Callaway is slowly bringing all their latest driver technology for enhancing ball speed into fairways. With the Epic Flash fairway, you are getting all the same features you get in the Epic Flash driver, which has not been the case with recent launches.
The Jailbreak bars are retained from the Rogue fairway and connect the sole to the crown to stiffen the chassis and increase ball speed.
This sits behind the 455 Carpenter Steel Face Cup that wraps around the front of the club to improve speed on off centre hits.
There is also a new OptiFit hosel that is now specific to the Epic Flash fairway.
It is shorter and lighter so that it doesn't add weight and raise the CG point. It also means that you have the loft adjustability back from the original Epic fairway that you lost with Rogue.
Having two rotating rings on the OptiFit hosel means that the shaft can be rotated and still have a Golf Pride New Decade Align Green grip in place, which has a ridge on the back for consistent hand position.
However, the real story is the new Flash Face design on the back of the face insert. Like the driver face, it has been designed by a computer using Machine Learning.
Callaway has invested $5m in a super computer to use Artificial Intelligence to create the variable face thickness pattern on their Flash Face inserts.
They tell the computer the parameters for legal and manufacturing limits and off it goes, going through thousands of iterations and learning from its mistakes.
The result is the design that you can see below, which is a collection of circles of various thicknesses and unique to this head.
This is completely different from the more traditional design of a thicker section in the middle, and also the pattern on the back of the Epic Flash driver face.
The new design is like a face within a face and it is not only fast in the middle, but also faster lower down in the centre for those shots from the deck.
In testing it was delivering a higher level of ball speed, but really fairways are more about accuracy than distance. In this respect the Epic Flash fairway was very good, providing a solid sound and feel with a mid trajectory.
I found it very easy to launch off the fairway and it felt a bit more alive than the original Epic fairway.
The mid-sized head is a great look at address, with the new shorter hosel looking much stockier and less visually intrusive.
I am not sure about the visual of the curved line on top though as it doesn't do much for alignment. You can feel it is a little raised if you run your finger over it, so maybe this is the new Speed Step to help aerodynamics.
Callaway Epic Flash Sub-Zero Fairway Review
Like the Rogue range there is also a Sub-Zero version of the Epic Flash fairway for those who need to drop spin.
There is a second weight in the sole closer to the face and a slightly more compact profile.
The exterior of the face is also different, with groove lines going right across the full width.
The Sub Zero is a bit harder to get going unless you have the club head speed. Therefore, I would think that most single figure players, who might have been tempted by the Sub Zero option in the past, will be fine with the standard Epic Flash fairway as its spin profile is very good.
Callaway Epic Flash Fairway Verdict
As these things go, the Callaway Epic Flash Fairway is good value for money given what you are getting. It looks and sounds good and with a wide range of lofts up to 25°, you are sure to find the right one to suit your game.
There are other fairways around that don't offer as much, because with the Epic Flash you are getting adjustability, Jailbreak and of course the latest in face design technology.
The combination of all the different technologies comes together well in a great looking head, which is a feat in itself. Unless you have an aversion to green, there is very little to dislike about the Epic Flash fairway, so add it to your test list.