By Scott Kramer, Contributing Equipment Editor
C
obra Golf has debuted a four-model DS Adapt driver line, along with a very precise flight-tuning system. PGA Magazine caught up with Jose Miraflor (pictured), the company’s Vice President of Product Architecture and Consumer Connections, to find out the skinny.
What’s different about Cobra’s new DS Adapt drivers?
Jose Miraflor: They’re our fastest and most fittable drivers ever, and our new Futurefit 33 adjustable-hosel system speaks to how tunable these drivers are. The advanced aerodynamics haven’t changed a lot from last year. The leading edge is streamlined to deliver a very aerodynamic frontal area, which is a key factor in determining drag force an object is under when moving through the air.
A raised crown away from the leading edge along with a raised aft area of the driver helps to maintain a smooth laminar flow around the clubhead. The DS Adapt LS driver is also very symmetrical in shape and more cylindrical in facial shape, which helps in reducing drag. New in the DS Adapt drivers is a more reduced heel height that can deliver more aerodynamics when starting the downswing. The DS Adapt LS driver is also slightly smaller at 445cc, which is preferred by our tour staff.
Aerodynamics is one of those things that helps the fastest golfers more. When we first gave this prototype to long-ball hitter Kyle Berkshire, he gained about 3 mph clubhead speed, which is like 5 mph in ball speed, and 15 yards. As you go down in swing speed, your gains will be reduced. So, because of that, we made aerodynamics progressive. The LS driver made for the fastest golfers in the X have more raised aft than the Max K and the Max D that are made for slower swing speeds. Those are designed to position the CG lower, so the ball gets up in the air – providing more spin and carry. The DS Adapt X, K and D are all 460cc.
What is the Futurefit 33 system all about?
Miraflor: Our current eight-setting system is a simple, single hosel system. And it’s been good, and very easy to use. Sometimes simplicity can yield compromises. The weakness we saw in the 9-degree driver is that the standard loft is your flattest lie angle setting. The moment you increase or reduce the loft, you’re raising the lie angle and making it left biased. Which is not something everybody wants. What people think they’re getting when they’re getting fit by this system is a standard 1 degree up, 1.5-degree up, 1 degree down, 1.5 degree down, and then three draw settings. What they’re actually getting – because it is a circular tube – is only one neutral setting, and every other setting turns the golf ball spin axis more left. So, it’s not ideal.
With Futurefit 33, you can adjust the driver to fly in any direction. The 33 settings look like a lot at first. And it is a lot. We want it to be a lot. But it’s the first one that can actually decouple loft and lie so that you can move from a real center. Most fitting systems don’t have a real center. And you can actually move in any direction to truly straighten your ball flight. Our fitters didn’t know what they were missing until we showed them this and they are saying it’s a “fitters’ dream come true.”
When you have a better player and you keep adjusting them for loft, you’re losing their lie angle tunability, and we're giving that back. We have the ability to cater to both sides of the coin – depending on how you want your ball flight. No more weighting up the toe for faders, or finding flatter heads. This new system allows you to do anything you really want to do.
“With Futurefit 33, you can adjust the hosel to fly in any direction.” —Cobra Golf's Jose Miraflor
How will fitters use it?
Miraflor: When a golfer starts hitting and you start to see a pattern, all we’re going to do is hold up our fitting trajectory chart and say, where do you think you’re hitting this? Let the golfer tell you – it’s very interactive. It’s very simple to use and eliminates confusion. You’re just choosing a setting that goes in the direction they want to go (and reset the hosel).
For example, if your miss is in the upper right hand quadrant of the trajectory chart, you simply move to the opposite quadrant to help neutralize (straighten) the miss. The fitting chart is very robust and can help golfers of all levels reduce their dispersion and swing with added confidence.
And there’s a Futurefit 33 smartphone app?
Miraflor: When consumers are at the store or on the range, they can access a QR code which is positioned on the bottom of the driver near the adjustable hosel, and it will pop up on their phone. The top piece is a video explaining it to them, and they can access a right-handed chart, or a left-handed chart for our fitters because our fitting carts have shafts with right-handed sleeves but left-handed heads. The numbers appear the same for righties and lefties, so even if you choose the wrong chart, you can maneuver through it without problems.
And then we also have the interactive chart. Numbers scare people, so when we put up a chart in the app, it asks you to touch where you hit the golf ball. You can click for recommendations. Better players can get really detailed on where they want their ball flight to go, while less accomplished players will utilize that outer setting the most because they’re hitting in a more general setting. Some of these settings seem like barely a change. But for a tour pro hitting it 300 yards, it’s very visible. That’s why we have that.
