50 Words or Less
The Callaway XR fairway wood is a good fairway wood, with some nice upgrades over the recent X-Hot fairway woods.
Introduction
Over the last couple seasons, no company has put our more fairway woods than Callaway. From the Deep series to the Big Berthas to the X Hots, they’ve given golfers a world of options. Now the XR has arrived to replaced the X Hot, and it boasts speed, speed, and more speed. We put it to the test to see if it delivers.
Looks
The standard Callaway XR fairway wood looks the part of a forgiving, easy-to-hit fairway wood. It has a large footprint and a slightly unusual, asymmetrical shape. The crown is matte black with a raised chevron alignment aid. One thing that stands out at address is that the face is a bit closed.
Sound & Feel
The Callaway XR fairway wood feels fairly well balanced despite having a shaft that’s only 56 grams. It does feel light, but that lightness is spread throughout the club.
The sound that it creates is a bit surprising. I was expecting something louder and more shrill, but it’s actually fairly quiet. The sound can best be described as a slightly metallic crack.
Performance
From it’s longer-than-average playing length (43.5″) to the ultra-light shaft, it’s clear that the Callaway XR fairway wood is all about creating club head speed and distance. At first glance, this struck me as problematic – most players have enough difficulty hitting low-lofted fairway woods, and making them longer isn’t going to help the situation.
However, longer and lighter isn’t all that the XR has to offer. Callaway says that the CoG is 20% lower compared to the X2 Hot, resulting in easier launch and 200 RPMs less spin. All told, I found that the XR was relatively easy to elevate in spite of its length, and the light weight did make it easy to swing. As always, it’s important to get fit to find the shaft, length, and loft that will work best for you.
Conclusion
The Callaway XR fairway wood is a strong fairway wood that offers something clearly different than Callaway’s other recent lines. It’s light, long, and still easy to hit. If you need more speed and more distance from the fairway, it’s worth checking out.
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XR FW LM Data
Matt Saternus
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