Bridgestone don't bring new drivers to the market all that often, preferring to stick to a philosophy of only launching a product when there is genuine innovation.
The J715 and J815 drivers bring the technology that has helped staff players Matt Kuchar Brandt Snedeker and Fred Couples to multiple wins over the last four years and makes it available to all players.
As Bridgestone have shown with their ball fitting challenge they believe customising clubs to the needs of individual players is key, so both of these drivers are designed to be custom fitted and adjusted to meet the specific needs of each player.
Bridgestone J715 Driver
The J715 driver features a 460cc head and brings four Bridgestone innovations to the table that are designed to maximise distance and accuracy.
The Flex Action Speed Technology (FAST) crown has been made extremely thin close to the clubface to allow the crown to flex at impact and impart increased speed from the face as well as promoting a higher launch angle for more carry distance. The sole of the club also features a Power Slit that further boosts ball speed.
The face itself features a unique Power Milled pattern, that Bridgestone say addresses the issue of 'ball slippage', maintaining the position of the ball at impact to enhance the compression time of the the ball and thereby reduce spin. Bridgestone's robot testing has shown a decrease of 200-300 rpm as a result of this feature and this reduction in spin leads to straighter and longer drives.
Adjustability is key to the J715 driver and Bridgestone give their custom fitters 2 levers of control so that they can dial in the characteristics of the J715 to match each golfer.
Firstly, Bridgestone have put moveable weights on multiple axes in the heel and the middle of the club head. They call this Spin Flight Control Technology and it enables the centre of gravity to be moved to achieve the optimum combination of spin and trajectory.
Finally the Variable Adjust System hosel means that both the loft and lie angles of the driver can be adjusted. Loft can be moved up and up and down by 1° and lie settings of standard, 1° upright or 2° upright are available.
Bridgestone J815 Driver
The J815 driver shares a number of the features found in the J715, notably the Power Slit and Variable Adjust System hosel, but this driver is aimed at golfers looking for a driver that offers more solid ball striking and forgiveness from the tee.
The head features a larger footprint at address that is designed to boost players confidence over the ball and it also has extra volume in the heel to improve ball striking.
The sole design of the J815 is more rigid to give a higher ball flight by generating a 10% lower spin rate to get the ball airborne and flying further.
Steve Kettlewell, MD of Bridgestone Golf UK & Ireland, explains the confidence they have in the new drivers:
Bridgestone Golf drivers have always had a strong reputation and the J715 and J815 models are without question the best drivers we've ever made. They’re in keeping with the Bridgestone brand philosophy of launching new products only when there is genuine innovation available to benefit a golfer’s game.