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GolfWRX Insider: Inside the development of Rickie Fowler’s Cobra irons (plus full specs)

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It’s been nearly 10 years since Rickie Fowler showed up on a PGA Tour driving range with Cobra blades in the bag. He was coming off of a 2010 rookie campaign that immediately put the young Californian into every big golf conversation there was to be had. Its been fun looking back at the work that has been done thus far, but oh my, did they go into a rabbit hole on this project.

On Sunday, Fowler will debut a set of the most unique forgings I’ve seen in a long time…maybe ever. The Cobra Golf Rev33 (33rd revision) muscleback irons are the brainchild of Cobra R&D, Director of Tour Operations Ben Schomin and Rickie Fowler. As you can see in the photos, getting here took some serious engineering chops and a lot of Rickie’s imagination.

The development process of the Rev33 took place over a year, from late 2018 to late 2019, and in that time Cobra R&D, Fowler, and Schomin had one goal in mind—make an iron designed with Rickie Fowler that inspired confidence in Rickie Fowler.

I had a chance to chat with Cobra’s Director of Tour Operations Ben Schomin on the development of the Rev33, and this is what he had to say.

JW: This isn’t the first time you have collaborated with Rickie on a Cobra iron. What made this experience feel different?

BS: In many ways designing a muscle back has similarities no matter who is making them but in this case, the experience was more of an exploration of taking the best of what Rick liked from the past, keeping it and adding in his own personal preferences to truly make it his iron. That involved as you know now 33 versions but what this process landed us on is a very special iron that has attributes you don’t see very often.

JW: It sounds like this project was a bit old craftsmanship and new tech—computers and a good old fashioned grind wheel.

BS: Yeah, the Sunday before Torrey last year, we had Rickie in the workshop and I pulled out some old MB heads and started grinding. As we went along and the ideas started flowing he’d say a little more off here, blend this line, a little less off there, etc… It was a great day especially if you’re a gear nerd like me.

JW: From the look of it there is some “old school” attributes to this iron. Did you look back at old forgings for inspiration?

BS: I went into our archive for inspiration. Gathering iconic blades from years past; MP14/29, Ram FX Tour Grinds, Wilson Staff Fluid Feel sets, Cobra Norman grinds, etc… The crazy thing was I forgot how much offset many of those old school blades had. That’s when I realized we could pick out certain design features and aesthetics, but ultimately this new iron idea was going to be just that, an entirely new creation. Remember Muscle Backs typically follow the similar design rules, where we and many other great companies get creative is in the engineering of it all. Edges, lines, widths, etc… all while making sure they hold up for the best players in the world. No easy task.

Top Line of early Proto 4-iron Rev33

JW: Let’s talk about that offset—or the fact that it’s not there, mathematically or optically.

BS: LOL. That’s the first thing you will notice with these. His old irons had barely any offset, to begin with, (40/1000th of an inch) so we are already dealing with very little space. So the real question was how do we take out more offset and eliminate any appearance of offset. That’s where it got interesting. If you set it down, you would notice that the hosel has no taper to it at all. That taper, believe it or not, can optically add the appearance of some offset, next step was to flatten out the “par” area—most irons have a little space from the ferrule to the scoring line; these have basically none. So to your point, mathematically, there is zero offset and optically there is zero, which is rare.

JW: You mentioned the 7-iron being the anchor club in this set. Explain that. 

BS: Rickie loves the look of the 7-iron; it’s his favorite shape in the set. The idea was to transfer the look of that club into the whole set. You can really see it in the shorter clubs where the roundness or softness in those clubs is replaced by sharper lines from toe to heel. That’s where visually the set will catch any player’s eye.

JW: From a spec standpoint, is Rickie married to certain lofts? Another way to ask is are the Rev33 engineered around his loft preferences or was a bit more fluid?

BS: Rickie’s specs have always been right where they are now (47 PW on down). The set was engineered around his specific lofts. I understand with launch conditions/preference being stuck on certain specs could add some extra math but in this case, it didn’t hold us up much nor was it really a mountain to climb. Remember these are soft metal MB’s so a degree here or there won’t alter the performance.

Rickie Fowler Rev33 iron specs (4-PW)

Shafts: KBS C-Taper 125S+ (soft stepped)

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align (non-brushed RF style)

  • 4: 23° / 61.5° / D3 /38
  • 5: 27° / 62° / D3 /37.5
  • 6: 31° / 62.5° / D3 /37
  • 7: 35° / 63° / D3 /36.5
  • 8: 39° / 63.5° / D3/36
  • 9: 43° / 64° / D3 /35.75
  • PW: 47° / 64.5° / D3 /35.5

JW: He has been in a KBS Tour C Taper S+ for a while. Was that the shaft all the testing was done with?

BS: Yes, he switched to a Dynamic Gold S400 at one point last season to find some spin, but the KBS has been in the bag for a while, so the Rev33 was tested with that shaft.

JW: In speaking with Rickie last year, he mentioned the turf interaction being so good on King MB. Was that sole something you wanted to keep in the Rev33?

BS: We didn’t want to sacrifice anything he loved from the King MB irons, so the sole shape, camber ,and bounce remain the same. Since he plays at 1/2-inch short, we also continue to add tungsten plugs to increase weight. Blade length from heel to toe is about the same as well, but aesthetically everything else has been changed. Even the copper finish was his pick. We set out to make a unique iron that was his, and we didn’t stop until it was just right.

JW: What materials are these irons made of?

BS: His current prototype sets have been machined in-house from 304 stainless steel.

The Cobra “Rev33” MB are scheduled to be released as a custom order beginning fall 2020.

JUNO BEACH, FLORIDA – MAY 17: A detail of the clubs of Rickie Fowler of the CDC Foundation team prior to the TaylorMade Driving Relieve Supported By UnitedHealth Group on May 17, 2020 at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

JUNO BEACH, FLORIDA – MAY 17: Rickie Fowler of the CDC Foundation team plays a shot from a bunker on the third hole during the TaylorMade Driving Relieve Supported By UnitedHealth Group on May 17, 2020 at Seminole Golf Club in Juno Beach, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

 

 

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16 Comments

16 Comments

  1. Pingback: You can (finally!) buy Rickie Fowler’s Rev33 irons: Cobra releasing limited RF Proto irons – GolfWRX

  2. VINICIUS COSTA

    Sep 20, 2020 at 5:38 pm

    Any word on the release date for these irons?

  3. Wilson

    May 16, 2020 at 5:28 am

    Stainless steel? Why not 1020 or S20C?

  4. Kevin

    May 15, 2020 at 11:21 pm

    FINALLY we get an answer on when Cobra is releasing a new MB. I LOVE LOVE LOVE the current MBs but as a gear junkie ever since they had this new “Rickie Proto” ive been wanting a set. Gonna have to order a set of the new ones and probably an extra set of the current model if they drop the price to move old stock. Thank you for this article!!

  5. Jeff

    May 15, 2020 at 6:54 pm

    Kevin Na would be so upset

  6. Mike Rowe

    May 15, 2020 at 3:24 pm

    Remember when Rickie switched iron shafts and it was a huge story, but when he switched back no one said a word? Pretty weird.

  7. stanley

    May 15, 2020 at 10:59 am

    for the first time in my life, “those cobra irons are amazing.” there are some mean curves on those cobras!!!

  8. Cody Reeder

    May 15, 2020 at 10:42 am

    I am getting a set….

  9. Mike Honcho

    May 15, 2020 at 10:39 am

    It took cobra a year to rip of the p7tw? From the inspiration (mp14/29), look, to the milling, to the tungsten plugs? You would think in a year you could have came up with something unique. I would label this a shank but it’s really more just diarrhea.

    • Guy who actualy pays attention to detail

      May 15, 2020 at 11:01 am

      Ricky has had a tungsten plug in his irons for many years, so nothing new there. Tungsten in irons has been going on for quite a while in general (Ping S56 from 2011, first Ap2 irons from way back). Also, how is it ripping off when they are both ripping off older irons? This iron honestly looks nothing like the P7tw. Your “Shank” comment, Ironically, these would be the first irons ever made that could shank relatively straight because they milled the par area and hosel flat to remove the offset look. I’m not even sure what would happen on a hosel shot.

    • Craig

      May 15, 2020 at 10:23 pm

      Um, no. It is well known Tiger likes a little bit of offset and longer blade. These are almost the opposite, zero offset and tiny blade.

    • Troll Hunter 18

      Jan 25, 2021 at 12:13 pm

      Troll

  10. Shallowface

    May 15, 2020 at 9:55 am

    The 304 Stainless is interesting. I’ve heard they need to be checked frequently as they go out of spec for loft and lie very easily with use. No problem for Fowler, but it could be an issue for the consumer.

    • chip75

      May 17, 2020 at 3:34 pm

      I’m sure those that are inclined will get them checked, otherwise they’ll be just like other clubs that “wander” around though use.

  11. Pelling

    May 15, 2020 at 9:35 am

    Do they keep Rickie from putting big numbers on the card?

  12. dat

    May 15, 2020 at 9:23 am

    These are amazing clubs. Hope they bring something like them to retail. What’s the deal with the grips? (non-brushed RF style)

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Whats in the Bag

Russell Henley WITB 2024 (March)

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  • Russell Henley WITB accurate as of the Cognizant Classic.

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (10 degrees, B1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70 6.5 TX

3-wood: Titleist TS3 (16.5 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX

Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT Hybrid 100 TX

Irons: Titleist T100 (4-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold AMT (4-6), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (7-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 50-08F @51, 54-10S, @55, 60-04T)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400

Putter: Scotty Cameron T5 Prototype

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

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Whats in the Bag

Vince Carter WITB 2024 (March)

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  • The NBA legend was teeing it up in the Arnold Palmer Invitational Pro-Am.

Driver: Ping G430 Max 10K (9 degrees)

3-wood: Ping G430 Max (15 degrees)

7-wood: Ping G430 Max (21 degrees)

Irons: Ping i230 (4-PW)

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50, 54, 58)

Putter: Ping

Ball: Renegade Mbu

Check out more photos of Vince Carter’s WITB here.

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From the Forums: I need more forgiveness in my irons – Looking for recommendations

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In our forums, our members have been discussing the most forgiving irons currently on the market. WRXer ‘TheShark1’ is on the hunt for a new set of irons, saying:

“Currently gaming the Mizuno Pro 225’s but think I need more forgiveness in my irons. My well struck shots are real nice, but my mishits are not performing as good as I had hoped anymore. I really like hollow body irons so if I could find something more forgiving in a hollow body iron that would be great.

Open to any and all recommendations other than Ping. Can’t hit Ping irons at all.”

And our members have been sharing their best suggestions in our forum.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • AvidSwampThing66: “Another vote for the super forgiving and fast Paradym irons.   They look really good for being a GI iron.”
  • bobfoster: “I just went from MP20 MMCs to the new 245s in my scoring irons (just played my first round with them today). If you have a chance to try them, you might find them worth a serious look.”
  • vman: “Shoot me down, but spend the money on lessons.”
  • J_Tizzle: “i525s are great off the heel in my opinion.”

Entire Thread: “From the Forums: I need more forgiveness in my irons – Looking for recommendations”

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