An Honest Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood Review [2023 Edition]

The Callaway Epic 5 Wood is a club I have had in the bag for about a year now. Going through an entire golf season with the Epic Speed 5 wood, I have no plans to take it out of the bag anytime soon.

It took me a little while to get used to the Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood. I was playing with an old Cleveland Launcher that was pretty bulky, and I didn’t fully trust Epic Speed at first. In this Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood review, I’ll give you all the information you need to see if this is going to work for you.

Callaway Epic Speed Fairway Wood Features

Currently, I only have one fairway wood in my bag. I rely on this 5 wood to do quite a bit for me on the course. However, the features that Callaway has implemented into this model are quite impressive and have held up with what I was looking for.

Jailbreak A.I. Velocity Blades

The Jailbreak A.I. Velocity Blades take the Jailbreak technology to the next level. There is more flex in the crown and, as a result, much more ball speed. Jailbreak uses artificial intelligence to ensure that players can capitalize on the distance they get from this club.

Forward Center of Gravity

The forward center of gravity on the Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood ensures that players get a more penetrating ball flight with low spin. I notice that the 5 wood gets a tremendous amount of roll; it’s honestly enough that I don’t feel the need to carry a 3 wood.

Flash Face SS21

The Callaway Epic Speed fairway wood is designed with the Flash Face SS21. The ball speed is strong because of the tough but flexible face. Callaway has kept this face in play over the last several years, and we don’t see it going anywhere anytime soon.

Driver-Like Performance

Interestingly when I hit good shots with this 5 wood, they go almost as far as my Callaway Mavrik driver. In fact, there will be certain holes where I will outdrive my playing partners by using a 5 wood when they are using their driver.

The Epic Speed is a little newer than the Callaway Mavrik, which could be the reason behind this phenomenon. But the club was designed to be more like a driver than a fairway wood. I don’t know about you, but driver-like performance from a fairway wood is fine by me.

Callaway Epic 5 Wood Performance

Now that you have a general idea as to what technology you can expect from the Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood, let’s take a more in-depth look into what this club is actually like on the golf course. As I mentioned, I really like this 5 wood and rely on it now quite a bit, but it wasn’t love at first sight!

Price

The pricing of the Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood has come down quite a bit since its initial release. The lower pricing makes this an even easier purchase decision.

Overall, I think that you are paying for a lot of technology here. The shaft is a high-end shaft with a great feel. The clubhead looks great and has an impressive feel for a fairway wood. Even if you need to replace more than one fairway wood, this could be an affordable choice at this point.

The only trouble will be if you need a custom shaft. There could be an upcharge, as they are no longer making them custom with Callaway.

Feel & Sound

I love both the feel and the sound of the Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood. When you miss the center of the clubface, you will get feedback that makes the hit feel a bit thin and the ball fly a bit low.

However, even when this happens, the feel isn’t harsh. It’s essentially just a bit of vibration, but it can be used to help you succeed and take your game to a higher level.

The sounds are about what I would expect from a high-quality fairway wood like that. It’s not at all ear piercing, but loud enough for a bit of a confidence boost when you hit one pure.

Spin

I find the Epic Speed to be very low spin. The lower spin rates help to increase roll and keep the ball heading down the fairway even after it makes contact with the grass. In addition, the lower spin has also helped keep the ball relatively straight.

I notice that sometimes I can get a little quick with the 5 wood because it’s shorter than the driver, and I tend to overdo it sometimes. However, if I can ease up the tempo just a bit, it almost always goes straight.

Forgiveness

The Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood has some forgiveness built in, but I can’t tell you this is the most forgiving 5 wood I’ve ever played with. When you miss one, expect to see quite a bit of difference in the total distance.

On a par 5, when you’re approaching a green that is 210 yards away and you come up short, it may not cause you any issues. That might be a different story if you’re trying to hit over a water hazard though. Just keep in mind that if you don’t hit it in the center, the ball will be short of your target.

Distance

From the tee box, the distance from the Callaway Epic Speed is driver-like. I’m very satisfied with how far I can hit this club when hitting from the tee box.

From the fairway, as long as I strike the ball in the center of the clubface, the total distance is completely acceptable.

What I Like About The Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood

The Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood has been a good addition to the golf bag for me. When I went for the Callaway Mavrik driver a few years ago, they had just released this Epic Speed 5 Wood, so I decided to go with the most recent technology.

I’m glad I did.

I can notice a distinguishable difference between the ball speed that comes off the face of the Epic Speed and the ball speed that comes off of the Mavrik. That’s what we should expect as golf manufacturers put out new releases.

With this 5 wood being so great in the distance category, I’ve also felt no need to add a 3 wood to the bag. Sometimes I think if I upgraded to the Epic Speed 3 Wood, I would hit it further than my driver.

That’s a problem I’ll have to work on.

What I Dislike About The Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood

I don’t have too many complaints about the Callaway Epic Speed 5 Wood. The two major issues I had were a long adjustment period to get the feel of this club down and the lack of forgiveness.

Unfortunately, the Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood is not the most forgiving of the 5 woods on the market. If your swing is not all that consistent, expect the golf ball to end up in some places that you probably didn’t expect.

In addition, if you have been playing with a highly forgiving 5 wood and you switch to something like this Epic Speed, you will probably notice a distance in the total forgiveness you will get.

I wouldn’t recommend the Callaway Epic Speed 5 wood to someone that has a higher handicap and wants a large sweet spot with tons of forgiveness packed in. However, for the lower handicapper that hits a lot of approach shots from the fairway on a par 5, the Epic Speed is a great selection.

Overall Rating and Thoughts

I hope that I have helped to clear up some of your concerns about the Callaway Epic SPeed 5 Wood and its performance on the golf course. Overall I’m happy to have this club in the bag, and I will likely keep it for quite some time.

Since putting the Epic Speed 5 wood in the bag, I have tried several other new releases and have not had anything else that I liked better. In fact, the Epic was performing better from a ball speed standpoint.

I guess Callaway knew what they were doing when they called this the Epic Speed. I’d say that is a very good way to describe it.

Overall Rating: 9.4/10

Brittany Olizarowicz

Britt O has been playing golf since the age of 7. Almost 30 years later, she still loves the game, has played competitively on every level, and spent a good portion of her life as a Class A PGA Professional. Britt currently resides in Savannah, GA, with her husband and two young children.