Gear: Cobra Darkspeed Max, Darkspeed X, Darkspeed LS drivers
Price: $549 with Project X HZRDUS CB Red shaft or UST Mamiya LIN-Q M40X Red shaft and Lamkin Crossline grip.
Specs: Forged titanium face with carbon fiber crown and sole panels, moveable weights and adjustable hosel.
Available: Jan.11 presale, Jan. 19 in stores
Who They’re For: Golfers who want an aerodynamic driver that delivers more ball speed and trajectory control.
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The Skinny: Available in three models, the Darkspeed drivers have three different weight systems that allow golfers to obtain the ideal blend of forgiveness, ball speed and spin.
The Deep Dive: If you still think about bright orange, blue or red clubs any time someone mentions Cobra drivers, you might not recognize the new Darkspeed X, Darkspeed Max or Darkspeed LS. As with Henry Ford’s Model T, the Darkspeed drivers come in any color you like as long as it’s black. In this case, matte black. But don’t let the dialed-down cosmetics fool you into thinking these clubs lack technologies and features to help you gain distance and find more fairways.
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All three Darkspeed drivers have an aerodynamic shape, with the edges and seams around the hitting area, the heel and toe being rounded. The highest portion of the carbon fiber crowns has also been pushed farther back and away from the topline, so as you swing down to the ball, air flows over the head more efficiently. The back of each head has also been raised, the hitting area is more oval and the sole has been smoothed. These are details golfers might overlook, but they work together to make it easier for golfers to generate more clubhead speed.
Each of the three Darkspeed drivers also has features an updated, laser-welded PWR Shell face. This manufacturing technique allows Cobra to make the face plate larger, which naturally helps enlarge the sweet spot and protect ball speed on off-center hits.
In the high-toe area of each Darkspeed driver, you will see “H.O.T. Face” etched. It is an acronym for Highly Optimized Topology. This involves computers dividing the hitting area into 15 spots and making those regions thicker or thinner until the best-performing face is revealed. With the hitting area of the Darkspeed drivers being larger than last season’s Aerojet, the 15 regions are spread farther apart, which once again aids in protecting ball speed on mis-hits.
Finally, all three Darkspeed drivers have been made with an internal bar that Cobra calls a PWR Bridge. It is positioned inside the head and connects the heel and toe areas directly behind the face. The PWR Bridge in the Darkspeed drivers is slightly lighter than the one found in Aerojet drivers, but it still lowers the center of gravity and helps reduce spin.
Along with a large carbon fiber sole panel and an adjustable hosel system that allows players and fitters to increase or decrease the stated loft by as many as 1.5 degrees, those are the things the Darkspeed Max, Darkspeed X and Darkspeed LS drivers have in common. Several things make them different and ideally suited for different golfers.
The weight saved by opting for a carbon fiber crown and sole gave Cobra designers a significant amount of discretionary weight. In the Darkspeed LS, that weight was repurposed as a 12-gram weight and two 3-gram weights. The weights can be affixed into any of the three ports, with two ports designed into the front of the sole and one in the back. When the 12-gram weight is in the front, it pushes the center of gravity forward, encouraging a lower launch and less spin. It also allows players to set up the club with a slight draw or fade bias. When the 12-gram weight is in the back, the spin rate increases, the launch angle goes up slightly and the Darkspeed LS becomes more stable.
Cobra is offering the Darkspeed LS in 8, 9 and 10.5 degrees of loft, with the 8-degree head designed for the fastest-swinging players.
The Darkspeed X – available in lofts of 9, 10.5 and 12 degrees – comes with two moveable weights, one 12 grams and the other 3 grams, with the forward port being more in the center of the sole. Cobra chose this location because several staff players added internal weight (called hot melt) to last season’s Aerjet to lower its spin rate. For the Darkspeed X, adding weight in that area is as simple as positioning the 12-gram screw there.
The Darkspeed X, which has a neutral weight bias, creates a slightly higher launch and more spin than the LS, but it delivers a high moment of inertia and added stability.
For golfers who battle a slice, Cobra is offering the Darkspeed Max, which will come in lofts of 9, 10.5 and 12 degrees. This is the most forgiving Darkspeed offering and features a 12-gram and 3-gram weight like the X, but the Max’s two weight ports are in the back and the heel area. Putting the 12-gram weight in the heel encourages the face to close more easily on the downswing and square as it impacts the ball, resulting in less sidespin and a straighter shot. When the 3-gram weight is in the heel, the club still has a draw bias, but its moment of inertia and stability are elevated.
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Below are several images of the Cobra Darkspeed drivers: