By Leonard Finkel
With the new Steelhead XR fairway wood, Callaway has improved it iconic shape, made the head more forgiving and easier to launch and refined the sole to make it even more versatile and playable than its original Steelhead fairway.
Steelhead XR combines a steel face and body with a J-36 carbon crown, weighing just 6 grams, a full 20 grams lighter than the XR fairway crown. The weight saved allows Callaway to distribute more weight in strategic locations within the head to position the CG lower and more forward, making it easy to launch with low spin.
The modern Hawkeye sole has been re-contoured to increase versatility by reducing friction with the turf which promotes clean, square contact more often; even from tall grass. Next-generation Hyper Speed Face Cup technology incorporates an extremely thin and flexible boundary area to encourage faster ball speeds across a larger area of the face to deliver added distance, even on mis-hits. Speed Step technology, developed from a unique collaboration with aerospace experts, improves the head’s aerodynamics to promote faster head speed for greater distance.
Lofts available include:
3+wood (13.5°) – 3-wood (15°) – 4+wood (16°) – 5-wood (18°) – 7-wood (21°) – 9-wood (24°) – Heavenwood (20.5°).
Women’s Steelhead XR fairways available in 3-, 5-, 7, 9, Heavenwood.
Leonard Finkel is the author of The Secrets to the Game of Golf & Life and former editor in chief of Golf Journeys Magazine. His work has been featured in almost 200 publications including Golf Magazine, Golf Digest, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Golf Illustrated, Golf Tips and Player Magazine. He has written more than a dozen cover stories for Golf Today Magazine. He has written extensively about golf and travel and has added poker to his writing repertoire. Finkel also works as a marketing and public relations consultant. His specialty niche is writing advertorial copy. Prior to his career in golf, Finkel owned a chain of retail stores and a consulting and import company based in Asia. He attended the University of Utah.