Our forum faithful are well acquainted with the incredible giveaways and review opportunities in the realm of threads and comments, but we want to ensure front-page readers are involved as well.

Check out what GolfWRXers are saying about Cleveland’s Halo XL Hy-Wood.

Cleveland Golf on the Cleveland Halo XL Hy-Wood.

Want Hybrid control and Fairway Wood distance? Try a Hy-Wood. Its unique design features head sizing and club length between standard Hybrids and Fairway Woods, plus all our latest distance and forgiveness tech. Now, you can ditch your duff-prone Fairway Woods while still maintaining proper gapping at the top of your bag.

How we choose our testers

GolfWRX staff evaluates each entry against the criteria laid out in the testing thread to determine the best fit for each specific product — For example, if a game-improvement iron is being tested, game-improvement iron-playing golfers will be considered.

Member testers

@Roejye

@bellairemi

@thaar

@jrazz16

Member review highlights

@Roejye

So, I got out to the course today and I’m able to report on performance. I used it for every tee shot but one. I was also hoping to drop some balls at about 190-200 yards and try off the deck, but course was too busy.

Weather in the low to mid 50’s with winds about 10 mph, I used a sleeve of cut reds to test with, so soft but not pillow soft. I found the sound to be very nice actually. It was definitely more ping/tinny dominant but there was a little thud/thwack in there.  There didn’t seem to be much feedback on the face, but I’ve never been particularly good at deciphering that.

First ever shot was a high, spinny fade that only went about 175, but was in play. Second tee was my nemesis of the day, hit 2 more fades into the yards on the right side. Realized that my feet were closed compared to my shoulders, so what I thought were push fades, were probably just fades. Fixed that issue, took a more relaxed swing and hit a nice shot. 3rd hole par 3. 4th hole I hit my best drive of the day, splitting the fairway. 5th hole, the high fade returned, but playable. 6 par 3, 7 par 5 with creek cutting through probable hy-wood landing area. 8 par 3. 9th hole I actually pull hook it, but that was probably a combination of remembering the fade and trying to get a little more out of it, but got lucky and not only was it playable, but I had a line. Then had one of those “I didn’t mean to hit it like that, but it worked out” pitches.

So far it looks like this will do exactly what I want it to do. A tee club for courses with a 200 yard par 3, safety blanket for the tee when either driver isn’t working, and a good ball advancement club.

@bellairemi

It has been an interesting weather week here but was able to get on the course several days for a few holes and also a Trackman range.  The winds have been high for us so a good test of ballflight.  Here’s some numbers from several range trips (driver swingspeed is right at 100 and I play a draw) – I have the 3+ with the Ascent Blue:

Off of a short tee (iron height):

• Carry 210-215; Total 220-230
• Spin 3800
• Peak height 80
• Off the deck
• Carry 200-205; total 210-215
• Spin 4300
• Peak height 70

Those numbers tell a lot of the story.  Definitely hitting lower on the face off the deck.  I did not have this issue on the original one and I suspect it is a combination of the shaft and the deeper face.  That said, the hits are remarkably straight and I prefer to use the Hy-Wood versus my 7 wood as my fairway advancement club.

But in my bag, this would be a tee club 90% of the time.  For me, it excels there.  Very tight draw and no big left misses (which I did have with the predecessor).  It hits and chases.  Several times into the heavy wind on the course the Hy-wood was longer than my driver (which is set up for max carry and I don’t try to flight it).  It is far more stable than the 5 woods and super hybrids I played in this slot previously.

@thaar

I got out this past weekend as well though it was super windy and the temp decided to drop from 78*F at our tee time to finish at 49*F, so it was quite an enjoyable round lol. Nonetheless, I put the Hy-wood through its paces, hitting it several times from off the deck and tee shots. It truly is consistent, easy to hit and quite long. I hit some monster shots with it that probably go just as far as my 3w. I did hit it out of the rough once but the grass wasn’t that long, so I can’t say how easy it would get through it, but I can’t imagine it would have too much trouble.

If anyone is in need of an easy to hit fairway wood, this would definitely be one to try. I do think Cleveland has a winner here though I think they need to add more lofts since they are so long.

…

Got out again yesterday and used the Hy-wood quite a bit. I’m becoming more and more convinced to keep it in my bag to replace my existing 4w. I’m getting used to the sound, and I can’t deny the performance and how easy it is to hit.

…

I’m officially keeping it in my bag. It’s easy to hit and fits the course I play with well. Again, if anyone is looking for a long, easy to hit fairway wood, I’d certainly recommend trying out the Hy-wood.

…

The HyWood has become one of my favorite clubs in my bag off of the tee. It’s so easy to hit, long and reliable. I’ve used it off of the deck occasionally as well (there aren’t many opps for me to use it since it’s so long and I play at 5500′), and it performs great as well. Cleveland has a winner with this one. It definitely exceeded my expectations.

@jrazz16

Finally got a chance to give the Cleveland Halo XL a chance. I am coming from a trusty Nike SQ2 that I have since it came out and it is one of those clubs where I had the utmost confidence in it and really did not have any need to look at anything else. But this past winter I made the decision to get fit for new irons and I saw the impact that it made on my game (TaylorMade P770’s) and with that being said I wanted to make a change in my woods and gain the confidence I did with my new irons. So to when I saw this opportunity pop up I took a chance and was fortunate enough to be selected for the review.

Initial Impressions

As I have said I have been stuck in the year 2009 when it comes to my fairway woods so just the look of the Cleveland was a bit different from its shinny black crown to its deep face was something I was not used to seeing but the club lays really nice and square. The club with the stock Ventas (S) feels balanced and stable from the initial pickup.

Let’s hit this thing!

Between 2 boys playing baseball (1 in travel ball thus no time) and work I had not had the time to hit this club until yesterday.  After warming up through the rest of the bag it was finally time to hit the Cleveland after a few swings with the Nike I jumped in without thinking about the change and it was to my benefit. My first swing was off a tee and I was surprised how easy it was for it to get in the air and the carry was 246 which compared to the Nike off the tee was 239. So I was impressed with the feel off the face which was “pingy” compared to the dull feeling I get with the Nike, but I truly did not mind and its a feeling and sound I could get used to. I hit 10-15 more balls off the tee with similar results based of good swings and the weight of the shaft which took a few to get used to, distance ranged from 236-249 spin about 3400 peak height 81 feet. Off the deck I was seeing an improvement in my ball contact and was able to make solid strikes in fairways and deep rough, this is going to take more time to get used to but overall the initial impression was great.

Thank you Cleveland Golf for your communication and patience and opportunity for test this club. It really has brought a new level of confidence and excitement for my game. I am looking forward to spending some more time with this club and getting a better feel for it and who knows throw a new shaft in it and see the results (This is WRX after all)!  Thank you again and look forward to test other clubs in the future.

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