Pros: The wedges have an high-friction face design, aggressive grooves and a versatile Tour Notch K-grind. Available in lofts of 62 and 64 degrees, if that’s your thing.
Cons: Not as many bounce options as market share leaders Vokey and Cleveland.
Bottom Line: Cobra has our attention with the Tour Trusty wedges, which are better looking and more technologically advanced than previous wedges from the company.
Overview
Cobra is known in the wedge industry for its Trusty Rusty wedges, a game-improvement model that aims to help higher-handicap golfers around the greens. But the company hopes to make inroads with better players with its new Tour Trusty wedges, which scrap the game-improvement traits from the Trusty Rusty to give better golfers more versatility and spin.
According to Cobra, three main features separate this club from its predecessors:
- Larger milled grooves. The grooves are 15 percent wider and larger than the Trusty Rusty wedges, allowing for greater spin control on all shots.
- Tour Notch K-grind. Surface area was removed from the toe, heel, and middle portion of sole to make sure the leading edge sits close to the ground on square and open-faced shots.
- Variable feed rate (VFR) face milling. This adds surface roughness to further increase spin rate.
The combination of VFR face milling and sharpened grooves take the face right up to the USGA limitations on spin.
Tour Trusty wedges are available on retail at $119 per club, and in lofts of 48 to 64 degrees in 2-degree increments. The 56- and 60-degree wedges are available in two bounce options, 56-08/56-12 or 60-06/60-10. Two finishes are available: Cobra’s “Tour Matte Satin” or a “Black PVD.”
Performance
For this review, I tested the Tour Trusty 52-degree wedge and the high-bounce version of the 56- and 60-degree wedges. I found that the Tour Notch K-Grind does provide a lot of versatility, and it absolutely allows the leading edge to sit close to the turf no matter how the club is leaned/angled.
I loved the wedges’ lower-sitting leading edge from tight lies, which allowed me to get aggressive from hard or dried-out conditions with no fear that I would skull the ball. It was also great when I wanted to open the face, because the leading edge didn’t “stand up” on me. But on other shots, the leading edge had a tendency to dig, even the high-bounce 56- and 60-degree models. I’m a high swing speed player with a tendency to get steep, so this wasn’t a total shock to me — wedges and their grinds are very personal things — but if you’re a digger, you’ll likely want to test these out before you pull the trigger.
And you should test the Tour Trusty wedges, because my chip shots and pitch shots produced great action on the ball. That made for easy control of spin, distance and a predictable release. On longer shots (70-to-125 yards), the ball comes off these wedges with the flat, high-spin trajectory golfers expect from a wedge with good grooves and a milled face.
We gave these wedges a “4″ for performance, but that has more to do with the lack of grinds than the actual performance of the wedges.
Looks and Feel
One look down at the wedge and its obvious the Tour Trusty wedges are more of a players’ club than the Trusty Rusty wedges. A thinner top line, straighter leading edge, reduced offset and smaller surface area provides the look that those blessed with great short games want to see.
The toe seems a little more triangular than I’m used to looking at (I play Vokey wedges), which may be a visual issue for some golfers. Despite the larger toe, I thought the wedges had a clean look, with a very smooth transition from the hosel to the leading edge.
Like my Vokey wedges, the Tour Trusty wedges are cast from 8620 carbon steel, and there weren’t any feel or consistency issues. The Tour Matte Satin finish I tested (the wedges are also available in Black PVD) was durable, showing only normal wear and tear from impact on the golf ball after extended use. The finish should last a long time, because unlike the Trusty Rusty wedges the Tour Trusty wedges will not rust. I think that’s a positive, although some players do prefer a wedge the look of a raw wedge.
I also really liked the way Cobra chromed the back of the wedges’ soles, which adds dimension to their grind and highlights the notch. The orange “Tour Trusty” paintfill adds some”pop” to the back of the club as well.
Another perk is that the wedges come equipped with Golf Pride New Decade Multicompound Whiteout grips that have a premium look and feel stable in the hands.
The Takeaway
Most golfers will find that the Tour Trusty wedges look great at address and in the bag. Technological advances from the Trusty Rusty make it more of a players club, and Cobra’s attention to the aesthetics of the wedge make it even more appealing.
Even if you’re not a Cobra fan, the look, feel and performance of Cobra’s new Tour Trusty wedges could change your tune. Just make sure you spend some time demoing these wedges (and any other wedges you might buy) to make sure they work for you. The Tour Notch K-Grind is versatile, but as this review proves, it’s not going to be the best option for every golfer.
