As we noted in our recent review of the excellent Exotics E8 Tour Fairway Wood, Tour Edge is not a brand that most in the UK are too familiar with.
In addition to the E8 series the Exotics range of club also includes the CB Pro family which includes a fairway wood, irons and wedges, as well as the latest edition, the Tour Edge Exotics CB Pro U Hybrid.
One look at the CB Pro U and it quickly becomes clear the most striking feature is the Slip Stream sole that was first developed for the CB Pro fairway wood. In fact, it was the success of that club which drove Tour Edge to develop the hybrid, as David Glod, Tour Edge's President and Founder explains:
After the success of the CB Pro fairway wood, I was asked countless times if I was going to put the waves on another club. Working with a more compact hybrid club head took many hours in R&D toe engineer, but I'm confident the U hybrid was worth the wait. It is already gaining traction on the PGA Tour and we are excited about what's to come.
The theory behind the waves of the Slip Stream sole is that they dramatically reduce turf interaction, allowing the club to glide through the turf regardless of the angle of attack or the position of the head, therefore maintaining speed through impact for better control and distance.
Compared to the fairway wood, the wave length is shorter in the CB Pro U hybrid due to the more compact nature of the head nd this has allowed the engineers to create heel and toe cavities on either side that further promote less turf interaction and gives the club greater playability in all conditions.
As the Pro moniker suggests this range is firmly aimed at the better player and this is evident in the address position that has been given a Tour preferred look with the leading edge closer to the shaft for increased workability.
The club head is a combination of a Carpenter 475 forged steel cup face with a hyper-steel body that is designed to eliminate weight from the face and move it to the sole of the club to promote a lower centre of gravity position in the compact clubhead.
The Exotics Pro CB U is paired with the second generation Kuro Kage Silver Series shaft. These shafts are high density with up to 15% more carbon fibre and less resin meaning there are fewer "gaps" and "voids" in the shaft to give more consistent performance, increased stability and better feel.