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The distinctive color and compact head design of the Callaway MAVRIK Sub Zero fairway may be what first captures attention, but it’s the powerful performance and bonus of forgiveness that are the real headliners.
Introduction
With three models of fairway woods in the MAVRIK family, Callaway has most every golfer covered. Those familiar with Callaway nomenclature know Sub Zero models feature smaller heads and low spin designs aimed at better players. And while the latter is often associated with faster swing speeds, the Sub Zero is not exclusive to that target audience.
Looks
From a quick glance at the crown, you could easily mistake the Sub Zero for the standard MAVRIK [full review HERE]. But while both models have attractive round shaping, the Sub Zero is shorter both from heel to toe and from face to tail. Solid black at the front, the high gloss finish fades to clear, revealing the graphite weave construction of the crown.
White lines on the Flash Face SS20 face mimic the look of an iron. Face height is moderate and slightly taller in the toe. The rounded leading edge gave me confidence that the club would perform equally well from the fairway or in the rough.
The sole of the Sub Zero includes segments of the metallic orange color that distinguishes the MAVRIK branding. Dual weight ports and exposed ends of the Jailbreak pillars highlight key design features of the fairway wood. Overall, the club has a cohesive and attractive look.
Sound & Feel
The MAVRIK Sub Zero felt a bit heavier than the standard version while hovering the club. Whether that’s attributable to actual weight or physics of the head design, it evoked a feeling of command.
Centered contact felt stable and powerful. The sound was a medium volume, crisp metallic crack. Although the sound was fairly consistent across the face, there was subtle feedback to my hands when contact wandered towards the heel or toe.
Performance
After struggling a bit with the draw bias of the standard MAVRIK fairway, the Sub Zero was a welcome surprise. Across the screen of launch monitor data, my numbers with the Sub Zero improved. And while we always emphasize that data sets shouldn’t be compared, in this instance I tested both clubs in the same session at Club Champion.
Seeing the numbers, Master Fitter Jay Marino made the statement, “You aren’t normal” – which I chose to take as a compliment. And although my launch was still lower than he’d like to see, my bump in speed translated to increased distance. Noteworthy for me on the golf course was the tight dispersion and consistency. I may not be able to reach many par 5s in two, but the MAVRIK Sub Zero fairway gives me confidence to give it a go.
Similar to the Epic Flash fairways, Callaway designers incorporated a lot of tech features into the MAVRIK models. While Jail Break and the carbon crown designs are time proven, the Flash Face SS20 is all new. Callaway upgraded their super computers and ran more advanced artificial intelligence programs to achieve improved and optimized performance – for every club face. To dial in performance for individual golfers, the Sub Zero has interchangeable weight ports. The data above is with the 14 gram weight in the back and 2 gram weight in the front. Missing in the MAVRIK fairway woods are adjustable hosels.
Conclusion
The Callaway MAVRIK Sub Zero’s size and shaping tick the boxes that better players look for in a fairway wood. Typically golfers have to give up some forgiveness for a more compact head, but I found the Sub Zero performance strong even with less than perfect contact. Callaway delivers on their statement: “Distance That Defies Convention.”
Callaway MAVRIK Sub Zero Fairway Wood Price & Specs
Matt Meeker
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I swing a regular flex in all my clubs. Because my attack angle is a little steeper then I would like I need to reduce spin. For this reason I was looking at the Hazerdious black. Optimum spin is 2500, is this shaft for a regular flex swing speed too low of spin and launch angle? My launch angle is 14 degrees and spin is 2900 currently. Thanks for your reply
John,
I can’t give you a simple answer because fitting a shaft is not as straightforward as, “I need lower spin, so I will buy a shaft labeled low spin” in part because there are no standards for what “low spin” means and in part because of the human element. If you need to lower your driver spin, my best advice is to work with a high quality fitter like Club Champion to find the right head and shaft combination.
-Matt
How is this on forgiveness compared to the EF SZ fairway woods and the new Epic speed? I had an EF SZ 3w that i could not handle and am looking to get back in the FW relam with a 4w of either this or the Epic speed.
I didn’t test the Epic Speed fairway Randall, and the EF SZ was over two years ago so my memory is a bit sketchy on that specific club. In general, performance attributes will improve from model year to model year, but not necessarily significantly. Moving from a 3w to a 4w helped my game. Make sure you find a shaft that works for you also.
– Meeks
These clubs are a little older now and have drifted down into my price range. I tend to hook the ball when I miss with longer clubs. Which club has the least draw bias?
The standard fairway I reviewed definitely had some draw bias.
-Meeks