what are the main woods used in golf

The 3 Most Popular Types of Golf Woods:

1. Drivers PGX Offset Golf Driver Driver designs have transformed immensely over the last two decades. Many think that...
2. Fairway Woods Callaway Mavrik Fairway Wood Fairway woods feature slightly smaller clubheads than drivers. Fairway...
3. Hybrids

Full Answer

What is a wood in golf clubs?

A category of golf clubs that includes the driver and the fairway woods. Compared to the other types of clubs woods are longer and feature bigger and rounder clubheads that are designed to shoot the ball over long distances.

What Wood is used to make golf clubs in Scotland?

In Scotland, the type of wood used to make clubs changed with two American imports: hickory for club shafts in 1826 and persimmon for club heads in 1900.

What are the different types of golf clubs used in tournaments?

In the mid-20th century, both the USGA and the R&A ruled that golf clubs with steel shafts could be used in tournaments.While steel was used for club shafts, wooden heads were the norm for drivers and fairway woods until the 1970s. Persimmon was used for wood club heads because it's harder than maple or oak and it's heavy.

What kind of wood are club heads made of?

Club heads were historically made of beech, dogwood, apple or pear. For most of golf's history, the favored wood was persimmon.

What type of woods are there in golf?

Woods generally fall into two classes, drivers and fairway woods, with a traditional set of clubs including a driver and one or two fairway woods (usually numbered 3 and 5).

What are the 4 main types of clubs in golf?

In fact, today, there are five categories of clubs: woods (including the driver), irons, hybrids, wedges and putters.

What is 3 wood in golf?

The 3-wood is a fairway wood that keeps the ball lower than a hybrid and travels further. You are more likely to hit accurate and precise shots with your 3-hybrid than a 3-wood. You are likely to have both a 3-wood and a 3-iron or 3-hybrid in your bag but not a 3-iron and a 3-hybrid.

What is the best wood in golf?

Best Fairway Woods - Best 3 Woods and Best 5 WoodsTaylorMade Stealth Fairway. Overall best on test. ... Titleist TSi2 Fairway Wood. Tour Favourite. ... Callaway Rogue ST Max Fairway. ... Ping G425 Max Fairway Wood. ... Tour Edge Exotics C722 Fairway Wood. ... Mizuno ST-Z Fairway. ... Titleist TSi3 Fairway Wood. ... TaylorMade Stealth Plus Fairway.More items...•

Why are golf clubs called woods?

Even more recently, manufacturers have started using materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, or scandium. Even though most 'woods' are made from different metals, they are still called 'woods' to denote the general shape and their intended use on the golf course.

What are the 3 most used golf clubs?

The 3 most vital clubs are the driver, putter, and wedge, in that order. If you were to look at pro golfers then I'd probably say that order is right.

What is a 7 wood used for?

A 7 wood has a bit more loft and therefore can get out of the rough more effectively. A 7 wood is a perfect replacement for a long iron or a good choice for a golfer that does not enjoy playing with a hybrid golf club. Overall both the 5 wood and the 7 wood are also alternatives to the driver or 3 wood off the tee.

What's a 5 wood used for?

A 5-wood is used by golfers who need to hit the ball between 180 and 240 yards, depending on the skill level of the golfer. High-handicap players generally use a 5-wood to hit second shots from the fairway on par 5s and to reach long par 3s. Low-handicap players normally use a 5-wood to reach long par 5s in two shots.

When should I use 3 wood or 5 wood?

Should You Get A 3 Or 5 Wood? The majority of golfers will hit more fairways and greens with a 5 wood compared to a 3 wood. A 5 wood has a slightly shorter shaft and more loft, and because of that, it makes it much easier to hit from the fairway.

What is the easiest wood to hit?

Best Fairway Woods for High Handicappers and BeginnersCallaway Big Bertha B21 (easiest fairway wood to launch)PING G425 Fairway Wood (most forgiving fairway wood)Taylormade STEALTH Fairway wood (best Taylormade fairway wood)Cleveland Launcher XL Halo (best for stopping a slice)More items...•

What is the best 5 wood?

The Best 5 Wood You Will Ever Need2.1 1. Callaway Epic Max.2.2 2. TaylorMade SIM 2 Titanium.2.3 3. Cobra RADSpeed.2.4 4. Cobra KING Speedzone.2.5 5. PING G410.2.6 6. Cleveland Launcher HB Turbo.2.7 7. Callaway Mavrik.2.8 8. TaylorMade M6 5 Wood.More items...•

What is the longest 3 wood in golf?

But the Rogue ST LS pulled off an impressive feat, and that's being our longest fairway wood of 2022 (tied with the TaylorMade Stealth Plus at 251 yds), but also ranking 3rd best at protecting ball speed whilst hitting shots into our 2nd smallest dispersion area.

What is a 4 PW iron set?

The most common variation will be a specific numbered iron through to a pitching wedge with the standard set up being 4-iron to pitching wedge, a total of seven clubs - 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9-irons, and a pitching wedge.

What are different clubs in golf used for?

Generally speaking, the following clubs are used in the following shot range:Driver = 230 yards.3-wood = 210 yards.2-iron/4-wood = 190 yards.3-iron/5-wood = 180 yards.4-iron = 170 yards.5-iron = 160 yards.6-iron = 150 yards.7-iron = 140 yards.More items...

What are the different types of golf irons?

Types of Irons For GolfForged Irons. Forging a club is very similar to what the village blacksmith used to do. ... Cast Irons. The alternative to forged irons is the cast iron. ... Blade Irons. ... Cavity Back Irons.Sets Of Irons. ... Hybrid Sets Of Irons. ... Steel Shafts. ... Graphite Shafts.More items...

How many golf clubs are there?

12 clubsThe standard 12 clubs in many golf bags may include the following: Three (3) woods – driver, 3-wood and 5-wood. Eight (8) irons – 3-9 iron and pitching wedge. Putter.

What is a wood in golf?

Wood (golf) An Adams Insight BUL 5000 460 cm 3 9.5° (left), an early 1980s Pinnacle Persimmon driver (right). A wood is a type of club used in the sport of golf. Woods have longer shafts and larger, rounder heads than other club types, and are used to hit the ball longer distances than other types. Woods are so called because, traditionally, they ...

What is the best material for a golf club?

Today, many metal wood clubfaces (and most driver clubfaces) are constructed out of titanium. Titanium has a higher strength to weight ratio than steel and has better corrosion resistance, so it is an ideal metal for golf club construction.

What is fairway wood?

Fairway woods are typically made with a slightly shorter and stiffer shaft, a smaller clubhead and more loft than a driver or 2-wood. While the most common modern clubset includes only one fairway wood, the 3-wood, woods are typically available from major brands in lofts up to a 9-wood.

What is a wood clubhead?

The head of a wood is roughly spherical in shape with a slightly bulging clubface and a generally flattened sole that slides over the ground without digging in during the swing. Traditional "wood" clubheads were made of wood, hence the name; beech wood or ash were common prior to the twentieth century, and later persimmon or maple became preferable. Modern club heads are usually hollow steel, titanium or composite materials, and are sometimes called "metalwoods" or more recently "fairway metals". Pinseeker Golf Corp. innovated the first stainless steel metalwood called the Bombshell in 1976. The design was somewhat untraditional and did not have the promotional success needed for profitable long term marketing - it was discontinued 3 years later. In 1979 Taylor Made produced a traditionally shaped stainless steel wood head called "Pittsburgh Persimmon" which achieved market acceptance by the mid-1980s. Oversized heads made from aluminum appeared in the mid-1980s but were slow to catch on since their introduction was via independent component manufacturers and not the larger endorsement based club manufacturers. Very large size drivers (300-500cc) arrived with titanium metallurgy which meant reasonable 'headweights' could be achieved with very large thin shelled but strong structures. By the mid-2000s, titanium heads could be made to 1000 cc (Golfsmith Inc made 1,000 cc (61.0 cu in) in the mid-2000s). Around this time the USGA decided to limit the size of driver heads to 460 cc (28.1 cu in) since the rule requiring heads to be of a traditional shape was being unduly stretched. However, during this period the club-making business needed some financial help, so the USGA relaxed the "traditional shape" rule while enforcing the new 460cc limit, and new head shapes appeared, such as "torpedo" and square/rectangular shapes, to attract the buying public to potentially game improving designs particularly regarding better mishit outcomes.

How much loft is a 3 wood?

The average 3-wood has a 13-16 degree loft (typically 15°) and the average 5-wood has an 18-21 degree loft. Higher lofts than that overlap with irons in distance, but many players prefer high-number woods to low-number irons wherever they can be used as the wood is easier to hit than a "long iron".

What is a strong 2 wood?

A Strong 2 Wood. Higher-number woods are generally known as fairway woods and , as their name suggests, are designed for shots from off the turf of the fairway that still require long distance, such as the second shot of a par-5 or a long par-4 hole.

What is a 25 wood club?

Some custom clubmakers offer woods in lofts up to 55° (a "25-wood" equivalent to a sand wedge); these can be used to replace the entire standard set of irons with woods, for players who prefer the swing mechanics and behavior of woods to that of irons and wedges.

What wood was used to make golf clubs?

Beech and ash were commonly used to make golf clubs in the game's early days. Starting as early as the 15th century, golfers carved their own clubs. Several considerations -- including imported woods and the evolution of the golf ball -- influenced what types of wood were used to make club heads and shafts. Wooden antique golf clubs are popular ...

What wood was used in Scotland?

American Influence. In Scotland, the type of wood used to make clubs changed with two American imports: hickory for club shafts in 1826 and persimmon for club heads in 1900. According to the Antique Golf Club website, woodworkers in Scotland started using American-imported hickory instead of ash to make hand tools, ...

How many woods are in a long nose golf club?

A set of these early "Troon Clubs" -- also known as "long noses" -- consisted of six woods and two irons. According to the Oracle ThinkQuest Education Foundation website, golf balls were also made of wood until the 17th or early 18th century.

What clubs do hickory golfers use?

"Hickory golf," where golfers use hickory-shafted clubs, is popular with many golfers. Ralph Livingston III recommends on his website, HickoryGolf.com, that hickory golfers assemble the following clubs: brassie, mid-iron, mashie, mashie niblick, niblick and putter. Some companies make modern clubs that have persimmon wood heads, and some companies sell and make clubs with wood shafts, wood heads, or both.

What woods are in a golf bag?

Updated July 23, 2018. The woods in a typical golfer's bag will include a driver and one or two fairway woods, most commonly a 3-wood and/or 5-wood. Women and seniors might benefit from adding a 7-wood or 9-wood. The 4-wood is another common wood, and some golfers even carry an 11-wood.

What woods are best for a beginner?

Beginners might want to consider carrying some extra fairway woods (5 -wood, 7-wood, and 9-wood, for example) in place of the long irons (2-, 3-, 4- and even 5-irons). As a general rule, fairway woods are easier to hit than long irons for most beginners and recreational golfers . Drivers and fairway woods are intended to strike ...

How far can a pro golfer drive?

A "Golf Digest" study found that the average driver distance for recreational male golfers is "only" 195-200 yards.

What is the hardest club to master?

For beginners, the driver (also called a 1-wood) will be one of the toughest clubs to master. It is the longest club in the bag - a typical length these days is 45 inches - which makes it the toughest to control in the swing. Driver clubheads are usually made of titanium alloys or steel. Steel costs less, but titanium adds some "oomph" ...

How far can a driver go in golf?

Typically, a driver will go 20 yards or so farther than a 3-wood, which will go about 20 yards farther than a 5-wood.

Why are fairway woods called woods?

They are called "woods" because the clubheads used to be made of wood. Metals came into broad use in the 1980s, and "fairway woods" are now sometimes called "​ fairway metals .".

Do fairway woods have shorter heads than drivers?

Fairway woods have smaller heads than drivers and get progressively shorter than drivers. That makes them easier to control in the swing than a driver, and for that reason, beginners are often encouraged to use a fairway wood off the tee rather than trying to whack a driver right out of the gate. Drivers can be hit from ...

What is a wood in golf?

Woods. A category of golf clubs that includes the driver and the fairway woods. Compared to the other types of clubs woods are longer and feature bigger and rounder clubheads that are designed to shoot the ball over long distances.

What wood was first used for wood furniture?

Initially, woods were made from a variety of hard wood called persimmon. Then in the late 1970s metal woods were introduced via the “Taylor Made” which was conceived by club designer Gary Adams.

Best 7 Woods In 2022 – The Ultimate Golfing Resource

Have you ever noticed that even pros pull out a 7 wood at courses like Winged Foot? That’s because the high loft of 7 woods are ideal for launching out of turf that nearly reaches ankle height. They also give you the easy distance to get down particularly large par 4’s.

Your Cheat Sheet

We get it, you’re busy. If you don’t have the time to run down the entire list, don’t worry. Here is a truncated peek at our top choices.

Final Thoughts

It’s no secret that 7 woods aren’t for everybody. If you prefer more precise control, you’re better off mastering the longer irons. Still, 7 woods provide better performance in tough lies. They are also more forgiving and provide higher launch angles.

What wood is used for shafts?

Shafts. Historically shafts were made of different types of wood including orangewood, ash and hickory; but, hickory became the wood of choice in the mid-1800s. The 20th century brought innovations in shaft construction including the development by Ping of laminated woods for increased strength.

What are golf clubs made of?

Club Heads. Club heads were historically made of beech, dogwood, apple or pear. For most of golf's history, the favored wood was persimmon. By the 1900s, forged iron clubs began to be seen. By the 1980s, even the clubs known as woods would become metal. Today club heads are made of light metals like steel or titanium that allow for bounce off ...

What are putter grips made of?

Grips. Originally grips were made of leather strips wrapped around the shaft. The leather outer grip is sometimes used today on putters and custom clubs. Wrap-style grips allow for custom designed diameters and textures for the club's owner.

Why do golfers use rubber grips?

This rubber grip is often preferred because it deals with moisture well and allows for a more consistent grip. The rubber grip can be found in a variety of thicknesses and textures, allowing the golfer to customize their grip. Some golfers prefer the feel of an outer wrap of leather or a faux leather sleeve.

Why are golf clubs not appreciated?

Golf clubs are not normally appreciated for the amount of technology and innovation that go into their design and production. Golf clubs are made of multiple materials and have multiple components.

What is a wood golf club?

The category of golf clubs called "woods" includes the driver and the fairway woods. (They are called woods even though their clubheads are no longer made of wood.) The woods are the clubs with the largest heads (typically hollow, extending a few inches from side-to-side and a few inches from front to back, with rounded lines) ...

What are the names of old golf clubs?

Names of Old Golf Clubs. Golf clubs have changed quite a bit over the long history of the sport. There used to be clubs with names like mashie and niblick and jigger and spoon.

What is wedge golf?

The wedges are the highest-lofted golf clubs. They are used for shorter approach shots into greens, for chips and pitches around greens, and for playing out of sand bunkers.

What is putter used for?

Putters are used for, well, putting . They are the clubs golfers use on the putting greens, for the last strokes played on a golf hole - for knocking the ball into the hole. There are more varieties of putters on the market than any other club. That may be because choosing a putter is a very personal process.

How long is a mallet putter?

Lengths: Standard-length putters, often referred to as "conventional putters," range from around 32 to 36 inches long, from one end to the other.

What is the difference between a heel toe and a mallet putter?

Heel-toe putters have the same general shape as blades , but with extra weight at the heel and toe to add perimeter weighting, and with other design tricks to help make the clubs more "forgiving" on mishits. Mallet putters have large clubheads that maximize that forgiveness of poor contact.

How many different types of golf clubs are there?

There are several different types of golf clubs in a typical golfer's bag. In fact, today, there are five categories of clubs: woods (including the driver), irons, hybrids, wedges and putters.

What are fairway woods used for?

Indeed fairway woods have also been known to be used by players in and around the green for specific types of pitch shots or when an unfortunate accident has befallen their putter! So we decided to take a detailed look at the top 100 players on the PGA Tour and look at what fairway woods the best pros are using.

How many clubs do golf pros carry?

Whilst they do not change the make-up of the longest clubs in their bag all the time the pros will frequently carry a full bag of 15-17 clubs and swap out their fairway woods for other clubs as and when the course set up warrants it.

What is the loft of a 7 wood?

The ‘traditional’ loft of a 7-wood is around 21 degrees but less than half of the twelve 7-woods used amongst the top 100 players on Tour are set up with that loft. The majority have stronger lofts varying from as low as 18 degrees – the ‘traditional’ loft of a 5-wood – all the way up to 20.5 degrees.

Does Wyndham Clark play fairway woods?

Only one player – Wyndham Clark – does not play any fair way woods. 96% of this elite group play a 3-wood with 4-woods, 5-woods and 7-woods also being used in varying combinations by different players. That breakdown does not however tell the full story when it comes to the fairway woods being used on the PGA Tour and after analyzing ...

Can you hit a fairway wood from the tee?

And while the driver will only be used very infrequently by even the best players in the world off the deck, fairway woods have to be able to be occasionally hit both from off the tee and from the fairway or rough.

Overview

Drivers

Fairway woods

Design

Construction

External links