By Torleif Sorenson on 12/18/13

Being a golf club design engineer these days must be pure h-e-double hockey sticks. How do you ever get a day off, let alone any vacation time?

First, TaylorMade unveiled their splashy new SLDR drivers, which feature a sliding adjustable weight mechanism near the front of the club-head. Now, Callaway Golf have unveiled their latest adjustable drivers — and brought back the "Big Bertha" nameplate at the same time. And in a "take that!" gesture, Callaway engineers have made it possible to adjust the height of the center of gravity on one model.



As with TaylorMade's "SLDR" mechanism, Callaway Golf engineers have developed a sliding adjustment feature with an 8-gram weight, located at the very back of the clubhead.

More on the Callaway Big Bertha




Here's where Callaway Golf engineers have made things rather interesting: Their "Gravity Core" insert allows players to adjust the height of the CG for unwanted spin independent of the launch angle.

More on the Callaway Big Bertha Alpha





Also included is Callaway's adjustable hosel (above left), which permits loft adjustments as much as up +2°, or down -1°. In addition, Callaway engineers have developed a forged composite crown (above left), which weighs just eight grams. Because the crown is lighter, the CG is positioned further away from the top.

On both the Big Bertha and the Big Bertha Alpha, golfers can adjust the ball-flight bias between a draw bias and neutral. Meanwhile, their "Hyper Speed Face" is advertised as being 10% lighter than before.

Both drivers are planned for a U.S. retail release on Valentine's Day — Friday, February 14, 2014. The MSRP of the Big Bertha will be $399, while the Big Bertha Alpha will be US $499.


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Images courtesy of Callaway Golf