It started years ago with Phil Mickelson, which is often where some of the most interesting equipment stories tend to begin. Two drivers. Two lob wedges. Frankenclubs. Lefty has tried it all during his career on the gear front.
Some of Mickelson’s creations have gone nowhere, while others have turned into full-fledged tour trends – like the mini driver.
It was Mickelson who first employed a 13-degree Callaway XHot 3Deep after seeing a need for a fairway wood that possessed a deep face for tee shots. The larger face gave it driver-like properties, while the shorter shaft ensured he could keep it in play on tight courses without sacrificing significant distance.
Mickelson was so enamoured with the creation that he opted to go driver-less at the 2013 Open Championship and employ 3Deep as the longest club in the bag. He’d depart Muirfield with the claret jug that Sunday. Not bad for an equipment flier.
Since Mickelson put an early version of today’s mini driver on the map, the club has exploded in popularity on tour in the past year. Once considered a course-dependent option when driver was too much, several pros have started carrying mini drivers on a regular basis, including Adam Scott, Tommy Fleetwood, Bryson DeChambeau, Tony Finau and Rickie Fowler.
The club offers several benefits for pros and amateurs alike. At 280-300cc, the head still offers ample forgiveness with a shorter shaft (usually around 43.5-43.75 inches) to help tighten dispersion off the tee.
Interest on tour has caused manufacturers to perk up and embrace the trend. Along with TaylorMade and Callaway, Titleist teased a GT280 mini at the Sentry tournament and PXG announced the release of its Secret Weapon.
Continuing the mini momentum on tour, Cobra quietly rolled out a 13.5-degree King mini-driver prototype at the American Express event that was built specifically for Rickie Fowler to test. Fowler, who recently re-upped with Cobra Puma, has been using a TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper since the Sanderson Farms Championship.
Cobra is attempting to bump it from the bag with a mini that possesses a similar 300cc head size and some visuals he prefers. Fowler has the heavier 12-gram weight positioned far forward to lower launch and spin and make it a true second option to the driver. Cobra Tour rep Ben Schomin also added some colour to the scorelines in the centre of the face for a contrasting look that’s designed to help Fowler frame the ball.
As several tour reps confirmed, the mini has grown in popularity as more pros have continually found themselves with fewer shots from 230 metres on the course. The driver offers a max distance option when they want to send it, with the mini coming right in behind with comparable distance and the ability to act as a fairway-finder. High-lofted fairway woods fill in the distance gap behind the mini with a steeper descent angle to attack the pin on par 5s.
Cobra’s latest creation is a game-time decision this week for Fowler, but early positive feedback hints that it might not be long before we see it in action.