even utility irons) over higher-lofted fairway woods to replace their long irons. But for the majority of average golfers, a high-lofted fairway wood provides a distinct advantage over a hybrid, especially when it comes to forgiveness on not-so-perfect hits. In short, the right club for those reach-back-and-rip-it shots shouldn’t only be about the loft stamped on the clubhead. It’s how that club works with your swing to optimise distance. Remember, you have options with these long clubs. Think before you hit.
to the face, which helps reduce the spin associated with a faster swing. (In robot testing, we saw about 20 per- cent less spin with the 3-hybrid versus the 5-wood.) For players with moder- ate speed, the higher launch and spin of a high-lofted fairway wood with its deeper CG helps shots stay in the air. Of course, fairway-wood designs that tar- get faster swingers can help cut down the spin. That’s why a fitting is critical. What’s the upshot here? We think that players with above-average swing speeds should go with hybrids (and
on mis-hits, but its longer shaft makes it harder to hit for most average golfers. Conversely, the hybrid’s shorter shaft should be easier to control and result in more solid strikes, and its added loft can help moderate-speed players create a better launch and more playable ball flight. However, that’s not what always hap- pens when we put these clubs in players’ hands or test our theory using a swing robot. Golf Digest’s testing partner, Golf Laboratories, the leading outfit in the industry for robot testing, found that the fairway wood’s advantages weren’t always clear. In one testing session using both average and above-average swing speeds, the 3-hybrid carried further than the 5-wood and had a steeper landing angle, meaning it would be more likely to hold a green. Still, it’s complicated. Specifically, we conducted robot testing at aver- age swing speeds of 90 and 80 miles per hour (the equivalent of mid-90s and mid-80s for a driver). At the lower speed, when we hit shots with a level or more sweeping swing, the carry distances for both the 3-hybrid and 5-wood were essentially equal. When the swing was more downward into im- pact, the 5-wood’s lower loft produced six more yards of carry. At the higher swing speed, the hybrid’s lower spin gave it as much as a six-yard distance advantage. In every case, however, the 5-wood yielded better forgiveness: Mis-hits lost less distance. Results from our Hot List player test- ing were also mixed. For players who were carrying the 3-hybrid more than 200 yards, the distance difference be- tween the hybrid and the 5-wood was marginal. Conversely, when we looked at average-to-moderate-speed play- ers, the 5-wood showed a distance ad- vantage averaging more than 10 yards. With the slowest swingers, it was sometimes as much as 25 yards longer than the 3-hybrid. Why the differences? For the fastest swingers, high-lofted fairway woods can launch the ball too high and with too much spin compared to hybrids, thus cutting into distance. With a hy- brid, the centre of gravity (CG) is closer
HOT LIST TESTING The best fairway woods and hybrids make long-distance approach shots less intimidating. Here are a few of our Hot List testers’ faves.
Fairway Woods
Hybrids
PETER LEE, 56 7-Handicap
ALEJANDRA BEDOYA, 26 5-Handicap
THOMAS ALLEN, 60 7-Handicap
RICKY BROWN, 46 +3-Handicap
Callaway Elyte Ti
Srixon ZXi
Ping G440
TaylorMade Qi35
“The ball flight, the consistency of the shots, was above average. It was very easy to hit a repetitive shot. A very subtle sound to it, like a silent assassin.”
“Understated. No distractions, but still elegant. Sounds powerful but feels smooth. Easy to get up in the air. Rewarding in distance, and little baby draws made it a pleasure to test.”
“My initial impression was confirmed: It’s an absolute launcher. Super easy to hit with a large sweet spot. Had a great ringing sound to go along with it.”
“Consistency, consistency, consistency. I was able to hit a bunch of different shots. Chased one down the fairway, then hit one higher and higher again. Love the gray finish.”
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 93
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026
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