Gear: Callaway Apex UW utility wood
Price: $299.99 each with Project X Smoke RDX graphite shaft and Lamkin UTX grip
Specs: Stainless steel head with forged C300 maraging-steel face. 17-, 19- and 21-degree versions
Available: Oct. 14

Equipment makers are clever, designing new clubs all the time to solve problems that golfers face on the course. 

Hybrids hit the scene in a big way in the early 2000s, allowing recreational golfers to replace their hard-to-hit long irons with clubs that are more forgiving and versatile. Eventually, elite golfers on the PGA, LPGA and other professional tours starting adding hybrids, too.

Over the last two seasons, several well-known players have added high-lofted fairway woods to their bags because companies can now deliver more ball speed, and clubs such as a 7-wood can create shots that stop more quickly on firm greens.

With the new Apex UW, Callaway is offering accomplished players a club that fits into the gap between hybrids and fairway woods, trying to offer better players the best of both worlds in a new utility wood.

What's a utility wood

Callaway Apex UW

The Apex UW blends hybrid and fairway wood performance into one club. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

The Apex UW is designed to combine the best features of hybrids and fairway woods. It is larger and more forgiving than most hybrids designed for lower-handicap players, but the shaft is 1.5 inches shorter than a fairway wood with the same loft, so golfers should be able to make solid contact more easily, as with a hybrid or an iron. The club also features a neutral center of gravity, not a draw bias as with many hybrids, so golfers who like to shape shots should be able to work the Apex UW to hit a draw or a fade.

Callaway Apex UW

The Apex UW has a wide, fairway wood-style sole. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

The wide, fairway wood-style sole is designed to work through turf and sand, making it highly versatile. The Apex UW does not have an adjustable hosel, so players will need to work with custom fitters to determine which of the three loft options might work best.

The inside tech

Callaway Apex UW

The Apex UW has a clean look at address. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

In the address position, the Apex UW was given an especially clean look. Even the Callaway chevron the company typically uses as an alignment aid on the top line is gone, leaving nothing but a glossy black crown.

However, under that crown is a lot of technology that golfers can’t see.

The body is cast from 17-4 stainless steel, and the face is forged from a maraging C300 stainless steel. The hitting area is extremely thin, and instead of being a flat piece of metal, it has a cup shape that rolls over the top line, around the toe and under the leading edge. The cup face expands the sweet spot and protects ball speed on off-center hits.

Callaway Apex UW

The Jailbreak A.I. Velocity Bars stiffen the head at impact. (David Dusek/Golfweek)

Callaway also gave the Apex UW its Jailbreak A.I. Velocity blades, a pair of internal posts that connect the sole to the crown. They stiffen the body of the club at impact, so instead of energy being lost by the deformation of the head, it is redirected more effectively into the ball for increased distance.

Callaway also gave the Apex UW an internal metal-injection-molded tungsten weight. The weight varies by loft but averages 18 grams and lowers the center of gravity to encourage higher-flying, higher-spinning shots. Callaway says golfers can expect the Apex UW to hit shots higher than a hybrid with the same loft with more ball speed, but lower than a fairway wood.