For years, the stigma surrounding high-lofted fairway woods has been they are only for women and older players. For some reason there are players out there who think the fewer the headcovers, the more macho the golfer. To them, carrying anything beyond a driver, a 3-wood and maybe a 5-wood makes a player less worthy of respect.
Tell that to the growing number of major champions and big-name players who carry a 7-wood regularly. Among them are Dustin Johnson, Adam Scott, Bubba Watson, Max Homa, Louis Oosthuizen, Ian Poulter and Tyrrell Hatton. Jason Kokrak also had a 7-wood in the bag when he won the 2021 Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club.
“Yes, there was a stigma about it, but at the end of the day, if a Tour player sees a performance benefit, he’s going to forget about the stigma,” said Todd Chew, TaylorMade’s PGA Tour manager.
J.J. Van Wezenbeeck, Titleist’s director of players promotions, also sees the old thinking fading away.
“(Tour) players, they only care about how it looks, sounds and feels,” he said.