Barney Adams spends “zero time” looking back at career accomplishments in life’s rearview mirror.
Ask him about his original Tight Lies fairway wood, founding Adams Golf Company, being one of the industry’s first proponents of custom club fitting, winning the PGA of America’s Ernie Sabayrac Award (for lifetime contribution to the golf industry), writing his kick-ass memoir The Wow Factor or being Moe Norman’s personal club builder for the final years of the legendary Canadian ball striker’s life and all you get is a shrug.
“Stuff like that is in the past,” he says. “Mentally, I always think about what’s ahead, what’s next. That’s where we’re at with Breakthrough Golf Technology.”
Adams, 85, founded the Texas-based shaft brand in 2018, not as a retirement project to stay busy, but because, “no golf club is more influenced by human psyche than the putter.”
That’s what put Adams on a mission to create a “wow factor” line of more stable putter shafts.
“I get interested in something if I believe it’s of value to golfers. If it’s just pretty or has a great story but it doesn’t produce, forget it—not interested. BGT’s products are based on solid science and they do as we say. We have to be that way. We can’t promise and not deliver because we’re way too small a company. We’d be out of business tomorrow.”
Barney’s Breakthrough
Although putters evolved in design, weight, materials, alignment visuals, grip configuration, etc., through the past 40 to 50 years, one component went virtually unchanged: the shaft.
Standard steel putter shafts tend to have more torque, impact vibration, wider departure angles and roll inconsistencies.
Adams’ mission with BGT was to impart a paradigm shift on the putter shaft category by advancing the putter shaft into a multi-material design with more stability and only one degree of torque.
It became known as the Stability Shaft.
“What’s rewarding for us is it works better for amateurs,” explained Adams, who wanted to name the company Stability Golf but was told it was too common a word and not patentable.
“Pros are already great putters and, while the shaft does help them, it’s the inconsistency of amateurs that it corrects most.”
The ultra-stiff haft delivers the putter face more square, more often. That imparts better roll, improved accuracy and enhanced impact sound/feel for putts of any length, according to the company.
“Putter head weights have gone up drastically the last 20-30 years but putter shafts didn’t change to accommodate that,” says Blair Philip, BGT’s Director of Product Development.
“We heard complaint after complaint. ‘Do you have anything stiffer?’ ‘Do you have anything stronger?’ What we did was apply materials science to the construction of a more advanced putter shaft to reduce the twisting and deflecting that happens during a stroke.”
Cue Advanced Materials Integration
The original multi-material Stability Shaft was designed with “Advanced Materials Integration.”
What is that? Eight layers of high-modulus carbon fiber specifically layered, wrapped and widened into a no-taper design combined with a lightweight 22-gram aluminium insert (reinforcing the shaft’s flexural rigidity for you engineering types) and a 7075-aluminium connector adding stiffness and reinforcement to make it easier for the product to resist torque and flexing.
Tale of the tape: BGT’s first Stability Shaft weighed 125 grams, was 37 inches in length and had a butt diameter of 0.600 inches.
The company positioned it in the marketplace to be an ultra-stable upgrade to steel shafts for OEM putter models and as an alternative for custom-fitting specialists.
“It delivers the clubface square at impact, (delivers) a solid feel with more predictable roll and it tightens the departure angle for golfers to make more putts,” Adams said.
Testing Stability
In the three-year run-up to the Stability Shaft’s debut in 2018, BGT put prototypes through the kind of testing you’d expect of a company seeking a breakthrough in a specific category of golf equipment.
Using high-speed cameras, robots, SAM Putt Lab and Quintic Ball Roll software to test hundreds of different putter heads, the resulting data was a seminal moment for BGT.
“We analyzed and tested all different types of putter styles from all the top manufacturers and we saw the same thing coming up over and over again with all of them,” says Robert Stephens, BGT’s Lead Innovation Engineer. “The same inconsistencies with face-angle delivery kept showing up. All of them vastly improved with the Stability Shaft.”
The Stability Stable
Six years after it launched, the Stability shaft has been split into a trio: Stability Carbon, Stability Tour, Stability Tour One.
There’s also a women’s specific Stability Tour.
All remain true to the original, says Adams. “Same deal. All of them still use AMT (Advanced Materials Technology) and come ultra-stiff with one degree of torque. You don’t mess around with what got you here,”
Creating separation are a couple unique points in each: graduated levels of impact softness to suit individual player preference and specific tip and butt diameter dimensions along with weight options and cosmetic nuances.
“Whenever someone goes into a PGA TOUR Superstore or DICK’S, they’re not going in to upgrade their putter shaft so, for us, there’s a kind of educational bridge we have to cross or a gap we have to fill in,” says Terri Gorrondana, BGT’s Director of Marketing.
“Consumers have to be made aware of our technology and what makes BGT better, especially when it comes to putting which is such a precision part of the game. With our shafts, you get better results. We have the testing data here to prove it.”
Here is how the three models break down.
Stability Tour One
The most recent addition to BGT’s line-up is a traditional Tour-taper design blacked out to give it a clean appearance from grip bottom to clubhead.
Stability Tour One also has the softest impact feel of the three; comes in two tip diameters (.355” and .370”); weighs a slightly heavier 115 grams and is mean to fit straight in OEM putters only.
Stability Tour
Two piece constructed the Stability Tour is a softer, more tapered, design with a more streamlined look that fits all putter models regardless of their bend profile.
It comes in two versions: Stability Tour Black, notable by its blacked-out finish to minimize light reflection over a putt, and the more branded Stability Tour Cobalt. The shaft tips the scales at 105 grams and comes in a 390-inch diameter tip along with the .355 and .370 versions.
Stability Tour Women’s
The Stability Tour Women’s model is inspired by the artistry of a Japanese contemporary artist and French luxury handbag brand. It pays homage to the island of Hawaii and has the same performance attributes of the men’s model.
Three colours—Stability Tour Pearl (slightly off-white), Stability Tour Smile (shades of pink and red) and Stability Tour Aloha (ocean blue)—are influenced by anime and manga. (Anime is Japanese computer animation while manga refers to Japanese graphic novels/comics.)
Stability Carbon
The heavyweight of the trio at 125 grams, the ultra-stiff Stability Carbon has one degree of torque profile and offers customization for length, connector color and tip finish.
Named for the carbon weave in the upper section, the shaft is built with internal aluminium weighting, has no taper and fits all putter types regardless of bend profile.
Brava and Brava Sierra Echo
The same vision for the Stability putter shaft became the foundation for Brava, BGT’s inaugural toe-dip into shafts for woods.
Designed to maximize ball speed and smash factor, the lightweight shaft is built with Speedflite NRG
technology and premium Toray carbon fiber, a material 10 times stronger than steel at a fraction of its weight.
The strength boost means less face oscillation and less energy needed when swinging, resulting in higher launch, more distance, tighter dispersion and a more stable driver head at impact.
Third-party test results supplied by BGT showed Brava to be:
- Ten yards longer with nine percent tighter dispersion than Autoflex
- Seven yards longer with 60 percent tighter dispersion than Tensei
“Brava shafts hit the ball further because the clubhead is more square at impact,” Adams says. “You hit the ball further by hitting it at the centre of mass. Just a quarter-inch off the center of mass can be as much as an eight- to 14-yard distance loss, depending on clubhead speeds. That’s a huge difference.
“Having the clubhead more stable at impact gets you more center hits or at least closer to more center hits. That’s a big advantage.”
Four flexes— A, R, S, X—have corresponding weights respectively of 46, 50, 54 and 58 grams. BGT recommends A for slower swingers in the 75-mph range, R for 85 mph, S for 95 and X for 105 and over.
BGT’s Brava Sierra Echo features bolder graphics and is also designed to max out ball speed and smash factor with more center strikes and a better face angle with a higher impact stability
Getting Into A ZNE
Last October, BGT launched ZNE (pronounced “zone”), golf’s first multi-material two-piece wedge shaft.
Graphite, aluminium and steel were utilized to improve impact stability and consistency on all types of short-game shots, helping the shaft produce more predictable results for launch, spin and accuracy.
ZNE is 2.5-times stiffer than traditional wedge shafts. That allows the kick point to be optimized for launch and trajectory.
The point of the shaft where all three materials overlap is called the “Stiffness Stack.”
“We’ve taken advantage of the material properties of each of the three materials to isolate the flex point in the wedge to give the player more performance benefit in terms of launch control, dispersion, spin,” Philip says of the Stiffness Stack. “All the characteristics you rely on with the wedge.”
Designed to work with all wedge brands, ZNE comes in three weights: 90, 115 and 130 grams. Carbon comprises the tip of the 90-gram shaft and steel is used in the tip of the two heavier models. A proprietary coupler with internal micro-barbs ensures the bond between the graphite and steel.
“You’re going to hit it how you expect to hit it,” Philip says. “It’s going to go the distance you want, it’s going to go straighter and it’s going to be tighter and closer to the target.”
Next Generation RedZNE
Earlier this month, BGT unveiled a next-generation RedZNE wedge shaft.
To elevate the level of performance in ZNE, the BGT R&D team focused on two areas of upgrade: spin performance and feel.
The shaft’s upper section was built 54 percent stiffer for “a smoother feel with no recoil.” Carbon fiber tips helped lower launch in RedZNE, translating into a 50 percent improvement for spin, improved distance control and weight distribution.
Redesigned connectors helped optimize weight distribution.
Tested against leading steel wedge shafts, RedZNE achieved 92 percent better distance control and 10 percent tighter dispersion.
“The clubhead design of wedges is important but the shaft plays a significant role in how they perform,” Adams said. “RedZNE wedge shafts are crafted to provide great feel and enhanced spin on every shot.”
It has the same Stiffness Stack and specs as the original: three weight options (90, 115, 130 grams), one wedge flex and is compatible with all wedges regardless of brand, model, bounce or grooves.
Black Box Fitting
BGT’s Richardson, Texas, headquarters also serves as its consumer-facing studio for Black Box fitting.
A confluence of art and technology, Black Box features artificial intelligence, radar, high-speed camera and video innovation that analyses shot pattern and/or putt data to help golfers with their equipment.
TOURPUTT’s putting simulator was added to the Black Box experience just last week.
The state-of-the-art technology tracks putts in real time and identifies strengths and weaknesses through machine-learning calibration in lockstep with Quintic Putting Ball Roll technology.
Trackman 4 Virtual Range is used for full-swing club fitting.
“The right equipment makes a difference to your golf game,” says Philip, BGT’s Master Fitter. “Black Box uses advanced technology to take the guesswork out of selecting the right equipment through the bag.”
Welcoming Cameron McCormick
In February, Cameron McCormick joined BGT as the company’s first high-profile brand ambassador.
“Cameron’s dedication to helping golfers play better and his impressive accomplishments with his students make him the ideal representative for our brand,” says Adams of Jordan Spieth’s long-time swing coach.
“I’m thrilled to join forces with Breakthrough Golf as a brand ambassador and to help my clients develop and improve their games with the cutting-edge Stability Shaft,” said McCormick when the deal was made public. “Barney Adams is known for bringing innovative, game-improving products to golf, which aligns with my goal to help raise and elevate golfer performance.”
BGT Going Forward
Adams points out there are companies spending tens of millions of dollars annually on golf research and development with one goal: a real technology breakthrough.
Some deliver, some don’t, but the Texas Golf Hall of Fame member is adamant on BGT’s ability to deliver.
“The one thing that never changed was I’ve always wanted to increase the pleasure of golfers attempting to strike or putt a golf ball. That’s why I’m proud of BGT. We make our shafts better.”
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