Equipment

Callaway Great Big Bertha and Big Bertha Alpha 816 Fairway Woods

Published

9 years ago

Aug 4, 2015

Callaway’s Great Big Bertha and Big Bertha Alpha 816 fairway woods were designed to make the game easier for an overwhelming majority of the golfing population, yet still deliver tailored performance for special cases. The trick was designing two distinct club heads that covered the needs of most golfers, and then adding enough models and adjustability to account for everyone else.

Typical users of the Great Big Bertha are those who want their shots to fly higher and straighter, while the Big Bertha Alpha 816 targets golfers who want maximum distance or the ability to adjust their launch conditions.

Here’s what else you need to know about the fairway woods.

Big Bertha Alpha 816 ($279)

Lofts: 14 and 16 degrees (RH, LH), 18 degrees (RH only)
Shaft: Aldila Rogue I/O 70 (R, S, X), Mitsubishi Rayon D+ 70 (S, X)
Length: 43 inches
In stores: September 18

There’s a reason the Big Bertha Alpha 816 fairway wood doesn’t have the words Double Black Diamond in its name. Unlike the Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond driver, you don’t need to be an accomplished golfer to use it.

The Alpha 816 has a matte black crown and no alignment aid, giving it the clean look at address most better players prefer.

[quote_box_center]“The Alpha 816 driver is for the better player, but the fairway wood is not,” said Evan Gibbs, Manager of Product Performance for Callaway. “It can be configured for the best players, but it’s arguably our best performing fairway wood for everyone.”[/quote_box_center]

The Alpha 816 fairway woods can work for two different types of golfers because of their dual center of gravity (CG) positions, which are made possible by two weights that can be installed in either of the two weight ports on the sole of the clubs. One of the weights is heavy (16 grams), while the other is light (3 grams).

Higher or lower? The Alpha 816 offers golfers two different trajectories.

Position the heavy weight in the back weight port (the one farthest from the club face), and the club will have a rearward CG that will create maximum forgiveness on off-center hits and a higher peak trajectory. Flip the orientation of the weights, and the club will have a forward CG for a flatter, lower-spinning trajectory that creates the potential for more distance. While forward-CG fairway woods are not as forgiving as rearward-CG designs, they can bring previously unreachable par-4s or par-5s into range, and they also tend to be more workable if you’re a shot shaper.

Looking for more distance? Try moving the weight forward.

Last year’s Big Bertha Alpha 815 fairway wood from Callaway also had two CG positions, but Gibbs said there was room for improvement. The 815’s club head was smaller, so there was less space between the weight ports. The weights themselves were also different – one was 30 grams, and the other was 3 grams. Feedback from tour players was that trajectory differences were too extreme: the forward-weight position launched the ball too low, while the rear-weight position launched the ball with too much spin.

The Alpha 816 (left) is 15 cc smaller than the Great Big Bertha fairway wood, which measures 180 cc.

The fix began with a larger club head, which allowed engineers create more separation between the weights. Then they went about optimizing the trajectory of each CG location, which was aided by the addition of a Forged Composite Crown. The lighter structure, which is a first in a Callaway fairway wood, allowed engineers to move several grams of weight lower in the club head to create a higher launch and less spin. That’s a win-win for fairway wood design.

The Big Bertha Alpha 816 fairway woods measure about 165 cubic centimeters, depending on loft. They use Callaway’s Forged Hyper Speed Face Cup, the same technology found in the company’s XR fairway woods — top-rated clubs on our 2015 Gear Trials: Best Fairway Woods list.

Great Big Bertha ($249)

Lofts: 3 Wood (15.5), 5 Wood (18), 7 Wood (21), Heavenwood (20.5), Divine 9 (24)
Stock Shaft: Mitsubishi Kuro Kage Black (50-gram range: L, R, S, X)
Length: 43 inches
In stores: August 28

The Great Big Bertha fairway woods are designed for golfers whose needs aren’t complicated; they want to hit their fairway woods higher and straighter more often.

A low profile helps the Great Big Bertha launch the ball higher and makes shots from the turf easier.

To that end, the Great Big Bertha is Callaway’s most forgiving fairway wood. It’s large, lightweight, and has a low profile that makes it easy-to-hit from a variety of lies. It’s also designed to fly higher than the Big Bertha Alpha 816, offering the higher launch angle and additional spin that will lead to longer carry distances for golfers with slower swing speeds.

[quote_box_center]“Great Big Bertha is spinnier than XR, and probably our ‘spinniest’ fairway wood,” Gibbs said. “We don’t see these clubs being used by our best players or high swing speed players.”[/quote_box_center]

Great Big Bertha fairways uses Callaway’s Forged Hyper Speed Face Cup for maximum ball speed across the face.

In the spirit of helping non-elite golfers hit better shots, Callaway made the Great Big Bertha in a unique configuration called a “Heavenwood,” which has the loft of a 7 wood but the length and head size of a 4 wood.

The Heavenwood’s 20.5-degree loft offers golfers a higher launch angle, while the larger head and longer shaft create more forgiveness and swing speed. In the past, the model has been a popular one for golfers who have slow swings, as well as those who struggle to get their fairway woods airborne.

The Great Big Bertha 3 wood, 5 wood and Heavenwood use Callaway’s Advanced Opti-Fit adjustable hosel, which gives golfers a 3-degree loft range and two independent lie angles. The 7 Wood and Divine 9 are not adjustable.

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Equipment

A shocking Backstryke putter appearance + 7 interesting gear photos from the Zurich Classic

Published

3 hours ago

Apr 25, 2024

Andrew Tursky

Welcome to New Orleans, where TPC Louisiana plays host to the 2024 Zurich Classic. In between breakfast beignets and nightly Creole feasts, PGA Tour players are also competing in the unique two-man format at the Zurich this week.

Although the vibes in Nawlins are a bit lighter-fare than the recent back-to-back competitions the Masters and the RBC Heritage signature event), the gear news was no less serious this week.

We spotted some recent changes from Rory McIlroy, a very rare Odyssey Backstryke putter, dove into the bag of legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and spotted Patrick Cantlay continuing to test new equipment.

Get your beads out and crack your crawfish, because it’s time for an equipment rundown from The Big Easy (meaning New Orleans, of course, not Ernie Els).

See all of our photos from the Zurich Classic here

Rory’s on-and-off lob wedge

Since the end of 2023, Rory McIlroy has had an on-again, off-again relationship with a Titleist Vokey K-Grind lob wedge. In his last start, it was on, and the wedge is back in the bag again this week. We got a great look at the complicated grind that McIlroy uses.

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A full look into McIlroy’s bag above also shows that he switched out of the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Copper that he used at the RBC Heritage, and he’s back into the Qi10 core 3-wood. As we discussed last week, McIlroy will likely keep the BRNR around as a course-specific club, trading it in and out for the 3-wood.

See Rory McIlroy’s full 2024 WITB from the Zurich here

Turning Back the clock

Unless Tommy Gainey is in the field, it’s unlikely you’ll ever see Odyssey’s Backstryke technology make an appearance on the PGA Tour.

But then, when you least expect it, Russ Cochran shows up.

For more than a decade – since the 2013 Sony Open in Hawai’i – Cochran has been stuck on 599 PGA Tour starts. This week will be his 600th.

Cochran is in the field at the Zurich this week playing alongside Eric Cole, whose regular caddie is Reed Cochran, Russ’s son.

The Backstryke putter was first released back in 2010, and its unique design helps shift the axis point of the putter closer to the CG of the head. And, the putter is getting a nod this week at the Zurich Classic, thanks to Cochran’s 600th career PGA Tour start.

The putter is certainly awesome, but don’t forget to check out Cochran’s full WITB from this week.

Drew Brees with a Super Bowl winning Scotty Cameron putter

Drew Brees, a legendary retired quarterback for the hometown New Orleans Saints, made an appearance at the Zurich’s Wednesday Pro-Am, playing alongside Zach Johnson, Ryan Palmer, and current Saints QB Derek Carr.

Brees’ bag included a TaylorMade Stealth2 Plus driver, a BRNR Mini 13.5-degree, a Stealth 5-wood, a mixed set of P-790 and P-760 irons, Milled Grind Hi-Toe wedges, and a custom Scotty Cameron “New Orleans Saints” putter, which Scotty made for Brees following his Super Bowl MVP-winning performance in 2010.

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It should also be noted that Brees has his Venmo QR code as a bag tag.

If you’re gambling with Brees on the course, just know that not having cash won’t work as an excuse.

Brilliant.

See Drew Brees’ full WITB from the Zurich here

Stricker’s unrecognizable putter

Steve Stricker has made numerous upgrades to his bag recently, including a new TSR3 driver and T100 irons, but his longtime Odyssey White Hot No. 2 putter is still going strong. It’s the most recognizable unrecognizable putter ever.

Here’s a better look at Stricker’s flatstick, which he started using back in 2007.

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Patrick Cantlay has opened the equipment-switching floodgates

Over on the PGA Tour’s Equipment Report this week, we covered Cantlay’s recent switch into Ping Blueprint S irons, and a Titleist TSR2 driver.

Cantlay hadn’t switched irons for about seven years, so the iron switch he made at The 2024 Masters came as a shock to the norm. He simply isn’t one to change gear very often, so anytime Cantlay makes a switch, it’s news.

It seems the floodgates of equipment testing have opened up a bit for Cantlay, who was also spotted testing a custom Scotty Cameron blade putter on Tuesday this week. By Wednesday, Cantlay was back practicing with his familiar Scotty Cameron T5 Proto mallet, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on going forward.

Daniel Berger’s custom Jailbird site lines

Berger, who’s currently using Odyssey’s Ai-One Mini Jailbird mallet putter, has a unique 3-dot, 2-line alignment on the crown of his navy-white-navy-white mallet putter. Looking down at the putter, it’s easy to see why this alignment system would help; it just seems impossible to set up to the ball off-center, or misaligned to the target.

Also, for anyone worried, you can rest easy. Yes, he’s still playing the 2013 TaylorMade TP MC irons, which we highlighted in our recent “Modern Classics: Old vs. New” video testing series.

FitzMagic teams back up

Brothers Matthew and Alex Fitzpatrick are teaming up once again at the Zurich this year, and Bettinardi Golf hooked them up with some festive “FitzMagic” headcovers to match this week.

See what else is in Alex Fitzpatrick’s WITB here

And, with that, we say goodbye to the Zurich Classic in New Orleans. Don’t forget to check out all of our photos from this week, including 30 unique photo galleries full of equipment photos.

We’ll see you next week in Texas for the 2024 CJ Cup Byron Nelson!

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