The post How golf-club makers design clubs based on Arccos data appeared first on Golf.

The post How golf-club makers design clubs based on Arccos data appeared first on Golf.

Arccos has become a valuable asset to golfers everywhere to help them learn more about their own game, but the company is actually helping OEMs develop new golf clubs too.

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, Arccos CEO Sal Syed explained how the company has relationships with almost every OEM to use their data and explained some of the examples to co-host Jake Morrow.

Syed mentioned Ping has used Arccos data for multiple club development and fitting applications.

“This is something that they have talked about, so I can talk about it. For the last 400 years or so, golf gapping, the iron gapping has been linear,” Syed said. “But what they realized was for the improvement player, for a mid-handicap player, linear gapping doesn’t need linear loft gapping, so the four-degree or four-and-a-half degree, whatever the difference is, doesn’t actually lead to linear differences in distance on the course.

“Now they have a non-linear proprietary gapping algorithm that they have based on Arccos data, so that was a fundamental change that had been based on real-world data.”

Arccos data was also able to show Ping that players were using their wedges more from the rough than the fairway, which encouraged designers to change the grind and bounce options and tailor them more for play out of the long grass.

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Morrow brought up the example of the G440 hybrid’s progressive face angle design by loft.

“They looked into every bag of players that were playing hybrids, or Ping hybrids specifically, and there was basically nobody playing a 2-hybrid and a 5-hybrid,” Morrow said. “So they said, why are we trying to build these the same? This 2-hybrid is for this guy, this 5-hybrid is for this set of players. And I thought that that was just such a unique way to use data.”

For more from Morrow and Syed, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post How golf-club makers design clubs based on Arccos data appeared first on Golf.

The post Are your golf shoes costing you strokes? Arccos data might soon tell you appeared first on Golf.

The post Are your golf shoes costing you strokes? Arccos data might soon tell you appeared first on Golf.

Golfers spend hours and thousands of dollars ensuring their golf clubs and ball are perfectly dialed. So, why don’t they devote the same care and thought to a piece of equipment they use on every single shot?

We’re talking about your golf shoes.

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, co-host Jake Morrow sat down with Arccos CEO Sal Syed and discussed the possibility that the shot-tracking app could soon be able to offer you analytical guidance on which type of shoes you perform best in.

“Consciously or subconsciously, there’s a performance angle to everything in golf, which I actually didn’t recognize, either,” Syed said.

That could mean your choice of outerwear, pants or, yes, shoes — with the Arccos app potentially tracking if a piece of apparel is affecting your game.

Syed said he tested five rounds using spiked shoes versus five rounds with spikeless shoes. In the spiked shoes, he said, he saw an 0.8 strokes-gained improvement in his driving.

“They’re less comfortable with some of the other cushiony shoes that I wear, but I always put them on when I know I have to perform,” he said.

Being able to isolate strokes gained for golf shoes isn’t yet a feature Arccos has made available, but it shows the possibilities for the technology. It also show how something seemingly as insignificant as shoe choice can, in fact, make a difference in your game.

For more from Morrow and Syed, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post Are your golf shoes costing you strokes? Arccos data might soon tell you appeared first on Golf.

The post Is an emotional connection to your putter holding you back? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post Is an emotional connection to your putter holding you back? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

Golfers forming emotional attachments with certain clubs is nothing new.

Scottie Scheffler has his driver. Ben Hogan was famous for his 1-iron. And Roy McAvoy never missed with his 7-iron.

But the easiest club to become emotionally attached to is the putter. Some golfers use the same putter for years, while others customize them so they represent their personality.

So can those emotional connections to putters hold players back? Maybe not!

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, co-host Johnny Wunder claimed that finding the right putter is nearly as much the “spirit and soul” of the putter as it is the fit. Wunder said he often gets fits for putters on a Quintic machine or a different putting analysis machine, but the emotional connection usually wins out.

“In my experience, what happens is putters are such an emotional thing that you can… It’s specific to putting too,” Wunder said. “I would say it’s 55% fitting and 45% the soul and spirit and emotional connection of that. I think most good players will make something they like to look at. They can aim, work, because they just… It’s something in their soul is just like, ‘No, I know that other one.’”

PGA Tour putting coach and GOLF contributor Stephen Sweeney didn’t necessarily disagree. It’s something he sees all the time.

“These machines, technology-wise, whether it’s Quintic or Vertex, whatever Gears and stuff that we use, we’d see a lot where players definitely have better numbers with one product than another,” Sweeney said. “But then, like you said, they have a crazy emotional attachment to this putter that either like the look-off, they like the sound, the feel, or they have good memories of an important putt they made with it.

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“And they sometimes just revert to that just out of emotional reasons, nothing else.”

So is that a bad thing? Sweeney doesn’t necessarily think so.

“I’m not going to say the player, but there’s a player out there, world class, like, you know, top three or four in the world that puts with a putter that I look at and just go, I don’t feel like he puts really good with it, but he just likes it,” Sweeney said.

He also gave an example of his work with Ludvig Aberg, who, until recently, was one of the few top-20 players in the world still using a blade putter. Before switching to a mallet putter two weeks ago, Sweeney and Aberg were changing the loft on his Odyssey Ai-One blade.

“We changed the loft, we changed the insert, and you know, numbers-wise, it was perfect,” Sweeney said. “And then he putted horrible with it for a couple of events, because the ball just was coming off way too fast for what he was reading his putt side. So even though in a controlled environment, you maybe do the right thing, especially at the PGA Tour level, these guys are so dialed in with their feels that the slightest change can really affect something pretty massively.”

It goes to what creates that emotional connection with a putter: feel. Just because something works well on a straight putt indoors doesn’t mean it will translate to the course.

For more from Wunder, Sweeney and co-host Jake Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post Is an emotional connection to your putter holding you back? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post These are the two most important parts of putting when testing putters | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post These are the two most important parts of putting when testing putters | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

When looking for a new putter, many golfers tend to focus, like Fully Equipped co-host Johnny Wunder, on strike and alignment.

“I look at putters like if I can aim it and I can hit it out of the middle,” Wunder said on this week’s episode.

But is that enough?

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, Wunder posed that question to PGA Tour putting coach and GOLF contributor Stephen Sweeney. Sweeney responded that there’s a bit more to it for most accomplished golfers.

“I think once you get below, certainly in a single figure handicaps, you’re definitely leaving some meat on the bone there,” he said.

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Sweeney explained that he often tells people who ask him about getting a new putter that the real keys are making putts inside of eight feet and speed control from 30 to 70 feet.

“If a PGA Tour pro makes 25-footers at a 12 percent clip rate, if a consumer only makes, or a regular golfer only makes 2 percent of their 25-footers, they’re only 10% worse than a tour pro,” Sweeney said. “I mean, there’s no other area of the game that you’d say, ‘Hey, I’m only 10 percent worse than a tour pro, right?’ But you could be legitimately — from 4 to 8 feet, — you could be 40-50 percent worse than a tour pro.”

His point is that pros make so few of their 25-footers; looking at how many 25-footers you can make with a new putter is irrelevant.

What really matters is making short putts and not three-putting long ones.

“And on distance putting, you could be 70-80 percent worse than a tour pro on your proximity,” he continued. “So that mid-range level of putting is not that important to the average golfer, but… 3 to 8 feet and then outside 30, you need something sure, you can aim, you can start online, you can hit out of the center, but there’s definitely a weight component there for the speed putting, that I think the average consumer with a 7-handicap, they don’t match that up fully to take full advantage of what they’re investing in.”

So the next time you’re looking for a new putter, don’t go trying to make 10-20 footers. Make sure you can make the shorter ones and your speed control is good on the long ones.

For more from Wunder, Sweeney and co-host Jake Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post These are the two most important parts of putting when testing putters | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post What can a counterbalance golf shaft do for you? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post What can a counterbalance golf shaft do for you? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

Wyndham Clark’s victory two weeks ago at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson came after an interesting change to his driver setup, moving from the new Project X Titan Black shaft to the Titan Yellow, which launched the following week.

The unique thing about the Titan Yellow is that it’s essentially a counterbalanced version of the Titan Black.

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, co-hosts Johnny Wunder and Jake Morrow shared their experiences testing the new Titan shafts and how a counterbalanced shaft profile could help your game.

While Wunder has yet to test the new Yellow profile, Morrow has tested both new shafts, side by side, and had an interesting takeaway. The Titan Yellow, coming in about three-and-a-half swingweight points lighter (because of the counterbalancing), sent his tee shots about 15 feet higher thanks to 300-400 RPMs additional spin, despite similar launch characteristics.

“That was the difference between a successful product with the Yellow and an unsuccessful product for me with the Black, because I need my equipment to launch the ball,” Morrow said. “I don’t launch the ball.”

That surprised Morrow because the Titan Yellow is advertised as a true low-launch, low-spin shaft, whereas most counterbalanced options are more in the mid ranges, like the Mitsubishi Tensei Orange profiles.

Project X Titan Black Wood Shaft

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At this point, Wunder interjects that counterbalancing a shaft profile often leads to both a stiff handle section and a stiff tip section, which is why they are really good for an aggressive swinger like Matt Fitzpatrick.

“He’s an aggressive transition guy, but also needs help getting it up,” Wunder said. “So that’s plug and play for an [Tensei] orange guy. Somebody that spins it quite a bit, hits it flat, needs a little bit of help, but at the same time in transition is really, really hard.”

For players who pull hard on the handle in transition, a counterbalance profile can be very effective in helping them get the ball in the air. That’s why an aggressive swinger like Wyndham Clark has been so successful in the two events since he made the switch to the counterbalanced Titan Yellow.

For more from Wunder and Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post What can a counterbalance golf shaft do for you? | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post The sneaky benefits of a 15-degree mini driver, explained | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post The sneaky benefits of a 15-degree mini driver, explained | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

Earlier this year, TaylorMade quietly added a new loft option to its R7 Quad Mini Driver: 15.5 degrees.

That was significant because modern mini drivers had settled into both 11.5˚ and 13.5˚ options, with 13˚-13.5˚ being the most common for golfers to find a suitable club to replace their 3-wood and give themselves a true secondary option off the tee.

And if the modern 3-wood sits between 14˚ and 16.5˚, what is the purpose of a 15.5˚ mini driver? On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, co-hosts Johnny Wunder and Jake Morrow discussed this topic.

In the episode, as Morrow and Wunder explained recent changes they’ve made to their bags in the last few months, Morrow noted he’s playing a TaylorMade R7 Quad 15.5˚ Mini driver.

“I don’t understand it,” Wunder said. “I don’t know what universe that has benefits for anybody.”

But Morrow explained that the 15.5˚ loft solves a simple problem.

TaylorMade R7 Quad Custom Mini Driver

PERFORMANCE FOR THE MODERN PLAYER Inspired by one of the most iconic models in TaylorMade history, the R7 Quad Mini Driver pays homage to what’s come before, while creating its own modern identity in the same breath. It’s that very modern design that incorporates proven TaylorMade technologies to give golfers versatility and playability. R7 QUAD WEIGHTING SYSTEM The new quad weighting system features four movable weights (13g x2, 4g x2) that provide the ultimate in spin management and shot shape control. Forward CG creates a penetrating flight best suited for maximizing distance whereas rear CG helps prioritize control and ease of use from the deck. Shot shape can also be fine-tuned helping create the most optimal flight. Additional weights can be purchased for a wider range of adjustability. INFINITY CARBON CROWN A new satin Infinity Carbon Crown has been added to the R7 Quad Mini Driver chassis creating a stunning look while saving weight for better mass optimization. The cosmetic package is clean, elegant, and confidence-inspiring.

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ALSO AVAILABLE AT: PGA TOUR Superstore, TaylorMade

Many players agree that the R7 Quad sits slightly shut at address, and many players loft down the club to help solve for that. But then you’re playing with less loft than you want simply for optics’ sake.

With a 15.5˚ mini, you can loft the club all the way down on TaylorMade’s 2˚ FCT adapter and play the club at a 13.5˚ loft with a square or even open face angle.

“It’s literally built so you can put the adapter in the lower position and have a square face,” Morrow said. “It’s a square-faced, 13-and-a-half-degree mini driver. That’s what it really is.”

This setup works well for Morrow because if he’s going to play his mini driver, he doesn’t want it to go more than 260 yards. While you might want to set up a driver to go as far as possible, the mini driver is more of a position club. That’s also why Morrow’s mini driver is just over 42 inches long.

For more from Wunder and Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post The sneaky benefits of a 15-degree mini driver, explained | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post What Japanese baseball pitchers can teach you about club fittings | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post What Japanese baseball pitchers can teach you about club fittings | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

When it comes to finding the right shaft in your golf club, we know how important timing is.

Based on how you swing the golf club, the shaft is going to be the timing mechanism that allows you to swing at your rhythm and tempo to hit the ball in the center of the club face.

On this week’s episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped, co-host Johnny Wunder explained how the way baseball pitchers in Japan are taught to throw the ball can help you figure out what is best for your game.

Wunder was explaining that he wanted to find out how players could gain data and learn the optimal way to move around. The old theory is that players who walk fast generally should have faster, more abrupt tempos, while slower walkers are smoother and more deliberate. He used the examples of Nick Price, a fast mover, and Fred Couples, a smooth one.

Then he called on what pitchers do in baseball.

“If you watch Japanese pitchers throw a baseball,” Wunder said. “It’s a full release one way and a full release the other way. There are no constraining forces. There’s no torque.

“The reason why they teach that, one is that it’s easier on the body. But it’s easier for the human body to repeat that if there’s not an opposing force.”

So what does that have to do with golf?

Well, just like they teach the optimal way to find repetitive movements in baseball for pitchers, golfers can find the optimal timing and rhythm with the right golf clubs to help them make repeatable swings more often.

“There’s a way to optimize your fittings by making sure you’re looking at the right swings,” co-host Jake Morrow said. “The process of figuring out what the right swings are is what Johnny is currently after. Defining what is my good golf swing and then going into future fittings, knowing what those numbers look like and matching up your fitting data to that swing data is going to be an important part moving forward.”

The idea is that you might hit a club well in a fitting, but the swing your making might not actually be the best for your game. That’s why when you take it out on the course, you end up putting a different swing on it and struggle.

But if you can be sure you’re making an optimal swing for your body, then you can expect to make that same swing on the golf course.

For more from Wunder and Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post What Japanese baseball pitchers can teach you about club fittings | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post Why there’s no sense in chasing perfect golf club specs | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post Why there’s no sense in chasing perfect golf club specs | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

When you find a club that you hit well, best not to question it. What’s that they say about never looking a gift horse in the mouth?

But there’s always something that makes us gear nerds want to overanalyze everything.

And so brings us to the dilemma of GOLF’s Jake Morrow, who, until very recently, was going through some major struggles with the driver. That all changed when he received his new Titleist GTS3 that he was fit for at Titleist’s TPI facility.

It’s a new GTS3 with the Graphite Design Tour AD-FI shaft, which Morrow didn’t really expect to fit into, but it’s turned into a weapon.

“I have an Arccos statement that says that I am now a perfect driver of the golf ball and other things are my problem,” Morrow told his fellow GOLF’s Fully Equipped co-host Johnny Wunder on this week’s episode. “I hit some absolute nukes. There was a couple of references to Walmarts being in between me and my coach on some of those shots.”

There’s just one issue. When Morrow put his new driver on the swingweight scale, it checked in at a hefty D8.

As a gear nerd, Morrow naturally reached out to his fitter, TPI’s Hunter Brown, and wondered if it was still the best driver for him.

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“I said, ‘Hey, man, my only issue is it on my scale at home. It came out at D8 and that’s a little aggressive,'” he said. “Now, the conversation and after playing four rounds, if everybody told me not to mess with it, I would leave it how it is and I would be happy. But you can tell that the head’s heavy. The shaft is a little soft, but not like in a bad way. My only gripe was for the first two rounds, everything was a left-to-right ball flight.”

Morrow wanted to take the 5-yard fade he was hitting and make it a 5-yard draw by getting the driver down to D6.

But if he was hitting the driver so well, why even bother with it? That was Wunder’s response.

“You’re chasing perfection. And when you said that you had it at D8, my first instinct was like, so what?” he said. “Like, that’s a number that you care about. It’s not a number that matters to the performance of the driver.”

Morrow was going to ask Brown for a weight kit, but Wunder said he would tell him not to send one. The driver works now, don’t mess with a good thing.

“If he sends me the weights to fix it, then I’ll try it,” Morrow said. “If he doesn’t or they get lost in the mail, then I have what I have and I’ll continue to play it.”

Perhaps this is one of those situations where it would have just been better to simply leave well enough alone.

For more from Wunder and Morrow, listen to the full episode of GOLF’s Fully Equipped here, or watch it below.

Want to find the best driver for your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post Why there’s no sense in chasing perfect golf club specs | Fully Equipped appeared first on Golf.

The post TaylorMade’s Adrian Rietveld on what it’s like fitting Rory McIlroy | Tour Validated appeared first on Golf.

The post TaylorMade’s Adrian Rietveld on what it’s like fitting Rory McIlroy | Tour Validated appeared first on Golf.

Listen, if you’ve spent any time around a Tour truck, you know that the distance between a “good” driver fitting and a “legendary” one is measured in fractions of a millimeter… and a whole lot of sweat. I recently sat down with TaylorMade’s Senior Tour Manager, Adrian Rietveld, for an episode of Tour Validated, and what he broke down regarding Rory McIlroy’s transition into the Qi4D is the kind of gear-head gold that keeps me up at night.

Rietveld, a.k.a. AD, has been a close buddy since my days back at WRX, and watching his evolution from a new U.S. hire coming over from the DP World Tour to the Alpha fitter on the TaylorMade truck has been one of my proudest things to witness in this industry. There’s nothing better than getting those texts early in the season when he’s had a breakthrough with a player or a new piece of tech. The passion and dedication is inspiring; honestly, much of what I know about this game comes from this guy and Callaway’s Kellen Watson. Podcasts like this make me really grateful all over again.

Precision at 190 MPH: The ‘Rory Robot’

Adrian started peeling back the curtain on the R&D process at The Kingdom. Imagine a robot calibrated specifically to Rory’s delivery: 5 degrees up, high 180s to 190 mph ball speed. That isn’t just a machine; it’s a simulation of a freak of nature.

The stress in the room was palpable. Adrian noted that at those speeds, a face angle discrepancy of just 0.2 degrees, a literal hair’s breadth, would send the ball off the range. It gives you a chilling appreciation for how precise Rory has to be with his own hands. When the robot finally started spitting out that signature Rory flight, Adrian knew they were close. But “close” doesn’t win green jackets.

The 2400 RPM Sweet Spot

For years, the “Rory Number” has been 2200 to 2400 RPM of spin. That’s where he owns the air. The challenge with the new Qi4D architecture was tightening the standard deviation without losing the integrity of the flight.

Adrian described a session at The Bears Club where the data was almost unbelievable. We’re talking about 190 mph ball speeds with a spin deviation of maybe 150 RPM over dozens of shots. That is pure, unadulterated consistency. It’s the kind of performance that makes a guy like Rory put down his old gamer and never look back. In fact, Adrian mentioned that once Rory hit the final Qi4D build, he didn’t even pick up his previous driver again.

TaylorMade Qi4D Custom Driver

SHAPED FOR SPEED The re-engineered head profile increases ball speed thanks to improved aerodynamics developed through advanced simulations. FACE FOR DISTANCE 60x Carbon Twist Face™ is a technological cornerstone that provides weight savings, incredible ball speed and more consistency vs. a titanium face. ADJUSTABLE PERFORMANCE 4° loft sleeve can be used to adjust loft, lie and face angle for optimized flight. TOUR PROVEN TECHNOLOGIES New and improved cut-through Speed Pocket™ protects ball speed and reduces spin on low-face strikes. Advanced CAD modeling creates a design with a clean and powerful sound, a foundation of TaylorMade driver performance. Multi-Material Construction allows engineers to strategically place mass in areas of the head where it maximizes performance, speed, and stability.

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The ‘Harry Diamond’ Effect

One of the coolest nuggets Adrian dropped was about the visual evolution of the club. When they were looking at finished parts at Wentworth, Rory’s caddy, Harry Diamond, made a crucial observation. Harry pointed out that while the earlier prototype was clean, the retail-leaning Qi10 had a distinct top line on the crown.

Rory was looking at both, and Harry, who knows Rory’s eye better than anyone, helped bridge that gap. Adrian realized it was easy to just bring both versions to The Bears Club for the final showdown. Having Harry involved isn’t just about carrying the bag; it’s about that second set of eyes that ensures the player isn’t just seeing good numbers, but seeing a look that inspires total confidence.

Rory McIlroy’s Qi4D driver specs

This isn’t an off-the-rack build. Every gram and every quarter-inch was debated. Here is the full breakdown of the big stick Rory used to conquer Augusta:

The Architect of the Top of the Pyramid

Beyond the nuts and bolts of one driver, you have to look at the run Rietveld has been on with TaylorMade. It’s unprecedented. We’re talking about a guy who has managed the bags of the top three players in the world simultaneously, a “Fitter’s Triple Crown” that most in the industry can only dream of.

His track record isn’t just about longevity; it’s about stability. Adrian has overseen a period where TaylorMade athletes have captured seven of the last nine Masters titles. Whether it’s Scottie Scheffler’s unmatched ball-striking, Tommy Fleetwood’s unique iron requirements, or Rory’s pursuit of the career Grand Slam, Adrian is the common denominator. He has transitioned from a “driver specialist” into a master of the entire bag, proving that the secret sauce at TaylorMade isn’t just the carbon, it’s also the people who know how to tune it.

The Emotional Connection

What I love about Adrian is that he isn’t just a “numbers guy.” He takes this personally. He talked about the stress of the “Masters pursuit” and the 10 years of work leading up to Rory’s recent success.

You can have all the robots and Trackman data in the world, but at the end of the day, it’s about a player looking down at a piece of carbon and feeling like he was “born with a driver in his hand.” Rory’s specific Qi4D setup, with that grey face and the top line Harry helped dial in, was a collaborative build that started as a shell at East Lake and ended with a green jacket.

Want to overhaul your bag in 2026? Find a club-fitting location near you at True Spec Golf.

The post TaylorMade’s Adrian Rietveld on what it’s like fitting Rory McIlroy | Tour Validated appeared first on Golf.

The post What I learned hitting Cobra’s secret 3D-printed Tour prototypes appeared first on Golf.

The post What I learned hitting Cobra’s secret 3D-printed Tour prototypes appeared first on Golf.

While visiting Cobra HQ to film our 3DP feature, I was able to spend some time hitting prototype irons built for a few different Cobra staff players on the PGA and LPGA Tours.

This is probably the most unique feature of Cobra’s 3DP process. They can make one-of-one sets for Tour players in just weeks, rather than retooling a head for a new forging, which would take months. This turnaround ability has vaulted Cobra to the top of the list for free agents seeking a new set of irons, and it’s likely we’ll start seeing more players on major tours switch to their own 3DP customs.

Let’s break down my favorites from testing at HQ.

Max Homa’s solid MBs

Max Homa signing with Cobra was big news, and Max has repeatedly said that the process of building his own 3DP iron was one of the reasons he was so excited to sign with Cobra. He was a big fan of the standard King MB forged irons that Cobra was making, and a lot of what he did with his 3DP.MH irons (which you have also seen in some images as the 3DP.MB.s) were to emulate the feeling he got from those, while adding a bit of forgiveness thanks to the increased mass properties of the 3DP heads. He also adds a touch of offset to his set compared to the standard forged offerings. The biggest difference for Max? He doesn’t have an internal lattice system with his irons. He chose to create his set as a solid-printed set that gives him the feel he’s been looking for, matching the irons he’s played most of his life. The advantage for him? He still gets the shape, visual package and performance he’s after to his exact specifications.

Rickie Fowler’s 3DP King Tour Love

Rickie Fowler has an interesting equipment story on tour. He’s an unabashed golfer who wants to use the best tools for his game, and over the last several years, he has made a few changes you might not expect from a Tour player. He started playing AeroTech graphite iron shafts and a “player’s distance” iron in the Cobra King Tours. The combination has been great for Rickie, and he’s been nothing but complimentary of the more forgiving build. When Cobra introduced him to the 3DP program, he really didn’t want to change much from the King Tour heads. So the 3DP.RF (which you’ll also see in photos as the 3DP.KT for King Tour) is based heavily on the King Tour, but again, with better mass properties that increase the MOI of the head. His irons are a combination of the King Tour and the 3DP Tour. Offset from the King Tour, MOI from the 3DP Tour, a touch higher toe height compared to the 3DP Tour and the coolest part of his build is they didn’t add any tungsten to Rickie’s 3DP irons. They achieved a higher MOI design with just the internal lattice structure. The combination of which allows them to hit Rickie’s preferred launch properties.

The toughest switch: Lexi Thompson

Lexi Thompson likes the weirdest iron ever — the Cobra S2 Forged. This is an iron that came out over a decade ago, and she has been so in love with it that she still has them in the bag. The problem? Cobra doesn’t make the iron anymore, and they don’t even have a stash. But there’s a simple fix: 3D printing. I actually think this is where Cobra’s 3D-printing ability really shines. They can take a player like Lexi Thompson and give her the exact iron shape and visual that she wants with more performance. In very simple terms, they can scan the old S2 Forged, then take that model into their new software and create an internal lattice structure that gives her a higher MOI design with a bit more ball speed, while keeping the exact offset, sole and loft package she has desired for years.

You can watch our full Cobra 3DP Feature on YouTube!

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