Choosing the Right Fairway Wood | Face Depth Test

[@glennmeldrum8257]

"Today we're going to talk a little bit..." - we ain't here for a little bit. Keep up the excellent, in depth work fellas.

[@bryceboring2615]

TXG: Answering the questions you didn't know you had all while opening up a whole new bag of them.

[@TheMuffs2004]

Bryce Boring Isn’t that the truth! LOL

[@clivenewman3715]

Amen sister. 🤯

[@karlj1717]

😂

[@rapidcat6113]

Another thought provoking and information video. When I first started watching these, as a right-handed golfer I wasn't sure if I could warm to a left-handed golfer as the tester, just didn't look right (ha ha). Good to say that now I don't give it another thought and I can enjoy Matt's swing for how excellent and view able it is. The interchange between Ian and Matt is also both entertaining and insightful. Anyway, that's my 2 cents worth. Matt Blois - advancing the cause of the lefty golfer throughout the golfing world!

[@Joetweddall]

Got fitted for an f9 3 wood when I got the driver earlier this year, such an underrated club, love watching these Ian, Matt and the rest of the TXG team

[@TheMuffs2004]

One of my greatest “why didn’t I get that club” regrets was the Callaway 3 Deep in 14.5. I was a very long hitter at the time and the role that fairway woods filled for me at the time was on hole where driver was to much which was quite often because many of the courses I played at the time had a large number of dogleg holes that were just to high risk to cut the corner or holes that bottlenecked severely after roughly 300+ off the tee. Nowadays, especially with my much lower speed and much different delivery, I am much better served by my M1 3HL. It’s funny though. Despite all that power I’m a much better player today with a club speed of 110 mph vs the old me of 125+

[@GRIFF22]

Excellent video. I think with players hitting it longer these days and so many courses ( especially in the UK) that are old with par 4's typically 340-390 yards, there sn't a great need to a hit a 3 wood if the deck. But like many I find hitting a shallow 3 wood off a tee pretty terrifying. Most people who have deep face 3 woods are using them as fairway finder's off the tee and it'll do a decent enough job for the occasional off the deck shot.

[@albertofernandez-sanguino3373]

In addition the Cobra has the Bafler rails which help enormously with turf interaction. A great club, very well engineered.

[@stephendibari7704]

GReat comparison guys ! I have the F9 3W set at 14.5 deg, best 3W I’ve ever owned, also have the F9 4W set at 17.5 deg. (1 deg strong). the F9’s are phenomenal, the feel (sound) is remarkable, you get the crunch with all the carbon..

[@davidmartin1723]

Great review I bought a 3 Deep to use as a mini driver but never got to grips with the club and today you have confirmed the clubs inconsistency

[@yoder9339]

I really struggled with the 3 deep. Glad to see Matt did too!

[@judeedward9781]

What a timely vid for me. I was delaying a purchase knowing that sales were likely to come shortly but being a Callaway man ( went Ping LS for driver because I liked their approach to lowering some excessive spin but retaining forgiveness ), and fully expecting to go to an epic flash (which was good), the fitting revealed that the f9 simply could not be hit left. It could be pulled but we never saw a pull hook with all sorts of swings I was trying to put on it. Sold. Ordered Driver, hit the 3 and loved the baffler rails - so ordered that too. F9 is the truth. As ever a highly informative piece guys with solid info and no gimmicky fanfare..

[@oldgold5848]

Love my F9. Best 3 wood off the deck I have ever had. Great out of the rough..... Slightly hooky off the tee when I get macho with it.... Looks like Matty likes it as well........;)

[@lavrentievv]

It sits quite closed. I have it at 13.5 degrees, seems to look much more neutral.

[@saintpatrick6681]

this explains why im picking up deep face 3 woods on the cheap. im gonna control the market soon. yippie for me.

[@andreas_hs]

Very interesting :) Being a high handicapper I used to play a Bridgestone 3W 15° regular till this spring with poor consistency. Switched to Wilson 3H 19° stiff which gives me so much more consistency with almost no loss in distance.

[@anthonycsimmons7215]

Nice to know that there is a significant difference between deep face and shallow face. I have always had trouble hitting my 4 wood off the fairway with any kind of consistency. Thanks guys

[@uwrossl]

Yup Yup! Got a 3 wood back in the bag finally this year. Prior to my fitting this year I had no idea about face depth or what it was exactly. True Spec fitting and they asked me if i'd be using it primarily as a club off the tee or off the fairway. Had to think about that honestly for a minute. It's about 70/30 for me tee club vs fairway but being able to hit it off the deck consistently when needed was equally important. Fitter then did a good job of explaining the reason for the question as well as the differences in face depth and started giving me clubs to hit without telling me what was what. In the end the TS2 3 wood was the winner. The sound off these fairways is unreal.

[@ignorance123]

This gives me hope to when I need to replace my Adams Tight Lies Ti fairway -- at least there are options out there.

[@danjohnson6292]

YOu guys are confirming exactly why I stopped carrying a 3w and moved to a 4w. My 3w was like having a second driver in the bag.

[@joeylo73]

Ian I'd love for you to revisit this test. Its been 4 years and I'd like to see if anything has changed. I have recently switched from shallow faced ping woods to deep face Mizuno woods. I hit the hell outa the ball and I'm way more consistent with the Mizuno's then I've ever been with my Pings. A little more info: I'm an 8 handicap. I've been playing Ping Woods for years and have always been inconsistent with them. Out of frustration, I put the deep-faced Mizuno in the bag, and it's been great. I'm a shortish fella at 5'5", so I don't know how that affects things. Love your channel.

[@Ecka63]

I was gaming a Callaway Epic Sub Zero 3 Wood and hitting it inconsistently so last week I was fitted into a Mizuno ST200 TS which has a much shallower face, similar to the Cobra F9 in this test. I'm now delivering less loft, my strike is more centered, flight is lower and more consistent as are dispersion and distance. I hadn't seen this video until today and was very interested to see that my experience was similar to Matt's. Thanks for the great content!

[@bryanduchane2371]

Went through a long game fitting last week at Club Champion. Had a TSI3 14.5 degree 3w. After the fitting, I got the SIM 2 Max 15 degree loft 15 yards longer and desperation we down considerably. There is no substitution for a good club fitting session. Went from having the weakest club in my bag to a new club that has become the best club in my bag. If you don't buy in to a quality fitting, your leaving shots on the course!!!!

[@brianrobertson9318]

Matty... the Beast F9 driver and the F9 3wd would sure be a nice looking combo for you! It’s what I’m playing now after picking up the driver just this weekend and I love them both!

[@phillipcolonnelli5320]

Owned the F9 3wood for about 2 weeks. Being a 20 ish handicap loved the hits but noticed I was gouging the ball ( deep cuts ) it had to go. I ended up getting a F8 no frame around face like newer club really love it.

[@clivenewman3715]

Just some of those throwaway lines about d-plane give me something to think about when I'm on the range. I'm loving these short and sweet videos. 👍

[@markthegolfaddict9051]

I like the tour Edge exotics XCG7 Beta. It's a perfect combo of deep and shallow

[@Jayhawk123]

Love this video guys! Keep up the great work

[@ianfrasergolf]

Jack Gouty Thanks Jack! 👍🏻

[@pauliatomasi8951]

Excellent video!! So much to know and consider you just answered most of my questions!

[@Joshzilla1979]

This is SUPER interesting. I play a Ping g410LST 3 wood and Cobra F8+ 5 wood. Just looking at them, I always think that the Ping is gonna launch the highest (loft for loft) but the initial launch couldn't be more different. The F8+ is hard to beat.

[@serveitup911]

I would love to see a test among a 17 degree fairway, 17 degree Callaway Super Hybrid, and 17 degree hybrid. No one has content on the new Super hybrid yet and would love to see how it compares to traditional fairways and hybrids. I traditionally hit a 17 degree hybrid too flat and a 5 wood too high and spinny.

[@timbilly7393]

I use a Taylormade Jetspeed 3 wood, great club

[@WillertMorris]

I never comprehend your analyses.

[@garydavis8213]

The bottom of the wood is one of the elements I look at. Those old round bottomed Callaways are hard to hit from the fairway.

[@imasspeons]

They're like an old persimmon. If you get steep with them and smash through the turf, they work pretty well. I use a 915Fd because I played persimmons growing up and still hit fairways with a negative AoA.

[@mmms1979]

X2 Hot 5 Deep was one of the best fairways. Easy launch due to the loft, but strong flight. Great from tee or turf.

[@rayblackman8069]

Had one & loved it, till the face caved in, they never did a 5 in the next xr deep model unfortunately.

[@christopherbrown1326]

Always liked shallow face fairway woods now I can see why.

[@Rexij]

The F9 didn't feel shallow to me because of the rails which made it sit up from the ground. I don't play a 3 wood, only a 5 wood, the rails were much more noticable on the 5 wood. Went with the ping instead.

[@kevinconnolly754]

had the standard x2 hot and it's still a monster, bought the 3 deep to use thinking it would be easier to hit but it was an inconsistent nightmare. my cobra f8+ is a super reliable fairway finder though it isn't the longest 3 wood around

[@austinlauer1910]

Hadn't even watched yet and I'm excited. This is what I was asking a few weeks ago with Ian's fairway wood test.

[@whiskerrub]

Austin Lauer I know thanks for the spoiler😂

[@austinlauer1910]

@@whiskerrub 🤣🤣 I promise I didn't have a clue

[@jonesysean2138]

I have and use that Callaway XHot 3 wood at the moment and it kicks ass I love it

[@mikedupree2290]

I loved my taylormade SuperDeep driver. Loved it.

[@ianfrasergolf]

Mike Dupree BBLB, if you know, you know. 😉

[@RequiemDead]

I always struggled with fairway wood face depth and I have had a few good ones here and there throughout my playing years but the best one yet is in my bag now which is the 917 f2. So easy to get the ball up in the air off tight lies.

[@magerquark6833]

that was interessting. i have an old 5wood whith a really high face and i always hit ground first whith it.

[@Lorentzi_]

Ian how did you find galvin green and when did you start using their golf apparel?

[@ianfrasergolf]

TittuT I’ve been wearing Galvin Green clothing for over 10 years. They have been my clothing sponsor for around 3 years. I absolutely Love the clothing. Nothing comes close to them in my opinion.

[@Jjwalways70]

This is going to be good , I do better with shallow faces , can’t wait to see what unfolds , this is the most informative channel ,simply in a league of your own guys .

[@ianfrasergolf]

Joe Wilkes Thank Joe!! 👍🏻

[@thebigeasy8609]

Good job fellas. Ian you are the golfing Guru! Now I may just have to look into a new 3 wood. That 'll make my wife happy! You're killing me Ian!

[@ianfrasergolf]

TheBigEasy 🤫, don’t tell her!! 😉

[@parnopsiripornpak5632]

Currently using X2Hot 3wood, guess I'm gonna have to try out the F9. Great knowledge from you guys, thanks a lot.

[@cliffdiver1965]

Did you ever try the F9 3 wood? I'm still gaming the X2Hot 3 wood, looking for newer comparison.

[@cj18hz]

How soon before we see a FW vs Callaway's new SUPER hybrid video? I play a X2HOT 5 deep and thinking of making the change finally but low profile fw woods don't fit my eye

[@jergernice1]

switched from f8 with rails to rogue sz to gain some distance.. i did... but only off the tee....off the deck fairway and especially light rough or 1st cut the f8 so so much better getting in and out of the turf.... not even close...went and bought the f9 and hot melted the head to get near sub zero weighting...best of both worlds.

[@claytonjohnston25]

I like my F8 3 wood! Looking at possibly picking up a F8 or F9 5 wood. Haven’t decided between that or sticking a TM UDI 2i in my bag.

[@dougmael]

WOW!!! 39mm deep in the face, now THAT”S a deep-faced fairway wood! I thought that 33.5mm to 34mm was deep-faced. As a Professional Clubfitter, I virtually only fit my customers to a fairway wood with a face depth greater than 32mm if they will be using that club almost exclusively from the tee (there have been a couple of exceptions, but not many, and I have NEVER fit a player to a fairway wood with more than 33.5 to 34mm in face depth. For me, 32 to 33mm is just about perfect. I can use the club from off the tee, with the tee inserted in the ground to where the top of the tee is almost at ground level, but I can also use the club from off the turf on long par-5 holes. I can’t even imagine trying to hit a 39mm deep fairway wood from off the turf.

[@thomasveal3351]

I recall wondering if Matty had tried the Cobra F9 3W. Matty, you might need to put that one in your bag. Those numbers were incredibly consistent! Perhaps, a H-2-H with the Titleist is warranted.

[@ianfrasergolf]

Thomas Veal True Thomas.

[@ianshepherd6476]

i really wanted to see that video off the tee especially as a driver replacement. i hit a lot of 3 woods off the tee. but as always good job guys

[@affordablegolfer3183]

Now I see you tested only the standard cobra F9 and not the tour version. Being the tour versions CG is different. Would like to see the F9 regular vs the tour in numbers in that same test to see how much different the strike location makes do to the change in CG.

[@geoffgray1166]

Currently use a Tour M2 3 wood of the tee, what would recommend for a larger head, cheers,, great channel

[@ianstyring9602]

Taylormade Original One. Awesome club. Beat a G410lst 9*. I use it just off the tee. No "big" driver needed.

[@geoffgray1166]

Ian Styring what loft did you get ? And where you lucky that you could demo one before you purchased it.

[@ianstyring9602]

@@geoffgray1166 13.5 turned down to 11.5. This is a game changer for me. Unable to demo as it was a limited edition so I took a punt and here we are.

[@brucefrank5556]

You also have to consider situational golf. I found the F9's profile to be too low for hitting out of rough. Easy to go under the ball. I preferred Epic Flash.

[@ianfrasergolf]

Bruce Frank nice Bruce, Epic Flash is a great FW also!! 👍🏻

[@ferg_life3841]

What are some of the best low profile 3 woods you would suggest giving a shot.

[@jeffreylondongolf3448]

Another one us regular golfers might over look, TY!

[@ianfrasergolf]

Jeff Phila 👍🏻

[@justinpalmer2959]

Tried the F9 fairway vs my F7 3 wood. Found the F9 too high spin with it's shallower depth. Did you guys find the same with the F9 ?

[@ianfrasergolf]

justin palmer no not at all Justin, in fact quite the opposite. The shallow face encouraged a higher strike on the face resulting in high launch low spin flight due to the gear effect.

[@glennwiebe5128]

I'm still playing a 909 F2 15.5° (3W) and a 909 F3 18° (5W). I love them. I find that the heads are a bit smaller than the new offerings and that they are so great for getting out of the long stuff. They are so easy to flight down or I can swing neutrally and launch them into orbit. I can tell you this that I'm not giving them up any time soon! Matt, when you were hitting that 3D or whatever that deep face 3W was, and spraying it all over the place, I'm thinking what is wrong with this boy today? I don't recall seeing any club be so inconsistent. You're the next thing to Iron Byron so we know then it's the club.

[@SvingitGolf]

I just bought the F9 Tour 3 wood to hit from tee. I love that club. My club speed is as hight or even higher than with driver, but this beast is more accurate than the driver. I mean 43" and 108-110 mph club speed with 155-158 mph ball speed. It's insane 👊🔥

[@rickvomberg4234]

I have the same x hot and use it off the Tee, only 5 wood of the deck. A lot of amateurs come in steep to the ball.

[@notbyalex]

Losing Adams was a big blow to the golf industry. I miss their woods and hybrids like nothing else

[@golfergal]

ebay!

[@joshcotton4452]

Golfbidder

[@joshcotton4452]

Taylormade bought them out

[@ryanhughes3386]

Can you have Matt hit the 3deep off the tee to see if the dispersion becomes narrower , and the cobra off the tee ?

[@mofojohnson1]

I've only just realised he was hitting off the deck. I'm pretty sure this was designed so you could use it off the tee and gain extra distance compared to shallow face 3 woods

[@legend9018]

Interesting video, for me, visually a low profile fairway wood that sits a little below the ball does not inspire confidence because it puts the fear of getting too far under it and getting that dreaded sky mark after you pop it straight up in the air.

[@guypicard1648]

I would have been curious if you tested them off a tee as well. I have had much more success with deep face fairway woods because I hit them better off the tee than a shallow.

[@resozv]

Good video. Like to see GC quad stats, playing different clubs from varying rough 85-90 mph swing speed.

[@Ryan-fx7jx]

I think one of the biggest things for me when comparing face depth - psychological differences. I want a nice deep face with short heel/toe length with a driver. But, if I had that in a 3 wood, I feel like I'm never gonna hit the middle of the club - I went and bought a Mizuno GT 180 TS for that reason (probably thinnest fairway I can find 🤣)

[@patrickpetrie3796]

Not sure if I remember seeing one, but I'd love to see maybe a test of how different grips can make difference. Slim grips vs the thicker grips like Bryson uses on his clubs. I'm sure most dont even think about it other than the material.

[@timbuma3693]

They have actually done this video, if you search choosing the right grip size you should find it.

[@olekrarup4849]

I have a Callaway BB mini driver 13-16 degree. Looks a bit like this. Question: How about a test off the tee? Larger face should have some advantages? :) I only use mine off the tee.

[@plus2golfer12]

I have to have a shallow face on my woods...i play the f7 now and wish it was even thinner... Oddly though I'm pretty steep.. Steep enough that i take divots with it and have great success...260 off the tee 240-245 off the deck at 15.5*... Haven't found any other 3 wood that even comes close to consistent the f7 is for me

[@philweezer4763]

Hi guys, Is there the same correlation as the bigger the head is the more forgiving? Like would a high handicapper fit the F9?

[@Avarice176]

I can't get comfortable with a deep 3 wood. It always makes me think I'm going to mishit it fat. Love a nice shallow 3 wood since I'm mostly hitting it off the deck on par 5s

[@jubnx2781]

Ian, how and where did you learn all about club fitting? Is there a school or just experience

[@FFTVCrypto]

Which fairway has a shallower face, ping or cobra?

[@dongolfnut5558]

Great video always struggled with 3 wood of the fairway how wold you view a 917 f2 and does it really increase loft when you adjust them up?

[@brandonlambert1586]

This explains why I absolutely hate newer hitting fairway woods now a days. Went out and measured my old Titliest 904F and Mizuno F60 and they are 34-36 mm tall which is a crazy 5+ mm deeper (close to a tenth of the diameter of a golf ball). I like a taller 4 wood (how I gap my clubs) and am disappointed to know all the companies are within 3 mm of each other. Do either of you know if there are any other options for a guy such as me that likes a taller clubhead? Or will I have to use my old trusty's for the rest of my life?

[@mangelarsson7774]

This is a fantastic idea for a test. But Im thinking a deep face with weight really far back could be the club for people not loving their drivers. Maybe hit down too much on the head. And a test with a tee could be really interesting as well.

[@zacharymilos392]

I wish Cobra made the newer fairways like Ping, where you could go pretty flat or open. Loveeeed the feel and performance off the deck of my F8 but it lacked a little bit of ball speed, and it was really draw biased for me. Sadly had to ditch it long term. As a lefty, the F9 Tour isn't available :-/ Maybe F10 (or whatever it's called) will offer this.

[@Blackyboi39]

I almost never hit a 3 wood of the ground, if there is a super long Par 5 (600+ yards) i might need it, but even then would I more likely lay up with an iron and give myself a good number, for me a 3 wood is a pure layup club from the tee when i can not afford any miss so i hit it low with high spin to be super save, so it's usually a 40 yard difference to my driver but there are not many holes on which there are only bad misses, so it is my least used club of all time

[@SuLLy2GoD]

Can you do a video in the future about different lofts in fairway woods with players who cant get that much launch with a 15* 3 wood? Or maybe you can talk about it on your next live if it doesn't warrant a full video. I'm currently using a Ping G400 5 wood turned down to 16.5 and I seem to have better results especially off the deck.

[@Alex-tl6vz]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/emOrY6VoqJeliLs

[@SuLLy2GoD]

@@Alex-tl6vz Perfect. I thought they had did one but for some reason couldn't find it. Thanks!

[@philovenell5644]

You certainly did open a can of worms with this one. A few years back Callaway had a mini driver and now Taylor Made has come out with one. It seems to me that the face depths are very similar to Matt's Callaway 3Deep fairway. So does this video help or hinder the validity of mini drivers or should we just use stronger lofted 3 woods. I'm a Cobra F8 14.5° fairway fan.

[@Vitosalad]

What are the two best shallow face fairway wood heads for 2020????? (IYO)

[@Mj-CWO4]

Which brands carry a 4 wood

[@ScottDreyfus]

I still have the 3 deed and the x2 hot 2 deep. Both have old school Accra se80 m5s in them. #rocketlaunchers! You definitely have to feel like the toe is turning down to hit them off the ground well. The regular x hot pro version was probably the first shallow fairway I actually liked. I was never scared to hit it on the roof from the tee box. Any chance you guys have an #SLDR to test against the current #SIM

[@meetmichaelprince]

Do you see similarities with consistency of strike based on face height with drivers as you did here with 3Ws? Seems to me TM makes ‘em narrow and Callaway on the taller side. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thanks guys, keep up the good work!

[@Somefatdude]

I will hold onto my Adams Tight Lies Titanium 13.5* until it or me dies.

[@stevecon3951]

Thank you very good information

[@jacobmccain8082]

I like my TS2 3 wood but dont love it. I LOVE my driver. LOVE my 19 and 23* hybrids. Still kind of looking for that magic I had with the Burner 3 wood I played for 10+ years.

[@MXJEFF94]

Jacob McCain look at the new Callaway super hybrid at 17 degrees... replaced my 3 wood... 🚀!!

[@Richsgbox]

So I went from a TS3 to TS2 and it changed eveything. TS2 fairways are incredible.

[@whiskerrub]

Scared to think what’s going to happen if funds come available to carry thru with TXG Lab. Ian will go full on Professor Julius Sumner Miller and we will love it👍

[@Retrieving...]

Wouldn't a better test be Callaway X Hot vs the 3deep? It doesn't seem right comparing it against a club that's 5 years newer

[@2bNIKEt1]

I must be an outlier. I cant stand the shallow head. Feels like I'm gonna either thin bullet or sky it so easily. Tour Edge CB2 here. And I have a CB Pro LE waiting to replace it whenever that may be.

[@mangelarsson7774]

So Matts TS3 is not a club that is hard to launch?

[@ianfrasergolf]

Mange Larsson no its not hard to hit high.

[@mangelarsson7774]

@@ianfrasergolf Aha, I thought it had all the weight forward in the head so the ball would come out fast with really low spin?

[@austinlauer1910]

Awesome guys 👍

[@Paul-viking]

which manufacturers have lowest fairway wood profile, besides Cobra?

[@ianfrasergolf]

Paul Beltz Ping G410

[@Paul-viking]

@@ianfrasergolf Thanks!

[@hbyrdut]

But as a backup to the driver he would be teeing it up and maybe he wouldn't be losing distance then.

[@howardbarker276]

Hi guys I had a Taylor made Rocket balls 3 wood it was a great club off the tee & I couldn’t hit it off the deck I then bought a Adams Tight lies & it was a great club off the deck but not a great club off the tee. 👍

[@speterj]

Put the ball on a tee then see what happens. I have a 3 deep and it is a monster on a tee

[@whogg0521]

Is it wrong that I can listen to your vids all day? Me thinks not!

[@dropammobro992]

I hit a 7 iron with 87 mph club head speed and 120 mph ball speed with a efficiency rate of 134 but only hit it 150 yards... shouldn’t I be hitting the ball 160 ish or more? Why do my balls look like the die mid flight I’m so confused, spin rate around 5500

[@tnjbrown]

Always preferred shallow face fairway woods. More predictable as this test shows, better out of light rough as well. Deep faced fairways always felt as intimidating as hitting driver off the deck to me.

[@mofojohnson1]

But off a tee....

[@mofojohnson1]

Have just bought an x2hot 3deep to replace my driver. Haven't hit it yet wish I hadn't watched this now ha

[@wodenoftheangles3339]

You're not gonna hit it teed-up?

[@imasspeons]

Why would you ever buy any club without hitting it? That's like buying a car with no test drive. Madness.