Equipment
GolfWRX Spotted: Haywood 100% CNC milled blades
The world of direct-to-consumer has shifted dramatically over the past 18 months and one of the final frontiers was golf clubs, which has now been broken by a number of manufacturers, including Canadian start-up Haywood Golf.
What started as simply a wedge company has blossomed into a full custom wedge and iron company offering performance and value to golfers around the world.
They have just unveiled their newest design on their Instagram page: a 100 percent CNC milled iron, that according to founder Joshua Haywood has been over a year in the making.
From Instagram:
Introducing a new prototype Haywood Iron.
100% CNC Milled from a Forged Block of 1020 Carbon Steel. This iron represent a year of hard work, testing countless revisions all to ensure it is the best performing club possible while making it extremely unique in both the construction and look. These irons will be the first in our ‘Haywood Custom’ program via custom order only, starting at $195USD per club. More details will be released in the coming weeks. They will be available in both RH and LH
This is a big leap in design and research and development, and we look forward to sharing more about them when information becomes available.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Titleist...
Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2025 Wyndham Championship
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting) Buy here. Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX 3-wood: Titleist...
Camilo Villegas WITB 2025 (July)
Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
WITB Time Machine: Brandt Snedeker’s winning WITB, 2018 Wyndham Championship
Brandt Snedeker fired a final-round 65 at the 2018 Wyndham Championship to outlast Webb Simpson and C.T. Pan. His 5-under...
Michael LePatourel
Dec 11, 2020 at 7:55 pm
Probably not a per club option. Have contacted them 2 over the past year to order some Haywood, but since I only play a half set would need to order individual clubs. Their answer was always NO. Kinda funny that their company was founded on a story that says Haywood was unimpressed with the lack of options from OEMs, at least with them I can get the set I want.
Michael Hicks
Dec 13, 2020 at 1:08 am
I own a set of signature irons, their wedges and recently the new putter they released. Have had nothing but positive experiences with them. They are a new business compared to OEM’s so how would you expect them to offer the same amount of options? When I have read articles and listened to a couple podcasts, they mentioned being unimpressed with the lack of affordable clubs from OEM’s. Do you expect small DTC brands to offer 10+ different grinds like Vokey does as well?
Bradley Taylor
Dec 11, 2020 at 7:18 pm
I wish more companies went thw route of minimal branding like this. They look SOOOOO good
Lefthack
Dec 11, 2020 at 2:57 pm
$600 for a left 5-PW. CNC is easy to make left unlike forged. Seems legit, they look really good. Not sure I can play full blades, but it’s nice to see options.
Imafitter
Dec 11, 2020 at 2:23 pm
Like the look! $200/iron is not unreasonable when you look at putters also milled from a forged block of steel that sell for $400! As a senior with a 12 handicap using irons with a forged face, they might not be as forgiving an iron as what I need. Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to try them at a demo days in 2021.
Keith Finley
Dec 11, 2020 at 11:56 am
I’ve hit the “vintage” Haywood blade (looks like a Haig Ultra to me). Really nice irons. I hope they implement a trial program where you can “rent” a couple for a limited time.
Jason Taylor
Dec 10, 2020 at 8:35 pm
These are amazing! $195USD per club may seem steep but I just checked out the new Callaway Apex MB Irons and they are close to the same price for the same old forged iron Callaway has been putting out for years. Will be looking into these more to buy next year!
brian
Dec 11, 2020 at 10:09 am
You can go down to your local shop to see and hit the Apex in person before deciding to purchase…that’s a big difference when you’re spending $195 per iron.
Brandon Wooley
Dec 10, 2020 at 8:27 pm
I love those. If they make a CB version I’ll be very interested. However, 1400 bucks for a 7 club set from a DTC brand you can’t readily go get fitted for is tough.
Cody
Dec 10, 2020 at 4:17 pm
Those look great. Why better than the previous blade.
Milo
Dec 10, 2020 at 3:44 pm
If they come in raw it will be a tough choice between these and a set of sub 70.
Benny
Dec 11, 2020 at 8:25 am
Well sai Milo. They are cnc milled solid block of carbon and carbon rusts. Unless they have a finish that doesn’t wear these should patina up nicely. Carbon is what all forged irons are pressed from and what makes the “butter feel”. But carbon as we know rusts fast.
But there has been some very durable finishes built and could be that silver finish.
Either way I am interested and love the idea.
MAgolfer
Dec 11, 2020 at 11:33 am
Yeah these irons seem to have a chrome-plated finish, but Haywood is known for offering multiple finishes including raw/unplated. I wouldn’t be shocked if they offered these new blades in raw as well.
Carson Lee
Dec 10, 2020 at 3:42 pm
Sold!!!! Sign me up 3-PW Left Hand.
stanley
Dec 10, 2020 at 12:09 pm
they are clean
bj
Dec 10, 2020 at 11:41 am
clean