Equipment

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

Published

9 years ago

Aug 4, 2015

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

Callaway’s Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond is the lowest-spinning driver in the company’s new driver line. It’s as forgiving as last year’s Big Bertha Alpha 815 driver, and more forgiving than its predecessor, the Big Bertha Alpha 815 Alpha Double Black Diamond driver, offering a 45 percent larger sweet spot and a 30 percent tighter dispersion.

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.

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.

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.”

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

: Both driver are 460 cc.

: At Address: The DBD (left) and Great Big Bertha.

: The DBD (bottom) has a deeper face than the Great Big Bertha.

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Related Topics:Callaway drivers fairway woods

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20 Comments

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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Tom

Aug 4, 2015 at 8:53 pm

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

Reply Report comment
Mo

Aug 4, 2015 at 8:02 pm

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

Reply Report comment
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
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.

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Equipment

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

Published

11 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.

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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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