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Cobra F9 Fairway and Driver


chisag

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... Since the PGA Show is over and the F9's are available I wanted to post something, even though I won't be posting a review until several weeks later. Driving 3 days from Chicago to Phoenix was just too much for my back and I have yet to find a groove with my swing as my body is still protecting itself and won't allow me to fully torque in my driver swing yet. Not so much my 3 wood as the driver but certainly enough to make at least a mental difference as my body just keeps saying "whoa their amigo, just take 'er slow for now". Enough cry babying and I especially apologize to those in cold weather climates that would be happy to smack the ball around with a broken leg. Gonna be -50 below wind chills in Chicago this week so I am aware of your pain. 

... I'll just spit this right out. The F9 fairway wood is the best fairway wood I have ever hit. I love everything about it including the size/shape, the look at address, the feel/sound and most importantly the performance. The real deal Atmos Tour Spec Blue is a perfect combo for me and I am hitting this thing farther and straighter than any fw wood I have played. I was also very impressed with the F8 but the F9 improves everything about the F8. I normally do not recommend upgrading a year later, and to be fair the difference is not night and day because the F8 is so good, but the milled face is producing some explosive 3 woods for me and I am carrying it a good 5-10 yds farther, something I would have not thought possible. I have not played the Atmos Tour Spec in my F8 and it certainly may be responsible in combination with the milled face for the additional yardage. So again not advocating you upgrade from the F8 if you bought one, but definitely worth looking at if you play a previous Cobra or any other OEM and think there may be a better option out there. I will get into the technical specifics in a full review and will hopefully have some information from the engineers when I post the full review, but this fairway wood is so good I wanted to get a quick review out now. 

... All I can say about the F9 driver is I love the way it looks and feels. Sound is just about perfect. I am playing mine at 44.5" with the heavier 18gm weight in the rear position but will hit it with the weight forward when I finally loosen up in the Phoenix heat. So far I am not sure wether I will be playing the Atmos Tour Spec Blue or the Even Flow Black that was working so well in my F8 but of course I will update with my full review. Obviously the F9 is being praised by many different reviewers and sites and I hope to have a review within the next 3 weeks or so so stay tuned.   

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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7 minutes ago, chisag said:

... Since the PGA Show is over and the F9's are available I wanted to post something, even though I won't be posting a review until several weeks later. Driving 3 days from Chicago to Phoenix was just too much for my back and I have yet to find a groove with my swing as my body is still protecting itself and won't allow me to fully torque in my driver swing yet. Not so much my 3 wood as the driver but certainly enough to make at least a mental difference as my body just keeps saying "whoa their amigo, just take 'er slow for now". Enough cry babying and I especially apologize to those in cold weather climates that would be happy to smack the ball around with a broken leg. Gonna be -50 below wind chills in Chicago this week so I am aware of your pain. 

... I'll just spit this right out. The F9 fairway wood is the best fairway wood I have ever hit. I love everything about it including the size/shape, the look at address, the feel/sound and most importantly the performance. The real deal Atmos Tour Spec Blue is a perfect combo for me and I am hitting this thing farther and straighter than any fw wood I have played. I was also very impressed with the F8 but the F9 improves everything about the F8. I normally do not recommend upgrading a year later, and to be fair the difference is not night and day because the F8 is so good, but the milled face is producing some explosive 3 woods for me and I am carrying it a good 5-10 yds farther, something I would have not thought possible. I have not played the Atmos Tour Spec in my F8 and it certainly may be responsible in combination with the milled face for the additional yardage. So again not advocating you upgrade from the F8 if you bought one, but definitely worth looking at if you play a previous Cobra or any other OEM and think there may be a better option out there. I will get into the technical specifics in a full review and will hopefully have some information from the engineers when I post the full review, but this fairway wood is so good I wanted to get a quick review out now. 

... All I can say about the F9 driver is I love the way it looks and feels. Sound is just about perfect. I am playing mine at 44.5" with the heavier 18gm weight in the rear position but will hit it with the weight forward when I finally loosen up in the Phoenix heat. So far I am not sure wether I will be playing the Atmos Tour Spec Blue or the Even Flow Black that was working so well in my F8 but of course I will update with my full review. Obviously the F9 is being praised by many different reviewers and sites and I hope to have a review within the next 3 weeks or so so stay tuned.   

Seems the battle is between the F9 and Titleist TS2/3 this year....I'm sure the Epic Flash is great as well as the M5/M6 but I haven't heard as many accolades for those as I have for these 2.

I, for one, am really jazzed about the F9!  Hope your back heals up soon and you can get some time with it @chisag ...

DriverCobra  Aerojet LS
Woods-
Cobra  LTD 3w 15*, 5W 19*,  F9 24* 
Irons- XXIO X (6-A)

Wedges- Callaway Jaws Raw (54/58)

Putter- Bettinardi BB56
Ball- Maxfli Tour X/Wilson Triad
Buggy- Clicgear 4.0
Bag- Callaway Org 14/Fairway C

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I had an opportunity to take a look at the F9 driver (again) in the pro shop Saturday. I really liked the look of the club. Interesting is that I also selected another demo with a different loft for a side by side comparison and it happened to be a lady shafted model at about 43". something inches. Hmmm? I thought the shorter length seemed good just looking at it in a setup position. I'd like to test one at that length in a men's shaft. I'd assume unless there was a fitting cart available that'd probably be hard to find.

My Sun Mountain bag currently includes:   TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png 771CSI 5i - PW and TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png PFC Micro Tour-c 52°, 56°, 60 wedges

                                                                               :755178188_TourEdge: EXS 10.5*, TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png 929-HS FW4 16.5* 

                                                                                :edel-golf-1: Willimette w/GolfPride Contour

 

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Just now, PlaidJacket said:

I had an opportunity to take a look at the F9 driver (again) in the pro shop Saturday. I really liked the look of the club. Interesting is that I also selected another demo with a different loft for a side by side comparison and it happened to be a lady shafted model at about 43". something inches. Hmmm? I thought the shorter length seemed good just looking at it in a setup position. I'd like to test one at that length in a men's shaft. I'd assume unless there was a fitting cart available that'd probably be hard to find.

When I was fitted for my F7+ I had the shaft shortened to 44.  
A 45 inch shaft is just too long for me and I could easily play a 43.  I think it has made a tremendous difference in accuracy for me.

DriverCobra  Aerojet LS
Woods-
Cobra  LTD 3w 15*, 5W 19*,  F9 24* 
Irons- XXIO X (6-A)

Wedges- Callaway Jaws Raw (54/58)

Putter- Bettinardi BB56
Ball- Maxfli Tour X/Wilson Triad
Buggy- Clicgear 4.0
Bag- Callaway Org 14/Fairway C

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Chisag great "intro" review, thx! Good luck getting your back into shape, and good luck with your new FW love!

WITB of an "aspiring"  😉 play-ah ...
Driver...Callaway Paradym (Aldila Ascent PL Blue 40/A)
5W...Callaway Great Big Bertha (MCA Kai'Li Red 50/R)
7W...Tour Edge Exotics EXS (Tensei CK Blue 50/R)

4H...Callaway Epic Super Hybrid (Recoil ZT9 F3)
5H...Callaway Big Bertha ('19) (Recoil 460 ESX F3)
6i-GW...Sub 70 699 V2 (Recoil 660 F3) 
54°, 60°...Cleveland CBX2, CBX 60 (Rotex graphite)
Putter...Ev
nRoll ER5 or MLA Tour XDream (P2 Reflex grip on both)
...all in a Datrek bag on an MGI Zip Navigator electric cart. Ball often, not always, MaxFli Tour.

Forum Member tester for the Paradym X driver (2023)
Forum Member tester for the ExPutt Putting Simulator (2020)

followthrough.jpg

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12 minutes ago, GolfSpy Stroker said:

When I was fitted for my F7+ I had the shaft shortened to 44.  
A 45 inch shaft is just too long for me and I could easily play a 43.  I think it has made a tremendous difference in accuracy for me.

 

... I have been preaching this since my teaching days. Shorter is better for 90% of the people that play golf. How short is up to the individual to find out. I have found 44.25" to be my sweets spot for length. A few days ago I played with a guy in his mid 70's that was pretty short off the tee with a weak fade but he hit one a around 220 and he said "why can't I do that all the time?" Took a look at his driver and the ball mark was dead center. Next hole he hit a poor drive and the ball mark was almost completely off the toe. I explained for every 1/4" you miss the center, depending on swing speed, you lose 5-7 yds. Many consistently miss by a full inch or more so they are losing 20-28 yds or more on virtually every drive but "that one that keeps them coming back" . BIG difference between 195 and 220! And that doesn't even take into account the additional accuracy you mentioned. 

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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1 minute ago, chisag said:

 

... I have been preaching this since my teaching days. Shorter is better for 90% of the people that play golf. How short is up to the individual to find out. I have found 44.25" to be my sweets spot for length. A few days ago I played with a guy in his mid 70's that was pretty short off the tee with a weak fade but he hit one a around 220 and he said "why can't I do that all the time?" Took a look at his driver and the ball mark was dead center. Next hole he hit a poor drive and the ball mark was almost completely off the toe. I explained for every 1/4" you miss the center, depending on swing speed, you lose 5-7 yds. Many consistently miss by a full inch or more so they are losing 20-28 yds or more on virtually every drive but "that one that keeps them coming back" . BIG difference between 195 and 220! And that doesn't even take into account the additional accuracy you mentioned. 

Just returned from playing with my buddy who is a 2 HC and he suggested a few things, among which was that I would be crazy to change my driver.  I seem to hit the center most of the time (sometimes a little higher/lower) and it goes pretty straight.  Only thing I'd want to do is upgrade to the F9 from the F7 with the same length/style shaft.  🙂 

Another thing I noticed is that a shorter shaft makes it easy to intentionally hit the ball heel side for a slight fade when I want to.

DriverCobra  Aerojet LS
Woods-
Cobra  LTD 3w 15*, 5W 19*,  F9 24* 
Irons- XXIO X (6-A)

Wedges- Callaway Jaws Raw (54/58)

Putter- Bettinardi BB56
Ball- Maxfli Tour X/Wilson Triad
Buggy- Clicgear 4.0
Bag- Callaway Org 14/Fairway C

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  • 3 weeks later...

Chisag,

What are the differences between the EvenFlow and ATMOS Blue from your perspective?  The F9 is on my list to try and the tour length may finally be on my wish list too.  I remember you liked the rogue shaft that I did not like a few years ago.  I kind like a touch of liveliness in my shafts.  I plan to do the full Cobra fitting in a few months, but I was curious the difference in shaft performance

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Great intro and it's nice to hear that you seem to have found a real winner in the F9 this year.  I may have made a mistake by having a club champion fitting in mid December before all the new equipment arrived.  However, I cannot argue with results and the TS3 w/ correct shaft was the best combo I've ever hit.  

I did try the Cobra F9 at my local golf store and for me, it just didn't produce.  I was very intrigued by the F8, but the F9 just couldn't keep as many balls on the fairway.  Match my correct shaft and it could be much closer, but excited to hear how it really plays out on the course for you.  Many people that I respect have had a lot of good things to say about the F9 so I have no doubt that it's a very good club and likely came down to my swing faults not putting the club in play.

Part of the reason the TS3 works so well for me is that I can help keep the face open longer by placing the weight in the toe to help avoid the right side for me (left handed player).

With the TS3, F9, 190G/ST190, G410, Epic Flash, M5/M6, etc... this is a great year for a driver and I'd be hard pressed to see them get much better for the next couple years.

Driver:  image.png.3c6db1120d888f669e07d4a8f890b3f1.pngMavrik Sub Zero 9* (Set to 10) Ventus Blue 6X

2 Hybrid: :titelist-small: TSI3 Hybrid Tensei Blue 80 X (17.25*)

3 Hybrid :titelist-small: 818 H2 Hybrid Hzrdus RDX Black 6.5 (20.5*)

4 Iron -  :titelist-small: T200 4 Iron Graphite Design Tour AD IZ X Hybrid Shaft

Irons 5-PW:  :titelist-small: T100-S 5 - GW KBS Tour 130 X

Gap/Sand Wedge:  :titelist-small: Vokey SM6 49*  SM8 54* 

Lob Wedge:  image.png.3c6db1120d888f669e07d4a8f890b3f1.pngJaws 5 Wedge 58* DG Tour Issue Stiff

Putter:   :scotty-small: Phantom 5.5 34"      Pro Platinum Newport 2 35"      Taylormade Tour Black Spider 34"

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12 hours ago, Fezzler said:

Chisag,

What are the differences between the EvenFlow and ATMOS Blue from your perspective?  The F9 is on my list to try and the tour length may finally be on my wish list too.  I remember you liked the rogue shaft that I did not like a few years ago.  I kind like a touch of liveliness in my shafts.  I plan to do the full Cobra fitting in a few months, but I was curious the difference in shaft performance

 

... For me performance is pretty similar and both are smooth feeling shafts with lively tips and stiffer butt ends. I think the Atmos may be a hair tighter, or at least it feels that way. My back is finally loosening up so I should know more in a few weeks when it gets warm and I can swing completely normally. Fwiw, I play the Rogue Black 110 Tour that is also very smooth with some liveliness to it, nothing like the Rogue Silver which is too stout for me too.

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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Sounds like the f8 will soon be a bargain on eBay...🤔

 

:titleist-small: TSr2 on tensi blue stiff

:cobra-small: Speedzone 3-wood on Tensi blue S

:callaway-logo-1: Epic Max 5 and 7 woods on HZRDUS  Reg flex

:callaway-logo-1: Paradym 9 wood on HZRDUS reg flex

:taylormade-small: P770 / P790 combo set on Ventus R-6 shafts 6-AW

:mizuno-small:  T22 Denim Copper 54°, 58° on Kinetic X Trajectory 

:EVNROLL: ER3 or,

:edel-golf-1: E.A.S. #4   (“Fang” or “Adele”)
 

:titelist-small: ProV1x, or, Maxfli Tour X

:callaway-small: .Org 14 cart bag

Adidas Tour 360 , or Sketcher shoes

 

 

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I hit the ATMOS in R and S in the 3W set to 16* to play more like a 4W. Both shafts seemed very similar, I got 2-3 MPH out of the regular flex. Swing speed was high 80s to low 90s with the 3W. I felt like you could go after the Stiff a bit more which is to be expected but maybe not necessary in a fairway wood compared to a driver. All shots were hit off the turf as I was mostly interested in seeing what it could do as an approach club. 

Similar to Chisag's comments, considering this session was with winter swings up in Canada the distance was impressive. I have a Cobra BioCell 3-4W that I am going to set to 16* for comparison at the range tonight which will be difficult to judge hitting out onto the snow. I was seeing 10-20 yards more distance than a Rogue 4W but that is also 18* vs 16* for the F9. 

Misses with the F9 were very good, but i assume this mostly due to the simulator. 

:ping-small: G425 MAX Driver & 5W

:cobra-small: Baffler Rail-H 3H-4H

:Sub70: 699 Pro Utility V2 - 4i

:callaway-small: APEX CF19 6-AW

INDI Wedges 52, 56, 60 

 :edel-golf-1: EAS 2.0

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Finally tried the driver with aftermarket shafts. Picked-up 4 mph of ball speed vs my G400 Max! First time I’ve hit 170 ball speed in awhile. Had it turned down to 8* and had the Ventus 6X in it. Dispersion wasn’t as good as my Max, so not changing.... Yet.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Driver: Ping G430 Max 9*, Ping Tour 70X

Fairway: Ping G425 15*, Ping Tour 70X

Hybrid: Ping G425 22*, Ping Tour 80X

Irons:  Ping i230 4-GW, TT DG X100

Wedges: :edel-golf-1: SMS 50D/54V/58D:Nippon:Modus 130 stiff, +1”

Putter:  :edel-golf-1: EAS 1.0

Ball: Titleist 2023 AVX

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Boys and girls, lookee at what TXG did.....



Things are a little tighter than previously thought!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Driver: Ping G430 Max 9*, Ping Tour 70X

Fairway: Ping G425 15*, Ping Tour 70X

Hybrid: Ping G425 22*, Ping Tour 80X

Irons:  Ping i230 4-GW, TT DG X100

Wedges: :edel-golf-1: SMS 50D/54V/58D:Nippon:Modus 130 stiff, +1”

Putter:  :edel-golf-1: EAS 1.0

Ball: Titleist 2023 AVX

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... I absolutely love the F9. For me the combination of all factors including looks, sound and feel separate it from the others. I also think it may be the best performing head in 2019 but as stated in this video "just by a hair". I said before these drivers were released performance is going to be very similar and it might just come down to a personal preference. If you already love Titleist or Ping or Callaway or now even Mizuno with the ST190's, chances are they are making a driver in 2019 you will prefer over others. There are those that will test without any bias and for them I have a feeling the F9 may come out on top, even thought the Flash took top honors in the MSG Most Wanted Driver test, the F9 took second by a slim margin. If you are in the market for e new driver, this is just a stellar year and you have quite a few viable options.  

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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Thanks for your intriguing thread Chisag. I always enjoy your perspective, even though I cannot match your speed and distance. I was wondering if you tried the Mitsubishi Tense ck Blue shaft?


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

Driver: image.png.6ba1c8a254ad57aa05e527b74c2e04ba.png0311 XF 10.5* w/Project X Cypher 40 gram Senior shaft or 0811 XF 12* w/Evenflo Riptide CB Senior shaft

Fairways:  image.png.80321f01fc46450b6f428c7daf7b3471.png0211 5W & 7W w/ Evenflo Riptide CB  regular shaft and Tour Edge E521 9W w/Fubuki HD50 regular shaft

Hybrid: None in bag at the moment

IronsTitleist T300 5-PW w/Fubuki MV Senior graphite shafts w/Golf Pride Tour

Wedges: Edison forged 49*, 53* and 57* wedges with KB PGI Senior shafts(80 grm).

Putter: 33” Evnroll ER6R or  ER2 or Bellum Winmore Model 707,   or Nike Method Core Drone  w/Evnroll Gravity Grip

Bag: Vice cart bag(Black/Lime). 

Ball: Snell MTB Prime X, Maxfli Tour/S/X CG, Titleist Pro V1x or Titleist TruFeel

Using Shot Scope X5 and Pinned Rangefinder

 

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5 hours ago, fozcycle said:

Thanks for your intriguing thread Chisag. I always enjoy your perspective, even though I cannot match your speed and distance. I was wondering if you tried the Mitsubishi Tense ck Blue shaft?
 

 

... Thanks fozcycle. I have found most premium mid kick, mid torque and mid trajectory shafts come down to a personal preference. I don't find much difference in performance between shafts like the Rogue Black, 2KXV Blue, Even Flow Blue, Kurp Kage Black, ATMOS Blue and Tensei Blue. I do find slight differences in feel as well as butt diameter and degree of counter balance. I do like the Tensei Blue and installed a TB sr flex in the Mrs driver and she absolutely loves it. I tinker from time to time and she trusts me but after playing a Fly Z set to 12* with the Tensei Blue sr flex last summer, she won't let me touch it. 

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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Sam,

I pulled the trigger on the F9 tonight.  I liked everything about the club from reviews and swinging at the store.  I did not swing the tour length in the store, but purchased the tour length version, probably more from your comments and my desire to hit the center of the club more often.  44.5 inches just makes a lot of sense to me and so many Experts and Pro's swing 44 and change length drivers.  I went with the ATMOS Blue 6 shaft as well.  

I'd be curious if you use the Cobra Connect and if you see any value in that info.

Let's see if it can kick the Ping G400 out of the bag.

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... Now that it is warm and I have loosened up, I can finally say the F9 is the best driver I have ever played. The sound and feel is just so good. I can't be sure it is longer because I am playing new courses but it seems to be. I love the Atmos Blue too as it just fits my swing very well, hopefully you find the same. I used the Cobra Connect and it was very iluminating in my F8 but I have an iPhone XR now and it is too cumbersome in my front pocket so I haven't used it with the F9. Congrats on your purchase and I am looking forward to hearing how it works for you once it arrives! 

Driver:     :taylormade-small:  Qi10 10.5* ... Ventus Red Velocore 5R
Fairway:  :cobra-small: Aerojet 3/5 ... Kai'li Blue 60R
Hybrids:  :ping-small:      430 Hybrid 22*... Steelfiber 780Hy 
                  :taylormade-small:  DHy #4 ... Diamana LTD 65r 
Irons:       :titleist-small:         '23 T200 5-Pw ... Steelfiber i95r
Wedges:  :taylormade-small: Vokey 50*/54*/58* ... Steelfiber i95r
Putter:     :cobra-small:  Sport-60 33" 
Ball:           Maxfli     Maxfli Tour

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