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In this review, I’ll be taking a look at the Cobra RADSPEED driver.
The RADSPEED (or KING RADSPEED) utilizes Cobra’s RADIAL weighting technology which strategically locates weight in the front and back of the driver. The result is low spin, high ball speeds across the face, and forgiveness. In addition, adjustable front and back weights enable ball flight customization.
How does the RADSPEED actually perform when put to the test? How does it compare to the previous Speedzone model? Who is it best suited for? Is it worth putting in the bag?
Read on to find out what you need to know to make an informed purchase.
Note: Unless otherwise stated, stock shafts and stock grips are used when evaluating this club. In most cases, the golf clubs reviewed on Golfstead are acquired temporarily for testing purposes and are not purchased. The review that follows is based on the personal experience and research of the author. Because everyone’s swing and body are different, results with a particular club may differ from person to person.
What are the reviews like?
The Cobra RADSPEED driver won a gold medal on the 2021 Golf Digest Hot List. It has been lauded by critics for its low spin, distance, forgiveness, and bold looks.
The driver has been very popular since its release. It currently enjoys average customer ratings of 4.9/5 on Global Golf, 4.7/5 on PGA TOUR Superstore, 5/5 on Rock Bottom Golf, and 4.9/5 on the Cobra website.
What People Like
- balanced performance
- long and straight
- stability through the hitting zone is excellent
- low spin with penetrating ball flight
- symmetrical look at address
What People Don’t Like
- not much improvement over the Speedzone
- progressive vibe of this driver may be a turnoff to some
The Features
The RADSPEED driver is centered around Cobra’s RADIAL WEIGHTING technology, which consists of weight in the extreme front and back of the driver. The increased distance between the weights is said to produce low spin, fast ball speeds and great forgiveness, all at the same time.
The front weighting is composed of 16g of fixed weight and 12g of adjustable weight in the driver frame, which creates low spin and fast face speeds.
The back weighting is composed of 8g of fixed weight and 2g of adjustable weight, adding stability and forgiveness to the strike.
The adjustable weights allow you to fine-tune trajectory and spin. For example, putting more weight in the front can reduce spin further, while putting more weight in the back can add extra forgiveness.
Other features of the RADSPEED driver include:
- CNC-Milled Infinity Face: created using Cobra’s proprietary CNC milling process, this face design expands the milled area by 95% and wraps around the body in an effort to increase the zone of maximum ball speed.
- T-Bar Speed Chassis: 7g lighter than the previous generation, this enables weight savings which are redistributed forward to reduce spin and increase ball speed.
- Carbon Wrap Crown: this light, thin-ply crown design is made of a carbon fiber material that is 30% thinner than the previous generation, saving more weight which is redistributed to further improve performance.
- Arccos Sensors: the purchase of Cobra golf equipment like the RADSPEED driver immediately makes you eligible to receive free Arccos Smart Sensors and a one-year free trial to the Arccos Caddie app.
Stock Info
The RADSPEED driver is available in 9° and 10.5° standard lofts at 460 CC.
The driver comes with a MyFly adjustable hosel that has eight loft settings: -1.5°, -1°, -1° Draw, STD, STD Draw, +1°, +1° Draw, and +1.5°.
Sole weights with gram values 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 12, and 16 can be purchased separately.
Several premium aftermarket shafts are available with the RADSPEED. The stock options are the:
- Fujikura Motore X F3 (mid/high launch, mid spin)
- Fujikura Motore X F1 (low launch, low spin)
- Project X HZRDUS Smoke RDX Blue 60 (mid-low launch, mid-low spin)
The stock grip is the Lamkin Crossline Black.
If you’re interested, full information on the driver, shafts, grips and their specs can be found here.
Below are the specs of the RADSPEED driver. Click or zoom to enlarge.
The Performance
Distance
There’s no doubt about it: the RADSPEED generates a lot of speed. Smash factors are well above average.
Because this driver generates considerably less spin than the previous Speedzone model (a few hundred RPMs on average), how much of a gain in distance you see will depend on your swing.
Fast swingers will be able to produce the necessary hang time in the ball flight to get a respectable carry distance, and the increased rollout from the low spin will add up to huge total distance. On the other hand, slower swingers will likely see trajectories that are too low, limiting total distance.
This, of course, speaks to the fact that low-spin drivers are generally suitable for high swing speed players.
Forgiveness
Typically, low-spin drivers have to leave forgiveness at the door in order to achieve their aims. The RADSPEED largely bucks this trend.
This is certainly one of the most forgiving LS drivers I’ve ever tested, particularly with the weight in the back position. With weight focused forwards, the forgiveness is more in line with what you would expect from LS drivers.
The impressive forgiveness of the RADSPEED is really thanks to the back weighting as well as the technologies packed into the driver that are designed to increase ball speed across the face. Together, they preserve both direction and ball speed on mis-hits.
Playability/Trajectory
The standard trajectory produced by the RADSPEED is mid-high with a slight fade bias. Golfers with swing speeds of 100 mph or greater will find it easy to get the ball up in the air.
The driver comes with 2g and 12g adjustable weights (in contrast to 2g and 14g weights on the SZ) that can be swapped to alter flight characteristics. You can also insert other gram weights that are sold separately. Along with the MyFly hosel, there is a ton of room to experiment and dial in your ball flight.
The RADSPEED driver has the most workability in the RAD family of drivers. Players with the aptitude should have no trouble shaping shots off the tee.
The Look
The RADSPEED driver comes in two different colour schemes:
- Black/Turbo Yellow: black crown with white and vivid yellow accents on the sole
- Peacoat/Red: deep navy blue crown with red and white accents on the sole
Both schemes are very tasteful, but I prefer the peacoat variant myself.
The design of the driver itself is very bold and progressive, and while the choice of colour aesthetic may give the driver wider appeal, the design seems to try to cater to a younger demographic that appreciates flare in their golf clubs.
The shape of the RADSPEED is sharper and more triangular than other brands, and this is especially apparent when looking down at address. The alignment aid and the raised crown accents help keep the ball in visual focus.
The fact that the infinity circle is just barely visible at address adds another element on top of the alignment aid that can help golfers hit the sweet spot more consistently.
The Sound & Feel
The RADSPEED driver feels firm and solid at impact rather than hollow and resonating. The sound is a brief, high-pitched “snap” that I found to be very satisfying during my tests.
More than anything, the driver feels very stable through the hit. One of the things I hate most with other drivers is when you mis-hit the shot and feel like the face twists around it; this is not the case with the RADSPEED.
Having said that, the overall mis-hit feedback is decent; you can tell through both feel and sound when you miss the center of the face, but it’s not as informative as a typical players driver would be.
It’s worth noting that I didn’t notice much of a difference in feel at all when the sole weight was back as opposed to forward.
Where To Buy This Driver Online
The RADSPEED driver is not a current-season model, so ordering it custom is difficult.
A fantastic place to snatch up this driver at low prices (new or used) is eBay. Many of the listings there allow you to choose colour, shaft, flex and loft.
I also recommend looking at the stock available on Global Golf, PGA TOUR Superstore, and Rock Bottom Golf. These vendors may offer club trade-ins, performance guarantees, and/or financing plans to help you minimize the financial hit and maximize peace of mind.
Conclusion
The Cobra RADSPEED driver provides the low spin and distance that many better players seek, while still maintaining an impressive amount of forgiveness. The bold look may be hit-or-miss, but the feel is superb.
Cobra recommends the RADSPEED driver for golfers in the handicap range 0-15 (low to mid), and the performance I saw during my tests is consistent with this classification. If you have a mid-high swing speed, you stand the best chance of being successful.
Having said that, I would have liked to see more of a performance improvement over the Speedzone. Frankly, if that is your current gamer, it may not be worth the upgrade.
Are you interested in the RADSPEED driver? Have you tried it yet? What have your results been? Let us know in the comments below.
