Equipment
Cobra launches new King F9 Speedback drivers and fairways
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
Related
- Bryson’s Cobra King F9 Speedback driver
- See what GolfWRX members are saying about the Cobra King F9 Speedback clubs in our forums
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- Kevin Tway what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X
3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 80 TX
5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 90 TX
Irons: Wilson Staff Utility (2), Titleist T100 (4-9)
Shafts: Mitsubishi MMT 100 TX (2), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F @51, 56-14F), SM7 (60-10S)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48-56), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (60)
Putter: Scotty Cameron T-5 Proto
Grip: Scotty Cameron Black Baby T
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Plus4
More photos of Kevin Tway’s WITB in the forums.
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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.
The timing of Lowry’s putter changeup was curious: Was he just using a Spider putter because he was paired with McIlroy, who’s been using a Spider Tour X head throughout 2024? Was Lowry just being festive because it’s the Zurich Classic, and he wanted to match his teammate? Did McIlroy let Lowry try his putter, and he liked it so much he actually switched into it?
Well, as it turns out, McIlroy’s only influence was inspiring Lowry to make more putts.
When asked if McIlroy had an influence on the putter switch, Lowry had this to say: “No, it’s actually a different putter than what he uses. Maybe there was more pressure there because I needed to hole some more putts if we wanted to win,” he said with a laugh.
To Lowry’s point, McIlroy plays the Tour X model, whereas Lowry switched into the Tour Z model, which has a sleeker shape in comparison, and the two sole weights of the club are more towards the face.
Lowry’s Spider Tour Z has a white True Path Alignment channel on the crown of his putter, which is reminiscent of Lowry’s former 2-ball designs, thus helping to provide a comfort factor despite the departure from his norm. Instead of a double-bend hosel, which Lowry used in his 2-ball putters, his new Spider Tour Z is designed with a short slant neck.
“I’ve been struggling on the greens, and I just needed something with a fresh look,” Lowry told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. “It has a different neck on it, as well, so it moves a bit differently, but it’s similar. It has a white line on the back of it [like my 2-ball], and it’s a mallet style. So it’s not too drastic of a change.
“I just picked it up on the putting green and I liked the look of it, so I was like, ‘Let’s give it a go.’”
Read the rest of the piece over at PGATour.com.
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Equipment
Webb Simpson equipment Q&A: Titleist’s new 2-wood, 680 blade irons, and switching to a broomstick Jailbird
With seven career wins on the PGA Tour, including a U.S. Open victory, Webb Simpson is a certified veteran on the course. But he’s also a certified veteran in the equipment world, too. He’s a gearhead who truly knows his stuff, and he’s even worked closely with Titleist on making his own custom 682.WS irons.
On Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship, I caught up with Simpson to hear about his experience with Titleist’s new prototype 2-wood, how Titleist’s 680 Forged irons from 2003 ended up back in his bag, and why he’s switching into an Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser broomstick putter this week for the first time.
Click here to read our full story about Simpson’s putter switch on PGATOUR.com’s Equipment Report, or continue reading below for my full Q&A with Simpson at Quail Hollow Club on Wednesday.
See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here
GolfWRX: It seems like you’ve been a little all over the place with your irons in the past six months or so, and now going back to the 680’s. Is that just a comfort thing? What’s been going on with the irons?
Webb Simpson: Titleist has been so great at working with me, and R&D, on trying to get an iron that kind of modernizes the 680. And so the 682.WS took the T100 grooves, but kinda took the look and the bulk and the build of the 680’s into one club. They’re beautiful, and awesome looking. I just never hit them that well for a consistent period of time. It was probably me, but then I went to T100’s and loved them. I loved the spin, the trajectory, the yardage, but again, I never went on good runs. Going through the ground, I couldn’t feel the club as well as with the blade. So last week, I’m like, ‘Alright. I’m gonna go back more for…comfort, and see if I can get on a nice little run of ball striking.’
So that’s why I went back.
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OK, that makes sense. I know you had done some 2-wood testing recently. Is that in the bag right now?
It’s like day-by-day. I used it at Hilton Head every day. Valero, I used it one round. And this week, me and my caddie will do the book every morning, and if it’s a day where we think we need it, we’ll just put it in and take the 3-wood out. I love it because it’s a super simple swap. Like, it doesn’t really change much.
Yeah, can you tell me about that club? I mean, we don’t really know anything about it yet. You know? I haven’t hit it or anything, obviously.
It has grooves like a 3-wood. Spin is perfect. And it’s honestly, like, everything is in the middle of a 3-wood and driver number. Trajectory, spin, carry, all of it. So, a Hilton Head golf course is almost too easy to talk about because, you know, there, so many holes are driver 3-wood.
Valero, our thinking was we had two par-5’s into the wind, and we knew that it would take two great shots to get there in two. So instead of hitting driver-driver, we just put it in. And I used it on those holes.
Hilton was a little easier because it was off-the-tee kind of questions. But Colonial will be a golf course where, you know, there’s a lot of driver or 3-woods. It’s kind of like a backup putter or driver for me now. I’ll bring it to every tournament.
So it’s, like, in your locker right now, probably?
Well, it would be. It’s in my house [because Webb lives near by Quail Hollow Club, and is a member at the course.] It’s in the garage.
Oh, yeah, that’s right. Do you know what holes you might use it out here if it goes in play?
Potentially 15, depending on the wind. Second shot on 10. Could be 14 off the tee. The chances here are pretty low (that he’ll use the 2-wood). But, like, Greensboro would be an awesome club all day. I’m trying to think of any other golf courses.
There’s plenty that it’ll be a nice weapon to have.
It’s interesting, the wave of 2-woods and mini drivers. Like, it’s just really taken off on Tour, and all the companies have seemed to embrace it.
Yeah. The thing I had to learn, it took me, like, at least a week to learn about it is you gotta tee it up lower than you think. I kept teeing it up too high. You need it low, like barely higher than a 3-wood. And that was where I got optimal spin and carry. If you tee it up too high, you just don’t get as much spin and lose distance, I don’t know if that’s just a mini driver thing.
And you obviously have a Jailbird putter this week. What spurred that on?
Inconsistent putting. I’m stubborn in a lot of ways when it comes to my equipment, but I have to be open minded – I just hadn’t putted consistently well in a while. And I’m like, ‘Man, I feel my ball-striking coming along. Like I feel better; for real, better.’
If I can just get something in my hands that I’m consistent with. Being on Tour, you see it every year, guys get on little runs. I can put together four to five tournaments where I’m all the sudden back in the majors, or in the FedExCup Playoffs. You can turn things around quick out here. I’m like, ‘Man, whatever’s going to get me there, great.’
My caddie, David Cook, caddied for Akshay at the Houston Open and he putted beautifully. Then, I watched Akshay on TV at Valero, and he putted beautifully. And, I’m like, ‘I’m just going to try it.’
I’ve never tried it for more than a putt or two, and I just ordered what Akshay uses. It was pretty awkward at first, but the more I used it, the more I’m like, ‘Man, it’s pretty easy.’ And a buddy of mine who’s a rep out here, John Tyler Griffin, he helped me with some setup stuff. And he said at Hilton Head, he wasn’t putting well, then tried it, and now he makes everything. He was very confident. So I’m like, ‘Alright, I’ll try it.’”
And you’re going with it this week?
Hundred percent.
Alright, I love it. Thank you, I always love talking gear with you. Play well this week.
Thanks, man.
See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here
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CJ
Nov 13, 2018 at 1:09 pm
Excited to give these a try when they finally get to my local golf stores
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
ogo
Oct 31, 2018 at 11:39 pm
Copious Cobra {{{love}}} flowing on the WRX forum… the gearhead wet dream… 😛
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.
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.
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.
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….
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.
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 !!!!
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
eddie
Oct 30, 2018 at 5:24 pm
Gorgeous…. totally gorgeous…. and they will soon be in my WITB arsenal of weapons. Watch out!!!!
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!
Jordan
Oct 30, 2018 at 11:02 am
I am all in for the Tour Fairway….. in 2 years when its $80 on eBay.
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).
~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.
Antdog
Nov 1, 2018 at 4:58 am
Square better for you?
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.
MB
Oct 30, 2018 at 9:35 am
In time we will see how it sells.
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.
BJ
Oct 30, 2018 at 8:59 am
Ok Cobra….Im interested