Cobra is not necessarily the first brand you think of when it comes to the best putters but we are certainly big fans of how it approaches putter design. Having not really done anything in the putter market for many years, The Cobra King 3D Printed line of putters made a big impression when they launched in 2022 and now they’ve had an upgrade for this year.
When we tested the Cobra King 3D Printed Agera in 2022 it earned a glowing review due to its super forgiving performance. The Agera is also a part of the new range and is sure to be one of the most forgiving putters of this year, making it an ideal putter for high handicap golfers, but for the purpose of this review we are concentrating on the Grandsport-35 3D Printed putter.
We tested the original Grandsport 35 3D in 2022 and were very impressed by the forgiveness on offer. So the 2024 version has a lot to live up to.
It’s a multi material 3D printed construction blade putter that Cobra says is designed to bring maximum stability. It’s wider and bulkier than a traditional blade design which promotes confidence over the ball as it gives off an air of stability and forgiveness.
Looks wise there have been some significant improvements. The previous version had a lot going on visually and split opinion. This is a lot less cluttered and has more of a classic design rather than the futuristic, open backed design of the 2022 model. Another improvement is the new three-line alignment aid that uses varying thicknesses to provide clearer visuals at address. It frames the ball much better than the previous version and generally just has a cleaner aesthetic. A KBS CT Tour shaft and SuperStroke Zenergy Pistol grip complete the premium look and feel.
Interchangeable weights in the heel and toe allow you to personalize your putter to find your desired feel and control. Nominal 15g weights can move +/- 5-10g in either direction, while additional weights (5g, 10g, 15g, 20g, 25g) can be purchased separately to match your preferred head weight.
It also has Cobra Connect powered by Arccos sensor, so you can track all of your putting stats if you use the app.
Once again the Grandsport-35 features Descending Loft Technology (DLT) on the face, which uses four descending lofts (4°, 3°, 2°, 1°) to mitigate de-lofting or the addition of loft through impact. This technology was the hallmark of SIK putters but it was taken over by LA Golf and now DLT can only be found on LA Golf and Cobra putters. It is said to provide a consistently more optimal launch (around 1.5°) regardless of your angle of attack or ball position in your stance.
In layman's terms, some golfers have their hands ahead or behind the ball at impact, which alters the loft of the putter. Usually the only way to negate that is to have a putter fitting and then your flat stick is customised to suit your stroke, but 'DLT' negates the need for that.
It's difficult to know for certain how effective this is without having exact data, but I experimented with different shaft positions at impact - leaning forward and back - and the launch and roll did seem to be very consistent. There was no noticeable skidding or jumping.
I tested the Grandsport-35 3DP extensively on the course at Hurlston Hall Golf Club as well as on my artificial turf putting green at home. I always like to use a variety of different golf balls to get a true sense of the feel and sound off the face because a premium golf ball like a Titleist ProV1 is going to sound and feel a lot different than a soft, low compression golf ball.
The feel from out of the sweet spot was excellent with all golf balls while the feedback off the face was very good so I knew immediately when I was off center as the difference in feel was clear. The sound was nice and muted, with a dull thump on center strikes, especially on the softer covered golf balls like the Wilson Staff Duo. It was a little more clicky on firmer covered golf balls but the sound was still pleasing on the ear.
The most impressive aspect for me was the stability. I have quite a straight stroke so blade putters, which require a slight arc, aren’t particularly suited to me and I often struggle to square the face at impact. I can usually tell on the take away that I’ve lost control of it, but I found the Grandsport easy to square up and I was able to consistently start putts on the desired target line.
The roll was true and distance control was impressive. On longer attempts I felt like I could repeat the same putt over and over with very little variance in distance.
Slight misses on heel or toe still travelled a good distance and it was impressive how little speed was lost on those strikes. The more exaggerated toe misses were troublesome though as there was some twist there and I found that I was losing those putts to the right as the face would open slightly, but I've always believed that if you miss the middle by that much then there should be some form of punishment.
Some twisting on the really poor strikes is entirely to be expected with a blade. That's why I am more comfortable using mallet putters which are much more adept at preventing face twisting on poor strokes.
I enjoyed the experience of using this putter and while I would not describe it as one of the best putters for high handicap golfers, I would say that the slightly larger footprint of this putter makes it a good choice for golfers who prefer blade putters but need that little bit of extra forgiveness and reassurance over the ball.
