Cobra King LTD Driver - THP Review

[Canadan]

I spent quite a bit of time on the range after my round yesterday dissecting the results of a handful of rounds with the King LTD driver, where my typical contact has been trending, and what kind of golfer would genuinely benefit from the head profile of the Cobra King LTD. What I found, was that there are some pretty definitive thresholds on the head of the King LTD that allow for quality feedback/contact without major distance loss, and then some areas where spin and distance are either highly elevated, or highly reduced.

To begin, my consistent contact area is slightly toward the toe side of center, and I suppose minutely up towards the crown. My traditional miss is left (I play a bit of a pull/draw in most cases), and yet for the most part I have managed to play the King LTD fairly straight or with a slight draw. The further I hit towards the toe, the more I see a draw increase in left turn, and there is a definitive line somewhere into the outer grooved area that produces a hook rather than a draw. In this sample, if I personally hit a ball that far outside of center, I believe the result should be poor.

Spin on strikes that near the crown introduced a drop in about 700rpm of spin (maybe more) with fairly minimal distance loss. This is not something I personally fear as my spin is generally higher than average, so distance was not negatively impacted. I could see this creating sub 2k spin rates for some golfers. The picture below represents where this number was achieved.

Spoiler

Hitting down near the base of the face and slightly towards the heel introduced a spike of 800-1,000rpm of spin, and produced a mild fade with some notable distance loss. There seems to be a very impressive depth of forgiveness on the King LTD face on strikes that hit lower than center, as I have felt like I have been way low on the face and still produced really solid results.

For me, solid strikes are producing low to mid 3k of spin. In most on course experiences, unless I hit a very dry spot, I'm seeing very little roll. With a launch angle of anywhere between 11-14* my ball seems to land hard and stop, although I am sure a part of that is the softer September grounds of Ohio. What impresses me more about the King LTD is how often my results are dead down the middle along my target line. Even when I don't feel like I've made the best contact, I believe the results have been positive more often than not. As a matter of personal preference, I'll take 10-15% distance loss and straight any day if I put a bad swing on the ball.

I am pretty much at the writing stage of this review, however I'll be back on course this week seeking out some final testing and confirmations. If you're interested in hearing anything more specific, please let me know and I will seek to answer.

 

[Rambler]

Good info, Dan. I'm looking forward to hitting this one, as I thought the Fly-Z+ was a solid driver.

 

[tbanks5]

Dan,

Maybe an odd question since you've tested other drivers, and maybe you've answered this already....but what has surprised you the most with this driver?

Also do you think this is a significant upgrade from the Bio Cell+ and FlyZ+ lines?

 

[Canadan]

Dan,

Maybe an odd question since you've tested other drivers, and maybe you've answered this already....but what has surprised you the most with this driver?

Also do you think this is a significant upgrade from the Bio Cell+ and FlyZ+ lines?

Yes, I think the progression was beneficial. I don't have both to compare against, unfortunately.

Biggest surprise is the sound. It's a lot more subtle than a majority of options out there right now -- Which I happen to really like. Mike referenced it well by saying it's comforting. There's a bit of a muted hollow element by comparison but again, it suits the profile incredibly well.

 

[McLovin]

Dan- Compared to other drivers you've hit recently, is the lack of roll a result of launch, spin or "other?" are you at least seeing more carry than you're used to? I like straight, but I need all the distance help I can get.


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[greggdrews]

Great info so far Dan. I really want to hit this cranked up to 11* and see how it compares to my gamer.

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[Canadan]

Dan- Compared to other drivers you've hit recently, is the lack of roll a result of launch, spin or "other?" are you at least seeing more carry than you're used to? I like straight, but I need all the distance help I can get.

It falls under the scenario of two things. Soft fairways (we've had some rain lately), and the fact that 95% of every stock driver I've ever hit doesn't promote roll in these conditions. I've allowed a few golfers to hit the King LTD and they experienced similar roll conditions to their gamers, if not a bit more. Unfortunately I don't have angle of descent numbers to provide. I am pretty confident that a shaft change would allow me to get the roll I would pursue in a gamer.

Compared to other drivers lately, I'm seeing fairly equitable ball speed numbers. As I find it an unfair comparison on distance with the 'other' drivers being paired with ideal shafts, I'll comfortably say that in ideal conditions I think the King LTD can hang with the best of them. That was proven with a favorable wind this Saturday when I played a round with MikeDean. My carry numbers were obscene, along with one drive on a more firm fairway getting a bounce and finishing at 335 yards. I can also include carry numbers of 286, 291, and 297 yards on the day, with favorable wind. While this doesn't draw a perfect explanation of what my anticipated distances are, it does fall on the very high end of my distance potential spectrum (with wind assumed).

Can I game this as is, despite being a high(er) spin player? I can and I actually have been, without any issues. I'd argue my accuracy has improved and I've not experienced major distance loss unless I'm hitting directly into wind. In fact I put it into play the day I got it, and was relied on for a scramble to go for holes I would rather even consider hitting to, finding success in the 280-290 range of shots (one including the low end of 280 carry).

 

[McLovin]

excellent stuff. thanks!


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[Erky]

Dan,
Does the space port cover show condensation, fog, etc when the weather is right?

 

[Canadan]

Dan,
Does the space port cover show condensation, fog, etc when the weather is right?

I've wiped away dampness before. Probably no different from any other part of the driver. I don't think I've noticed anything on the inside of it.

 

[emart2173]

Great feedback and updates. Sounds like this is a contender and if people give it a chance can see some benefit. The guy who runs my local pro shop was talking about this today and how he wants to get it in his bag and he isn't normally a fan of cobra drivers

 

[Canadan]

Some interesting thoughts.

IMO, the excessive spin rates, coupled with the soft conditions, are clearly causing the lack of roll. Not exactly sure what's causing the spin but having read other Canadan review threads it seems it's a natural swing result.

Using such a large percentage of the club face definitely gives us all an idea on performance of misses. As a plus capper I'm assuming you're spraying the face in an attempt to get a more real world result for mere mortals? At the same time it's hard to draw any conclusions on performance with such widely varying contact.

You're correct. Higher spin rates are quite common.

I'm not really actively spraying the face or shutting it down. A trapped or open head is going to produce a screaming hook or fade no matter what driver is in your hands. I'm more focused on contact position and how the spin rates and resulting flight shape is introduced in those scenarios. My standard swing with either teed too high or too low generate the strikes north and south contact from center. Then, I just step into the shot a bit more which produces contact inside on the face (or I make AMart join me for a range session haha -- He's a natural fader).

 

[Canadan]

I had a lot of fun on course with the King LTD tonight. I hit 2 out of 6 fairways with it, but that is nowhere near a reflection of what I achieved. The course I played has fairly narrow fairways and I was over or undercompensating the draw I was hitting, and it cost me a few. I also hit through the fairway on the final hole (a 329 yard par 4 and the ball was in the greenside bunker dead on my line). Of the other three missed fairways, it was by an average of about three yards in total.

I'll be incorporating a photo below that represents my last three drives of the day - All with a very calm wind (maybe a couple MPH) favoring my back. The first was the contact seen low on the face. It produced a low to low/mid launch angle that carried right around 270 yards and stopped (very soft drainage area) and was about a five yard draw. The second was my best strike, a mid flight drawing about ten yards from the center of the fairway, and GPSed to 320 with I assume a decent bounce, however it was at the top of a notable upslope so it couldn't have been major -- This felt absolutely smashed off the face, possibly my best drive to date with the Cobra King LTD. The final drive was hit high on the face intentionally to generate added launch as the hole is guarded by a very large tree. While it didn't feel like I made excellent contact, the resulting distance was a shade under 310 yards sitting in the greenside bunker. Launch was mid/high to high and it was dead straight on my target line.

I find this image to be a wonderful representation of how comfortable I am missing around the face with the king LTD driver. Even on strikes that for me feel like a mile off center, yet have a majority of the ball inside the center portion of the face (and not on the grooved section) are promoting straight flight without major distance losses despite movement up and down the face. I'm really quite impressed by this. If I can live out on the toe the way that image represents and still manage fairly straight drives, I could see myself gaming this driver for some time, especially with the wonderfully subtle contact noise. It lets the drive do the talking and that is RIGHT up my alley.

 

[greggdrews]

With what you are saying and how wide that "sweet spot" is between the grooves I think I could game this driver without hesitation. Appears like a pretty wide area for acceptable forgiveness. The one thing I would have to see is how it launches when I set the loft up higher. No other driver has peaked my interest lately like this one, I want to hit it in a bad way!

 

[Canadan]

Sorry about the last photo. It only shows the first drive and unfortunately I don't have a good outdoor photo of the driver as it is now (dirty ball = obvious contact location). Here are the three drives I mentioned.

As you can see, two of the three ball contact points are NOT ideal, especially for optimal launch... However with the numbers I have referenced, not only did I get away with it, I got big results of which were impressively straight and on target.

 

[emart2173]

That's some serious forgiveness Dan. Shows how gird the tech in the design is. To get the results you mad from those shots is amazing. No doubt this is a contender

 

[capthotpantz]

I love my bio cell+ but I may have to hit this once or twice. Looks very unique to say the least

 

[McLovin]

love everything I'm hearing. will be a must hit.


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[Daddio]

Wow excellent forgiveness out on the toe. I know what I'd lose with those impacts with my Bio+. The 'zero CG' tech looks to be something special. My primary miss is low/center and I lose a ton down there with most drivers, and lose little less with deeper faced low CG offerings. Have you noticed how the King LTD performs on a low/center miss, assuming you ever miss there?

 

[kc720]

I want to try this badly after reading all your feedback Dan!

 

[Canadan]

Wow excellent forgiveness out on the toe. I know what I'd lose with those impacts with my Bio+. The 'zero CG' tech looks to be something special. My primary miss is low/center and I lose a ton down there with most drivers, and lose little less with deeper faced low CG offerings. Have you noticed how the King LTD performs on a low/center miss, assuming you ever miss there?

Yes, I've hit a few lower on the face. It's added some spin, dropped the launch a bit (more of a rising flight with the added spin), and faded a little bit. What's been interesting, aside from the major open or shut face strikes, is just how straight my flight has been despite moving across the face.

As for what you'd "lose" --- There is really no way of saying this without sounding bad so I'll just share my experience and you can take it for what it's worth. I've hit down there, received the mediocre head feedback I would expect, and still have my playing partners 'wow' my resulting flight and distance. There's something to be said about being disappointed and still well down the middle of the fairway. Distance loss is probably in the 10-15% range and ball speed retention drops a bit, but if we're calling it a 'miss' it's a heck of a good one.

 

[Daddio]

Yes, I've hit a few lower on the face. It's added some spin, dropped the launch a bit (more of a rising flight with the added spin), and faded a little bit. What's been interesting, aside from the major open or shut face strikes, is just how straight my flight has been despite moving across the face.

As for what you'd "lose" --- There is really no way of saying this without sounding bad so I'll just share my experience and you can take it for what it's worth. I've hit down there, received the mediocre head feedback I would expect, and still have my playing partners 'wow' my resulting flight and distance. There's something to be said about being disappointed and still well down the middle of the fairway. Distance loss is probably in the 10-15% range and ball speed retention drops a bit, but if we're calling it a 'miss' it's a heck of a good one.

Love the way your "disappointed and still well down the middle" paints the picture so clearly. Thanks Dan, sounds like something I really need to test.

 

[Ryan Loves Golf]

Thank you for your in depth thoughts Canadan.
I am itching to try this driver, looks like it would be right up my alley.
The forgiveness the driver seemingly has after seeing your photos would suit my misses very well.
Hope it is release soon enough....

 

[Canadan]

Alright, I know I've been gushing a bit in here. It's hard when new technology arrives and performs, because the review ends up being one positive update after the next -- So it can seem a bit scripted or intentional. Let me just openly admit right now that I received this driver with the assumption that it wouldn't be for me. The last Cobra driver I spent time with was the Amp Cell and I think a few of those drives are still orbiting the earth, and frankly I wasn't sold on the giant hole in the head or the looks.

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), this will read much the same as many of my recent updates. I've avoided most of the numbers because I think they become lost on a single golfer, but I'm going to offer my shot distance from tonight because they were so consistent, and because after a week without rain, my course has firmed to the point of decent bouncing and strong numbers to reflect that.

I hit the driver 5 times tonight. Shots were in basically every single N-E-S-W direction possible, and I remembered to record 4 of the 5 numbers utilizing a SkyCaddie distance measuring tool (aka it's accurate). There was a mild wind (let's call it 5mph) and I hit into it directly once. Most of the others were either sideways or with (the largest of the four numbers I'll provide was mostly with, (I believe). Those numbers, are 304, 302, 303, and 326.

Regardless of the driver in my hands, that's overachieving. I can't give you carry numbers, but I can say that I don't remember the last time I hit a stock setup as far against the wind as I did with the wind sideways -- That's very strange for me. I am taking what I think is a faster more confident swing at the ball, although most who play with me would argue it's still a relatively smooth swing overall. The face contact tonight was similar to the images I have already provided on two updates, and then intentionally closer to center on the remaining three. I'll also note that the one drive I forgot to measure was dead straight and hammered just like the rest -- It was not an intentional subtraction.

Here's where I think the Cobra King LTD continues to shine. I hit the drives basically dead on my line every time -- Either straight or a small draw. I get the argument of that being a bit of a wash because of my index, but I intentionally moved my contact more towards the center of the face and still managed to see similar flighting. It's kind of mind boggling right now, as I know for a fact that I can work the ball left or right if I absolutely have to by opening or closing the face a bit. It's not to say this head is destined to hit dead straight drives every single time, but I do think it's opening the door to be successful in that regard at a higher level than some others I've hit.

More rambling, so I'll finish this update in saying that once again, I am shocked at how much I have enjoyed my time with the King LTD. So much so that I'll be leaving it in the bag with confidence that I am not losing out on anything. While I may still ponder a shaft change (we are internet golfers after all), the head has me convinced that Cobra has something great going on with this Zero CG business. I hope my messaging has either helped to explain expectations of the King LTD, or intrigued you all to go out and hit it.

 

[McLovin]

dude, your insight has been excellent with this so far. consider me dead nuts set on hitting this when it becomes available. while I don't swing anything like you, the forgiveness and consistency plus distance is a formula for me to give my money. thanks for killing this one, Dan.


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