds new-school horsepower. Each has a face that wraps around the crown and sole for extra ball speed, and a weight chip in the front part of the sole keeps the centre of gravity low for less spin.
COMMENTS (L) This is a beautiful fairway wood. Heel and toe shots felt fine, and you could really get aggressive with it. (M) Strongest part of this club was turf interaction: it was like a slipstream. (H) Easy to hit as a driver replacement – great control.
Mizuno
JPX 900 ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 3½ stars
Demand 2 stars
VERDICT It has an adjustment system that’s as unrestricted as we’ve seen: the 15-gram weight on a centre track in the sole has no set positions. You can place that weight wherever you want along the track for as much, or as little, adjustment in spin and height as you want. It also has a hosel that adjusts plus/minus two degrees of loft or plus/minus one degree of lie angle. Those ripples on the sole maintain speed on shots hit a little thin.
COMMENTS (L) It’s super easy to get in the air, it sounds terrific and has that good thud to it. (M) Even the higher-lofted setting had a nice, boring trajectory. (H) The ball is explosive off the face. The sound is crisp and clean.
Tour Edge
Exotics EX10/Beta ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 4½ stars
Look / sound / feel 4 stars
Demand 2 stars
VERDICT The thin, wraparound cupface is a great feature (more flex equals more ball speed). A high-density steel on the standard model (and titanium on the Beta) extends that face flexibility across a wider area. But fairway woods also have to be hit off the ground, so Tour Edge tightened the profile of its trademark wave-ribboned sole to help you swing through the turf more easily.
COMMENTS (L) The contrast of the white scoring lines and black glossy crown make aiming it really easy. (M) It has a strong baritone sound. (H) The ball really carries, but the best part is how great this club is off the turf.
Tour Edge
Exotics XJ1 ♦
Performance 4 stars
Innovation 4 stars
Look / sound / feel 4 stars
Demand 1 star
VERDICT The beauty of a lightweight titanium alloy frame isn’t just a faster-flexing face. It’s that it saves weight so two-thirds of the club’s mass is concentrated in the tungsten sole. You read that right. There’s 124 grams of tungsten right where you need it to help you launch the ball higher and make the club more forgiving. A 12-gram tungsten heel weight also means you’re not coming into impact with an open clubface.
COMMENTS (L) Wish this was more compact, but OMG does this go high. (M) Powerful feeling and easy to hit. (H) Consistently high. The confidence I have with this is insane.
