Cobra Fly-Z+ Driver Review

The Cobra Fly-Z + driver was one of the first modern drivers with a movable weight that allowed you to adjust the center of gravity (CG) from front to back. This concept would pave the way for more adjustability in later models and set a great precedent of quality and performance for future Cobra drivers.

First Impressions

Like previous generations before it, the Cobra Fly-Z+ driver was available in a wide range of colors. I’ve typically been a white or black driver head guy, but there was something about the blue and red versions of the Fly-Z+ that I thought were great. The metal flake finish is a nice added touch. Flip the club over and you see the bright yellow/gold flip weight and visible carbon on the sole.

The Fly-Z+ has a moderate roundish shape to it but doesn’t bulge or pancake. Like most Cobra drivers, the Fly-Z+ has a medium face depth that sets the club up nicely behind the ball.

Cobra Fly-Z+ 4

How Does it Feel?

Cobra continues the use of its E9 Face Tech in the Fly-Z+ driver which has a direct influence on the feel. This driver was one of the more solid feeling drivers Cobra had produced to date, but the E9 face still gave a it a feeling of the ball coming hot off the face. It also helps that the Fly-Z+ is fairly forgiving across the entire face. To get a little behind the scenes here, I still keep a Fly-Z+ around to play in certain “offseason” conditions because of how much I appreciate the feel and its ability to perform.

Cobra Fly-Z+ 8

How Does it Sound?

As I mentioned before, the Cobra Fly-Z+ driver was the predecessor for future Cobra drivers in a lot of ways. Sound is a big one. The Fly-Z+ was the first Cobra driver to have a more muted “whap” or “crack” sound to it at impact and less of the metallic tones found in previous Cobra models. Admittedly the sounds were pretty empty on the extreme toes and heels, but the sweeter spots of the face had a very powerful crack to them that would get more refined in later models like the King LTD and King F7+.

Cobra Fly-Z+ 6

On-Course Performance

Weight Forward

Club Speed	Ball Speed	Launch Angle	Spin	Carry (Yds)	Total (Yds)
109.3	164	13.2º	2519	282.1	306

Weight Back

Club Speed	Ball Speed	Launch Angle	Spin	Carry (Yds)	Total (Yds)
108.5	162.8	14.3º	2700	279.8	301.6

Cobra had previously had different driver models with different CG placements. With the Cobra Fly-Z+ driver, Cobra introduced the ability for the player to move the weight depending on what kind of performance they’re looking for. The idea being that the CG in the forward position results in lower launch and less spin With the weight in the back position, the launch should be higher with higher spin and more forgiveness. Depending on the player, this could provide a great service to fine tune the club to optimize performance.

As you can see from my numbers above, changing the weight position did make a difference albeit a subtle one. The biggest difference definitely came in forgiveness. I was much more consistent and reliable with the weight in the back position. If I tried to move it up, my best shots were a lot better, BUT I had nowhere near the reliability I should. The good news is that making the weight adjustment is easy and I was in business.

Cobra Fly-Z+ 7

Final Thoughts

I’d almost be comfortable calling the Cobra Fly-Z+ driver a pioneer! I do think more recent Cobra drivers are better, but the Fly-Z+ is still a great club and paved the way for some big deal drivers from Cobra. Good feel, forgiveness, and easy adjustability make the Cobra Fly-Z+ a great little driver.