ClubTest 2024: 16 new fairway woods tested and reviewed

Six new fairway wood golf clubs against a blue background

Learn all about the best new fairway woods for 2024 below.

CLUB PHOTOS: COURTESY; DESIGN: TANYA DESELM

For the latest edition of GOLF magazine’s 2024 ClubTest, we crafted a two-pronged approach to deliver valuable insights into the new crop of fairway woods so that you can make better informed purchasing decisions. GOLF staffers tested the clubs ourselves to provide feedback and performance thoughts on gear from manufacturers big and small, while we also relied on the help of a swing robot and Golf Laboratories founder Gene Parente .

Below you will find our full reviews for 16 new fairway woods from top manufacturers like Callaway, Cleveland, Cobra, Mizuno, PXG, TaylorMade and XXIO. See something you like? Click through and buy your new fairway wood from Fairway Jockey today.

MORE CLUBTEST: 18 NEW DRIVERS REVIEWED | 22 NEW IRONS TESTED | 13 HYBRIDS REVIEWED

Want to overhaul your bag for 2024? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. 

BEST NEW FAIRWAY WOODS OF 2024

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Fairway Woods

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max fairway wood
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max D fairway wood
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast fairway wood
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke TD fairway wood

Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Fairway Woods

$349.99
Get yourself new Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke fairway woods with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max, Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max D, Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast and Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke TD

NEED TO KNOW: The same approach Callaway applied to create the Ai Smart Face architecture on the Paradym Ai Smoke drivers was used to shape the “swing code” on each Paradym Ai Smoke fairway wood. Categorizing real players’ swings made it possible to create distinct segmentation across all four models, especially when it came to impact location.

While the path and attack angle remained somewhat similar, Callaway’s supercomputer noticed that golfers using the low-spin Ai Smoke Triple Diamond had a most centered impact location when compared to the Ai Smoke Max’s shot concentration in the low heel and high toe. The dispersion was even wider across the low heel and toe on the draw-bias Ai Smoke Max D and lightweight Ai Smoke Max Fast.

Club Comparison

Compare Callaway fairway wood models below.
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max D
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max Fast
Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke TD
Price
Player Type
Of the new models, the Ai Smoke Max is best suited for the widest range of golfers.
Forgiveness
The Max model features a strong amount of forgiveness and a neutral shot shape.
Price
Player Type
The Max D model is designed for golfers with moderate swing speeds looking for a wood with draw bias.
Forgiveness
The Max D features a high level of forgiveness especially on mishits across the face.
Price
Player Type
The lightweight Max Fast is best for golfers looking to increase their swing speeds.
Forgiveness
The Max Fast offers loads of forgiveness especially for players with slow swing speeds.
Price
Player Type
The TD model is the Ai Smoke wood designed for better players looking for penetrating ball flight.
Forgiveness
With design focused on low-launch, low-spin performance, the TD features less forgiveness than the other models.

READ FULL REVIEW OF CALLAWAY’S PARADYM AI SMOKE FAIRWAY WOODS

Cleveland Halo XL Fairway Woods

Cleveland Halo Xl fairway wood

Cleveland Halo XL Fairway Woods

$249.99
Get yourself a new Cleveland Halo XL fairway wood with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: Cleveland Halo XL and Cleveland Halo XL Hy-Wood

NEED TO KNOW: A key attribute of the Halo XL woods line is the Glide Rails on the sole of the clubs to help lower the center of gravity by positioning extra mass on the sole and to help deliver more effective turf interaction to better maintain a square face through the impact zone. In essence, they act as rudders to help the club glide through the grass without digging and are especially effective from the rough.

On the inside, the Halo XL woods utilize the same AI-designed MainFrame XL technology as the Launcher XL2 drivers to expand the effective size of the sweet spot to boost distance and forgiveness, but with evolving variable face thickness through the entire Halo XL series woods to best match how each club is most often missed based on player testing data.

Club Comparison

Compare Cleveland wood models below.
Cleveland Halo XL Fairway Wood
Cleveland Halo XL Hy-Wood
Price
Player Type
The Halo XL is designed to be easy-to-hit for all types of golfers.
Forgiveness
The Halo XL woods feature a high amount of forgiveness.
Price
Player Type
The Halo XL Hy-Wood is designed to fill the gap between fairway woods and hybrids.
Forgiveness
The Halo XL Hy-Wood offers a ton of forgiveness for players wanting to get shots high in the air.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF CLEVELAND’S HALO XL FAIRWAY WOODS

Cobra Darkspeed Fairway Woods

Cobra Darkspeed X fairway wood
Cobra Darkspeed Max fairway wood
Cobra Darkspeed LS fairway wood

Cobra Darkspeed X Fairway Woods

$329.99
Get yourself a new Cobra Darkspeed X fairway wood with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: Cobra Darkspeed X, Cobra Darkspeed Max and Cobra Darkspeed LS

NEED TO KNOW: All three of the new Darkspeed fairway woods feature a re-engineered PWR-Bridge structure behind the face to help transfer energy and position mass low within the head, which maximizes launch and spin characteristics. The Darkspeed fairway woods have a larger PWRSHELL H.O.T. Face insert, which has been re-engineered with the help of A.I. to create more efficient energy transfer, and a multi-material construction with lightweight carbon-crown plates to help boost MOI.

But the biggest change to the Darkspeed fairway wood lineup is the conversion from steel to titanium in the LS model, which helps shave a ton of weight from the body. This can then be repositioned around the head to create ideal launch characteristics for faster players who want to control their ball flight.

Club Comparison

Compare Cobra fairway wood models below.
Cobra Darkspeed X Fairway Wood
Cobra Darkspeed Max Fairway Wood
Cobra Darkspeed LS Fairway Wood
Price
Player Type
The Darkspeed X model is designed to fit the largest group of golfers.
Forgiveness
The X offers a balanced combination of speed and forgiveness while still being workable.
Price
Player Type
The Darkspeed Max is engineered to help golfers who need a little more forgiveness, spin and draw bias.
Forgiveness
The Max model offers the highest launch and MOI of the Darkspeed fairway woods.
Price
Player Type
The LS is Cobra’s most adjustable and powerful fairway wood ever and designed for better golfers.
Forgiveness
The LS features the lowest amount of forgiveness in the Darkspeed line to provide maximum ballflight control.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF COBRA’S DARKSPEED FAIRWAY WOODS

Mizuno ST-G and ST-Max 230 Fairway Woods

Mizuno ST-G 230 fairway wood
Mizuno ST-Max 230 fairway wood

Mizuno ST-G 230 Fairway Woods

$299.99
Get yourself a new Mizuno ST-G 230 fairway wood with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: Mizuno ST-G 230 and Mizuno ST-Max 230

NEED TO KNOW: The max forgiveness and geometry of the ST-Max driver continue with the new ST-Max 230 fairway woods by offering a larger footprint to help add MOI and stability around the entire head. Both the fairway woods and hybrids utilize a high-strength MAS1C steel face for ball speed that matches up with the larger Cortech chamber on the sole. A composite-wrap crown covers the toe section of the fairway wood heads to reduce overall mass higher in the head.

With the ST-G Titanium fairway woods, Mizuno has pulled out all the stops to deliver the most high-performance and ultra low-spin fairway wood they ever have by incorporating titanium, steel and their new Cortech chamber into one club.

Club Comparison

Compare Mizuno fairway woods below.
Mizuno ST-G 230 Fairway Woods
Mizuno ST-Max 230 Fairway Woods
Price
Player Type
The Mizuno ST-G is designed for better players looking for a high-performance and ultra low-spin fairway wood
Forgiveness
The ST-G is designed to offer players lots of workability and options for mid-low to super-low spin.
Price
Player Type
The ST-Max fairway wood is suited for the widest range of golfers.
Forgiveness
The ST-Max features a higher level of forgiveness than the ST-G model.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF MIZUNO’S ST 230 FAIRWAY WOODS

PXG 0311 Black Ops Fairway Woods

PXG 0311 Black Ops fairway wood

PXG 0311 Black Ops Fairway Woods

$349.99
Get yourself a new PXG 0311 Black Ops fairway wood with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: PXG 0311 Black Ops

NEED TO KNOW: When it comes to the Black Ops fairway woods and hybrids, the story remains much the same as the drivers thanks to a new proprietary high-strength steel face material that allows for a 12.5 percent thinner face construction to help boost ball speeds, increase launch, lower spin and save precious grams to help increase forgiveness.

Now when speaking to the level of forgiveness built into the new Black Ops fairway woods (only one model option unlike the drivers), they have an MOI that is almost comparable to the previous game improvement Gen6 XF design while also being more compact.

Club Comparison

Compare PXG fairway wood models below.
PXG 0311 Black Ops Fairway Woods
PXG 0311 XF GEN6 Fairway Woods (2023)
Price
Player Type
The 0311 Black Ops fairway woods are suitable for a wide range of golfers.
Forgiveness
The Black Ops fairway woods provide a strong level of forgiveness.
Price
Player Type
The 0311 GEN6 XF model is designed for golfers seeking maximum forgiveness.
Forgiveness
Forgiveness is the name of the game with the 0311 GEN6 fairway woods.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF PXG 0311 BLACK OPS FAIRWAY WOODS

TaylorMade Qi10 Fairway Woods

TaylorMade Qi10 fairway wood
TaylorMade Qi10 Max fairway wood
TaylorMade Qi10 Tour fairway wood

TaylorMade Qi10 Fairway Woods

$349.99-449.99
Get yourself a new TaylorMade Qi10 fairway wood with custom shafts and specs from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: TaylorMade Qi10, TaylorMade Qi10 Max and TaylorMade Qi10 Tour

NEED TO KNOW: Just like the Qi10 drivers, the Qi10 woods have been refined and tuned to better fit the intended player for each model. The standard model remains, but there has also been a change in vocabulary. The plus or + model is now called the Qi10 Tour, and the HD is now called the Qi10 Max.

One of the most noticeable design enhancements to the fairway woods is the new infinity carbon crown. This new crown design covers almost the entire total surface on the top of the fairway woods — minus a small area near the hosel — an effort that saves mass throughout the head. With the extra mass, TaylorMade engineers were able to add some juice to the rest of the head, considerably improving performance.

Club Comparison

Compare TaylorMade fairway wood models below.
TaylorMade Qi10 Fairway Woods
TaylorMade Qi10 Max Fairway Woods
TaylorMade Qi10 Tour Fairway Wood
Price
Player Type
The standard Qi10 fairway wood is suitable for the widest range of golfers.
Forgiveness
The Qi10 is loaded with forgiveness, but not as much as the Qi10 Max.
Price
Player Type
The Qi10 Max is tailored to golfers looking for maximum forgiveness.
Forgiveness
The Qi10 Max fairway is the most forgiving and easy-to-launch fairway wood TaylorMade has ever made
Price
Player Type
The Qi10 Tour is best suited for better players with faster swing speeds.
Forgiveness
The Qi10 Tour fairway wood is focused on low-spin performance rather than forgiveness.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF TAYLORMADE’S Qi10 FAIRWAY WOODS

XXIO 13 Fairway Woods

XXIO 13 fairway wood

XXIO 13 Fairway Woods

$399.99
Get yourself a new XXIO 13 fairway wood from Fairway Jockey today!

MODELS: XXIO 13

NEED TO KNOW: When it comes to XXIO’s new 13 lineup, the goal is quite simple: Create a set of game-changing tools that add speed and consistency for someone who swings under 90 miles per hour. As one of the leaders in the lightweight club space, XXIO has become a go-to option thanks, in large part, to specialized technologies designed solely for the set.

The XXIO 13 fairways and hybrids offer a similar BiFlex face design to the new drivers and new cannon sole design that places mass lower in the head for a deeper center of gravity. An elevated weight pad located behind the face creates space for a thin sole portion to optimize ball speeds for shots hit low on the face, a common mishit location for many golfers. Similar to the driver, the goal behind the technologies is to increase the overall sweet spot while inducing a higher launch angle at the same time.

READ THE FULL REVIEW OF XXIO’S 13 FAIRWAY WOODS

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