Connect with us

Equipment

Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 816 DBD Driver: What you need to know

Published

9 years ago

on

Callaway’s Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond Driver ($499.99) is available in lofts of 9 and 10.5 degrees for right-handed and left-handed golfers. Stock length is 45.5 inches. Stock swing weight is D4. It’s in stores Sept. 18, 2015.

Stock Shafts: Aldila Rogue I/O 60 (60-gram range), Mitsubishi Rayon Diamana D+ 70 (70-gram range)

What you need to know

48ea61bf9f381198c94be5bfb3e8c41e

f9450827e5bbd99560398b733977768a

Two “Distance Chambers” create four possible CG locations.

  • The Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond, or DBD, has two “Distance Chambers” in the center of the sole — one closer to the heel, one closer to the toe — that allow golfers to vary the position of the driver’s Gravity Core for more draw bias (heel position) or more fade bias (toe position). Because of the Gravity Core’s design (read on), this creates four distinct CG positions: high toe, low toe, high heel, low heel.

c7df51af64a6f2ee6b9ae4415629d8b5

  • The Gravity Core, a stick-shaped object made of carbon fiber and tungsten, has a heavy end and a light end. In the past, Callaway advised golfers who needed a higher-spinning ball flight to position the Gravity Core heavy-side up in the club head, while golfers who required a lower-spinning ball flight were told to position the Gravity Core heavy-side down. This is still true with the new design, but…

“WE’RE SHIFTING THE FOCUS OF HOW WE’RE FITTING THE ALPHA DRIVER TO BE MORE ABOUT BALL SPEED AND LESS ABOUT SPIN RATE,” SAID EVAN GIBBS, CALLAWAY’S MANAGER OF PRODUCT PERFORMANCE.

  • The spin rate difference between the Gravity-Core-up and Gravity-Core-down positions with the Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond driver has been reduced from about 300 rpm in previous versions to 200 rpm because of the Gravity Core’s shorter design.
  • Callaway advises that golfers position the Gravity Core in the heavy-side-up orientation if they tend to contact their drives high on the club face, and in the heavy-side-down orientation if they tend to contact their drives in the middle or the bottom of the club face. Doing so moves the center of gravity (CG) more in line with impact area, which enhances ball speed. Callaway testing showed that 40 percent of golfers create more ball speed with the Gravity Core in the up position.
121c3e40c373d01395b84d63cca7186e

The DBD is all business at address with a matte black crown, no alignment aids and a slightly opened face angle.

“RATHER THAN DEMONSTRATE HOW MUCH WE CAN CHANGE SPIN AS WE DID WITH OUR PAST ALPHA DRIVERS, WE WANTED TO CREATE TWO TRAJECTORIES THAT ARE DESIRABLE TO TOUR PLAYERS,” GIBBS SAID.”BASED ON FEEDBACK AND TESTING, 200 RPM WAS THE SWEET SPOT.”

cab8dc6b1066c140bc23b0017e1b5ef4

The rear weight adds forgiveness, but it’s not meant to be adjusted by consumers.

  • The dual Gravity Core ports were made possible by the elimination of Callaway’s previous adjustable weight ports, which were used on the Big Bertha Alpha (2014) and Big Bertha Alpha 815 (2015) drivers to give golfers the ability to fine tune draw and fade bias. Their removal created the discretionary weight possible for the new design.
  • Like the Great Big Bertha driver, the Big Bertha Alpha 816 DBD has a Forged Composite Crown, a structure that helps move weight lower in the club head. It also uses the same Advanced OptiFit Hosel, which gives golfers a 3-degree range of loft adjustability. So a 9-degree driver can be adjusted to lofts of 8 degrees, 10 degrees and 11 degrees. Each loft can also paired with an individual lie angle of either standard (S) or draw (D), which makes the lie angle more upright.
  • The total weight of the Big Bertha Alpha DBD is 327 grams with Aldila’s Rogue I/O 60 shaft, which uses Aldila’s R.I.P. (Reverse Interlaminar Placement) Technology to give the shaft less torque, increased tip stability and a tighter feel.

More Photos

Related

Your Reaction?
  • 156
  • LEGIT18
  • WOW31
  • LOL13
  • IDHT7
  • FLOP11
  • OB6
  • SHANK77

Related Topics:
20 Comments

20 Comments

  1. Kanu

    Jan 29, 2017 at 5:56 am

    Dear Sir,
    I have one Callaway big bertha alpha 816 DBD and 9′
    Kindly teach me, how adjust the lopt from 9′ to 10′ -11′
    Possible advise with picture for reference.
    Thanhs & Regards,
    Kanu.

    Reply Report comment

  2. Colton

    Sep 18, 2015 at 8:32 pm

    Just picked up a 816 DBD in a X- FLEX to replace my X-Hot driver. The increase in distance was easy to see with lower spin and I was getting a tighter dispersion. Love it, I tested the great big bertha and it was nice, but nothing like the 816 DBD. I would play my X-Hot over the Great Big Bertha personally. Easy switch.

    Reply Report comment

  3. Erik

    Aug 29, 2015 at 2:29 am

    All you guys are right but only for the average golfer. Ya if your an average golfer you can’t really tell between this club and a 10 year older model. But when your a good golfer and hit consistently you can tell a huge different. Like it’s now known that about a 3% up swing on the ball give the best result and the golfers who are really good know that and can do it to get the most of of there drives. And sense that’s known now companies are making it so these new drivers can maximize that. Especially for a drivers like this and the other “pro” drivers companies put out.
    You guys are dissing companies like taylormade and callaway for trying new things and saying that it doesn’t work. Well look how much father tour players are hitting the ball now compared to 5 years ago. It’s a huge increase! So the best advice I can give is to invest in a certified instructor who has the correct equipment to get you hitting the ball exactly how it needs to be hit and then you take advantage of the equipment coming out.
    Also you guys really need to be fitted for the driver sense there all crazy adjustable now. You can loose a lot of yards and miss a lot of fairways if you have it tuned wrong or the wrong shaft and shaft length.

    I have hit this driver and I was able to play a couple rounds with it before the release date and it is something special I absolutly loved it. I’m just a broke college student and $500 is crazy money to me. Clubs are becoming way over priced. But the day it becomes $400 this driver will be mine.

    And KK it’s 200 rpms for both.

    Reply Report comment

  4. Joe

    Aug 7, 2015 at 10:16 am

    Zach says that Callaway is telling him Sept 18th release dat. My Callaway rep was in store yesterday and said firmly and without pause that the lineup will be in stores by the end of August. He also repeated that eh new Apex line will make an appearance just after Halloween.

    Reply Report comment

    • Joe

      Aug 7, 2015 at 10:36 pm

      not doubting zach, just curious what the actual scoop is.

      Reply Report comment

    • Steve

      Aug 8, 2015 at 8:15 am

      Why release the driver that time of year? When the golfing season is ending, football starting. Buy the driver and store it for 6 months?

      Reply Report comment

  5. KK

    Aug 5, 2015 at 10:50 pm

    Is it 200 rpms per gravity core or 200 rpms for both? I love the look of the new DBD and the wide, tall face. Not a fan of composite drivers, though.

    Reply Report comment

  6. Corey

    Aug 5, 2015 at 4:17 pm

    Hit this today and it is a very nice upgrade from the 815. More forgiveness with the deeper face and moving the gravity core makes a nice difference. Should be a popular choice for fitters.

    Corey Fields, PGA
    Custom Fitter

    Reply Report comment

  7. Marketing Mirage

    Aug 4, 2015 at 11:05 pm

    All this is is a race of who can market the most BS for people to buy into. I agree this continues to be out of hand. Next thing they’ll resort to is nano tech paint jobs and whatever else they hope sticks to the walls when they throw it on deep. Try a better shaft and swing, until then.

    Reply Report comment

  8. Tom

    Aug 4, 2015 at 8:53 pm

    Time to stop the bs……yea yea yea its whatever

    Reply Report comment

  9. Mo

    Aug 4, 2015 at 8:02 pm

    Yes. Another fantastic driver i can get for about $100 in a year

    Reply Report comment

  10. Leon

    Aug 4, 2015 at 9:51 am

    All I need to know is that if I wait three months, the price will reduce $50; if wait 6 months, $100 off; one year, it gives a $150 discount. And probably one or two new models will come out and say: 400 RPM less spin with 40% more forgiveness. Even my kid will do a good math to add the spin reductions and forgiveness improvements claimed in the past a few year to find out: now everyone is having a negative spin rate driver with double /triple amount of forgiveness.

    Reply Report comment

  11. Dpavs

    Aug 4, 2015 at 9:46 am

    Does anyone else feel all this stuff has just gone too far? The entire illusion of small tweaks equaling significant game improvement just doesn’t hold much water. The bottom line is that if you swing poorly you get a poor result, if you swing well you get a good result. The return of small differences from all this tech is diminishing at best. If you doubt this grab a driver from about 10 years ago and try it against your current gamer. You will probably be surprised that the results are not as different as you might think they would be. It’s time for club manufacturer’s to stop the madness!

    Reply Report comment

    • Christosterone

      Aug 4, 2015 at 10:37 am

      I view golf equipment like cars….is there really a difference between a 65 and 66 mustang? Not really….but premium options like fuel injection eventually trickled down making a 2016 mustang substantially better than a 1966…
      While yes, each year (or decade for that matter) may not see discernible improvements there is no arguing that the technologies which last are richly importing the overall driving experience….pun intended
      That’s all this is….trickle down technology that in the long run will make golf equipment incredibly more efficient and effective although year to year the improvements are almost imperceptible..
      -Christosterone

      Reply Report comment

      • Steve

        Aug 4, 2015 at 5:39 pm

        So buy a new driver every twenty years or so.
        BTW I think a 60’s mustang would be a much better driving experience and much more desired car.

        Reply Report comment

        • Christosterone

          Aug 5, 2015 at 9:58 am

          Sounds about right….personally, I would take a 60s E type jaguar over anything save maybe a 63 split window vette…
          But to your point, yes and no…
          Adjustability and 430-460cc head sizes are the fuel injections of today IMHO…
          Loft, lie and face angle adjustments on drivers were reserved to pros and those who had access to club fitters prior to the str8 fit era….
          We will eventually see adjustability in every club in our bag once the tech allows it…putters are beginning the conversion as we speak…
          Club makers will continue to throw ideas at the wall seeing what sticks…ideas like square heads and mini drivers will come and go….but ideas that work will, like disc brakes, change our golfing lives for the better…
          -Christosterone

          Reply Report comment

          • Steve

            Aug 6, 2015 at 9:10 am

            The problem with your theory is that a 40 year old car and a brand new car will take you from point A to point B. Both will go at above speed limit speeds. Golf drivers have speed limits. Take a 975d and any new driver to a golf course. And you will be surprised both will take you from point a to point b. I think it is more like computers or cell phones. They having these selling points that 99% of people will never use or need

            Reply Report comment

            • Christosterone

              Aug 6, 2015 at 8:27 pm

              Computers are absolutely a perfect analogy…
              I was simply trying to convey the fact that, like computers and cars, most year to year “advancements” are not discernible…but decade advances are more perceptible and tangible…
              As said, I think your PC analogy is spot on!
              -Christosterone

              Reply Report comment

              • Steve

                Aug 7, 2015 at 10:04 am

                Agree, if the hype were true we should all be 100yds longer then 10 years ago.

                Reply Report comment

                • James T

                  May 2, 2018 at 11:07 pm

                  I am.

Leave a Reply

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Whats in the Bag

Matthieu Pavon WITB 2024 (May)

Published

4 hours ago

on

May 9, 2024

By

Driver: Ping G430 Max (9 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 6 X

3-wood: Ping G430 LST (15 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Black 7 X

Hybrid: Ping G430 (19 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 10 X

Irons: Ping i230 (3-PW)
Shafts: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 X

Wedges: Ping Si59 (52-12S, 58-8B)
Shafts: Nippon Modus3 Tour 120 X

Putter: Ping Cadence TR Tomcat C
Grip: SuperStroke Claw 1.0P

Grips: Golf Pride MCC Align

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

Check out more in-hand photos of Pavon’s gear here.

 

 

Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

Equipment

Spotted: Tommy Fleetwood’s TaylorMade Spider Tour X Prototype putter

Published

5 hours ago

on

May 9, 2024

By

Tommy Fleetwood has been attached to his Odyssey White Hot Pro #3 putter for years now. However, this week at the Wells Fargo Championship, we did spot him testing a new putter that is very different, yet somewhat similar, to his current gamer.

This new putter is a TaylorMade Spider Tour X head but with a brand new neck we haven’t seen on a Spider before. A flow neck is attached to the Spider head and gives the putter about a 1/2 shaft offset. This style neck will usually increase the toe hang of the putter and we can guess it gets the putter close to his White Hot Pro #3.

Another interesting design is that lack of TaylorMade’s True Path alignment on the top of the putter. Instead of the large white center stripe, Tommy’s Spider just has a very short white site line milled into it. As with his Odyssey, Tommy seems to be a fan of soft inserts and this Spider prototype looks to have the TPU Pure Roll insert with 45° grooves for immediate topspin and less hopping and skidding.

The sole is interesting as well in that the rear weights don’t look to be interchangeable and are recessed deep into the ports. This setup could be used to push the CG forward in the putter for a more blade-like feel during the stroke, like TaylorMade did with the Spider X Proto Scottie Scheffler tested out.

Tommy’s putter is finished off with an older Super Stroke Mid Slim 2.0 grip in blue and white. The Mid Slim was designed to fit in between the Ultra Slim 1.0 and the Slim 3.0 that was a popular grip on tour.

Your Reaction?
  • 3
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW1
  • LOL1
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

Equipment

Club Junkie WITB, league night week 4: Some old, some new

Published

5 hours ago

on

May 9, 2024

By

We enter week 4 of Thursday night men’s league feeling a little more confident in the game. BK is hoping to go a little lower and reduce the mistakes out there with these clubs in the bag. Watch the video for the full breakdown of why these clubs are getting the starting nod this week!

Driver: Titleist TSR2 (10 degrees, neutral setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana WB 63 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees)
Shaft: UST Mamiya Lin-Q M40X TSPX Blue 7F5

7-wood: Ping G430 Max (-1 degree, flat Ssetting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 S

Iron: Mizuno Pro Fli-Hi 4
Shaft: Aerotech Steelfiber hls880 S

Irons: PXG 0317 Tour (5-PW)
Shaft: LA Golf A-Series 105 Low (4)

Wedge: Titleist Vokey SM10 (50-08F)
Shaft: UST Mamiya Dart V 105 F4 Wedge

Wedge: Ping S159 (56-10H)
Shaft: Ping Z-Z115

Wedge: Ping S159 (60-08B)
Shaft: Ping Z-Z115

Putter: PXG Battle Ready II Brandon
Shaft: BGT Stability Tour Spec One

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour X

Your Reaction?
  • 2
  • LEGIT2
  • WOW2
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK1

Continue Reading

WITB

Whats in the Bag4 hours ago

Matthieu Pavon WITB 2024 (May)

Pavon’s WITB accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. More photos from the event here.  Driver: Ping G430 Max (9...
Whats in the Bag6 hours ago

WITB Time Machine: Rory McIlroy’s winning WITB, 2015 Wells Fargo Championship

Then-No. 1 player in the world Rory McIlroy began the week at the Wells Fargo Championship at 3-1 odds, if...
Whats in the Bag1 day ago

Akshay Bhatia WITB 2024 (May)

Akshay Bhatia what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. Bhatia is deciding between drivers. More photos...
Whats in the Bag1 day ago

Emiliano Grillo WITB 2024 (May)

Emiliano Grillo what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wells Fargo Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Callaway...

Facebook

Trending