Tour Edge

Hybrids face the same challenges of a studio apartment in New York’s East Village in the 1980s. Their small size leaves little room for all the modern amenities. Without the necessary space to reposition what designers call “discretionary mass”, it’s hard to make a hybrid fast and forgiving. For example, the face is relatively compact, so any trampoline effect is hard to achieve. A lack of front-to-back depth also hinders the ability of designers to provide sufficient mis-hit stability. But Tour Edge’s Exotics line is known for doing more with less, and the C721 explores new technologies in every corner to maximise performance. It starts with the carbon-composite panel that covers the entire crown, saving weight that is pushed to the rear perimeter for better forgiveness on off-centre impacts. (More weight is saved by a new lightweight steel in the face.) To address the ball speed you might think is missing from a compact hybrid, Tour Edge created a variable-thickness face that features 41 interwoven diamond shapes of seven different depths. The design team likes to call them “mini-trampolines”. The purpose is to get the face flexing not just for your centre strikes but for those shots you don’t flush.

LOFTS 17, 19, 22, 25