When it comes down to picking the top 3 woods for 2024, it can be quite challenging to narrow things down.
In this review of the best 3 woods of 2024, I will choose one option for high handicappers, one for mid handicappers and one for low handicappers.
These options will be the best of the best and have everything that you need to succeed with your 3 wood both from the tee and the short grass.
At A Glance: Our Top 6 Picks for 3 Woods On The Market In 2024
- Best For Low Handicappers: TaylorMade SIM Fairway Wood
- Best For Mid Handicappers: Callaway Mavrik Fairway Wood
- Best For High Handicappers: Cobra F MAX Airspeed Fairway Wood
- Runner Up 1: Cobra Speedzone Fairway Wood
- Runner Up 2: Cleveland Launcher Turbo Fairway Wood
- Runner Up 3: TaylorMade M6 Fairway Wood
| IMAGE | PRODUCT | |
|---|---|---|
Best For Low Handicappers  | TaylorMade SIM Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Best For Mid Handicappers  | Callaway Mavrik Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Best For High Handicappers  | Cobra F MAX Airspeed Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Runner Up 1  | Cobra Speedzone Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Runner Up 2  | Cleveland Launcher Turbo Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Runner Up 3  | TaylorMade M6 Fairway Wood
| VIEW LATEST PRICE → |
Best 3 Wood for A Low Handicapper: TaylorMade SIM 3 Wood
When we put together our list of the best 3 fairway woods, the TaylorMade SIM was a no brainer. We chose the SIM Model for the lower handicap player because Taylor Made worked to make this 3 fairway wood specifically for the better player.
The TaylorMade SIM woods have the brand new reinvented V Steel sole. The V Steel has allowed the center of gravity to be very low on this 3 wood. The combination of the low center of gravity and the V STeel technology has led to much better turf interaction.
Lower handicap players who tend to hit 3 fairway wood from the short grass more often than the tee will be happy with this increase in technology.
The SIM, although priced higher than the SIM MAX model, is more versatile. The SIM has a two-degree loft sleeve that will allow you to change the loft on this 3 wood to get the launch that you need. The carbon crown on this SIM gives this club a great top-down look as well.
The TaylorMade SIM 3 wood has a ZaTech Titanium face that helps it have an incredibly hot hit. This new face technology is only available in the SIM model and not the MAX or MAD D.
Low handicap golfers looking for a club with a little bit of forgiveness, but tons of feel will be pleasantly surprised by the TaylorMade SIM 3 woods.
- Adjustable loft sleeve
- V Steel Sole
- Low Center of Gravity
- Premium Shaft offerings
- Carbo crown, clean top-down look
- Titanium face
- Higher priced option
Best 3 Wood for A Mid Handicapper: Callaway Mavrik 3 Wood
Callaway Mavrik woods are here to replace the Rogue of last year. These fairway woods are available in three models the Mavrik, Mavrik Max, and the Mavrik Sub Zero. For the mid handicapper, we are recommending the Mavrik 3 wood to be the best option.
In the last few years, Callaway has introduced things like flash face technology, jailbreak technology, 360 face cup, and now they even are using artificial intelligence to precisely place the center of gravity in each club.
What we love about the Mavrik woods is that they have combined all of these fantastic technologies and put them all into the Mavrik club head.
What a mid handicapper needs out of a 3 wood is distance and forgiveness. If a 3 wood is going to earn a spot in a middle handicappers bag, it needs to be a reliable option both off the tee and from the short grass as well.
The new 3 wood is perfect for both fast and slow swing speeds as it is offered with several premium graphite shaft options.
Although we love adjustability in woods and feel as though that can give players the best value, this 3 wood is not adjustable. Although that can be slightly disappointing, Callaway made sure that the center of gravity and loft were a perfect combination with the specific graphite shaft options this club offers. It is one of the most forgiving fairway woods.
- Priced at fair
- Extreme and most forgiving fairway wood and long
- Flash technology
- Low center of gravity
- Option for all swing speeds
- A great alternative to a Driver for Mid handicapper
Read our Callaway Mavrik Fairway Woods review.
Best 3 Wood for A High Handicapper: Cobra F Max Airspeed 3 Wood
The F Max series of best fairway woods have long been known as some of the most forgiving clubs for high handicappers. Mostly found in the offset model, the F Max provides players the help they need to square up the face angle at impact.
What Cobra has done each year is to update the woods to better the technology but still keep the forgiveness in place.
Cobra F MAX Airspeed 3 woods are some of the lightest options on the market. This 3 wood comes in 16 degrees of loft, which is slightly higher than other competitors.
Yes, the higher loft could cost you a little distance, but it will not matter if you are hitting this fairway wood solid every time. The F MAX, because of it’s lightweight design will be more comfortable for the slower swing speed player to hit.
Featuring back heel weighting and a low center of gravity, this is one of the best 3 woods for beginners and high handicappers.
Just like the majority of F MAX designs, this club is offered in an offset option. If a 3 wood is new to your bag, don’t be afraid to choose that offset model to help yourself with the face angle at impact.
- Brand new fairway wood
- Priced very fair
- Offset design
- Extremely lightweight to play
- Best 3 woods for senior, beginner and high handicapper
Runner Ups
When choosing our best 3 wood options for you to play in the golf course, we ran into quite a few runner ups that should also be mentioned.
Although these 3 wood choices did not make the top 3, they are still going to be one of the better options for new clubs to add to your bag this year.
Cobra Speedzone 3 Wood
Runner Up 1
The Cobra Speedzone fairway wood comes in three different models. There are options for scratch golfers up to 30 handicap players. Some of the 3 wood options are adjustable with moveable weights, but all will have an adjustable fairway wood loft. A feature that we love for any golfer!
Last year the F9 3 wood was very well received, and Cobra dialed in both the clubhead and the shaft options for the 2024 season.
This club will undoubtedly perform, and you can watch your results when you play with the Cobra connect technology.
An excellent choice for a new 3 wood in your bag.
- Available in 3 different models
- Adjustability in loft
- Cobra connect tech
- Classic and oversized models available
Cleveland Launcher Turbo 3 Wood
Runner Up 2
One of the reasons Cleveland always makes it on our review lists is because they keep things simple.
There is a vast majority of golfers that want a standard, classic looking 3 wood to simply replace their driver, or get them out of trouble after a terrible driver. Each year Cleveland delivers a model that is always long and forgiving without costing a fortune.
This year with the Launcher Turbo, they did a great job on distance. In the years past, their 3 wood capabilities were not quite as long as other brands, but this year, they caught up.
- Simple and classic design
- Easiest fairway wood to use
- Low center of gravity
- Higher launching
- Priced well
TaylorMade M6 3 Wood
Runner Up 3
When the new SIM MAX fairway woods came out in 2019, the M6 was automatically deemed old tech. Well, we will let you in on a little secret; this 3 wood technology is not even close to old.
The M6 was a fantastic 3 wood option from 2019, and the only reason that should hold you back from putting this club in your bag would be that you don’t have enough space.
With speed pocket technology and geocoustic tuning, this 3 wood had great feel, launch, and playability. What is even better than all of that is that the pricing has now come down.
The M6 is a great 3 wood option for the mid to high handicap player; the M5 is better for the lower handicapper golfers. If you are looking for a draw bias 3 wood, the M6 does offer this option as well.
The only issue that players described with the M6 fairway woods was the turf interaction not being as clean as possible; this has been approved upon with the new SIM model.
- Available in draw bias and standard
- Very long and tech is still new
- Price drop when SIM was released
- Forgiving
- Twist face technology
3 Wood Buying Guide
The best 3 woods will come packed with forgiveness. The lower the loft gets on a club, the harder it can be to hit.
When choosing a forgiving 3 wood, it is imperative to choose something that has high ball speed, a premium graphite shaft, and low spin.
Here are some other frequently asked questions about purchasing a 3 wood.
Do I need A 3 Wood and a 5 Wood?
Set makeup is mostly a course management thing. If you are playing the same course all the time and you rarely use your three wood, then you don’t need to be carrying one.
One of the best things you can do is get two adjustable fairway woods. If you hit a 3 wood the best when it is set to 16 degrees, you can set your other best fairway woods accordingly. At the same time, if you hit it best at 14, you can make sure you don’t have a significant gap in your bag.
Do I need Fairways at All?
This is truly a personal preference. We do think that most better players will have at least one fairway wood in their golf bag. When your driver is having a bad day or when you feel as though you have the green light for hitting a par five in too, it just makes sense.
With the popularity of hybrid clubs, less and less people are carrying a full set of fairway woods, but the majority of golfers have one or two in the bag.
What Lie Should I Hit Fairways From?
Some players never hit their fairway wood from the actual fairway. For a good majority of golfers, fairway woods are an alternative to a Driver off the tee but are never used from the fairway.
Fairway woods are not always the easiest to hit from a tight lie on the fairway. Especially if you choose a very low lofted three wood, this shot can end up quite a distance away from your target.
If you do have the confidence to hit a fairway wood solidly, make sure you are not in a divot. Hitting from a divot takes quite a bit of skill, and you are better off hitting a hybrid or honestly even iron that you feel confident with.
If you are in the rough, you can hit a fairway wood, but the golf ball must be sitting up. If the ball is buried in any way you will have a difficult time getting the club head speed, you need to get the ball to advance anywhere.
For a deeply buried golf ball, try hybrid or honestly even an eight or nine iron. You will sacrifice some distance, but you will get yourself back into play.
The strength of fairway woods is not from a bad lie. This is where your hybrid will outshine your fairway. Be careful to analyze your lie and the trouble in front of you before pulling your club out of the bag.
How Are My Fairway Woods Different From My Hybrids?
Your fairways are designed to be like a sibling to your driver. The hybrid is more closely related to your irons. With the best fairway woods, you are going to want to swing in a more sweeping motion just like a driver. With these, you will hit down and through the ball just like an iron.
Fairway woods will perform off a short tee or a clean lie in the fairway. They don’t do as well from a sloped or rough lie; these are your better choice for that.
If you need to stop a ball quickly on a green, it will be your better choice. If you want to try and run a shot as long as you can up towards the entrance of a green, choose your fairway wood.
Conclusion
Choosing the perfect and the best fairway wood can be difficult. Some of the best fairway woods on the market have been released in 2024. We see clubs that go further than any wood has gone in the past.
The TaylorMade SIM, the Callaway Mavrik and Cobra F MAX Airspeed will help players in different ways, but the bottom line is that adding any of these 3’s to your bag will improve your game.
