2015 Pro-V1 and Pro-V1x Garage Lab Test

[GreenDoor]

So now that we are warming into Spring, I took the advice of some of the bright minds on the forum here and opened the garage lab back up for another test.  This time around, I did not hit nearly as many balls (10 swings per ball per club) as with the ChromeSoft review, but I found the numbers still maintained their validity fairly well.  I also only hit driver and 7 iron, again, a more efficient, yet still effective representation of the golf balls characteristics.

 

I would like to start by thanking Golf Galaxy for sending me an unsolicited sample pack of Pro-V1s to try out; as you will see later, this ball made an unexpected impact on this test. 

 

I have played my share of Titleist balls in the past, but as typical of many higher handicappers, my ability to curve the ball out of play usually overmatched any inherent technology of the ball to magically find the fairway.  The problem for me, however, is that with a 100-105 driver swing speed, the lower compression balls like the outstanding Bridgestone E6 while considerably more forgiving, did cost me quite a bit of distance.  So begrudgingly, I stuck with the Pro-V1x or Nike Rzn Black because they usually kept the ball findable while not making the course longer.  I tried for years to play the Pro-V1, but just spun that thing in circles.

 

When I tested the ChromeSoft, I really did like the soft feel around the greens, but did notice enough of a distance drop to stick with the Nike ball, hard feel and all.  However, Titleist has done something interesting with the Pro-V1 and Pro-V1x this year.  They changed the cover to really soften it up, but seemed to have kept close to the compression numbers of last year's model.  So for this test, I wanted to see if the new Pro-V1x would stand up in distance to the previous model with the newer, softer cover.

 

For this test, I have switched to a Nike Covert 2.0 Tour driver, which for me, really dropped my spin numbers on the course.  It is longer (45.5 to 43.5 inches) than the cut-down Ping G25 I was playing, so the astute observers out there will see the increase in swing speed, but drop in smash factor from my previous test.  Temperature was a balmy 65 degrees and no wind (garage test).  I tested the 2013 Titleist Pro-V1x against the Nike Rzn Black, 2015 Pro-V1x and 2015 Pro-V1 on my trusty SC-100 (no spin numbers, only carry, swing, and ball speeds).  I also tried hard to keep swing effort below 80% on both clubs.

 

Driver (Nike Covert 2.0 Tour)

Ball                         Ball Speed           Swing Speed      Smash Factor     Carry Distance

'13 Pro-V1x              143                         102                         1.40                        244

'15 Pro-V1x              143                         101                         1.41                        247

Nike Rzn Black         143                         101                         1.41                        250

'15 Pro-V1                148                         101                         1.45                        257

 

7 Iron

Ball                         Ball Speed           Swing Speed      Smash Factor     Carry Distance

'13 Pro-V1x              106                         84                           1.27                        152

'15 Pro-V1x              106                         83                           1.28                        154

Nike Rzn Black         108                         87                           1.27                        156

'15 Pro-V1                113                         86                           1.30                        167

 

So after analyzing the data, it does appear the new Pro-V1x carries a few yards further than last year's model, in both driver and 7 iron.  I threw the Nike Rzn Black in there for my own personal control as I know my numbers with that ball.  You can also see my smash factor is pretty low right now as I get used to the longer driver again.

 

The biggest surprise for me, however, was the performance of the new Pro-V1; I never noticed that sort of performance leap of the Pro-V1x in the past, but there it is.  Maybe I just got lucky, 20 times in a row.  Or maybe, there is something to their softer cover.  Or maybe, they did drop their compression numbers a bit on the Pro-V1.  I don't know why, but just on ball speed and carry, the Pro-V1 seems to be significantly better for me than the Pro-V1x, which never used to be the case.

 

Now I don't know how this ball will play for me on the course.  In the test, I was finding the center of the net , but in the past, I was more likely to find the center of someone's back yard.  One observation I can report is that while the new Pro-V1x does putt and chip softer, it still feels like the '13 ball off of the driver and irons, which would lead me to believe they did leave the compression alone.  With the Pro-V1, I do not have an older model to directly compare it to, but I can say it did feel much softer off the driver and irons than all other balls in this test.  Off the putter, it felt amazing, really transmitting a ton of feel to the hands/ears, but that is subjective.

 

My next step is to get both golf balls out to the course to see ball flight characteristics for my swing.  And if I happen to find myself in the trees and find an older Pro-V1 (and there tend to be a lot out there), I will do a quick compare test with the new Pro-V1 and post an update.

[Max F]

My swing speed is similar to yours but I was never able to really play the Pro V1x or RZN Black effectively (don't compress the ball).  I ended up liking the RZN Platinum.  

 

Seeing as your numbers seem to improve with the 2015 Pro V1, I was wondering if you ever tried the Platinum and, if so, how you think it compares to the new Pro V1.

 

It's really interesting to see the gain in ball speed of the new Pro V1 with basically the same swing speed as the others.  Something must be going on there.  It's got my attention big time.

[GreenDoor]

No, I never did try the Nike Rzn Platinum because it was marketed as a direct competitor to the Pro-V1, but maybe I should; thanks for the recco.

[apprenti23]

Very glad to see you went out and did this test as well!

 

I commented on your other thread hoping you would, because I had a feeling that you were playing the wrong ball. Regular ProV1 is the ball for you my man, now you have data to back it up!

[GreenDoor]

You know, sometimes you get an idea stuck in your head that becomes a blind spot only hard data can remedy.  I tried to play the Pro-V1 and similar balls like the Precept U-tri for years when I first started playing golf, but just could not control them off the driver.  In the past few years I have finally stabilized into a more compact swing (thanks to finally getting some good lessons) and don't have the slice/hook issues I used to.  I also learned, thanks in large part to this site, that most of the drivers I had been playing were high-spin drivers (it's what the box-store numbers said I needed...).  So in hind-sight, my recipe for disasterous golf is right there in neon; high spin driver + high spin ball + honked-up swing = ugly, ugly drives.  Thanks for the push apprenti23; very much appreciated.

[apprenti23]

Very cool!

 

My thing has always been this- a golf ball isn't going to fix a face angle or swing path problem. A slice is a slice and a hook is a hook.