Best fairway woods for slower swing speeds | ClubTest 2025

Brilliant engineers keep building better and more tech-infused golf clubs, and few player types are benefitting more than beginners, senior players or those with slower swing speeds. Generating speed generates power — Bryson DeChambeau proves this theory — and some of the newly released ultra-light models go a long way in helping golfers who can’t swing it as fast as Bryson. This is especially important for fairway woods, which are sometimes more difficult for certain players to launch and hit.

For GOLF’s ClubTest 2025, we tested 29 new fairway wood models from the top manufacturers to see not only what clubs performed the best overall, but in what areas each excelled. Here are some of the best fairway woods for slower swing speeds.

See something you like below? Click through and buy your new fairway wood on Fairway Jockey today. For additional exclusive insights on new fairway woods from leading brands, join InsideGOLF for only $40/year. Want to overhaul your bag for 2025? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. 

MORE CLUBTEST: BEST FAIRWAY WOODS FOR FORGIVENESS | BEST FAIRWAY WOODS FOR SPEED | BEST FAIRWAY WOODS FOR LOW SPIN

Callaway Elyte Max Fast

*Callaway’s Elyte Max Fast fairway wood was awarded ClubTest 2025 Game Changer status for its outstanding performance in the slower swing speed fairway wood category.

Callaway Elyte Max Fast Custom Fairway Wood

$349.99

FEATURES & BENEFITS Lightweight Construction for Easy-to-Launch Performance Built from the ground up for players needing lightweight, easy to swing fairway woods. A premium lightweight construction and components will benefit players with moderate swing speeds. All New Tungsten Speed Wave for consistently fast ball speeds Featured on the 3-7 wood, the new Tungsten Speed Wave is a 35g weight that positions mass low and forward to promote fast ball speeds. This new, innovative design is engineered specifically to enhance misses low on the face. Ai 10x Face for Optimal Launch and Tight Downrange Dispersion     Our most advanced Ai face to date, the new Ai10x Face delivers 10x more control points than the Ai Smart Face. Designed with our C300 Face cup to produce exceptionally fast ball speeds, tight dispersion, and optimized launch across the face.

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THE BASICS: All of Callaway’s new fairway wood models feature the company’s new Step Sole design that comes from studying the success of the Callaway Apex UW line. The idea was to help golfers strike the ball more consistently in the center of the face and to help them avoid striking the ball low on the face. A premium lightweight construction and components will benefit players with moderate swing speeds.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW OF CALLAWAY ELYTE FAIRWAY WOODS

Cleveland Halo XL Lite

Cleveland Halo XL Custom Lite Fairway Wood

$229.99

LITE-WEIGHT DESIGN A lighter clubhead with modified weighting, 1.5° added loft, and a lightweight shaft makes these Fairway Woods extra quick for max distance. Even if you don’t swing a million miles-per-hour, this design gives you more power behind every strike. MAINFRAME XL FACE MainFrame XL Face Technology uses a variable thickness pattern that maximizes flex at impact to boost distance. We’ve also repositioned weight within the clubhead for added forgiveness and consistency. GLIDERAIL Our proprietary GlideRail Technology gets a new, optimized design to deliver cleaner, uninterrupted swings through the turf. Two rails along the sole of the club help keep the face straight through impact. XL HEAD DESIGN An improved XL Head Design with low-and-deep weighting, players can enjoy long, high-launching ball flight with plenty of forgiveness. REBOUND FRAME Instead of giving it one flex zone, we’ve got two. With alternating flex zones acting in sync, Rebound Frame directs more energy into the ball for speed and distance on every shot.

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THE BASICS: 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. The Cleveland Halo XL Lite is best-suited for players with moderate swing speed.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW OF CLEVELAND HALO XL FAIRWAY WOODS

PLAYER TESTING TAKEAWAYS: “Feels good with good loft. I like the weight. Consistency was good. I like the overall look and dependability.” — Joanne Storbeck (34 handicap)

PXG Wildcat

PXG Wildcat Fairway Wood

$199.99

PXG’s Wildcat 5-wood is designed for easy launch and effortless distance, perfect for golfers who want to hit it high, straight and far.

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THE BASICS: PXG’s Wildcat metal woods are geared to help players get the ball airborne, and it all starts with the lofts. There’s no 3-wood in this set, instead a 19-degree 5-wood. The lacking 3-wood is no oversight. Woods are typically the hardest clubs for beginners and infrequent golfers to wield. By giving players weaker lofts with a more confidence-inspiring look at address, the PXG Wildcats are easier to launch.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW OF PXG WILDCAT FAIRWAY WOODS

PLAYER TESTING TAKEAWAYS: “I like the glossy look and pronounced markings. Felt well balanced throughout. Excellent forgiveness. Good distance. Better performance than the rest and good forgiveness. Never tried PXG woods before and was pleasantly surprised.” — Ronald Hinderberger (19.4 handicap)

“Shiny, attractive, classic. Very solid and great impact through the ball. Jumped off the clubface. Not many misses. Excellent distance.” — Jerry Wenker (17.1 handicap)

TaylorMade Qi35 Max Lite

TaylorMade Qi35 Max Lite Custom Fairway Wood

$349.99

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THE BASICS: Similar to the new drivers from the TaylorMade Qi35 family, the new Qi35 fairway woods focus on two main characteristics: inertia and adjustability. Inertia refers to the clubhead’s ability to deliver an optimal combination of distance and forgiveness, while adjustability allows golfers to fine-tune their shot shapes and configurations, helping players of all skill levels lower their scores. The Qi35 Max Lite is an ultralight model designed for slow-swinging golfers looking to gain speed.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW OF TAYLORMADE Qi35 FAIRWAY WOODS

PLAYER TESTING TAKEAWAYS: “Feel, sound, forgiveness and distance were great. Like how the weight feels heavy on the back end. Squares up nicely. Forgiving, not much side movement.” — Anita Wallace (9.3 handicap)

“Love the carbon, very pretty. Shaft and finish is nice. Stable and well balanced feel. Best average distance of the bunch. Consistent and easier to swing than others.” — Carolyn Petersen (16-20+ handicap)

Titleist GT1

Titleist GT1 Custom Fairway Wood

$399

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THE BASICS: The Titleist GT1 fairway is the largest profile in the GT lineup at 180 cc, while also featuring the shallowest face height to help players launch the ball off the turf. With the weight distributed properly — GT1 has the deepest CG in the entire GT family — the shape was also refined to make it more aerodynamic, helping the slow-to-moderate clubhead speed player swing it faster.

READ OUR FULL REVIEW OF TITLEIST GT FAIRWAY WOODS

PLAYER TESTING TAKEAWAYS: “Very positive, the results I want. I’m looking forward to bringing this club to the course. Has a classic look at address. Love looking at it. Excellent smooth and solid contact through impact. Very consistent. Generous forgiveness for my type of player. Solid contact transformed my numbers.” — Jerry Wenker (17.1 handicap)

“Felt smooth and easy to hit, not clunky. Distance changed on mishits but they went straight.” — Carolyn Petersen (16-20+ handicap)