I remember a time when having a lofted fairway wood in your bag meant you lacked the requisite speed to hit a 2-iron.
Then, in 2006-ish, Tiger Woods replaced his trusty 2-iron with a Nike T40 19-degree 5-wood. Any hesitance to make the “extra head cover” leap went bye-bye, because anything Tiger did to his bag quickly became the standard. The reason for his switch was simple: He wanted a long club that was easy to hit, and by easy he meant forgiving. Yes, even Tiger Woods wants and needs help — and that was at the peak of his powers.
Almost 20 years later and the high-lofted-woods trend has become hotter than I could have ever imagined.
At the Valspar this week, 30-plus 7-woods and two 9-woods (Tommy Fleetwood and Mark Hubbard) were in play. Interestingly, 7-woods have become tools for longer players vs. only shorter-hitters who need help. There are two reasons why: (1) Gapping, and (2) these guys are really long.
High lofted fairway woods have been criticized because they produce excessive spin and a floaty ball flight, but these days those drawbacks are not really an issue because fitters and players have figured out a three-part mitigation recipe:
1. CG placement and deeper faces
2. Heavier and stouter shaft profiles (80-90 grams)
3. Shorter build lengths (40-41 inches)
Today’s top players tend to hit 7-woods like they would 5-irons (the shorter length helps), with a steeper angle of attack and plenty of turf interaction. This approach allows them to catch the ball a groove or two up the face, keeping spin down in a manageable area. That’s the key with fairway woods: You gotta hit down on them for optimization.
The 7-wood decision starts with the 3-wood. If you’ve been following along, you might have noticed that fairway-wood loft have increased over the past 20-plus years. Before the ProV1 came along, it was more common to see a 13 degree (spoon) wood than anything in the 15-degree realm. Again, Tiger was always on the loftier side of the spectrum, opting for a Titleist 970 (15) vs. a stronger option. With technology comes adjustments, and when the high launch/low spin ball became the norm, players could loft up and see the same or even better results than ever before.
Then these kids got really fast. Today, there are more 180-plus ball speed players than you could imagine. According to ShotLink, 27 players averaged 180+ ball speed in 2024. That’s insane.
This speed uptick has created gapping issues, which is why you’ll find many of the fastest players with 3-wood lofts that hover around 16 degrees. Min Woo Lee is an example of player who not only has added loft to his “3-wood” but also shortened its length to put a governor on the output. Lee’s 3-wood is 42 inches to the end of the grip, which is typically 5-wood length, and he still gets 175-plus ball speed out of it. Again, insane stuff.
There are three main reasons why any Tour players would opt for a 7-wood.
1. Gapping: From what I see on Tour, this was more of a ball speed/spin gapping equation vs. actual carry. Here’s what I mean: Nico Hojgaard’s ball speed with a driver is roughly 185 mph (with 2,600 RPMs); his 16.5-degree 3-wood is 172 mph (3,500 RPMs); and his 4-iron is in the high 140s to low 150s (4500RPMs). So what he needs in that third spot essentially is a high-150s club that spins in the low 4,000s. A 5-wood is too hot as it lives in the mid 160s, but a 7-wood gets him 155-160 max and 4,000RPMS at its lowest.
2. Spin/Launch: 7-woods by design get up quickly with spin and fall steeply (while most utility irons or 3-irons fly low and chase out). This is a huge performance benefit because it allows players to hit second shots into par-5s that stop on a dime.
3. Forgiveness: This one is self-explanatory. It’s much easier to get away with a 7-wood mis-hit vs a poorly struck long or utility iron.
You can rinse and repeat the benefits of a 9-wood as well. Bottom line: Tour players want height and stopping power in that part of their bags. Fred Couples ditched every iron up to his 7-iron for this very reason. He now goes Driver/3-wood/5-wood/4H/5H/6H. FRED COUPLES!
That answer should be decided by you and a good fitter, but from a 35,000-foot view, I think any time you can replace a club with something that’s not only more forgiving but also gives you the ability to the ball higher, it’s a winner.
This is a Tour trend we all can learn from: take the speed out of it and focus on the core principles. We all need forgiveness, height, stopping power and versatility. Whether you’re as fast as Min Woo Lee or desperate for more speed, a 7-wood can be a weapon if it’s in the bag for the right reasons. Look at Tommy Fleetwood’s bag this week: driver/mini-driver/5-wood/9-wood. He knows what he’s doing.
The high-lofted fairway wood trend is real, and it’s here to stay.
Is a 7-wood right for your game? consult a fitter at your local True Spec Golf.
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