Equipment
Bryson testing prototype Cobra RadSpeed driver at Augusta National
The ever-testing, ever-questing Bryson DeChambeau is bringing his tireless pursuit of the perfect driver to Augusta National as he prepares for the 2021 Masters Tournament with a prototype Cobra RadSpeed driver in the bag.
With the rumblings of a new driver being put into play echoing among the Georga Pines, and a new driver head spotted on the USGA conforming list, we reached out to Cobra to get the inside information on the new driver being put into play by Bryson.
Here’s what Cobra Tour Manager Ben Schomin and VP of R&D Tom Olsavsky had to say.
GolfWRX: There is lots of talk about a new RadSpeed driver head being put into play this week by Bryson. What can you tell us about the new head that has been specifically tweaked for his high speeds?
Tom Olsavsky: The big thing here is speed and Bryson has a lot of it. To help build a driver specifically tuned for his dynamics, we removed the adjustable weights to save mass from the housings and have focused on internal changes to help him reduce miss-hit variance.
The other thing we did was increase the face thickness of his drivers to prolong durability. Bryson hits a lot of golf balls and with the amount that he hits both in standard practice and his speed training sessions, we wanted to help eliminate any durability concerns. We also suggest that he rotates the heads during sessions—and the adjustability in the hosel makes that easier to do.
Now speaking of the face, we specifically removed the Infinity Face on this new head, because it allows us to change the face radii easier and reduce the toe radius to help with his toe misses.
GolfWRX: Bryson really is unique as far as players you work with, isn’t he?
Ben Schomin: Bryson hitting a 5-degree driver at 200+ mph ball speed certainly presents some different ball/club dynamics than we typically design for, so we’ve had to rethink some of our approaches. This head is our latest iteration to find something that works best for Bryson at extremely high speeds.
Tom Olsavsky: It’s basic physics: higher speed off-center hits result in greater variability due to the greater forces involved. Much of what we are seeing as far as misses are concerned seems to be due to club/ball friction at the interface between the two surfaces, which is very close to some instabilities in the contact physics. We are doing everything we can from an engineering perspective to keep the ball online more often.
To see what others are saying about Bryson new driver, check out the GolfWRX forums to join the discussion: Bryson testing prototype driver at Augusta
- LIKE37
- LEGIT4
- WOW5
- LOL1
- IDHT0
- FLOP1
- OB0
- SHANK6
Equipment
Coolest thing for sale in the GolfWRX Classifieds (5/7/24): Mizuno 245 irons
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 set of Mizuno 245 irons.
From the seller: (@JB_007): “1. Mizuno Pro 245 – $1000 –> 950/obo
- Purchased brand new – they have 36 holes on them, with probably 10 premium range balls. Great set of irons, I just am looking to go another way right now.
- 5-PW –> stock L/L/L
- Project X LS 6.5
- Stock MCC Mizuno Grips.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link: Mizuno 245 irons
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
- LIKE0
- LEGIT0
- WOW0
- LOL0
- IDHT0
- FLOP0
- OB0
- SHANK0
Whats in the Bag
Peter Kuest WITB 2024 (May)
- Peter Kuest what’s in the bag accurate as of CJ Cup Byron Nelson.
Driver: TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus (8 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X
5-wood: TaylorMade SIM Titanium (19 degrees)
Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Black 85 6.5
Irons: Srixon ZX U (2), Srixon Z-Forged II (3-PW)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3
Wedges: Cleveland RTX6 ZipCore Tour Rack (52-MID 10, 56-MID 10, 60-FULL 9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Check out more in-hand photos of Peter Kuest’s clubs here.
- LIKE3
- LEGIT3
- WOW0
- LOL0
- IDHT0
- FLOP0
- OB0
- SHANK0
Whats in the Bag
Kelly Kraft WITB 2024 (May)
- Kelly Kraft’s what’s in the bag accurate as of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Triple Diamond Max (9 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Red 60 TX
3-wood: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Project X Denali White 70 TX
Hybrid: Callaway Apex UW (21 degrees)
Shaft: Aldila Synergy Blue
Irons: Srixon ZX U Mk II (23 degrees), Callaway X Forged Star (5-PW)
Shaft: Project X IO 6.0
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (52-12F, 56-08M, 60-08M)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Odyssey Versa 2-Ball Prototype
Grip: Odyssey Garsen Quad Tour
Grips: Golf Pride ZGrip Cord
Check out more in-hand photos of Kraft’s equipment here.
- LIKE3
- LEGIT0
- WOW1
- LOL0
- IDHT0
- FLOP0
- OB0
- SHANK0
-
19th Hole2 weeks ago
Justin Thomas on the equipment choice of Scottie Scheffler that he thinks is ‘weird’
-
19th Hole2 weeks ago
‘Absolutely crazy’ – Major champ lays into Patrick Cantlay over his decision on final hole of RBC Heritage
-
19th Hole3 weeks ago
Brandel Chamblee has ‘no doubt’ who started the McIlroy/LIV rumor and why
-
19th Hole2 weeks ago
LET pro gives detailed financial breakdown of first week on tour…and the net result may shock you
-
Equipment3 weeks ago
Jason Day on his recent switch into Srixon ZX5 and ZX7 Mk II irons
-
19th Hole6 days ago
Gary Player claims this is what ‘completely ruined’ Tiger Woods’ career
-
Whats in the Bag1 week ago
Team McIlowry (Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry) winning WITBs: 2024 Zurich Classic
-
19th Hole1 week ago
LIV star splits with swing coach after working together for 14 years
dat
Apr 7, 2021 at 4:36 pm
Can’t wait for him to drive it 11000 yards!
Owgc
Apr 6, 2021 at 10:07 pm
No body noticing the acne on his face. It’s all over
Jbone
Apr 7, 2021 at 1:11 am
Spit it out.
Chuck
Apr 6, 2021 at 9:56 am
I’m starting to love Bryson. He’s clarifying the argument on why the USGA and R&A need to act on equipment regulations like never before.
“Sorry, Mr. Ross” should go down in history as the moment that golf’s ruling bodies were officially put on notice, more than a decade after they admitted that they were on notice.
Bagger
Apr 8, 2021 at 9:12 pm
I disagree…
Should the USGA outlaw nutrition and training? The only thing that has changed in the last 20 years is training, launch monitors and agronomy.
CoR/CT have been in place for nearly 20 years, ball speed has been limited too… athletes change. Should the NBA raise the hoop to 10 ft? Should the football field be lengthened?
Daniel Whitehurst
Apr 6, 2021 at 5:28 am
In short, they built a long drive head. It’s probably the same head Kyle Berkshire is hitting since he moved on over to Cobra from Callaway to join his buddy Bryson. Callaway pretty much had the same club in his hands and has mad them for years. XR ‘16 LD 5, Epic Flash LD 5, and this year an Epic Speed LD 5. They come with a special adjustable sleeve that has a special -2/-1/+1 deg loft option instead of the normal -1/+1+2 sleeve
Adrian
Apr 8, 2021 at 1:36 am
I have the XR 16 LD and noticed that it is much more durable than standard retail drivers and I have been hitting mine for 5 years now with caving in the face. I hear that the face is thicker and there may be some validity to that as any wood that I hit for that long of a period of time will fail. Cobra will definitely be putting out some quality woods if they are to stand up to the beating that Bryson and Berkshire will put on them.