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Cobra launches new King F9 Speedback drivers and fairways

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Every driver company boasts a couple technological advances with their new driver launches; maybe a new crown to save weight, an aerodynamic crown for more club head speed, a different sole design, a way to shift CG to dial in trajectory, higher MOI, or a different face technology. Cobra, on the other hand, has thrown the kitchen sink at its new King F9 Speedback drivers, checking off all of those boxes — even though aerodynamic designs are often detrimental to lowering CG.

At a recent media event at the Floridian, Cobra presented information on the new technologies and designs.

Compared to popular technologies in today’s current driver market, according to Cobra, the new King F9 Speedback drivers are the only ones to check off all the boxes.

In general, Cobra’s King F9 Speedback drivers are designed to help achieve more club head speed with a more aerodynamic crown, coupled with a lower center of gravity (CG) to make the driver fly farther. How did Cobra accomplish that exactly?

Below, we’ll dive into some of the key technologies in its drivers that are listed above. Then, we will get into Cobra’s new King F9 Speedback and Speedback Tour fairway woods, as well.

All King F9 products are available on January 18, 2019. Click here for more in-hand photos.

Cobra King F9 Speedback drivers

What does Speedback mean? Speedback is the combination of Aerodynamic, or “Aeroficient” crown designs, and a sole structure designed to lower CG. PWR Ridges on the top of the driver crown work to reduce drag as the club head flies through the air in your downswing, thus increasing club head speed. Cobra also raised the “perimeter skirt, tail and crown” and rounded off the edges to further reduce drag. To lower CG in the club head after raising it to achieve those aerodynamic qualities, Cobra built a visible structure on the rear sole of the club head.

Related: Cobra’s King F9 Speedback irons and hybrids

Cobra’s King F9 Speedback drivers, with bodies and faces made from 8-1-1 Titanium, also have carbon fiber crowns that “wrap around” the bodies in order to save 10 grams of additional weight to be distributed lower in the club head. Here’s a look at that wrap-around design via Cobra graphics.

Cobra is once again CNC-milling its King F9 faces, as it did with the previous King Cobra F8 drivers, in order to help deliver more precise faces that allow the company to design them thinner and hotter due to tighter tolerances. Cobra says the new faces are 3 percent thinner and 10 percent lighter.

Additionally, due to improved bulge-and-roll, the drivers have different loft measurements across the face in order to help your golf ball curve back to the center line no matter where you hit the ball.

With new “E9 Speed Tuned technology,” Cobra also says it’s optimized the bottom and top roll curvatures of the face — the goal is to minimize the negatives of gear effect (slices and hooks), according to Cobra. In theory, that means strikes off the toe and heel would both curve back to the center line, instead of hooking or slicing too much.

To help golfers dial in launch, spin and draw/fade bias, the King F9 Speedback drivers have MyFly8 hosels (8 loft settings, with 3 draw settings) with the familiar Smart Pad to keep the driver sitting flat, and two weight ports on the sole that house either 14- or 2-gram weights to move weight forward or back. Here’s a look at the specs:

In the end, Cobra says its new F9 driver (9 degrees, back setting) produces 1 mph more ball speed than the F8+ driver, 450 rpm lower spin and 8.8 yards more distance.

Cobra’s new drivers (available in yellow and “avalanche” colorways) will sell for $449 with Cobra’s Lamkin Crossline grips, equipped with Cobra Connect powered by Arccos. Aftermarket shaft options include UST Mamiya Helium 50, Fujikura Atmos Tour Spec Blue, Fujikura Atmos Tour Spec Black 7 or the Project X HZRDUS Smoke 60.

Cobra King F9 Speedback and Speedback Tour fairways

Like the F9 drivers, the F9 fairway woods are designed to have lower CGs to help increase launch and ball speed. To achieve this, Cobra added a fixed, 15-gram Tungsten weight in the rear sole of the woods.

For better turf interaction, Cobra shallowed out the Baffler Rail heights in the lower-lofted woods (which require more of a sweeping motion) and taller rails on the higher-lofted woods (which typically require steeper/more varied angles of attack).

As with the drivers, the fairway woods also have aerodynamic crowns that have PWR Ridges for more clubhead speed, and carbon fiber crowns to save weight. For the first time on a Cobra fairway wood are also CNC-milled faces, which, according to Cobra, increases ball speeds by up to 2.5 mph compared to polished faces.

Each of the King F9 fairway woods ($269 apiece) also come with MyFly8 hosels to help dial in loft and trajectory biases. As you may expect, the King F9 Speedback Tour model has a more compact shape and has a forward CG for a more penetrating ball flight. Here are the specs for each below

King F9 Speedback Specs via Cobra

  • Colors: Black/Yellow or Satin Black/Avalanche
  • Grip: Lamkin Crossline (58+) Connect – Black
  • Shaft Options: UST Mamiya Helium 60 or Fujikura Atmos Blue 7
  • Available in RH (LH available in custom)

King F9 Speedback Tour Specs

  • Colors: Satin Black
  • Grip: Lamkin Crossline (58+) Connect – Black
  • Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke 70
  • 3-4 wood available in RH (LH available in custom); 4-5 wood available in RH only.

Related: Cobra’s King F9 Speedback irons and hybrids

Bonus: Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau talk about the new driver (and in-hand pics of their clubs)

 

Click here to watch the full “What’s in the Bag?” video

Fowler’s new Cobra King F9 Speedback

See more photos and join the discussion about Rickie’s new driver

Bryson’s new Cobra King F9 Speedback driver

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31 Comments

31 Comments

  1. CJ

    Nov 13, 2018 at 1:09 pm

    Excited to give these a try when they finally get to my local golf stores

  2. ogo

    Oct 31, 2018 at 11:44 pm

    WOW!!!! Look at the Cobra picture for bulge and roll face mapping.
    The driver head DROOPS 7º at Impact!!! That means that F9 head must start 7º up and the shaft lie 7º down… go figure!!!

    • steve

      Nov 1, 2018 at 3:53 pm

      No you don’t… because when the driver head droops down it also torques closed… and that squares the face to some extent. However your driver should be toe up at address somewhat to compensate for shaft tip droop. Shaft tip torque is the real unknown factor for your swing action.

      • geohogan

        Dec 26, 2018 at 8:13 pm

        A decent shaft will zero out droop, gear effect and kick.
        one example : Nunchuk

  3. ogo

    Oct 31, 2018 at 11:39 pm

    Copious Cobra {{{love}}} flowing on the WRX forum… the gearhead wet dream… 😛

  4. Gee

    Oct 31, 2018 at 11:53 am

    If that was in Driver v Driver 2, it would have been voted off !

    Awful looking thing with yet more bullsh*t technology.

  5. valen

    Oct 31, 2018 at 12:00 am

    WOW!!!!!!! Lovely clubs… soooo pretty too.

    • Scheiss

      Oct 31, 2018 at 2:08 am

      I like your sarcasm.
      Puma, being a German company, is going for that flag color combo that TM did one time with their R7 series when everything was black red and yellow

      • Dr. Freud

        Nov 1, 2018 at 3:55 pm

        Bright colors really turn on adolescent gearheads…. only black is macho.

  6. Coach

    Oct 30, 2018 at 11:22 pm

    reminds me of Nike Vapor Flex, in terms of aero and cg.

    • Brandon Miller

      Nov 13, 2018 at 12:07 pm

      Reminds me of the Nike Sasquatch Sumo 2 driver. Very similar color scheme and a bit boxy as well.

  7. Jack

    Oct 30, 2018 at 10:00 pm

    The G400 has the least amount of features but frequently considered the best current gen driver. Hm….

  8. allan

    Oct 30, 2018 at 9:51 pm

    I love the colors on the sole.
    I love the colors on the shaft
    I love the colors on the grip.
    I love the colors on my glove.
    I am a golfer of many colors.

  9. Tiger Noods

    Oct 30, 2018 at 9:25 pm

    They look nice.

    But it’s Cobra. It’ll be half price next month.

    • allan

      Oct 30, 2018 at 9:53 pm

      “nice”? … “nice”?!! … they are absolutely gorgeous hot hot hot !!!!

  10. Cognitive behavior

    Oct 30, 2018 at 7:23 pm

    Have 2 flyz7’s and a f8 ,cali bb,r11,r15,slider ,Nike and I only bought 2 new .so I’ll try it when the price goes down in a few years

  11. eddie

    Oct 30, 2018 at 5:24 pm

    Gorgeous…. totally gorgeous…. and they will soon be in my WITB arsenal of weapons. Watch out!!!!

  12. Tom

    Oct 30, 2018 at 1:52 pm

    WOW, it sounds like an investment of hundreds of dollars in these new woods will result in a massive increase in distance….like up to 6 inches more carry and roll……LOL!

    Sellers be sellin!

  13. Jordan

    Oct 30, 2018 at 11:02 am

    I am all in for the Tour Fairway….. in 2 years when its $80 on eBay.

  14. Snacks

    Oct 30, 2018 at 10:37 am

    Love me some Cobra gear though im kinda disappointed with this. Theses marketing (sorry, golf mfg) companies are all headed in the same direction and its boring. ME ME ME “WE are the fastest, longest, most forgiving blah blah blah”. They’re all yelling the same language and story. It has just become who can yell the same A.O.I. story the loudest. Come up with a new angle to take peoples money (its there).

  15. ~j~

    Oct 30, 2018 at 10:20 am

    If only they’d lose the tear drop / pear shape. For whatever reason, I just can’t center these types of head designs. Just doesn’t line up in my head right.

  16. Blue

    Oct 30, 2018 at 9:42 am

    Love how it says that it has movable weights but the Calloway does not, ummmm you can move the weights in it.

    • Jp

      Oct 30, 2018 at 10:14 am

      The Rogue has 1 weight. Where can you move it?

      It may have a changeable weight, but not a moveable weight.

      • SB

        Oct 30, 2018 at 10:47 am

        That driver comparison slide is misleading for Callaway. Yeah, there is Rogue but there is also Rogue Sub Zero which has 2 weights. Callaway also has Speed Step on the front of the crown.

        I think the F9 looks good, sleek. However, would have preferred it with some sliding weights to add some weight based draw or face trajectory. Better looking than the F8 for sure. Nice Cobra!

      • Blue

        Oct 31, 2018 at 2:11 pm

        You are right, sorry, I was thinking of the Sub Zero like SB said. But still misleading.

  17. MB

    Oct 30, 2018 at 9:35 am

    In time we will see how it sells.

  18. dat

    Oct 30, 2018 at 9:10 am

    Love the colorway. Two tone bottom with a nice looking crown. Should be a worthy contender for my LTD.

  19. BJ

    Oct 30, 2018 at 8:59 am

    Ok Cobra….Im interested

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Equipment

Q&A: Martin Trainer on his Bobby Grace “Greg Chalmers” putter, 6.5-degree driver, and “butter knife” 2-iron

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As unbiasedly as I can put it, Martin Trainer has one of the coolest club setups in professional golf. (At some point soon, I’ll put together a top-10 list of “coolest club setups on Tour,” but I know that Trainer will be in the top-10)

What a lineup. He plays a 6.5-degree Wilson prototype driver, a 13-degree Wilson prototype 3-wood, a true blade Wilson Staff Model 2-iron, and a Bobby Grace “Greg Chalmers Commemorative” putter!

 

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I mean, look at this 2-iron from address…

To quote the great author R.L. Stine: “Goosebumps.”

On Wednesday at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open, I caught up with Trainer to learn more about his bag setup.

Here’s what he had to say:

You have the Internet going crazy over your bag setup, and your putter. Where’d you pick the Bobby Grace-Greg Chalmers putter up? How long have you had it?

MT: This was from when Bobby Grace came to my course in California: Cal Club. And for whatever reason, they just started having them in the shop. So then I took my buddy’s, started using it, and made, like, a million putts in a row, which is how every putter story begins, I guess.

And then, I bought a couple of my own, used it for years, got to the Tour with it, won on Tour with it (the 2019 Puerto Rico Open). Then, about a year later, started using another putter, did that for a couple years, but now it’s back in the bag.

When did it come back in the bag?

MT: December of this past year. So a few months ago.

What year would you say was the first time you threw that in the bag, or, like, when you bought it?

MT: God…Probably, 2016, maybe? 2018?

Do you remember how much you paid for it?

MT: I don’t know, actually. Maybe $100-150 bucks or something. I think that’s the only golf club I’ve bought between high school and now. Well, two, since I bought two of them.

The driver is interesting, too. What went into the prototyping process?

MT: That was a version of the current driver, but it was the prototype that they first came out with for Tour guys to try. And for whatever reason, I just never switched out to the new one.

It’s just 6.5 degrees, right?

MT: Yeah. Very low loft, yeah.

What kind of ball speed do you have with that these days?

MT: Like high 170’s.

Yeah, that’ll work. And then a 2-iron blade? We’re seeing fewer and fewer of those out here.

MT: Yeah. The butter knife.

Very cool thing to have in the bag. Have you done any testing with driving irons? 

MT: Yeah, I used to have a thicker one, but it was a little offset, and I never hit it that well. And then finally, I started messing around with the butter knife. And I remember the first time I looked down at it, I was terrified. And then I ended up getting used to it, putting it in play, and it’s been in place since. It’s a pretty good club for me.

How far do you carry that? 

MT: Like 235.

A good little wind club, I’m sure.

MTL Yeah, exactly. I can hit it very low. It’s great.

I love it. You have people shook looking at that. Thanks for the time, man. 

MT: Absolutely.

To see more photos and discussion of Trainer’s bag, click here.

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Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (3/28/24): L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max Broomstick with LA Golf Paige Spiranac shaft

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At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals that all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.

It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.

Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, there is a listing for a L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max Broomstick putter with LA Golf Paige Spiranac shaft.

From the seller: (@hibcam): “L.A.B. GOLF Mezz.1 Max Broomstick- LA Golf Paige Spiranac Shaft- 44″/79.5. Brand new, never used brown leather cover. The head was professionally anodized from Orange to Blue (Orange looked bad with the Pink shaft so I had it changed). Only a few rounds on this combo. Please see last pic- slight ding on back corner. 8.5-10 condition. THE SHAFT COST $475/ THE PUTTER $625. $799 shipped in the US. ONLY $699 SHIPPED.”

To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: L.A.B. Golf Mezz.1 Max Broomstick with LA Golf Paige Spiranac shaft

This is the most impressive current listing from the GolfWRX BST, and if you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum you can check them out here: GolfWRX BST Rules

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Spotted: Tony Finau’s driver shaft change at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open

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Tony Finau has always been known as one of the longest players on the PGA Tour, but he has recently been working on adding a little more distance. Last year, Finau averaged 118.3 mph club head speed and 178.08 mph ball speed, all while playing a Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70 TX driver shaft. This year, he has increased his club head speed to 123.93 mph and his ball speed to 183.32 mph.

However, Finau’s overall distance has decreased by two yards in that time. From a fitting perspective, something was amiss. We asked Tony about the shaft change at the Texas Children’s Hospital Open.

“[I’m seeing] better numbers with the spin. My driver’s been a little high spin for me over the last month or so, and so I just figured it was time to probably check out the equipment,” Finau said. “And it definitely showed me that I was using a shaft that’s maybe a little too tip-stiff for me, the way I load the club now. [I’m seeing] better numbers with the spin.”

Finau switched from the Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70 TX into the Diamana GT 70 TX. The newer Diamana GT has a slightly different profile than the D+ Limited with the stiffest handle section in the Diamana lineup. The mid sections between the two are similar stiffness but the tip is just slightly stiffer in the Diamana GT. Both shafts are within one gram of each other in the 70 TX. The torque rating on the GT is 0.1 higher than the D+Limited’s 2.7 measurement.

Mitsubishi lists the Diamana GT as a shaft between the mid-launching Diamana TB and the new low-launch Diamana WB shafts. For most players, it would be considered a mid/low launch and low-spin shaft option. Mitsubishi’s Xlink Tech Resin System makes sure the maximum carbon fiber content is there for smooth feel without reducing the strength of the shaft. MR70 carbon fiber is used for reinforcing the shaft and boron is used in the tip for its high strength and compression properties.

Finau is still using his trusty Ping G430 LST driver in 9 degrees and has the adjustable hosel set to -1 degree of loft (standard lie angle). Finau’s long-time favorite Lamkin UTX Green grip is installed. He definitely has a few extra wraps of tape under that grip as you can see the bulge down where the grip meets the shaft.

One final note: Per Ping’s PGA Tour rep Kenton Oates, Finau’s driver is also adjusted to play with an additional degree of loft to help dial in his desired launch.

We’ll see how he fares with the new setup this week in Houston!

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