Golf Fairway Woods

The 3 wood and 5 wood are the original woods considered Fairway Woods but today many more woods once called utility woods are being seen more often on the fairway. These clubs are called fairway woods because they are normally the next club you would use after hitting the ball off the tee if you were lucky enough to land on the fairway.

At one time, you would never see a professional golfer using a utility wood. These woods were considered to be only for beginner players, or as a girly golf club. In truth, during the 1990’s woods were the most popular golf clubs for women around the world. A matter of fact, from 1998 to 2002 there was an increase of 32% of men using fairway woods during the men’s US Open. The utility woods are woods such as the 4 wood, 7 wood, 9 wood and so on.

All of these woods are now being used to improve one’s golf game. They offer a shallower face height, which will help get the ball up in the air faster than an iron and aids in hitting the ball off the turf. Many people prefer these fairway woods and fondly call them the forgiving clubs for individuals that hit off center.

The loft of fairway woods is from 7.5 degrees to 31 degrees. Most of the time, people have regarded the utility woods as clubs for women or seniors as you do not have to worry about clubhead speed. Therefore, you will more than likely find a 7 wood or 9 wood in their golf bag, but you may also find the same woods in a professional golfer’s bag.

Fairway woods are intended to bridge the gap between the long irons and the driver and today with the better made woods can even replace the 2 iron, 4 iron and in some cases the 5 iron. These unique fairway woods are easier to hit than the long irons because they have a deeper and lower center of gravity. They also give the golfer a high approach with more spin.

Just like with irons the smaller the number, the farther the ball will go but the distinctive difference is that with irons the ball will roll into place and with fairway woods the golf ball does not have a tendency to roll. Therefore, using a fairway wood instead of an iron you can get more distance without the roll. This can make a huge difference when your ball hits the green.