Higher launching fairways

[Ed McNicholas]

Looking to increase the launch on my fairway a touch.  I prefer to hit level to down on my fairway wood and currently play an rbz stage 2 tour 14.5 at std loft with a fujikura speeder 7.2 x flex shaft.  Current launch is between 9 and 10 degrees with around 3000 rpms and about 160 ball speed on gc2 indoors.  I've gotten good results with these but would like to hit a higher window so it can be more of a drop and stop at about the same distance.  I do haver a preference for linear shaft profiles and i was wondering what woods I should be looking at.  I have tried the new sim ti but i think the spin on those is just a bit low with the ball carrying about 280 but spinning in the 2600-2800 range.  I also tried the epic flash sub zero and was not a fan as i do prefer a bit deeper face since i hit down.  Thanks.

[EDT501]

Unfortunately, I think you have a bit of a conundrum on your hands. The reality of the situation is that for the last decade plus fairway woods are more often than being built to be low spin tee-ball monsters because that is what the market is demanding and is what it takes to keep up with expected gapping with modern drivers. Your launch angle and spin numbers are well within normal and together your ball speed indicate to me that you’re a physically strong player who makes good contact.
 

With that said, I suspect you’ll have to decide where you want to trade off between distance and stopping power. Adding loft is the surest way to add spin and launch angle, but doing so comes at the cost of distance. You might have to decide whether or not you want a club that maximizes distance or has the ability to hold a firm green, albeit with a slightly shorter range. A 4 wood could be what you’re looking for - I think a recent article on this site delved into this.

[Bigjim1022]

I tried to achieve the same thing this year and settled on an F9 soeedbaxk Tour 4/5 wood.  I set the loft at 16° and had a Fuji 869 TS shaft in it.  It definitely launched higher.  The problem, it went the same distance-maybe slightly more-than my 19° titleist hybrid.  I gave thought to getting a 3/4 head but in the end decided why bother?  My gapping is fine going from driver ti 19° hybrid and I rarely need a 3w from the deck at the courses I play.  So, I’ve ditched the 3w! 

[th6252]

Titleist TS2 might be a good option.

[cn34]

9 hours ago, Bigjim1022 said:

I tried to achieve the same thing this year and settled on an F9 soeedbaxk Tour 4/5 wood.  I set the loft at 16° and had a Fuji 869 TS shaft in it.  It definitely launched higher.  The problem, it went the same distance-maybe slightly more-than my 19° titleist hybrid.  I gave thought to getting a 3/4 head but in the end decided why bother?  My gapping is fine going from driver ti 19° hybrid and I rarely need a 3w from the deck at the courses I play.  So, I’ve ditched the 3w! 

I did the same thing and went with the non-tour F9 5 (set to 17*) which has been good for me as well in terms of gaining some height.  Will say there is a lot of draw bias in it, but launch has been great. It's been fun on certain holes I play on my regular course, that are shorter and require a fairway wood or hybrid from the tee to take a more aggressive line because I can clear the trees

 

With what the OP is looking for, the Tour 4/5 might be a good direction to at least look at. 

[northernmi]

10 hours ago, th6252 said:

Titleist TS2 might be a good option.

I second that - mine launches well without excessive spin.  Definitely higher for me than any of the others I demoed at the same time (Ping, Cobra, Mizuno and TaylorMade).

[th6252]

3 minutes ago, northernmi said:

I second that - mine launches well without excessive spin.  Definitely higher for me than any of the others I demoed at the same time (Ping, Cobra, Mizuno and TaylorMade).

on top of the fact that it also has the deeper face the op is looking for.

[Bomber_11]

Taylormade 2016 M2 Tour Issue Deep Face 3HL

 

Best linear load shaft I've found is Tensei Pro Orange 

[erock9174]

Put a 7w and 11w in the bag like me 😀

[ChipNRun]

Take a look at the 2020 Callaway and TaylorMade fairways.

 

At the St. Louis Golf Expo in February, both the Calla and TM reps talked "higher launch" in FW models. Callaway rep said the launch on the Marvik family 3Ws had been enhanced because of a pride thing: "No one want to carry a 4W."

 

Likewise the TM SIM woods feature the return of a circa-2005 V-Steel sole, heavier sole plate weighting to improve launch.

15 hours ago, EDT501 said:

You might have to decide whether or not you want a club that maximizes distance or has the ability to hold a firm green, albeit with a slightly shorter range. A 4 wood could be what you’re looking for - I think a recent article on this site delved into this.

 

As for the 4W, many average golfers hit it just as far - or longer - than a comparable 3W. A little extra launch really helps out. Back in 2012, the Tour Edge rep showed up at a demo day with the latest Exotics long clubs. He encouraged us to try both the 3W and 4W versions of the model, using the same shaft. The majority of us hit the 4W much better, including a couple of long bombers who carried driver shots about 280 yards.

 

It depends in part on how you come into the ball. Being that you hit down slightly on your FWs, a 4W might be a pleasant treat for you to try. And, you should get a bit more spin.

[lazyjc4]

I moved from a low-low shaft (NV2KXV) to a mid-mid (Evenflow Blue) in mine, even lofted down a bit (from 14.5 to 13.5), and found that I get a bit higher flight, but control and distance are still very good. 

[Vinsanity23]

A few suggestions for higher launching heads I've tried. Ping G400, M2/M4 Tour HL, Titleist Ts2. With your looking for higher spin and deeper face also I think the M4 Tour HL 3W may work fantastic. I used it for a longer period of time with a Hzrdus Smoke Black and was seeing 270 yds. with 3000ish spin. Swing speed is 115-120 w/ driver.

Edited September 30, 2020 by vstensrud23

[JoeFrigo]

like many have mentioned, your numbers are pretty much perfect for a 3w

 

I currently have the SIM Ti 3w lofted up to 16* w/ KBS TD shaft. Avg GC2 numbers are 11* launch with 3000 spin

 

I had cobra SZ fairways earlier this year I won and found both the big tour and standard SZ 3w to launch higher than the SIM with more spin..... maybe you want to go that route. Ball speed is about 3mph less tho than the SIM

[bladehunter]

Ping g400 with the same shaft.  Thank me later. 

[dlygrisse]

18 minutes ago, bladehunter said:

Ping g400 with the same shaft.  Thank me later. 

Or take the G410 5 wood and adjust to 16 degrees. Either way the Pings work well off the deck and tighter lies. Maybe not the longest off the tee from experience.  YMMV. 

[bladehunter]

8 minutes ago, dlygrisse said:

Or take the G410 5 wood and adjust to 16 degrees. Either way the Pings work well off the deck and tighter lies. Maybe not the longest off the tee from experience.  YMMV. 

Yep. Absolutely agree.    I actually have played a g410 sft 16 turned down a degree for 2 seasons.  Perfect off the deck. If you can’t elevate that , I feel sorry for you.  It is really easy to hit.  Side bar. The sft isn’t really draw bias unless you I just fight a hook big time. I hit a fade and have zero issue moving it left t right.  

[Fairway14]

Cleveland. Nuff said.

[Ed McNicholas]

Thanks for all the input. I know I am probably just chasing my tail and that's why I still haven't changed 3 woods in years. I have a preference for taylormade fairways and might be looking at m5 or sim and loft it up a touch I really wish they would bring back the 16.5 like they used to have as I prefer to play a stable shaft and use loft to increase launch and spin but as stated and I do know the numbers are good and should still gap well with my new addition of a sim dhy.  Currently I have a pro white I am having a taylormade tip put on so I can try it in a sim.

[Hoyoymac]

I put a Tour Edge EX10 16.5 degree 4 wood and a Tour Edge XCG7 21 deg 7 wood in the bag this year.  They gave me exactly the higher launch I was looking for, more carry and are easier to hit than the clubs they replaced.

 

They were also inexpensive bought as new old stock.

 

The 4 wood is a fairway finder off the tee and almost as long as my driver.  The 7 wood is addictingly easy to hit off of tight lies.

 

Good luck in your search.

[tgoodspe1991]

There are only two ways to really increase launch of a fairway wood:

1. Find a head design with a larger profile and more reward COG
2. Go up in loft

[Padreruf]

A simple fix would be to go with a 4-5 wood loft.  As a senior with a 90 mph swing I have found that I can carry one of these further than a 3 wood -- and with little loss in distance.

[gregrusso41]

Taylormade M3 3HL - with a Project X Evenflow Black 6.0 75g. This thing is 260-270 carry bombs off the tee, but easily gets up off the turf as well. Sometimes I don’t use a tee because it launches off the turf so well. Goo luck in your search. 

[Stuart_G]

On 10/2/2020 at 9:45 AM, tgoodspe1991 said:

There are only two ways to really increase launch of a fairway wood:

1. Find a head design with a larger profile and more reward COG
2. Go up in loft

 

Or go see a pro to help increase dynamic loft.   The OP is very likely delofting the club into impact to get launch angles that low for that loft.    Not it's certainly not as easy as an equipment change so many might not want to pursue it, but it is a valid way to increase launch.

 

Some might get that change automatically by tweaking the head weight down and getting a bit faster release - but that's hit or miss and even if it does work might have some other negative effects.  But easy to test, just choke up 1" and see what happens with the resulting lighter swing weight.

 

[ASN21]

On 10/3/2020 at 7:01 AM, gregrusso41 said:

Taylormade M3 3HL - with a Project X Evenflow Black 6.0 75g. This thing is 260-270 carry bombs off the tee, but easily gets up off the turf as well. Sometimes I don’t use a tee because it launches off the turf so well. Goo luck in your search. 

This is the head I recently picked up since my SIM 3 wood wasn't launching high enough. The M3 is a rocket launcher for sure.