Equipment
The Launcher is back! Cleveland’s new, full line of golf clubs
What’s the first word that comes to your mind when I say “Cleveland?” For millennials who grew up with golf, it’s probably “Launcher.”
The Launcher name is synonymous with Cleveland Golf, and it still carries a cult-like enthusiasm despite the company not releasing a “Launcher” product in five years. This time around, golfers won’t find Launcher clubs in the bags of Tour pros as in year’s past. That’s because the new Cleveland Launcher line — which includes Launcher HB (HiBore) woods, CBX irons and Launcher HB (HiBore) — is filled with game-improvement clubs made for amateur golfers who need the ultimate in distance and forgiveness by offering the highest-launching clubs possible.
Here’s a brief gallery of popular Cleveland Launcher and HiBore designs from the company’s past.
We break down each of the new offerings below, which are each available starting September 15.
Launcher HB (HiBore) Woods
Cleveland’s line of HiBore golf clubs have always been identified by a bowl-like, or concave construction on their crowns — at least on the drivers — that’s designed to launch the golf ball as high as possible. The idea behind HiBore has always been that golf clubs that produce higher-launch will be more forgiving, and ultimately help golfers hit longer and straighter shots.
Cleveland is chasing even higher launch and more forgiveness with the new line of Launcher HiBore drivers, fairway woods and hybrids, as well as greater ball speeds. To achieve this, there are four key technologies in the new Launcher HB golf clubs:
- New Crown: While not the same cup-like design as HiBore drivers in the past, the new Launcher HB drivers have a HiBore crown designed to flex at impact to produce a high launch and low spin by lowering CG (center of gravity) in the club head.
- Flex Fin: Fin-like designs on the sole compress at impact to help transfer energy from the club head to the golf ball at impact for faster ball speeds, especially on mishits.
- Cup Face: Cleveland says the Cup Face is designed to produce a higher COR (coefficient of restitution, a measure of energy transfer), thus making the clubs produce more distance and forgiveness.
- Ultra-lightweight hosel: Cleveland designed the hosels to be lighter, therefore lowering overall CG in the club head, helping to make them higher launching and more forgiving.
The Cleveland Launcher HB clubs will come stock with Miyazaki C. Kua shafts in the following lofts; Driver ($299.99): 9, 10.5 and 12 degrees, Fairway Woods ($219.99): 15 and 18 degrees, Hybrids ($199.99): 19, 22 and 25 degrees.
Full Specs (click to zoom)
CBX Irons
While donning the Launcher name, Cleveland’s new CBX irons also use designs that you may recognize from its new CBX wedges.
In order to create more spin, and therefore more control, Cleveland’s CBX irons have the company’s Tour Zip Grooves with double-laser milling between the grooves, just like you see on its CBX wedges. The irons also have a V-Sole that helps them more easily glide through the turf. The V-Sole is progressive throughout the set to optimize the turf interaction of each individual iron. Like the CBX wedges, the CBX irons have feel balancing technology, too, which means weight is moved toward the toe to center CG in the head for better distance control and feel, according to Cleveland.
As you’d expect from an iron with the Launcher name, the irons are also built for distance. This is attributable to their cavity-back construction and a cup face that’s designed to increase ball speeds across the face.
Cleveland’s CBX irons come stock with True Temper Dynamic Gold DST 98 shafts, and will sell for $699.99 (4-PW).
Full Specs (Click to enlarge)
Launcher HB Irons
Take one look at Cleveland’s new Launcher HB irons, and you can see why they have that name They have obvious influence from HiBore driver designs of the past, equipped with the concave, bowl-like shape on their cavities.
The sets are progressively designed so the short irons look like traditional irons with the mid and long irons progressing to look more like hybrids. The hollow irons are said to provide “drastically more forgiveness,” according to Cleveland, and the HiBore crowns are designed to keep weight low and rearward in the clubhead for more forgiveness and higher launch. They’re also built with high-strength, HT1770 steel faces to raise COR and boost distance.
Cleveland’s Launcher HB irons will come stock with either Miyazaki C. Kua graphite shafts ($799.99: 4-PW) or True Temper Dynamic Gold 98 steel shafts ($699.99: 4-PW).
Discussion: See what GolfWRX members are saying about the return of the Launcher in our forums.
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Whats in the Bag
Drew Brees WITB 2024 (April)
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Driver: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus (10.5 degrees)
Mini driver: TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper (13.5 degrees)
5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth Plus (19 degrees)
Irons: TaylorMade P790 (4-8, PW), TaylorMade P760 (9)
Wedges: TaylorMade MG Hi-Toe (52-09, 56-10, 60)
Putter: Scotty Cameron Select Newport 2 Prototype
Check out more in-hand photos of Drew Brees’ clubs here.
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Equipment
Putter Roundup: 2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
We always get some great photos of some phenomenal putters at tour events and love to share them. Here are a few from the 2024 Zurich Classic that caught our eye and seemed interesting. (And as a reminder, you can check out all our photos from New Orleans here)
MJ Daffue’s Scotty Cameron T-11 Prototype
MJ is going with the new Scotty Cameron T-11 Prototype this week. The putter is a multi-piece mallet that puts an emphasis on stability with the wings on the back. Daffue’s putter does have a design that differs from retail with a monotone finish, which eliminates the black paint on the aluminum parts that we see at retail. He also has a half siteline milled into the top and an L-neck welded on for some additional toe hang. The face features a deeper milling that should offer a softer feel and slightly quieter sound.
Scotty Cameron T-7.5 Prototype
We spotted a few different Scotty Cameron Phantom models with modified rear flanges. It looks like the straight black flange was cut into a half circle for a little softer look at address. On this T-7.5, you can still see the raw aluminum from the back view, so this might have been a last-minute job to get them out on tour. The semi-circle also has a white line on it, maybe to frame the ball differently.
Alex Fitzpatrick’s Bettinardi SS16 DASS
Alex’s SS16 is made from Bettinardi’s famous D.A.S.S., or double-aged stainless steel, for a softer and more responsive feel. The face has a unique diamond pattern milling and features a logo that I feel like I have seen before, but can’t put a name to. The putter is a classic mid-mallet style with a simple, single white siteline on the top. The sole is clean with just the SS16, DASS, and a green triangle logo on it.
Steve Stricker’s Odyssey White Hot No. 2
This putter has made some amazing putts in its long career! Stricker’s White Hot No. 2 might be in the top 10 of most famous putters in golf. When you see all the dents and lead tape, you know the heel will be up and it will be sinking putts! The soft White Hot insert looks to be in good shape and has less wear on it than the rest of the putter. We don’t know how much lead tape is on the sole, but it has to be multiple layers compacted down over the years.
Doug Ghim’s Scotty Cameron T-7 Prototype
This T-7 should win the award for “best color finish” in this list with its deep chromatic bronze. It looks like Scotty added a cherry bomb dot to the heel of the deep-milled face and filled it with a very dark blue paint. The rest of the putter looks pretty stock with its single site line on the topline and twin site lines down the “fangs” of the putter. Twin 5-gram weights are installed in the sole and the putter is finished off with a gloss black double bend shaft with a fill shaft offset.
- Check out the rest of our photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic
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Equipment
Spotted: Project X Denali hybrid shaft
Project X’s Denali wood shafts have been seen in more and more golf bags this year as we start off the season. As a refresher, Denali Blue is the mid-launch and mid-spin model while Denali Black is for players seeking lower launch and spin.
Denali combines great feel with stability and increased ball speed. Currently, Project X only offers Denali Blue and Black in wood shafts, but we spotted a hybrid shaft in Daniel Berger’s bag at the 2024 Zurich Classic.
The shaft looks to be a Denali Blue 105G – HY in TX flex. No word on details from Project X yet but we can assume that this is a mid-launching shaft that weighs around 105 grams in Tour X-Stiff flex.
Berger has this shaft in his TaylorMade P770 3-iron, likely for some added launch and spin to hold the green from longer distances.
Hopefully, this means we will see some more shafts coming under the Denali name in the future, as I think many of us would like to try one in a hybrid or utility iron!
- Check out the rest of our photos from the 2024 Zurich Classic
- Check out in-hand photos of Daniel Berger’s full WITB here.
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UnclePhil
Nov 19, 2017 at 6:57 am
What’s with the 50 gram plywood shafts? Come on guys, give us something in the 60gram neighborhood.
tlmck
Aug 7, 2017 at 9:15 pm
Again with the stupid lofts on irons.
Ude
Aug 8, 2017 at 2:32 am
5 iron loft = 3 iron loft
look my 5 iron goes farther than your 5 iron
Robert Parsons
Aug 7, 2017 at 2:15 pm
I’m in board.
Glued hosel. No adjustable gimmicks. Looks good. What’s not to like?
If it performs well for my swing, I might pick one up.
Dave R
Aug 7, 2017 at 9:55 am
Had a set of the older models . Perfect if your going fishing they dig up worms real easy. Probably their worst design to date. They look and are ugly. I like Cleveland clubs but these are not what will help anybody,just one person opinion . Good luck in selling them though and at least the price does reflect what they are worth.
BallBuster
Aug 7, 2017 at 9:45 am
I’ve always like Cleveland clubs and think they’re highly underrated. I just bought a used Launcher driver with that little red and white logo by the R for $25 at Golf Galaxy and I’ve been blasting it such that I’ve benched a reliable Titleist 910 I’ve hit for years. Very straight and longer for me. Love the feel and that red shaft fits my swing. Still enjoy my DST hybrids, CG7 black pearl irons too and VP3 mallet putter as well.
AceW7Iron
Aug 7, 2017 at 7:35 am
Looks like they took a big ol page out of Callaway’s book but who can blame them?
Callaway has it going on and its no secret in 2017