The Testing Opportunity
COBRA celebrated their 50th anniversary in the golf industry with the launch of their AEROJET line. With the tagline “Faster by Design,” COBRA says it engineered Aerojet to enable new levels of speed through an aerodynamic and bold design.
Six Forum members were given the opportunity to test and keep a full bag of COBRA products. All of them tested the woods while two were selected for the KING TOUR muscle-back/cavity-back, Forged Tec/Tec X and AEROJET iron lines, wedges and their choice of putter. Testers were also able to select the Ultralight Pro cart or stand bag.
As three-man teams, the testers competed in weekly challenges. Each challenge focused on a particular part of the bag: Woods and Wedges, Putt-Putt King, Irons Only and a Four-Club Challenge. Check out the thread HERE to find out who ended up as the COBRA Challenge Champions!
Initial Impressions: Club Fittings
All six testers were able to experience a complete fitting in various ways including Golf Galaxy, True Spec, PGA Superstore, a privately owned golf center and directly with a COBRA rep. The consensus was that the importance of a proper fitting cannot be overstated.
Said sirchunksalot of his fitting experience: “I can't properly describe how much fun I had today and how good of a fitter David was. He helped me find the right ball position and was extremely encouraging throughout the fitting. I appreciated his expertise and ability to make me feel comfortable throughout the whole process.”
Jnoble89 had his fitting with a COBRA rep. “Steve handed me my first club, which was a 7-iron. Right away I could tell it was standard length (I play +1”), so I was kind of confused but went with it. Expectedly couldn’t hit it to save my life and was wondering what the heck I got myself into. After maybe 3 swings, Steve hands me another one and says “ok, now let’s go with this.” First swing was LASERED to a roughly 160 carry into the wind. He then told me he had me hit one that would have been “off the shelf” and one fitted to me so I could feel the difference as to why fittings are so impactful.”
COBRA AEROJET Drivers
All of our testers were fitted into the AEROJET Max driver which was somewhat of a surprise considering the wide range of handicaps. COBRA reshaped the head through a raised skirt, symmetrical shaping and streamlined edges to help players achieve maximum swing speeds.
Tester JerryB had this to say about the AEROJET Max Driver: “When you hit it square, you know it. When you don’t hit it well…you actually aren’t that aware. Mishits travel nearly as long as solid hits. I’ve been averaging roughly 5 yards more than my current gamer with a lot of consistent distance. I even hit a new personal longest drive.”
While the Max didn’t make the final bag for tester Chisag, he had this to say about it: “There is just so much to like about this driver. The stock Kai’Li Blue shaft is about as good as it gets for a no upcharge shaft. Those that prefer a longer face to rear look, should have the AEROJET Max at the top of their demo list. And the moveable weights along with the adjustable loft sleeve provide an excellent ability to fine tune your performance.”
COBRA AEROJET Fairway Woods
There was a mix of the standard and max versions of the AEROJET fairway woods tested. Featuring PWR-Bridge and H.O.T. Face technology, testers raved about their performance.
Tom the Golf Nut stated: “I had TaylorMade SLDR 3 and 5 woods in the bag for years and the 3 wood was the high launch version. The AEROJET 3 wood is easier to hit and launches higher. The surprise out of the bunch was the 5 and 7 wood. Although I had a COBRA 7 wood (F6) in the bag this one is sneaky long with a higher ball flight. The five wood is a rocket ship. So much that I might not need a 3 wood.”
However, there may not be a tester who saw a bigger impact to his game from these clubs than CFreddie: “The 3W is an absolute rocket off the tee (where I’ve typically hit it), besting my current gamer by >20 yards. Even more important, one of the weakest parts of my game has drastically improved with properly fitted fairway woods (who would have thought?). And on the 7W, I get excited just thinking about the next shot I’ll hit with it - it's truly effortless to launch high and stick soft, and has become my 2nd shot club on par 5s.”
COBRA Hybrids
Our testers gamed a mix of hybrids between the AEROJET and KING Tec. COBRA touts “Versatility by Design” with the AEROJET hybrid, blending distance and high launch to provide greater forgiveness on long approach shots out of different lies. The KING Tec hybrid offers custom tuning via three weight ports and a loft sleeve, giving players the option to optimize their ball flight.
sirchunksalot was blown away by the KING tec hybrid. You could say it was love at first swing: “These clubs have transformed my long game. They are easy to get in the air and fly straight…They are the main reason I shot one of the lowest rounds I’ve had in a while…If I were to write a love letter to golf clubs, I would wax poetic to these hybrids. They are firmly in my bag.”
Tester JerryB elected to play a 4-, 5-and 6-hybrid from the AEROJET line as he mentioned some struggles with longer irons. “ The 4 hybrid is most like what I already use, so the adjustment was easier. It launches well and can go a mile when I get hold of one.The 6 hybrid is interesting, and I’ve used it as a bit of a utility club. I’ve used it to punch out of trees, as a long bump-and-run club, and as a bit of a chipper just off the green. As with the other hybrids, the ball rockets off the face.”
COBRA Irons
Our testers were selected to test specific iron sets based on their handicap level. Chisag and Tom the Golf Nut tested the KING Tour CB/MB category, sirchunksalot and CFreddie tested the Forged Tec/X, and Jnoble89 and JerryB tested the AEROJET line.
Said Jnoble89, regarding the AEROJET irons: “ For a GI (game improvement) iron, the top line isn’t overly thick, and you cannot see any of the back of the iron when setting up to the ball. Feel on well struck shots is crisp, and produces a nice “thwack” sound. You can also feel when you don’t strike the ball well on mishits, which I think is good for feedback. I think sometimes GI irons are TOO forgiving on feel, so I appreciate this aspect.”
Chisag raved about the KING Tour’s performance on-course: “The KT’s simply do everything you have the skill to demand from them. They are very accurate, produce a pleasing trajectory with plenty of spin to hold hard, fast desert greens. I don’t normally play fades or big draws with my irons, but when needed after a poor tee shot the KT’s performed flawlessly. Hitting them high or low is easily produced on command.”
Mid-handicapper CFreddie went with the Forged Tec irons: “COBRA has built an incredible club - I’d categorize the FT as a middle of the road iron (perfect for my current handicap), bridging the gap between a true players iron and game improvement…I’ve never considered Cobras in the past, but I’m now a converted fan of the brand & clubs.”
COBRA Wedges
All of our testers opted for the SNAKEBITE wedges. These boast COBRA's most aggressive grooves to date, designed to maximize spin while utilizing a notch design to deliver precise shot-making around the green.
Tester Tom the Golf Nut said this about his 54-degree Snakebite: “The 54* did everything I asked of it and helped me to shoot a personal best. The club put enough spin on the ball that it just sat where it landed, and I could attack the pin more. Stopping and proximity to the pin were outstanding.”
Jnoble89 also saw positive results with his set of wedges: “These are a no-brainer play for me. I have never owned a true wedge set, and so far I am really enjoying these clubs. The 60° has been a revelation out of bunkers, and the first shot I ever hit with it was getting up and over a towering pine after missing the green on a Par 3. I was sold at that moment.”
COBRA Putters
The full line of COBRA’s putters were made available to testers with mixed feedback.
Chisag was very surprised, in a good way, on the performance of the Vintage Sport 60: “I don’t change putters often so I was not looking for a new putter and I was certainly not looking to change putters. But the overall feel, look and the excellent roll from the SIK face has earned the right to be my gamer.”
JerryB selected the KING Stingray 20 and was thrilled with its performance: “Putting has long been my weakness and this putter didn’t magically make me a better putter. What it did do was make me feel more poised while standing over a putt. The SIK face technology means the ball rolls smoothly almost instantly off the club face…I’m getting my speed dialed in much better than with my old putters…my lag putting is miles ahead of where it was previously which is leaving me with fewer three-putts.”
Final Verdict
Overall, our testers came away impressed with COBRA’s 2023 lineup. They found that regardless of a golfer's ability or skill level COBRA has a golf club that can perform well for that type of golfer.
Not all of the testers are keeping all their COBRA clubs in play permanently, with some choosing to go back to their previous driver, wedges or putters. That being said, all of them found areas in which the COBRA golf clubs excelled. This was reflected in the grades which were given at the end of the test.
Testers were asked to grade each area (driver, fairway, woods, hybrids, irons, wedges, putter and bag) out of 15 for a possible total of 105 points.
When the results were tallied scores ranged from 85.5 to 99.5. Respectable scores without question and scores that show the overall value and performance of the 2023 COBRA lineup of golf clubs.
Want to read more about the full experience and reviews? You can find the full reviews from all the testers here:
MyGolfSpy Forum Cobra 50th Anniversary Challenge
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