Review: Big Berth Alpha 815 Driver

Big Bertha Alpha, Now Comes With Forgiveness
The Big Bertha name returned in 2014 with 2 models, the regular and the Alpha.  The Alpha model had the gravity core and offered really low spin.  It was a great driver for cutting spin and hitting really long drives, but it wasn’t very forgiving.  The Big Bertha Alpha 815 model maintains the same low spin, but adds a whole bunch of forgiveness.
I was able to get this driver in play for my last few MN rounds this fall before the snow fell.  The courses were in great shape still, my swing was pretty grooved, and the weather was crisp.  It was kind of perfect storm of conditions for me to shoot my lowest score ever.  I finally broke par by shooting a 70 (-2).  The Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 815 definitely had a hand in that score.  A couple highlights that stick out were; driving a short par 4, hitting 12 of 14 fairways and hitting a couple drives over 300yards.
 

On arrival you can see many similarities between the original Alpha and the 815 Alpha.  The gravity core is the same, the adjustable hosel is the same, and the movable weights are the same, it really just looks like some minor cosmetic changes, but performance changes for me were pretty significant.   Actually from a performance stand point the only thing that remained the same was the low spin.  My spin numbers were almost identical between the two heads.

The Big Bertha Alpha 815 is surprisingly different in many areas.  The feel is much more metallic.  It is between an X2Hot and the Big Bertha Alpha.  The launch is little flatter which helps pierce through the wind even better.  The stock shaft is 100x better for me.  I simply don’t get along with Fubuki shafts, but the new  Fujikura 565 Speeder stiff flex was awesome. At D3 and 45.5″ it felt very natural for swingweight and length.  It has a great smooth feel, yet very tight on dispersion with a solid kick through impact.  The 815 Alpha head has a wider face from heel to toe which helps with forgiveness.  I can’t give you all the engineering details of why it is more forgiving, all I can share are my results.  The low scores and on course bombs sold me add to that my Flightscope numbers were equally impressive.

The Big Berth Alpha 815 is another new driver from Callaway.  I know people are getting tired of these constant releases but seriously this driver flat out performs. It also comes in one of the best stock packages offered by any company.  A real stock shaft that performs, a leather headcover that looks awesome and nice grip make for a great club right off the rack.  The club performance will keep it in the bag as it offers the low-spin distance of the first Big Bertha Alpha, but so much more forgiveness. This club is awesome when you’re swinging well and forgiving when you’re not.  It helped me shoot the best round of my career with long straight drives.  The Big Bertha Alpha now comes with forgiveness.

For more information: www.callawaygolf.com

Quick Hits
+Low-Spin
+Very forgiving
+Solid metallic feel
+Awesome stock shaft
+Good launch with flat trajectory

The lowest smash factor of any drive I hit with this club and yet good results.