DiscipleofPenick

Cool, and wow only 2.5 yards difference, that's not a lot to go on. I did consider the AVX in my results, along with both Snell balls. The AVX is one I can't figure out as I've never really had a chance to play it, but I'm curious. And the Snell's were the same in my report, they were in the bottom half, but again only a yard or so shorter than the current gamer.

Live in Cleveland, but I'm a Steelers fan. I was just a baby in the Bernie Kosar years of the 80s, so what I remember of the Browns are that they either didn't exist, or were the worst team in the league. And even though the Sox (cannot stand the Sox) make a lot of dumb signings, at least they try. We got a new name, but the Guardians have one of the worst owners in the sport. We've never signed anyone meaningful since he took over in 2001. And I've watched every good player traded away without even a good faith offer.

Right, realignment from a few years ago has killed that. And it doesn't help that some of the big historic schools are in a bit of tail spin right now - Florida St., Texas, USC, and yes sorry Michigan jump right to mind. And the playoff has only expanded that gap. We are now getting this small tier of super elite schools, that is just going to be tough to crack without expanding the playoff. I like the playoff, especially more than the BCS, but it's taken some oomph out of the title games. There's 800 bowl games now so even teams with like 5-7 records get to go because they have to fill them. I think there's 130 too, so it's grown so much just in the last 20 years. J.T. was fun to watch, he got held back by our OC after Tom Herman left for Houston though. Fields looked more dynamic and comfortable the last 2 seasons. I see ESPN has Michigan pegged for 7-5...how bleak is that feeling up north?

So I tried out your calculations, though I am only going to look at carry distance. Roll out numbers vary too much, given that this test was conducted on much firmer ground that what I usually have here in Ohio. So I looked at Driver carry distance & 8i carry distance for both 115 & 100 mph, totaled the numbers, then averaged the two sets. Out of the balls I would consider, the winner is....Vice Pro Plus!? That's a little surprising, but numbers don't lie. The Tour B X was 2nd and the Z-Star, which is what I currently play, is 3rd. Overall though, I compared a dozen balls, and there is only 7 yards difference between the longest and shortest. So I'm still not seeing this as a sign that I need to place a bulk order with Vice right now, or any reason to switch balls. I've said it before, because I think there are 3 or 4 different ball test threads going and I'm in all of them, what this is coming down to is feel & greenside performance. And performance that is what I like, and expect from a golf ball. Unfortunately, that's not quantifiable in a test. I like to be able to attack a little bit with chips, and with the slightly softer balls, my Z-Star and the ProV1 before it, I can get that one hop bite. After testing firmer balls this year - the ProV1x and TP5x I do not like the way I have to play those in the short game. I have to hit them softer, and allow for run out. Not that these are bad balls, or the quality is poor, they just do not react the way I want them to on the shots I like to play. Though I know this doesn't apply to all high compression balls. I played a few rounds with the prior generation Tour B X and I found a Snell MTB-X and played almost 54 holes before losing it. Both of these are in the upper 90s and I didn't get that clicky, hard roll out in the short game with these balls. In fact, the one day I played the BX I had one of my best GIR days of this year and was generating a ton of spin, and it's supposed to be the low spin option. But I think that's relative to the other balls in Bridgestone's lineup. So my conclusion hasn't really changed. I love the way the Z-Star performs and it's easy to find these for under $40 a dozen, so why pay for the Titleist, Bridgestone, or TaylorMade ball, that isn't going to be too different and just cost me more. All I can do is buy a dozen and try them out, see if there's something I like more. I've already said I want to try the Z-Star XV, because it's the same price point, and while I've been talking about the MTB-X, I should probably try the Black too. If anything's changed, it's that I should also consider Vice as well. If the Pro Plus is the overall longest, it's worth adding to the list.

Always have a soft spot for Pinnacle. My dad kept the Titleist, so my bag was full of those for years.

If you don't mind chatting with a Buckeye, what's your biggest beef with the sport?

Let's go Buckeyes!!! O-H-I-O Ok, I get it. It's easy rooting for one of the biggest of the big boys. My outlook for the season, beyond expecting a Big 10 title revolves around 2 things. First is the expanded playoff. If you thought there was a big strength gap in team quality, the playoff has only increased that by elevating another half-dozen teams above everyone else (OSU, Bama, Clemson, Oklahoma, ND, and Georgia/LSU). I love the playoff over the BCS and I don't think they've gotten the teams wrong, it's just been unfortunate that some years that 4th team is a half step below the other 3 like Oklahoma in '19, Michigan St., And Washington. I'd like an 8 team playoff with auto bids for the 5 champs, and one for the best Group of 5 team. The conference title games are becoming less important every year, so if they go bigger than 8, scrap the title games. The other thing is this news that Oklahoma and Texas are jumping to the ES-EEEE-SEE. I think this is probably a bad move for both schools, especially Texas. It probably also means the Big12 could implode. I can't see them calling up schools like Houston and Memphis and still being considered one of the power 5. It's more likely that the Big 10 and Pac 12 pick the bones too. And even with the handshake agreement with ACC/B10/PAC12 this blowup probably leaves the PAC 12 on some tenuous footing as well given that they've already been the odd conference out come playoff time for several years now. They might not be long either. Then it's only a matter of time before we wind up with the dreaded super conference. I've actually got a reasonable plan to save college football from itself. I've gone on a while so tell me if y'all want to hear my hypothetical proposal. This is my favorite sport to follow but it just keeps doing the dumbest things possible.

I'm gonna plug my numbers into this system and see what it says. Why not see what I get.

Scraping it around the green is usually the best part of my game. I primarily use a Vokey 58/4. I like to play the ball back in my stance to get some bite and let it roll. Classic Penick advice, get the ball rolling as soon as possible. Because this wedge has so little bounce is really versatile and I can play the high shot too, and everything in-between. I do use my Vokey 54/10 out of bunkers, this club is automatic out every time. Tons of confidence in it. And I have this nice little runner I play with a 7 iron off tight lies. The only good lesson I ever got as a teenager was how to play that shot.

My swing is 107. With regards to the ball test that complicated things as I'm smack in the middle of both data sets. So trying to find a ball that topped out well in both is no easy task. And if you'll see my post in the other ball lab thread, I just don't see a ball jump off the Page that's it's THE ONE. My conclusion is that I'm happy and shouldn't sorry that my ball is a poor choice.

Hahaha! Yes, they are foolin' you. Please don't buy the Nitro, or anything else in a 15+ pack. To the point though, you are certainly a good enough player where the type of ball you are playing will have an effect on your game. If you are looking to save some money, but still like tour level balls, try Snell, Srixon, and Vice. Maybe you can find equal performance for a little less hit on the wallet.

I'm in the same boat as @MaxEntropy. All I am looking for is greenside performance and iron spin. I hit the ball decently far, but even after reviewing the MGS ball data, I see the difference between the longest and shortest off the driver is ~10 yards. If there's less than one club distance, I better love the feel AND get exactly the performance I'm looking for into and around greens. Throughout this year I've already ruled out the TP5x and ProV1x because they are too clicky in the short game, and I have to play my chips and pitches to run out more, a change I am not comfortable making. I did try the previous model of the Tour B X and I really like it, and I have a dozen Z-Star XV to test as well, so I know it's not all X balls that have this characteristic. In 2019, I switched to the Z-Star from the Pro V1, and to switch back or to the Tour B X/XS or TP5, it would have to blow me away again. Why spend $50 on those balls when I'm getting the distance, performance, and control I want out of a <$40 ball? TBH, after reading all the data, the only 2 balls I need to consider are the Srixon XV and Snell MTB-X.

I think you've got it right. The MGS guys just did a No Putts Given podcast where they explain things in a lot more detail. I'm actually listening to it right now, it's only an hour long and it sheds a lot more light on their conclusions. They only point I would make would be to try the higher compression urethane balls, maybe you don't need to go to an X (though it seems like EvERyOnE ShOulD PLaY a PrO V LeFt DaSH) Try the Bridgestone RX, the Maxfli from Dick's, and Vice/Snell products. If you are happy with your greenside performance I wouldn't worry too much.

I showed my buddy the ball labs and he went and bought those. I'm gonna need to trade him sleeves.

Reading all that, sure am glad the season is winding down. I've got enough, then Xmas and birthday over winter to restock.

I also did a combo. I did a professional fitting for my driver at a local off-course fitting place. They are nationally reputable and I love my Titleist, so I feel it was worth the $500 I spent. However, when it came time to get new irons, I knew the $1200-$1500 cost was out of my price range. So I went to Golf Galaxy during the offseason, I wanna say Jan/Feb 2018. I hit 4 or 5 Titleist head/shaft combos, the Ping iBlades, and a few Mizunos. I settled on the 718CBs with DG X100 shafts. Though I was curious that I hit the 7i 190 yards, when my current 7i was carrying 165. So I thought about it and went back the next week with my 7i, and it was also going 190 on their monitors. Mystery solved! Anyway, knowing the club I wanted I hopped on eBay and in a day or two found a deal on 714CB with X100. Now comes a big challenge though. As the driver & irons are 6 & 8 years old respectively, it's probably time to upgrade again. I'd like to do a full bag fitting, but I know the $2k+ is more than I can spend. Decision time over the winter.

This is a really cool detail. Thanks for sharing!

I'm trying really hard to not pull the trigger on the yellow MTBX. I don't need balls right now, but on the other hand, why not?

TM bought Adams years ago, so if get your hands on a TM hybrid, it's Adams tech.

I have a 54...but yes?

Well now I'm just going to wear them together.

I used to always go for it, but now I'm starting to consider laying back. It just depends what the trouble is. If I'm looking at bunkers or high grass I pull the trigger, if it's a lake and lost ball gonna hang back. I actually had this on 2 par 5s in a tournament on Saturday. The first had a creek at 220. I pulled 3w and went for it, made par. The next one had creek at 250, I hit PW-PW. Both holes were par. So I'm not seeing the math yet.

I carry one. An Adam's Idea Pro Boxer Gold in 18*. It's one club I can reliably hit a fade with, even though they say hybrids are hook machines. I hit it in the 230 range and gets a lot of play at my home course as there's a bunch of holes I can't hit driver.

@Alf. S good thing you have a power cart! That's a load to haul every round. I have a CaddyTek 4-wheel cart. In the bag are about a dozen balls, tees, divot tools, ball markers, green & red sharpies. Then I have a little bag with cigar cutter, butane lighter, Band-Aids, ibuprofen, and athletic tape. I have a Precision Pro rangefinder. I usually carry 2 32oz water bottles, unless it's a beer day. Then snacks are nuts, beef jerky, or an apple. I'll have my coffee and Clif bar on the way to the course for early morning rounds.

I have white pants & shorts. Wear them frequently, weather permitting. Always preferred very light khaki color to traditional darker then I finally gave in and bought the white. I really like them. And my white belt too.