Although the second shot on a par-5 has been called the most boring shot in golf, the club that most players use for that shot - the Fairway Wood - can prove as invaluable to scoring well as any club in the bag.

Most players face two challenges with this shot, firstly to hit it farther and secondly to hit it straighter. Apart from working to make your golf swing more effective the fairway wood can help to solve the farther/straighter problem. It can probably also save you a couple of strokes.

There was a time when woods were made out of...wood. In fact, these were the clubs of choice during the feathery-ball era, which lasted from the 15th Century to the middle of the 19th Century. With the introduction of the Taylor Made Pittsburgh Persimmon metal-headed driver in 1979, golf club design changed again. Although this club wasn't immediately embraced by purists because of its sound at impact and nontraditional appearance, it nonetheless allowed club designers greater latitude.

With metal (usually steel), the designer can easily make the club head larger or smaller, add runners to the sole, or build out the toe - all in an effort to make the club perform better. In other words, to help you hit the ball straighter and with more confidence. Steel also has a higher strength-to-weight ratio than wood, allowing the club maker to use less material without sacrificing strength. The result is a lighter, easier-to-swing club head. Also, to help the club perform better and be more forgiving, weight is moved to the perimeter of the club head to help it square at impact and be more stable on off-center hits.

The Fairway Wood can make your wandering tee shot a little less problematic and the long par-4s a little more reachable. And other than the short irons, the fairway woods are the easiest clubs to hit. Most mid-to-high-handicap players have much more confidence in a fairway wood than either their driver or a long iron.

The ease in hitting is accomplished by two design features. The larger club head, when compared to an iron, provides greater stability because it is less likely to twist through impact. This helps you return the clubface to square at impact and produces straighter ball flight.

The loft of a fairway wood is typically 15 degrees for a standard 3-wood, 19 degrees for a 5-wood, and 24 degrees for a 7-wood. The loft of the 5-wood corresponds to a 2-iron, and the 7-wood to a 4-iron. Many intermediate golfers are using these woods as reliable substitutes for the corresponding irons.

Here are some of the technical advances you can expect to find in this new generation of metalwoods:

* Low center of gravity
Because a metalwood is hollow, the weight is concentrated to the sole and the outside of the club head to help get the ball airborne and increase the sweet spot.

* Stronger lofts
The low center of gravity means the manufacturer can use stronger lofts without compromising trajectory. This translates to added distance.

* Miracle metals
In the last few years, new-age steels and titanium have been used to provide even more advantages. These light, strong materials allow the club designer to maintain the strength and integrity of the club head and place yet more weight on the sole, the back, the heel, and the toe for greater stability through impact.

* Inserts
A change of rules in '92 allowed for inserts in metal clubs (irons and woods). For instance, some clubs now have forged steel inserts in the face. This harder-hitting surface provides greater impact force and a better "feel" for the player. (A complaint among better players was that metalwoods didn't provide response on off-center hits. The insert helps to combine the advantages of a perimeter-weighted metalwood with the more traditional response at impact.)

* Trouble clubs
Many fairway woods are designed as trouble clubs. Instead of a flat sole, these clubs have a rounded or convex sole, and some employ cutouts or bulges to ensure better contact in the rough or from fairway bunkers.

X: 3 (15°), 5 (18°) and 7 (21°) in Callaway X graphite shaft; X Tour: 15° in Fujikura Fit-On E-360 graphite shaft. Shaft length (3-wood): 43", graphite

Company line: "The new Modified X-Sole lowers the leading edge and provides versatile turf interaction, cutting through thick rough or gliding smoothly over tight fairways. A slightly larger head and deeper face offer a larger effective hitting area."

PROS: Great-feeling woods, can track where the head is at all times and delivers an energetic release at impact; copes well with uneven lies; consistent mid- to low, penetrating trajectory; Tour version sets up square and stays there, shots fly lower; produces clean strikes from fairway; looks comfortable in deep rough.

CONS: Distance forgiveness is somewhat inconsistent on misses; slightly shorter total distance, on average, than many others tested; can be difficult to find the sweet spot in rough.

"Center shots have a sweet spring to them."

3 (13°), 3 (15°), 5 (19°) and 7 (22°) in Fujikura Fit-On M Red and Fujikura Fit-On M Gold graphite shaft. Shaft length (3-wood): 43.25", graphite

Company line: "The large head improves MOI for stability and accuracy. It's our largest fairway-wood face ever and features a Carpenter custom 455 steel face."

PROS: Excellent forgiveness, featured the tightest side-to-side dispersion in test; HiBore is a great description of the ball flight; easy-to-hit woods with a lively face; head has nice heft that is present throughout the swing and cuts through rough; highest trajectory in the test, but there is still room for workability; a good choice for those who have trouble getting the ball off the ground.

CONS: Odd crown shape can take some getting used to; high flight can cost yards into the wind; some question impact feel on off-center shots.

"Wide sweet spot makes for predictable direction and distance."