Callaway Rogue ST Max Fairway Review

Callaway Rogue ST MAX Fairway Review

Callaway has released the Callaway Rogue ST Max Fairway in 2022 to appeal a wide range of golfers looking for distance, forgiveness and all-around performance in fairway woods. Callaway calls it “our fastest fairway wood ever” and the ST stands for Speed Tuned, which refers to Callaway’s continued use of A.I (artificial intelligence) to optimise its Flash Face designs for the best possible launch, spin and ball speed.

The ST Max has a slightly open face and mild draw bias to create a mid-launch trajectory with low spin rate. It’s one of a family of three new Rogue ST fairway metals and replaces the Callaway Mavrik model. The Epic Max and Epic Speed fairways stay in the range for 2022 and are still among the best Callaway Fairway woods you could own.

The Rogue ST fairways line-up is completed by the Rogue ST LS (low-spin) and Rogue ST Max D. The latter being the most forgiving and Callaway’s first dedicated draw biased fairway model.

One thing that stands out about the Rogue ST range is that every head is different. The LS head is the most compact, the Max head is slightly offset and the Max D sits more upright to promote draw bias. The matte black finish is classy but the speedometer graphics on the crown aren’t as strong as the rest of its presentation.

I tested the Callaway Rogue ST Max Fairway at Slaley Hall’s Hunting Course, a former European Tour venue, with the Mitsubishi Chemical Tensei AV Blue shaft in 75g stiff using Titleist Pro V1x golf balls and then inside on a TrackMan launch monitor.

All the tour proven Callaway technology is here, including a redeveloped Jailbreak ST system. The dual rods or ‘batwings’ have been pushed out to the perimeter of the face, retaining stiffness while allowing more flexion for better ball speed. The Rogue ST Max comes off with a deeper sound, a muted hit, compared to the metallic ting of Mavrik, which I see as a big improvement.

For a mid-range option, the Max impressed me on the course and I loved the combination of low-spin and mid-launch when hitting it off the fairway and on tighter par-4 holes. Slaley is long and several holes run through forest with harsh penalties for missing the fairway. I felt confident using the ST Max on dogleg holes shaping both ways.

During Trackman testing, the ST Max was an unexpected contender for the best all round performer when we tested the latest 2022 releases from leading brands.  It was more accurate than the TaylorMade Stealth Plus and easily longer than the Cobra LTDx fairway. On pure feel, the ball does seem to come off with a lot of energy transfer and punch to it.

Our data set revealed a ball speed of 152.7 mph, the highest of any club on our test, average smash factor of 1.48 and total average distance of 247.3 yards. My longest ball was 259 yards. These are great numbers for a 43-year-old weekend golfer with a stiff back, but, they’re even better considering the Rogue ST Max had the tightest dispersion and most accurate grouping. Long and straight is what we all crave.

If I’m being picky, spin rate was a touch high but adjusting the loft down and hitting it higher in the face would solve that. The Callaway Rogue ST MAX is a great looking fairway wood that punches way above its middleweight billing and is definitely one of the best fairway woods on the market.

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