Adams Insight Drivers and Fairway Woods:
“Gain Some Long Game Perspective”
For equipment junkies, it has been evident for a while now that Adams Golf has gone through somewhat of a metamorphosis in terms of their club offerings from just a couple short years ago. Their Idea Pro hybrids have been consistently taking the hybrid count on all the major Tours for some time. More than ever, Adam’s new lineup has something for everyone. With a “two-tiered” approach, Adams has introduced the BTY (“Beauty”) series driver and fairway for the more accomplished player. They have also kept the higher handicap player in mind by offering the larger and more forgiving BUL (“Big, Ugly, Long”) driver and fairway woods.
First, let’s ease into this review and start with a little forgiveness by talking about the BUL series woods. With “High MOI” being all the rage, companies are all trying to out-do each other with more forgiving heads. The resulting shapes, depending on your tastes, can be a bit much to swallow quite honestly. With the BUL driver, Adams has given us a slightly easier to palate high MOI head. The overall shape of the BUL driver is rather square, but the corners have been rounded at the rear of the head. The face does appear to be narrower than the trailing edge of the head, and it is pretty unique looking at setup. Even sitting still, it has a look of momentum about it (a look also shared by the BUL fairway.) With a black head, the look is large and in charge, but it does not make you want to lose your lunch. Far from “traditional” in its look, for those who are interested in forgiveness without the toaster-on-a-stick square look, the BUL is a good choice. The alignment mark on the topline is a bit distracting, and almost looks like a pop-up mark at first glance, but it is effective in finding the middle of this rather large face.
Out on the course, the BUL driver was good at being long. It was also very good at being LOUD. The sound of this head will have people turning their heads to see what just exploded. That explosion, fortunately, was a straight one for the most part. After having the face angle measured, it turned out to be one degree open. After making a slight adjustment and playing for a fade, I found better results. The fact the more “forgiving” of Adam’s drivers has a slightly open face angle is unlike many “forgiving” heads on the market today, -which tend to be closed. The ball flight was rather high. The shaft was the reason, however. The stock Aldila shaft has a low kickpoint, which makes it feel soft to flex. When tested on a frequency analyzer, it did test out to proper CPM’s for a stiff flex.
During launch monitor testing, I noticed the launch angle (around 16 degrees) was rather high, but the backspin was not too terribly high (around 3,000 rpm’s.) I had a Prolaunch Red X flex shaft installed and it brought the launch down to around 13 degrees and backspin dropped to a paltry 2,200 rpm’s. In other words, explore different shaft options to get the most out of this head. For a 9.5-degree head, it seemed to play very true to loft.
The Insight BUL fairway is a club that I highly suggest checking out. If the look at address sits OK with you, the forgiveness offered by this head is incredible. Again, the face does seem somewhat dwarfed by the large trailing edge much like the driver (although the continuity between the look of the driver and fairway makes for a seamless transition.) For those that have been searching for an easy to hit all-around fairway wood from both the deck and off the tee that is “autopilot” easy to elevate, look no further. The titanium face brazed to the stainless steel body makes for a lot of weight down low and back in the BUL fairway’s head. The result, as intended, is very straight and easy-up shots. The stock 75-gram Aldila shaft, again, feels soft but is true to flex. The combo had me hitting the 15 degree head on a trajectory not unlike a 7 iron, but much longer of course. A re-shaft to a Grafalloy Prolite Fairway X flex again brought the launch and spin down to more reasonable levels for me. The face angle again was slightly open (about 1.5-degrees this time.) So for those that have been looking for an easy-up fairway without the closed face angle and leftward tendencies of some “game improvement” woods, the BUL driver and fairway offer that elusive combination of ease of use without overbearing closed face angles and draw-biased internal weighting. The overall flight is very straight, with some workability; -although this is primarily a straight-hitter. It made for a great control “driver” if you will, off the tee. Adams has two very unique products in the BUL driver and fairway.
For those that wish to retain some workability to their shots, Adams has also given us the BTY driver and fairway. At 460cc’s, the BTY driver is a great size at setup. Again, the face angle was approximately one degree open, which for the better player that struggles with drawing the ball too much, is much appreciated. I was not sure what to expect with the BTY driver in terms of shot shape. There is one swingweighting screw toward the heel of the club in the sole. Looking at it, you would immediately assume “draw” with such a setup. Fortunately, this was not the case, and the predominant shot shape was a slight fade. I was able to order the BTY driver at 44.5 inches with a D4 swingweight thanks to the swingweighting screw.
Out on the course, the BTY driver was predictable and workman like. It did not really “dazzle” in any way, but it was up to the task of drawing and fading shots as needed. The overall distance put it on par with most drivers on the market today. The feel at impact was very solid, and the sound was more muted than its larger-headed sibling. The shot trajectory was quite flat, thanks to the stock Prolaunch Red X flex shaft I ordered, and the spin rates were again in check. Into very strong headwinds, there was little tendency to balloon. Where the BTY driver will likely strike a chord with better players is with its ability to be worked, and the customization options that the swingweighting screw provides to make adjustments for different shaft weights and lengths. The solid black head, devoid of alignment markings, is good looking overall. At 460cc’s and a fairly deep face, it looks plenty large enough to feel like there is plenty of forgiveness, yet it does have a smaller “player’s” club appearance to it and hides its size well.
True to their success on Tour, the BTY fairway wood may be the ultimate hero of the bunch in the Insight lineup. Adam’s Tour fairway woods have been seeing a lot of action on the Pro circuits, and the BTY fairway wood is about the closest thing to a true “Tour” fairway wood that Adams has ever produced that is available at retail. The construction again brazes the titanium face and crown to the stainless steel body like the BUL fairway wood. The much smaller overall head size than the BUL (and even some other “Player’s” fairway woods on the market) could be a bit daunting at first. It did take a little time to make the adjustment for me. Void of alignment marks on the head, the overall shape of the BTY fairway points you in the right direction. It has the same overall shape to it as the BTY driver. Again, the continuity of appearance between the driver and fairway wood made for a good visual transition.
The swingweighting screw is located close to the face to keep the workability high and the backspin at a lesser level. The feel of the BTY fairway is that of both silky smoothness and sheer ballspeed. The impact feel is soft and hot. The stock Prolaunch Red X flex fairway shaft was a little light in feel for a fairway wood for my tastes, but with a slower, more deliberate tempo, it certainly made the BTY sing. The ball flight was strong, but surprisingly easy to elevate for a 14.5-degree head. I normally will not use less than 15 degrees of loft on a 3 wood, but had no problem elevating the BTY. The face angle again set up just slightly open, and working the ball either direction came very intuitively. The smallish head cut through rough very easily, and the face height was very ideal for both tee shots and off the deck. If you have the game for the Insight BTY fairway, I highly recommend checking them out. Once you get over the smallish size of the head and get into a groove with it, the BTY absolutely crushes the ball and does so with a feel that makes you want to melt with glee. It is very soft and communicative at impact.
Given my experiences with the Insight line of drivers and fairways, it would seem Adams has done a great job offering something for everyone. If you are looking for all-out distance and ease-of-use with an easy-launching nature, the BUL series of drivers and fairways should definitely be on your demo list. The BTY driver and fairway will offer those seeking workability and a slightly more traditional look some very tasty options, with the BTY fairway being one of the “must-try” clubs of 2007 for the better player. Adams seems to have some excellent “Insight” into players’ needs with their new wood lineup.
Michael White
Independent Equipment Reviewer
GolfDiscussions.com
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