2018 Official Forum Member Review-Big Bertha 2019 Irons

[Golfspy_CG2]

And you thought forum testing season was over huh?   Well, you should know at My Golf Spy, testing never sleeps.  Whether it’s the Most Wanted Testing, Forum Testing or just plain unofficial forum members doing their own testing, we are always anxious to hear about something new on the market.

 

 

So the good folks at Callaway reached with a set of 2019 Big Bertha irons to be reviewed.   So as we did earlier this year, we put our heads together and came up with who we feel will be a fine selection to put these to the test.  

And we came up with the perfect Spy in our opinon, please join Dawg Daddy as he shares his thoughts on these irons over the next 4 weeks or so. 

Normally this is where we would write a bit of a promo piece about the irons while the selection process is going on.   But since Dawg Daddy has had these in hand for a short time, we don’t want to spoil any of his Stage 1 impressions on looks and initial thoughts.

As we did during some of the later season reviews, Dawg Daddy is ready and able to answer any questions you throw at him along the way, he doesn’t have to save anything for Stage 2.   These are expected to be one of the biggest selling irons on the market next year and will definitely get a lot of attention, so fire away with any questions you might have for him.

 

[DawgDaddy]

To say I was surprised a few weeks ago to be asked if I would be willing to test the as yet unreleased Callaway Big Bertha 19 Irons is an understatement. Shocked is more like it! Wow!  As I weighed if my body would be able to give enough on course time because of my back surgery and if my game was still strong enough to give a credible and unbiased review I checked out what Callaway Golf had to say online. This sentence is what jumped out at me.

 

“The new Big Bertha has transformed the super game-improvement iron category. It’s our easiest to launch distance iron, and it’s led by our groundbreaking Suspended Energy Core.“

 

Being as I have moved from a 6.2 handicap before the surgery to roughly a 12 now and have lost 15 to 20 yards with my irons I thought, “man, I am the target golfer for this new iron! Let's go!”

 

I posted this about myself in a previous review and decided to post it here too with updated.

“My biggest golfing feats are 2 HIOs at the same course but on different par 3s, and 5 years ago at my company golf tournament my partner (he is quite a golfer) and I won in a field of about 200 golfers. It is a best ball format, my partner tied for low score, I helped him 11 strokes over the 3 days for us to easily win the Championship by 4 strokes, I was very proud to had been able to help that much. My one other feat is in my weekly blitz 4 years ago I caught on fire on the back nine and posted a 30 (after an opening front of 41 with a penalty stroke). That 30 felt much better than either HIO, and I was with 3 of my regular golfing buddies that I also travel with so it was extremely sweet. I have been much luckier than I have ever been good but like all reading this, I love this silly game.

 

My current bag make up is listed below, I use quite a few Callaway products but as you can see I am currently playing the TaylorMade M1 irons, I have been a TaylorMade iron user for about 6 or 7 years through at least my last 3 iron sets as they have been excellent performers for me. Before surgery my 150 yard club was the 6I or 7I depending on pin location on the green, now it is the 5I always. I have a medium-high ball flight and my usual miss is left as I normally hit a draw and I would say my swing tempo is medium. As with most higher handicap golfers my main weakness is my long irons and my strength is my short game. I don't usually even carry a 4I any more and favor the 4H but I will be testing the 4I with this set to see how it compares.

 

I am a 71 year old retiree, a husband, father, grandfather and a great grandfather. I live in central Georgia and am blessed to be able to play golf year round, There are usually at least a couple of days per week that I can get out on the course even in the dead of winter. I love golf, it is a challenge to me but I also enjoy the fellowship and seeing other players enjoying themselves. I played some when I was younger, around the ages of 25 to 35 but it was mostly an excuse to get together with my buddies and have a good time, golf itself was secondary to having a fun day. I actually got back into golf at the age of 50 and I decided to get serious about improving this go round so I sought out anything I could to improve including lessons. I was able to take my scores from 95/115 to 85 in a fairly short order. I steadily improved over the years until I would fluctuate between a 6 to a 9 handicap, then the back went out! I have degenerative arthritis in my lower two vertebrae and had a double lumbar fusion to repair it, needless to say it has restricted some of my movement.

 

 

The irons I received are 4I thru PW, 2° upright with regular flex UST Mamiya Recoil ZT9 graphite shafts, with a Lamkin 51 gram Z5 Genesis CHEV Red Cap grips. They have a smoked PVD finish and are actually quite stunning to see for the first time. I have several unboxing photos to share.

 

 

Having come from the TaylorMade M1 irons I had truly thought the Big Bertha 19's would be a much larger iron as they advertise as Super Game-improvement irons. I did not find that to be the case, I was actually quite shocked to see how they are almost equal in size. I have several comparative photos below.

 

 

Callaway has many nice and innovative claims in their video on their website

 

 

 

The Suspended Energy Core seems to me to be a new way to get the mass lower in the head with I certainly believe would lead to a higher launch, I have been noticing higher flight, especially on the 8, 9 and PW so I am thinking this is a nice enhancement. I really can say I understand what the urethane microspheres are about but if they add to the higher launch so be it. I do know that the 360 Cup Face technology is something that Callaway believes in and it is supposed to deliver maximum allowable distance along with less loss of distance on off center strikes. I hope the PVD finish holds up as in my past experience with a Set of Cleveland irons the smoked finish did not hold up well at all, we will see how this goes.  Here is a close up of the face and finish and also a pic of my first strike with the irons.  It was the 8I and as you can see it was pretty much dead center. 

 

This set of irons is shorter than my previous set and I will be extending them before any more testing which will also mean I will be installing the grip that I usually use. I am hoping that my accuracy improves somewhat as so far I am not as accurate as usual. So far in testing I am seeing pretty much the same distances as I was getting with my TM irons but the accuracy is not as good. I really like the feel and sound of these irons and they do look very good at address my only thing right now is I am not a fan of this much offset but that possibly will be alright as I become more used to playing these irons. I plan to do a head to head with the M1 irons and possibly get together with my buddy ole gray to compare them with his Cleveland Launcher HBs

 

I wish to thank MGS and Callaway Golf for this awesome testing opportunity and promise to give it my best shot. I will be happy to answer any questions that you have so fire away!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[DawgDaddy]

Alright folks here we go with my full on thoughts on the Callaway Big Bertha 2019 Irons. After extending the irons and installing my favorite grips ( Golf Pride Tour Wrap 2G ) with 2 extra wraps, I began to really get into my testing. Living in Georgia I have played at least twice per week and most weeks I have played 3 times. I also play with two senior groups in my area and we play some of the better courses in the area a couple of Monday's each month so I have had opportunity to really put these irons through the paces. Depending on how my back is feeling and how tough the course I am playing is I have shot pretty much everything between 74 & 92 with most of my scores being 81or 82 which is not too shabby for a 71 year old.

 

Looks

I must say that I think these irons looks are better than any game-improvement iron I have ever played, I like the subtlety of the black smoked PVD finish, with the addition of the dual white lines in the bottom two groves it really makes the club head pop. The finish certainly helps made the offset appear to be less that it actually is and also makes the club head size appear to be smaller. The badging is certainly not over stated and is done tastefully in white lettering with red chevrons. The UST Mimiya silver graphite shaft is a great pairing for performance and looks I have had several people ask what they are when I am warming up on the range, yes they do look that good. The PVD finish is starting to show some wear, I am including a picture of my 9 iron as it is a good representation of the wear.

 

 

Score – 9 of 10

 

Sound & Feel

Callaway Golf states that “The Suspended Energy Core is designed to deliver an incredible sound and feel.” I think they nailed it, the sound is very consistent across the face (trust me, I use all of the face) I would call it a soft type of sound. The feel is somewhat muted for me and along with the sound I sometimes am unable to judge just how much of a mishit I might made. Nothing feels very harsh which I really like but I sometimes would like more feedback on my misses. All in all I believe that with more play I can become more sensitive to the limited feedback these irons give.

 

Score – 8 of 10

 

Range Performance

Range time for me is mostly limited to my warm up before a round, so while loosening up for a round I would play little games with my 9 iron and 6 iron. After warming up I would hit a 9 iron 95 yards and a 6 iron 150, then a 9 iron 115 and a 6 iron 130. I would then hit a few draws at those distances and then try to cut the ball to the same distances, I had a good bit of trouble with the cut shot. These irons have offset and I am a draw player so I don't believe I would be able to cut the ball on course under pressure, the few times I tried I failed miserably. I was able to flight the ball high and medium easily, the lower shots I could hit but again I had some difficulty although I had more success than I did drawing the ball.

These are a very forgiving iron, off center hits travel farther than I ever expected but there seems to be no “hot spots” that send a ball rocketing over my targets.

 

Score – 16 of 20

 

On-Course Performance

As they say, the proof is in the pudding, on course these babies have been solid. I have started playing in a skins game each Friday at my home course, in the 6 weeks or so I have played with them I have had from 1 to 3 birdies each round, we pay for birdies and overall winner. I won the first week and have been playing on house money since. The area the irons have help me the most is on the par 3s, when I set one on a tee and then strike it with these irons it is literally money. The distance for my most lofted irons is very consistent, I love to have the 7 iron or less in my hands for any approach shot. I hit the 6 and 5 fairly consistently but I am not as consistent with the 4, that's not to say that some of my 4 iron shots haven't been pretty but I just can't count on hitting it well. I have used a 4 hybrid for the last 4 years and I think I am over swinging the 4 iron.

I have been able to shape shots high and low as needed and am able to hit draws and straight shots on command but the fade is hit or miss. Depending on your skill level I would imagine fades would not be a part of most peoples arsenal of shots. I have found the Big Bertha's to be slightly longer than the TaylorMade M1s I was playing, I would say in the 4 to 6 yard range, nothing drastic but for a 71 year old short hitter it was welcomed. These are my first Callaway irons since 2000 when I bought a new set of X-14s, they seem to have help me regain a little of my distance back without sacrificing any accuracy which is a great thing in my book. The nice high ball flight really helps in holding greens too even with the little bit of added distance.

I got together with ole gray one day recently, we each hit the others clubs a few times on the range and during the round, I am including a video of an interview I did with him after the round. He is playing last years Most Wanted SGI iron the Cleveland Launcher HB, you can hear his words about the Big Bertha. Personally I found the Big Bertha's every bit the equal to the Launcher HB's and will predict that the Callaway Big Bertha will be the 2019 Most Wanted SGI iron. Here's the vid.

 

 

 

Score - 37 of 40

 

Play it or Trade it

Being as I see some regained distance and no loss of accuracy I plan to put my M1s up for sale, these clubs are solid performers and suit my current game well, I don't foresee anything knocking them from my bag any time soon.

 

Points – 20 of 20

 

Conclusion

Callaway Golf has added some impressive technology to these clubs, the Suspended Energy Core is basically a tungsten bar positioned very low and all the way across in the club head by using some propriety urethane microspheres. This makes it extremely easy to get the ball airborne, and the 360° Face Cup that wraps around the edge provides a face flexibility that helps to increase ball speeds. The added height to my shots has me standing and admiring the ball flight, something I haven't done in years.

The shaft and head combination suit my swing well and they look pretty awesome to boot, I would recommend any mid to high handicapper to give them a try as well as anyone falling into my category of of an aging golfer who has had some physical issues, the Big Bertha's may be just the thing your game needs I know they have helped mine. Well done Callaway Golf!

 

Final Score – 90 of 100

 

[PMookie]

These newer clubs, with the lofts being what they are, always make me wonder two things:
How are the gaps between irons (yardage-wise)?
And
How would these affect the bottom of the bag (wedge-wise)? More wedges needed? Etc
 

[TBT]

Congrats Buddy, I’m sure you’ll do a great job with these!

How do the lofts on these compare to your current set?


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

[DawgDaddy]

16 minutes ago, TBT said:

Congrats Buddy, I’m sure you’ll do a great job with these!

How do the lofts on these compare to your current set?


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

Thanks my friend, they are 2° stronger so I'm guessing when I extend the shaft they will be a half club longer in flight, with me getting on in age and recovering from back surgery I don't anticipate it being a problem for me but a stronger ball striker will probably have some adjusting to do to their set up.  

[tommc23]

Good luck with em Dawg look forward to seeing how lengthening them does for you 

[GolfSpy_APH]

Congrats and great stage one! Really interested to hear what you think about these when you get some rounds in as my father-in-law is very similar to you and looking at a new set!
Enjoy the clubs and looking forward to stage 2!!

[ole gray]

These have a solid in your face and I'm about to spank that arse look about em!   Great intro hoss and I look forward to you heading up to Lane Creek so I can have a couple whacks with em.   Looking forward to your review on these puppies as Dawg brings the full load to his reviews.   Sic em buddy!

[Golfspy_CG2]

30 minutes ago, ole gray said:

These have a solid in your face and I'm about to spank that arse look about em!   Great intro hoss and I look forward to you heading up to Lane Creek so I can have a couple whacks with em.   Looking forward to your review on these puppies as Dawg brings the full load to his reviews.   Sic em buddy!

Yes he does.  That's why we were happy to here him say he was healthy enough to knock the crap out of these.   Well he didn't say that exactly.   But DD no doubt puts a lot into his work so I'm looking forward to hearing about these.  

[ole gray]

4 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Yes he does.  That's why we were happy to here him say he was healthy enough to knock the crap out of these.   Well he didn't say that exactly.   But DD no doubt puts a lot into his work so I'm looking forward to hearing about these.  

Yea Dawg will get after it like a shelter dog on a T-Bone! 

[Shankster]

Well this is interesting. Congrats on the selection Dawg!

These irons wouldn’t be in my wheelhouse, but I’ll gladly follow along. Looking forward to your Stage 2.

[DawgDaddy]

18 hours ago, PMookie said:

These newer clubs, with the lofts being what they are, always make me wonder two things:
How are the gaps between irons (yardage-wise)?
And
How would these affect the bottom of the bag (wedge-wise)? More wedges needed? Etc
 

So far the gaps have been consistent as I am getting used to them, certainly manageable with the shorter distances I get now.   I would imagine that anyone that hits their PW in the 120 range or longer would need to add a 48° or so wedge to their bag and then go 52°,  56° and 60° to finish out their bag.  

[DawgDaddy]

Just posted this in the what have you bought thread, thought I would share it here to give everyone an update and give the thread a post Christmas bump.  

 

[MattF]

Welcome to the Secret Testers club DD! Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the new sticks.

[sirchunksalot]

How are you finding the forgiveness of these compared to your M1's?

Sent from my SM-G955U using MyGolfSpy mobile app

[DawgDaddy]

On 12/30/2018 at 10:14 PM, sirchunksalot said:

How are you finding the forgiveness of these compared to your M1's?

Sent from my SM-G955U using MyGolfSpy mobile app
 

Right now I will say similar, possibly a tad longer on mishits, I will have to do some comparisons on off center hits to verify this. I'll probably be getting that done in the next week or two.  Thanks for the question and Happy New Year everyone!

[MaxEntropy]

On 1/1/2019 at 6:02 AM, DawgDaddy said:

Right now I will say similar, possibly a tad longer on mishits, I will have to do some comparisons on off center hits to verify this. I'll probably be getting that done in the next week or two.  Thanks for the question and Happy New Year everyone!

By the way - it was a great idea to put a link to this thread in your sig. Thank you! I would have totally missed this if I hadn't noticed it in another post. Have fun with the winter testing and I look forward to your stage 2!

[STUDque]

Now that they're out, anyone getting in on the action?

[Nunfa0]

Great stuff DD, really looking forward to seeing how they compare to Ole Grays launchers

[Wedgie]

Great stuff DD, really looking forward to seeing how they compare to Ole Grays launchers

I went to True Spec for an iron fitting and I got to try these and they weren’t even close to beating my Launchers. Not saying they’re no good, just weren’t for me.


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

[ole gray]

DawgDaddy is coming up today and I'm looking forward to seeing my old buddy with these irons in tow.  I might even take a couple whacks with these bad boys 

[ole gray]

I hit a few shots today with DawgDaddy's Big Bertha 2019 irons and was pleasantly surprised.  More coming soon so stay tuned! 

[Wedgie]

I hit a few shots today with DawgDaddy's Big Bertha 2019 irons and was pleasantly surprised.  More coming soon so stay tuned! 

How could you do this to the Launchers?


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

[ole gray]

6 minutes ago, Wedgie said:

 

How could you do this to the Launchers?


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

 

Whoaaaaaaa bro!  The Launchers are safely in the sack   My buddy big Dawg wanted my thoughts and I'm gave em a few whacks in the arse.   I will say I hit some pretty darn quality shots  with em!  The cool thing is Dawg's specs are a mirror of my own so the transition was smoother than butter on a hawt sweet potato. 

[Wedgie]

Whoaaaaaaa bro!  The Launchers are safely in the sack   My buddy big Dawg wanted my thoughts and I'm gave em a few whacks in the arse.   I will say I hit some pretty darn quality shots  with em!  The cool thing is Dawg's specs are a mirror of my own so the transition was smoother than butter on a hawt sweet potato. ‍

I’m happy to hear that....you had me nervous. My Launchers got a face lift today. New grips and shaved a quarter inch off the top. What a difference in ball striking and distance gain.


Sent from my iPad using MyGolfSpy

[DawgDaddy]

Yep, I will be writing my stage 2 in a day or three so stay tuned, some interesting stuff IMO.   Any one with any questions fire away, but I may have you covered in my next post.  

Had a blast with my buddy ole gray and we were even honored to witness a HIO by one of the members of our foursome, their first so it was very exciting. 

[ole gray]

1 minute ago, DawgDaddy said:

Yep, I will be writing my stage 2 in a day or three so stay tuned, some interesting stuff IMO.   Any one with any questions fire away, but I may have you covered in my next post.  

Had a blast with my buddy ole gray and we were even honored to witness a HIO by one of the members of our foursome, their first so it was very exciting. 

My wife's (KellyBo) best friend was playing with us and aced #16!  It was her first ever so yea it was really special. 

[DawgDaddy]

My stage 2 is now up an active.  Check it out on page 1.  As always I welcome any questions or comments.  

 

[ole gray]

On 12/22/2018 at 11:17 AM, DawgDaddy said:

Alright folks here we go with my full on thoughts on the Callaway Big Bertha 2019 Irons. After extending the irons and installing my favorite grips ( Golf Pride Tour Wrap 2G ) with 2 extra wraps, I began to really get into my testing. Living in Georgia I have played at least twice per week and most weeks I have played 3 times. I also play with two senior groups in my area and we play some of the better courses in the area a couple of Monday's each month so I have had opportunity to really put these irons through the paces. Depending on how my back is feeling and how tough the course I am playing is I have shot pretty much everything between 74 & 92 with most of my scores being 81or 82 which is not too shabby for a 71 year old.

 

Looks

I must say that I think these irons looks better than any game-improvement iron I have ever played, I like the subtlety of the black smoked PVD finish, with the addition of the dual white lines in the bottom two groves it really makes the club head pop. The finish certainly helps made the offset appear to be less that it actually is and also makes the club head size appear to be smaller. The badging is certainly not over stated and is done tastefully in white lettering with red chevrons. The UST Mimiya silver graphite shaft is a great pairing for performance and looks I have had several people ask what they are when I am warming up on the range, yes they do look that good. The PVD finish is starting to show some wear, I am including a picture of my 9 iron as it is a good representation of the wear.

 

 

Score – 9 of 10

 

Sound & Feel

Callaway Golf states that “The Suspended Energy Core is designed to deliver an incredible sound and feel.” I think they nailed it, the sound is very consistent across the face (trust me, I use all of the face) I would call it a soft type of sound. The feel is somewhat muted for me and along with the sound I sometimes am unable to judge just how much of a mishit I might made. Nothing feels very harsh which I really like but I sometimes would like more feedback on my misses. All in all I believe that with more play I can become more sensitive to the limited feedback these irons give.

 

Score – 8 of 10

 

Range Performance

Range time for me is mostly limited to my warm up before a round, so while loosening up for a round I would play little games with my 9 iron and 6 iron. After warming up I would hit a 9 iron 95 yards and a 6 iron 150, then a 9 iron 115 and a 6 iron 130. I would then hit a few draws at those distances and then try to cut the ball to the same distances, I had a good bit of trouble with the cut shot. These irons have offset and I am a draw player so I don't believe I would be able to cut the ball on course under pressure, the few times I tried I failed miserably. I was able to flight the ball high and medium easily, the lower shots I could hit but again I had some difficulty although I had more success than I did drawing the ball.

These are a very forgiving iron, off center hits travel farther than I ever expected but there seems to be no “hot spots” that send a ball rocketing over my targets.

 

Score – 16 of 20

 

On-Course Performance

As they say, the proof is in the pudding, on course these babies have been solid. I have started playing in a skins game each Friday at my home course, in the 6 weeks or so I have played with them I have had from 1 to 3 birdies each round, we pay for birdies and overall winner. I won the first week and have been playing on house money since. The area the irons have help me the most is on the par 3s, when I set one on a tee and then strike it with these irons it is literally money. The distance for my most lofted irons is very consistent, I love to have the 7 iron or less in my hands for any approach shot. I hit the 6 and 5 fairly consistently but I am not as consistent with the 4, that's not to say that some of my 4 iron shots haven't been pretty but I just can't count on hitting it well. I have used a 4 hybrid for the last 4 years and I think I am over swinging the 4 iron.

I have been able to shape shots high and low as needed and am able to hit draws and straight shots on command but the fade is hit or miss. Depending on your skill level I would imagine fades would not be a part of most peoples arsenal of shots. I have found the Big Bertha's to be slightly longer than the TaylorMade M1s I was playing, I would say in the 4 to 6 yard range, nothing drastic but for a 71 year old short hitter it was welcomed. These are my first Callaway irons since 2000 when I bought a new set of X-14s, they seem to have help me regain a little of my distance back without sacrificing any accuracy which is a great thing in my book. The nice high ball flight really helps in holding greens too even with the little bit of added distance.

I got together with ole gray one day recently, we each hit the others clubs a few times on the range and during the round, I am including a video of an interview I did with him after the round. He is playing last years Most Wanted SGI iron the Cleveland Launcher HB, you can hear his words about the Big Bertha. Personally I found the Big Bertha's every bit the equal to the Launcher HB's and will predict that the Callaway Big Bertha will be the 2019 Most Wanted SGI iron. Here's the vid.

 

 

 

Score - 37 of 40

 

Play it or Trade it

Being as I see some regained distance and no loss of accuracy I plan to put my M1s up for sale, these clubs are solid performers and suit my current game well, I don't foresee anything knocking them from my bag any time soon.

 

Points – 20 of 20

 

Conclusion

Callaway Golf has added some impressive technology to these clubs, the Suspended Energy Core is basically a tungsten bar positioned very low and all the way across in the club head by using some propriety urethane microspheres. This makes is extremely easy to get the ball airborne, and the 360° Face Cup that wraps around the edge provides a face flexibility that helps to increase ball speeds. The added height to my shots has me standing and admiring the ball flight, something I haven't done in years.

The shaft and head combination suit my swing well and they look pretty awesome to boot, I would recommend any mid to high handicapper to give them a try as well as anyone falling into my category of of an aging golfer who has had some physical issues, the Big Bertha's may be just the thing your game needs I know they have helped mine. Well done Callaway Golf!

 

Final Score – 90 of 100

 

 

Home run bruther as you ALWAYS pound out solid reviews!    I totally enjoyed our day together and look forward to our little golf trip coming up in May.   I was impressed to say the least with the Callaway Big Bertha 2019 Irons and will have to hit them again to make sure it was not just a lucky day with them.   Congrats on showcasing another stellar review with the hard work and many hours you provide for your work.    Well done buddy!