50 Words or Less
The Titleist GT2 fairway is easy to launch and delivers strong, repeatable results. Classic looks with wonderful sound and feel. Loft options and adjustability make the GT2 a great option for a wide range of golfers.
Introduction
While product releases put the spotlight on drivers, team PIG chose to kick of our coverage of the new Titleist GT metals with the GT2 fairway. The ‘team’ aspect is a slight exaggeration as I basically bypassed our usual conventions to suit my own needs. As you may have noted from my WITB page [find it HERE], I’ve gamed the Titleist TSR2 fairway [full review HERE] for quite some time. Following a thorough GT fitting session with Joe Butler, my local Titleist rep, I was super impressed with the new lineup. So much so that the recommended Titleist GT2 fairway went straight from the delivery box to my bag.
Looks
At address, the Titleist GT2 fairway maintains the classic clean look of its predecessor. With the two models side by side, my eyes instantly noted one key difference – the GT2’s flatter crown. The difference isn’t substantial, but it does make the head appear to sit lower on the turf. Overall, the head is medium in size, with a lovely curvature.
The Titleist GT headcover looks and feels upscale and coordinates brilliantly with the finishes it helps protect. The wider silver center segment and sleeker side wings on the sole visually communicate more power than the TSR2. And I realize that shaft colors can vary, but the black HZRDUS shaft I was fit makes for a stellar looking club.
Sound & Feel
I was pleased to discover that the designers didn’t mess around with what they call their “signature sound and feel.” The Titleist GT2 fairway sounded intimately familiar with its soft “smack.” To my ear, the sound is a mid-tone that leans more woodsy rich than metallic bright.
The feel with good contact was light with a touch of strength – like a perfect handshake. I could discern impact location, but it was subtle. My favorite aspect about the combination of both sound and feel was knowing that the ball was well struck even before looking. There’s nothing more satisfying than the anticipation of hearing “nice shot.”
Performance
Let’s get some housekeeping out of the way – please don’t leave a comment that the launch monitor data is missing. Since the GT2 fairway I was fitted for is 21°, Editor In Chief Saternus and I thought it best to not post the data. While we always discourage numbers comparisons between reviews, posting 7 wood versus 3 wood data seemed downright counterproductive.
I wasn’t surprised to end up with a 7 wood as I’ve learned that with age comes the need for more loft. For me, the 21° loft of the Titleist GT2 fairway produced a mid to mid-high ball flight that maximized distance. Much like they have in drivers, designers have lowered spin in fairways to gain distance. That’s great for fast swing speeds, but for us slower swinging mortals, low spin and low loft is a recipe for unhappiness. The 21° GT2 fairway brings a big smile to my face.
The Titleist GT2 fairway has several new features that are worth noting. The first is the use of a new proprietary matrix polymer to create a seamless crown. Lighter than stainless steel, the Thermoform Crown freed designers to redistribute mass for improved performance, while maintaining the signature sound and feel mentioned earlier.
The new body structure allowed Titleist to incorporate a forged L-Cup face that wraps around the leading edge of the sole. The design helps preserve ball speed and launch on low struck balls. As I’ve revealed many times, thin shots are my nemesis and the GT2 truly showed its colors hitting off the tight fairways of my primary golf course. As I reviewed launch monitor data, the consistency of the Titleist GT2 fairway really stood out.
One final new feature that ties much of the performance together is the CoG – Titleist moved it forward and lower. The shift provides for higher launch and lower spin. In addition to the tight lie performance I noted above, I also observed an overall performance improvement over the TSR2 when hitting out of the rough. Not surprisingly, I found teeing the ball fairly low was best for tee shots with the GT2.
In addition to the featured shafts listed in the graphic at the bottom of this review, you’ll find Graphite Design Tour AD “premium” shafts highlighted on the Titleist website. The website also offers a huge variety of alternate shafts. The GT2 fairway features Titleist’s SureFit Hosel with 16 loft and lie settings, and SureFit weight options for swingweight adjustments.
Find more adjustability in the Titleist GT3 fairway wood HERE
Conclusion
In this first Plugged In Golf review of a Titleist GT club, it’s also appropriate to let readers know that GT stands for Generational Technology. While shaping, CoG placement, and the likes are important to advancing designs, the generational aspect comes from the development and implementation of the Thermoform crown. That technology is a more dominant feature in the GT drivers as you’ll learn in upcoming reviews. As for the Titleist GT2 fairway, it’s strong across the board. I loved the ball flight and how easy it was to hit from a variety of lies. The consistency was confidence boosting – once I had the proper loft.
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Titleist GT2 Fairway Price & Specs
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2 Comments
Nice review that is spot on, especially the 3 metal versus a higher lofted fairway. I’m 67 years old and don’t have the “fast” swing speed anymore. I recently purchased a GT2 driver (9°) and the 16.5° fairway which I increased to 17.25° (hosel setting D4). So my GT2 fairway is closer to a 4 metal or a strong 5 metal with a slightly longer shaft. That loft and length fits my game well. I am gaming a Ping G430 Max 7 metal because of the adjustable loft which wasn’t available in Callaway fairways. I will try the GT2 7 metal at some point. Thanks for the review
Great to see the GT line being reviewed. Excited for what’s to come. I am looking to replace 1 or 2 of my woods this year, maybe GT will make the bag.