Cobra releases the King Tec-Mini Driver after months of road testing

More than a year after the first prototype was seen on the PGA Tour, Cobra has finally joined the fray of small drivers for sale.

Cobra releases the King Tec Mini Driver, becoming the latest OEM to offer a club in the ever-growing category that serves as the next longest club after the driver in the player’s bag.

“This small driver can suit all golfers because, for the best players in the world, they need a product that works on skinnier fairways or fairways where they need to put it in place and not have their driver run down the fairway or be too far,” Jose Mirafor, Cobra’s VP of Product Architecture and Consumer Connections, told GOLF. “For the average golfer, it’s a lot easier to hit a tee than a fairway wood, because it’s a lot bigger.”

The new King Tec Mini Driver has been in the works for over a year and has already been used extensively at the professional level, including the bag of 2019 US Open winner Gary Woodland, and most recently 11-time LPGA Tour winner Lexi Thompson.

Continue reading below for more on the Cobra King Tec Mini Driver, including my take on the release.

What’s really new about the Cobra King Tec Mini Driver — and why you should care

It’s worth the wait

The first prototypes of the Cobra mini driver appeared on Tour about a year ago, when Rickie Fowler, who started using the mini driver in 2024, was spotted with a Cobra prototype called “The Duce.” Cobra Tour representative Ben Schomin told GOLF that Fowler was initially instrumental in pushing the young driver to improve.

“We played about 10 years ago, but it wasn’t something we really had in the market,” he said. “We are late to bring it to the market, but at that time we were trying to check if our players need it?”

“Obviously, it got to the point where it’s like, okay, Rickie feels like this is an important aspect of the game when it comes to getting more roads.”

It wasn’t long before every member of Cobra’s Tour had a mini driver prototype, and it found a permanent place in Gary Woodland’s bag.

But why did it take so long for Cobra to bring the club to market? Another reason was Fowler’s unique choice of starter and combining that to create a product that would be successful on Tour and in retail.

“Because this little driver was tested for months, there is no difference between what is sold in stores and what is played on the road,” said Mrafor. “I would like it when we have six months to respond to the visit [on everything]. Because the product comes out really good. “

A club to do everything

One of the reasons Cobra has pursued the junior driver for so long is that they believe this category is a unique club that benefits both elite and novice players.

The mini serves the purpose of the club being shorter than the driver, but more forgiving than the 3-woods of professionals who are often tied to short holes and dogs. But it is different because it is also beneficial for a beginner who has not hit so far.

“I always ask people, who do you sell? Who do you match? Who do you think benefits from a small driver? And the biggest answer is of all players,” said Mirafor.

He pointed out that the CG of the smaller 303 cc driver is closer to the hosel than that of the standard 460 cc driver making it easier for the handicap golfer to reach the square. It is also easy to control thanks to the 43.75 inch shaft.

It is flexible and adjustable

Coming in at 303 cc, the King Tec-MD gets what is often a standard size for modern small drivers.

“I think size has a lot to do with play,” Schomin said. “We still want to be able to hit the deck, so it’s not too big. We want it to be a nice, fast, forgiving club off the tee, so we don’t want to make it too small. We just felt like the 300 cc range was a good place to live.”

Cobra believes their King Tec-MD has a huge advantage over all other entries in the category with their futureFit33 hosel system.

With 33 different combinations of loft and lie, Schomin called the qualifying opportunities “exciting.” That’s especially true considering the FF33 hosel’s ability to travel two degrees lower, which is unique to minis on the market.

The King Tec-MD also has adjustable front and rear weights, a stock position weighing 12 g in the rear and 2 g in the rear. Like most minis that feature front-to-back flex, putting more weight forward turns the King Tec into a low-spin monster off the tee, while moving more weight to the rear improves off-deck performance.

Cobra King Tec-MD

What it is: A mid-size, 303 cc mini-driver option, Schomin said the size allows it to be playable off the tee or fairway, while not looking “awful” on the short shaft. The King Tec-MD also has loft, lie and CG combinations possible thanks to adjustable front-to-back weights and the FF33 hosel. The titanium head incorporates Cobra’s PWRSHELL face insert with HOT Face technology to increase ball speed and increase the size of the sweet spot.

Whose: Both taller players looking for a second option off the tee or simply any player looking for a more forgiving option than the 3 wood can get more out of it. The 303 cc size makes this great for both players who only use the mini off the tee and players who will use it anywhere.

My take: A well-made mini-driver

The cobra waited for a while until they were sure that the Mini Driver was fully cooked and we are really glad they did.

I was a long time skeptic of the small driver, but found that throwing it as a driver, given the larger face, made it more forgiving. The Cobra challenges that notion by taking the 300 cc size which is the standard size for small progressive drivers.

Any big one and I find it packs a lot of power out of the deck and spins a lot. Any smaller and it just becomes a great fairway wood and you don’t get that swing-like-driver feel.

The King Tec mini was an easy fit for me as it really fits my eye, flies exactly the number I like to see and is easy to hit from both the tee and deck.

This is a small driver that I think quickly replaces the Cobra at the end of this section.

Price, Specifications and Availability

The Cobra King Tec-Mini Driver is available for pre-order Jan. 12 and it comes to retail outlets Jan. 16.

It will be expensive $479.99.

The end of the seat available is 13.5˚ and the stock length is 43.75″ with the Mitsubishi Kai’li shaft. Because of the hosel length, any standard 3-wood length shaft can be fitted to the King Tec-MD for a playing length of 43.75″.

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