A prototype of the Bertha Mini 1.5 was first spotted at the RBC Heritage Classic at Harbour Town, the first stop on the PGA Tour after The Masters. Callaway’s versatile club, which has all the features of a driver built into the body of a bigger fairway wood, will be available for retail on May 29th.

The Bertha Mini 1.5 features a 235cc head that’s 35 percent larger than the company’s XR 3-wood. It’s also comes with a shaft that’s two inches shorter than most driver shafts, along with a cambered Warbird Sole that makes it easy to hit off the deck. All that adds up to a club that’s easily more forgiving than a driver and is longer off the tee than your standard fairway wood.

“The Bertha Mini 1.5 is a great new alternative to the long part of your bag that’s configured sort of in between a driver and a 3- wood and really offers a unique combination of distance, forgiveness and versatility,” said Evan Gibbs, Senior Manager, R&D - Woods at Callaway.

The Bertha Mini 1.5 features a Forged Hyper Speed Face Cup

The classic Pete Dye design at Hilton Head’s Harbour Town was the perfect venue for debuting the new club. The course demands precision shot-making off the tee, putting a premium on accuracy over pure distance. Most of the holes on the course don’t set up well for the driver where a miss into Harbour Town’s tree-lined rough means having to choose between playing an aggressive shot to a notoriously-small green or pitching out safely back onto the fairway at the expense of a stroke. The Bertha Mini 1.5 gave Callaway players options both off the tee and from the fairway.

“You’ll probably tend to see this club more widely used on shorter courses, where you don’t need driver on every hole, or on courses where you’re required to shape your shots a lot,” said Gibbs. “At Hilton Head, which was the first week it was on tour, we had Patrick Reed and Freddie Jacobson both put it in play. Interestingly, one replaced their driver and one replaced their 3-wood. That is why this club is so unique and I think it will continue to get some attention on tour.”

Of course the Berth Mini 1.5 isn’t just for tour players. Recreational golfers, both high and low swing speed players alike, can benefit from using Callaway’s new club.

Many golfers will naturally use it as a replacement for a driver. The club features a Forged Hyper Speed Face Cup and a Forged Composite crown. You know what else has a Forged Composite crown? Callaway’s XR Pro driver. That means the Bertha Mini 1.5 is built for high ball speeds and lower spin while offering greater MOI than a typical 460cc head driver. The fact of the matter is, many mid-to- high handicappers will reap significantly better performance (meaning both distance and accuracy) off the tee with a Bertha Mini 1.5 than with a driver. The combination of a smaller head and shorter shaft will make the club easier to square up and hit balls off the center of the face.

A smaller head, shorter shaft and cambered sole makes the Bertha Mini 1.5 a versatile club

For more accomplished players who produce higher club head speeds, Callaway’s Berth Mini 1.5 could end up being a great weapon for hitting bombs from the fairway. If you want to have more shots at eagle on those long par-5s, this is your club.

“It can appeal to such a broad range of player types,” said Gibbs. “It’s a great alternative off the tee for those who might struggle with a conventional driver or for those really tight holes when you need to put in the fairway. But it’s also great off the fairway where better players are often trying to get to the green in two. That’s why we really just encourage golfers of all abilities to give it a try and perhaps rethink that part of their bag.”

The Callaway Bertha Mini 1.5 has the following features and benefits:

• More MOI than a typical 3- wood: 35 percent larger head and easier to hit from the tee
• Long off the fairway for better players: high ball speed and greater distance from a Forged Hyper Speed Face Cup
• OptiFit Adjustable Hosel: choose from eight different combinations of loft (-1, S, +1, +2) and lie angle (draw or neutral)

The Bertha Mini 1.5 will hit stores on May 29th and will retail for $299. The excellent Mitsubishi Rayon Kuro Kage Silver TiNi shaft comes stock. While most golfers will continue to rely on a driver for most situations they encounter on the courses they play, the new, smaller-headed club from Callaway is out to prove that sometimes bigger isn’t always better.

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