A History of the Wood in Golf

Golf clubs typically consists of irons and woods, however recently there are now hybrids. Woods have two classes: drivers and fairway woods. The 1 wood, also known as the driver, is the longest and also has the lower loft out of any golf club in a player's bad In addition it also has the longest range of any club and as such is designed to hit off the tee for the first shot of long-yardage holes (typically par 5s and par 4s). Drivers have lofts that are typically close to 10 degrees. It is possible to also use the driver from the fairway; however, this requires a lot of skill and usually is never necessary. This paper will focus on the technology and materials science behind the driver, specifically the Big Bertha 460.

The head of a wood is roughly spherical in shape with a slightly bulging clubface and a flattened sole that slides over the ground without digging in during the swing. The first "wood" clubheads were made of wood which was followed by beech wood prior to the twentieth century, and later persimmon. Occasionally traditional woods had a metal sole and/or a metal/plastic faceplate and were very heavy and dense. Traditional woods also had a small surface area causing a small sweet spot. Nowadays, modern club heads are usually hollow steel, titanium or composite materials. Traditional woods did not become replaced by modern "woods" until the 1990s as many on the PGA tour were still using persimmon woods until this time.

In 1991, Callaway Golf developed the original Big Bertha driver which introduced players to the "oversize" driver with a larger and deeper clubhead (190cc in volume). This gave maximum club face and a deeper center of gravity causing a much larger sweet spot and more forgiveness.

Today, most drivers are constructed out of titanium. Titanium has a higher strength to weight ratio than steel and has better corrosion resistance, so it is an ideal metal for golf club construction. Manufacturers can also make clubheads with greater volume, which increases the hitting area, and thinner faces, which reduces the weight. The USGA has curbed the volumetric growth of drivers by instituting a size rule which states that no clubhead can measure greater than 460 cubic centimeters. Today the Big Bertha 460 is made of all titanium and is 460 cubic centimeters in volume.

Big Bertha 460

Flat shape

Callaway Golf engineers designed the Big Bertha 460 Driver with a shallower face, flatter shape and the highest moment of inertia (MOI) ever in a Callaway Golf all-titanium head. This causes longer and straighter ball flight on off-center shots.

Stretched Head Design

The head size is 460 cubic centimeters in volume. The wider head shape produces the highest MOI ever in a Callaway Golf all-titanium head, which causes increased stability and straighter drives. A deeper center of gravity offers higher overall trajectory and is beneficial in getting the ball airborne.

Correct Alignment Stripe

The alignment stripe works in conjunction with the Chevron logo. This allows golfers to consistently square the club face at address to ensure correct alignment.

CT/VFT Face Design

There is a modified version of VFT Technology in which face thicknesses are designed specifically to maximize performance under the USGA Characteristic Time test. This results in a more robust face for increased ball speed on shots hit all over the face

Loft

The Big Bertha 460 allows golfers the choice of loft at 9, 10, 11, or 13 degrees. The 9, 10, and 11 degree models feature a 1 degree closed face angle and the 13 degree model has a 2 degree closed face angle.

Shaft

The standard shaft is made by Aldila and is available in light, regular, or stiff versions. As is typical with drivers, custom shafts are available.

The Future

The latest innovation emerging in golf, is the use of scandium or carbon fiber in club heads. This metal has a greater strength to weight ratio than Titanium. Many golf professionals feel that it is the material of the future in golf, as scandium heads offer advantages over the traditional metal alloys.

Sources

1. http://www.callawaygolf.com/Global/en-US/Products/Clubs/Drivers/BigBertha460Driver.html

2. http://www.usga.org/playing/clubs_and_balls/guide/guide_to_the_rules.html#

3. http://www.equip2golf.com/archives/history/callaway_frameset.html?callaway.html~archives

4. http://www.tgw.com/manufacturer/callaway/hotnew_bb460.jsp