Callaway Big Bertha Fusion FT-3 Driver Review

It seems like every second email these days has to do with a review of the new Callaway Big Bertha Fusion FT-3 driver. And why not? The FT-3 has won two Majors on the PGA this year and has been one of the most talked about drivers of the summer.   Callaway introduced the original …

It seems like every second email these days has to do with a review of the new Callaway Big Bertha Fusion FT-3 driver. And why not? The FT-3 has won two Majors on the PGA this year and has been one of the most talked about drivers of the summer.

 

Callaway introduced the original Fusion driver a few years back and the FT-3 is the next carbon/titanium driver from the company.

 

Let’s quickly review the whole carbon idea… although some of our readers have probably read this like 20 times. Carbon is light… lighter than titanium and companies are looking for different ways to make golf clubs lighter. It’s easier to move more weight around in a lighter head than in a heavier head. Ok… then let’s go make a head out of carbon and we can move lots of weight around! No wait… Callaway tried that with the Big Bertha C4 driver… and people hated it. We couldn’t give the C4 away. The original Fusion brought with it the idea of a carbon body “fused” with a titanium face and sole. This driver brought together two of the lighter materials around… and people like it a lot more than the C4. The FT-3 is 460CC’s of carbon and titanium and is the biggest driver that Callaway Golf has ever produced. The biggest feature lies in the new “Optifit System”… Callaway is able to move around internal weight prior to creating the driver. This allows them to put more weight on the toe for hookers, on the heel for slicers and in the middle for the very few people that keep the ball straight. There is a FT-3 for anyone and everyone! The standard (non-Tour) FT-3 has a closed face that varies depending on the loft. There is a Tour version that is a half degree open for the more accomplished player. The Aldila NVS shaft that comes stock in the FT-3 is a fairly decent stock shaft for most golfers. It is a mid kick shaft and produces a mid-high ball flight.

 

Recent advances in titanium technology has closed the gap between carbon drivers and titanium drivers. Most of our testers agreed that the Fusion FT-3 driver is good… but they also agreed that there are many cheaper titanium drivers on the market that perform just as well. The FT-3 is long… but so is the Callaway Big Bertha 454 driver. The FT-3 has different internal weighting options that allow it to be customized to the golfer… but so does the TaylorMade R5 Dual. The FT-3 is incredibly forgiving… but so is the Cobra 460 SZ. Is there really a need to spend the extra money when there are less expensive drivers that work just as well? We don’t think so. The driver has a very interesting sound… it sounds a bit like an aluminium baseball bat… but we’ll let you decide if it’s cool or if it’s just plain annoying. Try the FT-3… it might not be any better than the driver you already have but it will definitely make your wallet a tad lighter!

 

Overall Rating – 60%

 

Target Handicap – Anyone

 

Ball Flight – Mid-High

 

Offset – None

 

Shafts – Aldila NVS graphite