More than just a sleeper hit, the new contenders in 2025: Srixon ZXi Woods

The Srixon ZXi Woods, tech highlighted

With the new Srixon ZXi drivers and woods lineup, Srixon feels they’ve got a product that can now stand alongside anything else on the market. So, what’s new with this year’s models and why are we looking at ‘ZXi’ instead of ‘ZX MKiii?’

It’s not surprising therefore to see plenty of carryover from the ZX series to the Srixon ZXi drivers and woods family, as you’d expect with the performance that many saw from the previous generation. 

With the previous generation of ZX MKii Woods, Srixon Golf seemed on the precipice of a huge swing in the golfing market. The iron models, which have been stellar for several generations, were still the driving point being the brand’s success but now, it seems, the new ZXi Woods are finally capable of challenging the best golf drivers in the industry. The ZXi woods are seeing more and more usage in both Tour-level bags as well as golfers like you and me, who are going to be won over by the great looks and high-quality performance coming to retailers in 2025.

Srixon ZXi drivers: The Technology 

One of the key design features Srixon is still employing is its Rebound Frame. We’ll now be on the fourth generation of this technology so Srixon is very confident in how it adds to the Woods lineup in general. 

The idea is effectively a double trampoline; the driver’s face is made flexible to produce more ball speed before being backed up by a stiffer ring around the edge that connects the face back onto the remainder of the body. This ring is followed by another flexible section and then the, again, stiff section of the rest of the body. 

What you’re getting from this feature is maximized energy transfer from both center face strikes as well as off-center, giving you more consistency in distance and control from the tee (and even off the deck, if you’re adventurous!). 

To provide that frame stability though, the stiffer body needs to be made with a construction that can cope with the rapid pressure created from striking a golf ball. This is where the updated Star Frame Crown enters the conversation. 

Star Frame is the name for Srixon’s support structure that sits underneath the crown. It’s built to reinforce the design, providing strength where needed while also allowing for repositioning of weight in key areas to bring the Center of Gravity further down into the head. 

Star Frame also allows for a lighter-weight titanium crown to be employed, further bringing down the weight in the higher head sections. 

The Titanium crown is an interesting point of contention from Srixon’s engineering team. Having seen even staunch Titanium defenders like Titleist now move into a Carbon Fiber, it’s curious that Srixon feels that it’s still not needed in their 2025 Driver line. 

It’s not something they shy away from either though. The design team is well aware of the benefits of Carbon Fiber (you’ll find they do have a use for it later on) but with the new Star Frame Crown, Srixon haven’t seen a move to Carbon Fiber demonstrate much of a performance gain over the Titanium they’ve chosen to use. 

Adjustability also hasn’t escaped the upgrades, with dual adjustable sole weight featuring in two of the three models offering customizable swing weight and CG position. The core model, ZXi, can be tuned with heel or toe weights, and the lower spin ZXi LS comes with front and rear adjustability. Srixon has also created a brand-new loft sleeve, that offers 1.5º of lower and higher loft placement. 

Srixon ZXi drivers: The ‘i’ of the storm 

Arguably the biggest story of the Srixon 2025 Woods series is their redesigned face technology; after all, it’s the reason we’re now looking at the additional letter to the ZX name this year. 

i-FLEX is a top-to-bottom reconstruction of Srixon’s face thickness pattern. The idea is to create a new geometry behind the face, to better improve center-face ball speed and improve your great strikes, just as much as Rebound Frame will for the off-center hits.

By changing the internal shape of the face, Srixon has been able to improve on the last gen’s distance without a sacrifice to structure around the face, further protecting your mishits. 

i-FLEX has been coupled with a Laser Face Milling technique, built to increase stabilization of spin across the face, as well as add forgiveness during wet conditions. 

The combination of face designs means Srixon can now boost your all-round performance further than ever, in a three-model driver package. 

There’s still separation between each design, but now each head has a more distinct function than before.  

Srixon ZXi Driver 

Pre-Sale: January 13th 2025 | Retail Launch: February 2nd 2025

This is the core model and the one that Srixon expects most golfers (whether Amateur or Tour Players) to move into. Built with a stable, rearward yet low Center of Gravity location, the ZXi head will offer all the ball speed promises out of the technology but with the forgiveness that the majority will need. The ZXi features a dual adjustable sole weight as well as a new loft sleeve. 

Stock Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 60g 

Stock Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 

Srixon ZXi Max Driver

Pre-Sale: January 13th 2025 | Retail Launch: February 2nd 2025

The Max model is exactly as you’d expect from the name – the highest forgiveness head in the lineup. The center of Gravity has been pulled further back in the head to maximize your forgiveness on off-center contact. While it isn’t the 10K MOI (Moment of Inertia) touted by other brands, Srixon still says this head is in the 9000s so offers plenty of help. They also say that they wouldn’t be surprised to see a few of their Staff Ambassadors in this head, hence they don’t want to sacrifice too much ball speed with overly high forgiveness. The Max model doesn’t offer adjustable sole weights but it does come with the new loft sleeve. 

Stock Shaft: Project X Denali Red 50g 

Stock Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 

Srixon ZXi LS Driver 

Pre-Sale: January 13th 2025 | Retail Launch: February 2nd 2025

The LS model has been built in conjunction with some of the best and fastest players that Srixon has access to, including Hideki Matsuyama and Brooks Koepka. Even without the included front and rear adjustable sole weight, this is one of the lowest-spin models that Srixon has ever created. Where it differs from previous designs is with the increased help on off-centre hits but don’t be fooled – this is still meant for golfers with serious speed or a serious spin issue. 

Stock Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black Gen 5 70g/60g 

Stock Grip: GP Tour Velvet 360 

Srixon ZXi Fairways and Hybrids 

Unlike other brands, Srixon is choosing to offer just one fairway wood and one hybrid in the new ZXi lineup. 

This simplicity can work in Srixon’s favor, however, allowing the brand to approach these models from an all-round perspective as most golfers are looking for a similar purpose from their long games: namely, accuracy and forgiveness. 

Srixon ZXi Fairway Woods

Pre-Sale: January 13th 2025 | Retail Launch: February 2nd 2025

With the fairway woods, Srixon has actually addressed a concern not often leveled as a problem from most players – the clubs were too fast. 

Maximizing ball speed from a driver is great, but it’s not always necessary from the deck and many of Srixon’s Tour contingent were looking for fairway woods that could create more stable performance and a bigger gap between their drivers and their next longest club. 

Srixon has used this opportunity to redesign the concept of their product to be more in-fitting with what golfers need from these clubs and adjusted how each model of fairway wood is set up. 

This new Dynamic Center of Gravity sees the 5 and 7-woods feature higher CG than the lower lofted models in the range, creating models that are built around control and consistency instead of the out-and-out distance from previous generations. The 3 and 3+ woods have lowered CG to produce a more penetrating flight as desired thanks to a Carbon Fiber crown that only comes in those models. 

It may sound strange after hearing about how Srixon thought Carbon was unnecessary in their Drivers to then include it in a fairway wood model but it’s not without reason. 

The ZXi fairways are made from a robust steel that, while offering strength, isn’t as lightweight as the Titanium used in the drivers. This means that the Carbon crown featured in the 3-wood hasn’t a bigger effect on performance and justifies inclusion in this design aspect. 

It’s a clever use of engineering and one that Srixon sits in a unique position in the market with. 

Don’t let that make you think the ZXi fairway isn’t offering ball speeds in spades though. The i-FLEX face and Rebound Frame from the Drivers have been shrunk down for inclusion in the ZXi fairway woods, meaning you’ll still see aggressive forgiveness and power retention across the face. 

To finish off this new offering, Srixon has worked with select players to refinish their sole design and leading edges for a flatter look across the models, leading to confidence at address and improved ground interaction in different conditions. 

The ZXi also comes with a new Adjustable loft sleeve, allowing for 1.5º of loft movement in either direction. 

Stock Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 60g/50g 

Stock Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 

Srixon ZXi Hybrids

 Pre-Sale: January 13th 2025 | Retail Launch: February 2nd 2025

The story with the new ZXi hybrid is similar to that of the fairway wood. Srixon has upgraded an already solid product with the i-FLEX design to enhance whole-face forgiveness and ball speed retention, as well as improve speed from shots out the middle of the head. 

Rebound Frame technology goes further in protecting those mishits for speed but also improves accuracy by helping resist twisting on those mishits.

The emphasis from Srixon’s engineers this year is the addition of their new adjustable loft sleeve. This marks the first time that Srixon has installed it into a hybrid. 

Normally, this weight added from adjustable sleeves can mess with the balance of weight due to the size and shape of smaller woods, but Srixon is confident that their new lower-mass sleeve has removed any negative effects that would normally be expected. As with the fairway woods and drivers, the sleeve can lower or raise the loft by 1.5º. 

The final piece of the rescue puzzle is the progressive head shapes. As you go up in loft, the head volumes decrease to present more inviting heads, while the designers have also made the rear and toe sides fractionally larger than last gen to further help inspire confidence at address. 

Stock Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 70g/80g 

Stock Grip: Golf Pride Tour Velvet 360 

About the author

Lewis Daff

Lewis joined the Today’s Golfer digital team in 2024, having spent more than a decade in both big-box golf retail and independent stores working as a club fitter and builder.

Experienced with every level of golfer, from beginner to professional, he has achieved Master Fitter and Builder status with most major manufacturers, including Mizuno, Taylormade, and Callaway, helping him to cement both a wide and deep knowledge base, ideal for helping guide golfers towards the correct equipment for them. Lewis specializes in Clubs, Shafts, Training Aids, Launch Monitors and Grips.

In Lewis’ bag is Titleist GT3 Driver (9º) with Fujikura Ventus Black, TaylorMade SIM Max Fairway Woods (15º and 18º), Wilson Staff D9 Forged 3-iron, Srixon ZX7 MKii Irons (4-PW), Titleist SM9 Wedges (52º, 60º), Toulon San Diego Putter, and the Titleist ProV1X Left Dash.

Talk to Lewis about why steel shafts are now dead and graphite is the only way forward, or any other equipment you’d like to debate, via his email, Instagram, or Bluesky.