TM M2 v Ping 410 Plus v Cobra F9

[IrishGolfer]

I was at the range last night. Popped into the shop and saw that they had some new demo clubs / "toys" in. The Pro was very encouraging to allow me to "test drive" the new gear.

After a good warm-up I hit my old faithful, the M2. I hit 6 balls and smacked them all pretty well. Swing felt good so was confident that I would be able to try out the new boys and give them a decent run.

Cobra F9 - 10.5 - Neutral - Project X HZRDUS Smoke 60 stiff
The bright yellow sole grabs your attention but the club looks lovely standing over the ball. Very traditional in color (black) and shape, confidence inspiring. The clubface looks gorgeous, love that milled circle style. Balance and weight felt good. I hit 6 balls, all dead straight. Hit two not quite out of the center and they still went. But I struggled to get any height on them. They felt like knuckleballs, low, piercing trajectory that just kept going. Solid enough feel, and did I mention that they all went straight!! Maybe it is the shaft, I need to try it with another to compare. The pro says everyone is raving about this.

Ping G410 Plus with a Tensei stiff shaft
The pro told me that this was an upgrade shaft. I couldn't wait to try it. I've had my eye on it for some time. Loved the G400 Max. I don't tend to mess about with weights so it was all standard neutral set-up. It looks a bit weird looking down on it with all those turbulators, but after about 30 seconds you don't even notice it. It is well balanced and sits nicely behind the ball. Immediately the flight improved from the first hit. Much higher than the Cobra. It just felt solid, stable and forgiving, even though I hit a few right to lefts. Not convinced that this is worth paying extra for compared to the G400 Max.

I've a bit of $$$ burning a hole in my pocket. So I'm either going to invest in a new driver or new irons. I'm going to get a proper fitting with both clubs, along with the M2 on a flightscope. I'm interested in seeing the numbers across all three. I doubt there is much in it. I can't see one driver being more than 5 yards off the others.

Conclusion? The 2019 offerings from the OEM looks excellent. A great way to clear the wallet out!

 

[azgreg]

If we're betting I'd bet your M2 would win the shootout.

 

[IrishGolfer]

Yip, I'm thinking the same thing. The M2 is hard to shift. Only time numbers will tell. I've a fairly consistent SS, so don't imagine a new driver will deliver that much more. I also think the shaft is very important. The KuroKage one I have in the M2 is sweet.

 

[warbirdlover]

You forgot to test the Tour Edge EXS. Or the Callaway Epic Flash (or whatever it is). Good reviews.

 

[TheTrueReview]

The Cobra F9 is THAT good. With mine I kept my old shaft which is the right length. From memory, 44.5”. The stock shafts are about 1.5” longer.

 

[IrishGolfer]

I got my first range session in with my new Cobra F9. When I first demo'ed it I noticed I was hitting a lot of "knuckleballs", low screamers. The same thing happened on the first few swipes last night. So for "shits and giggles" I jacked the loft by 1.5 degrees, up to 12 degrees. WOW. I was getting an instant difference. High missiles, time after time. I did hit a few pulls/hooks, and a few slices, down to my swing. But nothing that seriously worried me. As the session went on, I was getting more confident and swinging a bit harder and the ball was fizzing away. This thing is fast.

I'm going to try and get some numbers to see the difference with the M2. "Old faithful" is not short, but it seems a bit more stable and feels easier to control. So I'm not done yet. Reading some forums, the F9 definitely appears to get faster ball speeds, which means more distance. How much more? Perhaps 7-10 yards? I'll take that.

It looks nice, feels well balanced. The shaft seems decent, but I have nothing to compare it with, other than my M2. Its a lovely feel and sound off the clubface. The flight (playing geezer loft) was lovely. So all in all, I'm giddy like a kid on Christmas Day.

A few concluding thoughts:

I would like to try another shaft, perhaps a little shorter, which may help the control aspect.
I'm going to get on a swing monitor to see the spin numbers. I need to get the balance of loft and spin to max this thing out.
Looks like my son is going to have to wait a while. He wants this thing real bad!

 

[warbirdlover]

I was going to put that smoke shaft into my EXS to bring the loft down. Either that or the Hazrdus yellow shaft. This makes me feel like I'm making a good choice.