Best Fairway Woods for High Handicappers & Beginners 2024

A  great fairway wood can revolutionize your game. It did for me when I started playing golf. 

I started this game with a 3 wood, but changed to a 5 wood after my friends dad told me it's easier and more fun to hit. He was right. No more topping the 3 wood, or slicing it into the water. That fairway wood laid the foundation for my love of golf.

Nowadays, you can get fairway woods that are so easy to hit, it would put my 5 wood from 1995 to shame!

Important to remember: the best fairway woods for high handicappers and beginners have high loft (more than 17°) which makes them fly higher and LONGER than lower lofted woods. The other thing is that you should buy the best equipment you can afford. Look for second hand versions if you like, but avoid the VERY cheap stuff you see online. 

The Titleist TSR2 fairway wood has the lowest center of gravity of any woods from Titleist because they removed the channel cut in the front of the club to make a fairway wood that is easy to hit high in the sky. That's why the TSR2 is my number one recommendation for high handicappers.

My experience with the TSR2:

The look of the TSR2 is traditional and clean. The club stands out from the competition instantly.

Titleist fairway woods are never loud and always make a subdued metallic pop that comes as quickly as it goes. The new low center of gravity on the fairway woods makes a center strike feel soft and light. When I mis-hit the ball, the club resisted twisting in my hands and the ball flew on target, with minimal distance loss. 

I was mostly impressed with the 16.5 degree and 18 degree TSR2. That's the correct loft for beginners and high handicappers. It was so easy to hit the ball into the air from any lie, fluffy or where there was minimal grass.

While there are so many low spin clubs, the TSR2 is a medium spin fairway wood. It was easy to keep the ball in play even on the worst strikes.

 I recommend the 16.5°, 18° and 21° Titleist TSR2 as the top pick for high handicappers  and beginners.

I game the 21 degree Ping G430 Max in my bag. I highly recommend either the 18 or 21 degree in the G430 range.

The low profile club face looks more like a hybrid than a driver which makes it incredibly easy to hit off the turf. The Ping G430 Max is easy to hit down with or sweep the ball off the turf.  

Off the face, the sound of the clubface is high-pitched and everyone around will know you're hitting a Ping. I enjoyed hitting the 18 degree from every lie on the golf course. It's easy to both elevate over trees or punch under branches. The 21 degree is one of the easiest fairway woods I have ever hit.

The higher lofts  and forgiving faces on these clubs allow me get the ball into play off the tee consistently with a baby draw. It's easy to hit on or near the greens from all lies and distances. The most impressive part is the soft landing when the ball comes down to earth. You can hit the Ping G430 Max all over the club face and get a towering shot that lands softly. 

Ping is known for consistency and ease of use. The G430 Max is in my bag because even as a low handicap, it simplifies my game so much. 

The Ping G430 Max comes in 15, 18 and 21 degree lofts but I would recommend only the 18 and 21 degree for high handicappers and beginners.

The Stealth is the prior model to the Stealth 2. I have tested both but don't believe you need to go for the latest TaylorMade Stealth 2 because the Stealth works perfectly. You may even find it cheap second hand.  

I felt confident with the ball teed up, and off the deck with the Stealth. Thin shots are not punished and I didn't hit many big slices.

The Stealth's looks are a very understated black color, with a V Steel sole that I find glides through the ground so easily. 

Recommendation: It's a very simple fairway wood to be honest. There are no special frills other than it is and always will be easy to hit. The ball flies off the face nice and high. Mainly, you can pick these up for a bargain as a high handicapper or beginner and that makes a difference. Cheap clubs with GREAT technology. 

I really believe you will get as much enjoyment out of this club as the newer model. 

Cleveland are the kings of game improvement clubs but very sneaky popular. There's not much fanfare out there, but a lot of golfers at club level jam Cleveland woods and irons. Their fairway woods have always been easy to hit and the Launcher XL Halo is a dream. 

The Launcher XL Halo 3 wood with 15 degrees is easy to launch but the 5 wood is where the game gets easy for the high handicappers. Cleveland have made a fairway wood that looks great and performs really easy because they moved attention away from developing the face.

They created variable stiffness and flexible areas of the sole and the crown to help focus more energy moving into the ball at impact with a bouncy face. 

The rails on the bottom of the club are reminiscent of the Cobra T rails and help prevent the fat shots. The club prefers to bounce through the turf gliding over a fat shot so the club still contacts the ball instead of digging in.

The face and hosel are created to be draw-biased to help eliminate that pesky slice. Now if you're slashing across the ball heavily, it's best to fix that swing, but if you're a light slicer, the offset can really bring the ball more left. 

BDog from the channel found it difficult to hit off the mats indoors and was just hitting hooks and big draws. He found it performed better on the grass and natural lies. For this reason, I think it works better on normal turf but not hardpan. But then again, which fairway woods do well on hardpan?

I found that at address, the toe and heel sit closer to the ground leaving more face area low down, where most golfers need help with fairway woods to get the ball airborne. The step-down shape of the crown also helps to get more weight lower, which also helps to get the ball in the air ASAP. 

Cobra golf clubs are always a hit with amateurs. The LTDx MAX is a really classic-looking fairway wood with a plain black carbon fiber head but with a touch of offset to get rid of a slice. The matte black crown looks inviting at address and stops any glare from the sun. 

If you're a slower swinger, the Cobra LTDx Max is a good choice

The inclusion of two strategically placed tungsten weights in the head, combined with a very lightweight shaft will help you get some more mph on your swing. Cobra placed the weight low and forward in the sole to reduce that spin down and reduce the weight on top of the club.

More swing speed means more distance. The weights in the head are also designed to eliminate a slice, so swing free and aim right down the middle. 

A very wide club face gives you a long surface area to make contact with. With more sweet spot areas to hit the ball, you'll find more forgiveness and straighter shots. I do not recommend getting a 3 wood in this range. It's a bit too big and cumbersome to hit off the deck especially as a higher handicapper.

You'll find the 3 wood good as a back-up driver but the 5 wood and up are going to be your best friend from the fairway. They are much easier to hit off the ground and at address, they just LOOK like they are easy to hit, giving you much more confidence. 

I recommend the 16°,  20° and 23° fairway woods. Combining a higher loft than normal fairway woods with light weight and the perimeter head weights means less slice and in turn tons more distance. The head is also adjustable meaning you can dial in you preferred loft. 

JMac from my YouTube channel is a Cobra fairway wood convert. Using them he has gone from a high handicapper to single figure player. 

Important information about fairway woods for high handicappers

Fairway woods for beginners and high handicappers are a tough subject. Because they're difficult to hit, I tried to simplify the whole process of finding a reliable wood for you.

1. Distance isn't everything 

Fairway woods don't need to be SMASHED and shouldn't be.

A smooth swing with a slight downward hit on the ball will produce a nice consistent and accurate shot that will travel straighter and with more height.

Hitting a fairway wood HARD hurts your accuracy and consistency because you lose control of the club and hit the ball all over the face, sometimes missing the ball completely.

My best advice for hitting a fairway wood is to relax and trust the club to do the work and swing EASY and SMOOTH. Trying to 'help' the ball up into the air will result in a lot of slices and thinned shots. The club has loft to do the work for you.

The clubs are designed in a way to make your life easier. Trust them.

2. Loft is your best friend

Low lofted clubs produce much lower ball flight. Usually, we would associate a lower loft with more distance. That is the case if your swing speed is fast enough. A slower swing speed and lower loft means a very low short shot.

The more loft a club has, the more forgiveness it has. This can be seen with a 3 iron vs a 9 iron. The 9 iron is much easier to hit. The surprising thing is that a golfer with a slower swing speed could hit the ball FURTHER with a higher lofted wood than with a lower lofted. 

For example, a high handicapper is often able to carry a 5 or 7 wood much further than 3 woods because the 3 wood flies lower with less forgiveness. If the swing speed is not adequate, then the 3 wood will only be airborne for a short time. The extra backspin and loft of a 5 or 7 wood produces much more elevation and in turn more carry distance, even on mishits.

3. Different skill levels for different clubs

Higher handicappers and beginners usually swing a little slower and require a bit more loft than normal and so a FIVE WOOD would be the best place to start for most higher handicappers - that's usually 17° or 18° of loft.

Lower and mid handicappers are more experienced and have developed a controlled faster swing because of their confidence and skill. They can play lower lofted fairway woods because the lower the loft, the more skill and speed you need to elevate the ball.

4. Fairway woods and hybrids can both help you

In my opinion, newer golfers should learn to hit DOWN on a fairway wood or hybrid as soon as possible. Hybrids have made long iron play much easier by blending an iron and a fairway wood into one club. I believe a 17°, 19° or 21° fairway wood is far more forgiving than a hybrid to start, and easier to hit than a hybrid of the same loft. 

Hitting hybrids requires a downward strike on the ball but learning to do that with a club that looks meatier like a fairway wood makes the transition to hitting hybrids so much easier. 

Learning to hit a 3 or 4 hybrid immediately as a beginner or high handicapper will be difficult because essentially it is still a 3 or 4 iron but it just has a chunk of metal stuck on the back. And you and I both know how difficult it is to master a long iron!

The best fairway woods for high handicappers and beginners must come in lofts higher than 17 degrees. You'll be able to hit them consistently and get these woods to travel longer distances. I also think you should have as many fairway woods as you can but never going below 17° of loft. 

The fairway woods you see the pro's hitting from 13° to 15° are much more difficult to get airborne off the tee and even harder to do off the fairways. The caveat to this is PING. PING woods are so easy to launch, it will make your hair stand on end!

Should I use a fairway wood off the tee?

Yes you can and very often for beginners, it is easier to keep the ball in play with a fairway wood off the tee.

If you want to use a fairway wood off the tee, you want a taller face so you can tee it higher. If you have a shallow face, you must tee it lower.

Is a fairway wood easy to hit off the ground?

The fairway woods in my list above definitely are the easiest to hit off the ground. It's very difficult for a lot of golfers to hit fairway woods 'off the deck' but I've tested every single one possible and I selected only the most forgiving woods for you.

It's easier to launch a shallower face fairway wood from a hard lie, a soft lie, a fairway lie or a lie in the rough. It's far more difficult mentally, to hit a tall-faced fairway wood because it feels like you have to 'help the ball' into the air., so I tried to find the shallower faced fairway woods.

I really suggest finding yourself a set of fairway woods that start at 16.5 or 17 degrees and work in intervals up to 24 degrees because these clubs are going to be your new favorites! High, long, floating shots instead of topping the ball and trying to help the ball inot the air.

Whatever gets the job done is what you play and with the assortment of woods and hybrids out there, you can practically fill your bag with them! Get out there and find what works for you!