2020 Official Member Review: Bridgestone White Box Ball

[yungkory]

8 hours ago, jlukes said:

XS dude. 

 

7 hours ago, JohnSmalls said:

We’ve got about the same swing speed and I had similar thoughts last summer with the BX.  Out of the las gen I tested the XS and the RX as well, the XS is by far the way to go for my game.  It’s got the best short game spin out of those 3 by far.  

 

5 hours ago, jddaigneault said:

I agree with the others. The XS is the way to go. Did you put distance as what you care most about the ball for the questions that go with the video? I put feel, and the XS has not failed to deliver. Out of probably 100 or so holes, I’ve only had one shot leak out on the green with a scoring iron. 

Hmm, anyone want to swap a couple sleeves?

[jddaigneault]

Found it! Which is honestly surprising, I played like garbage. I could not groove my swing plane today, and sent 6/9 tee shots left. The one green I hit spun back and off, so that sucked. Granted, I only landed it about a foot onto a sloped green so that’s on me. 

Even on a day I wasn’t hitting it well, the BXS lived up to it’s billing. It feels really responsive off the club face, it spins well with the scoring clubs, and boy does it go far. Part of my missed greens were because my 60* wasn’t playing it’s normal 105-108, but more like 110-115 (I played a par 3 course). 

Despite getting a full tour of the rough, including face time with a tree, the ball is really durable. 

After 27 holes, these are the only blemishes. Did I mention the tree? It’s a miracle that I made it so long with one ball, and that the cover looks this good is even better. It pains me to do this, but #finditcutit time...

Definitely not making it easy on me, you served me well #4. 

If golf balls could scream, what would they sound like?

I had to turn away. That face! I lost some of my soul today. 

The deed is done. Interesting to find a white blemish in the middle. Perhaps the compound didn’t mix all the way? Not sure what exactly caused that. If you’ve got some headed for the shag bag after a few rounds, it’d be interesting to see if you notice something similar. Did a lot of the balls at the pga show have that?
 

Doesn’t change my mind, I still love this ball. 

[jddaigneault]

1 hour ago, yungkory said:

 

 

Hmm, anyone want to swap a couple sleeves?

I’d actually love to try the X, just to compare them. I think for the cost of shipping it’d just be cheaper to go buy a sleeve though! NJ and CA aren’t exactly close. 

[Miboy62]

Pro shop in MI will have on 2/14, like reading the reviews for sure.

[daviddvm]

4 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

Guys, you have all done an amazing job discussing these balls and you have me looking to get a dozen once they hit the stores. I picked up some prior generation BX balls when they went on sale a couple of months ago and liked them, but didn't love them. I recently went on their website, answered some questions, and got recommended the B RXS and will give them a try. I planned on doing the VFit this weekend, but some snow threw that out the window.

Sent from my SM-N975U using MyGolfSpy mobile app
 

I'm testing the B RXS and I've been having weather issues myself rain, rain, and more rain in H-town. But we have a nice day tomorrow and I'm going to do some short game shots and putting at my club. The VFit is fun I hope you get a break in your weather soon. 

[gbtrsc]

Gonna be a bit chilly here in SC tomorrow (low to mid 50s) but I’ll be out tomorrow giving the RX another go. Report to follow.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Trial&Error]

So the general consensus here is it's better than the previous and or better than the "other" brand you played? It's the new sliced bread? It runs faster and jumps higher?

Edited February 9, 2020 by Trial&Error

[Shankster]

So the general consensus here is it's better than the previous and or better than the "other" brand you played? It's the new sliced bread? It runs faster and jumps higher?

To me the XS is far superior to the last edition of it.

The overall performance is wonderful, the feel is terrific, and the audible noise you get is somewhere between superb and sublime.

My favorite thing about it is the way it reacts when you try different flights. Not sure if it is in my head or what, but these come with some sort of sauce infused in them.

I haven’t had a chance to get too much on course action. But they make my least favorite part of the game one of my favorites. The putter... I never really cared how well a ball performed on the green. I always went with the wedges first and if I liked it there, it was in the bag... but man if these things don’t hit the green like a Formula One car on a track.

My only gripe about it is the alignment aid, I prefer the last editions. As a guy that uses the manufacturers line for lining up my putts, the old version was a tad bolder.

[yungkory]

1 hour ago, Trial&Error said:

So the general consensus here is it's better than the previous and or better than the "other" brand you played? It's the new sliced bread? It runs faster and jumps higher?

I still need to test more, but so far the V1x is still looking to be a better ball for my game than the X. As much as I don't want to like the biggest and most popular ball in golf -- I believe there's a reason why they are at the top. If you want to hit the ball longer off of every club, definitely might want to look at the Tour B. I haven't played with anyone who wasn't surprised after they flew a green, or one-hopped it off the back of a green the first time they put one of these in play.

[Golfspy_CG2]

Nice job on the review and this thread guys.  Keep up the great work. 

[Golfspy_CG2]

I had lunch with the Bridgestone rep last week.  He's a big fan of MGS reads everything on the home page, browses the forum and watches NPG.  

He was thrilled with the latest NPG episode, that it named Bridgestone as the No. 2 best thing they saw at the PGA Show.  

All that and the bastard didn't even have a sleeve of the RX for me to try  

Actually he did have a couple sleeves, but I told him I didn't want to take them from someone else.  We'll be getting our shop supply in this week. 

 

 

[Mr. 82]

15 hours ago, Trial&Error said:

So the general consensus here is it's better than the previous and or better than the "other" brand you played? It's the new sliced bread? It runs faster and jumps higher?

Not necessarily for me.  I've been testing the B RXS and it plays almost the same as the Srizon Z Star that I was previously playing, except that the RXS has wicked spin on wedge shot into the green.  Distance, launch angle and trajectory, feel, etc all line up with the Sirxon Z Star for me.  I've had multiple wedge shots spin of of the front of greens.  For me, I honestly don't want that type of spin on wedge approach shots, so I would not put this ball into play for me.

[Smellis745]

19 hours ago, Trial&Error said:

So the general consensus here is it's better than the previous and or better than the "other" brand you played? It's the new sliced bread? It runs faster and jumps higher?

So far, so good, at least for me.  I'm working on my final review now because I've seen everything I need to see.  For me, the 2020 XS > 6th gen ZStar > 6th gen ZStar XV.  I couldn't keep the XV in the air with a driver and if I put any side spin on it, it was a big miss.  The ZStar slowed some of that down, but I still spun it around 1950 on average.  I could still make a horrible swing and lose it off line as well.  The XS, spins optimally for me which keeps it in the air longer, thus providing more carry as well as negating any side spin which keeps it in a straighter flight.  I notice a slightly higher ball flight and a significant distance increase with driver.  The playability with the rest of my clubs is near identical to the ZStar, maybe a half club longer.  Where my biggest adjustment had to come was the feeling off the putter.  It feels much softer and sounds more muted.  After a 1 18 hole round a couple 9 holers, I was good to go.  For my game, the 2020 B XS is the cat's meow and will be in my bag for a long time.  I'm planning to stock up Friday.

[FiveGs]

Since it’s a rare rainy day here in San Diego, I decided to do some wet ball / wet wedge testing from 25 - 35 yards. I will be comparing 2 B XS against 2 TP5 balls.


The wedge used is a fairly new Milled Grind 2 Raw 54 degree.



As you can see they are pretty close in distance.



From 35 yards.

The feel was soft from both balls and I could not tell the difference between the two

I also did some putting practice drills and once again found them to be equal in feel and roll.

So far I’m really liking this ball. I’m playing a round tomorrow so I will have another 18 holes of data and feedback to post my final thoughts.


Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

[daviddvm]

I had the opportunity yesterday to do some much needed short game work with the Tour B RXS prototype and in comparison to my regular ball 2019 ProV1x. 

Started out pitching and chipping  10 balls of each Brand from the same distance and hit with same club SW  to compare flight and spin and feel. 

Feel ProV1x  is softer and more muted coming off wedge with a slightly higher  trajectory  while the Tour B RXS is a little more clicky and slightly lower launching.

But both balls seem to check up similarly on shots from 20 to 40 yards. The Tour B RXS seemed to run out a little further on shots inside 20 yards.

Then on the putting green I used the same ten balls of each  Brand and tried to hit each putt the same distance by using the same stroke. I was not aiming at a hole I measured the distance from the fringe and tried to leave the ball right on the fringe each time using the same stroke each time. I alternated balls with each putt to try and deliver the same stroke to each ball. I used 3 different distances 30', 15', and 5'.

The feel of the two balls is distinctive. The ProV1x sounds more muted and feels like it is on the face of the putter longer. The Tour B RXS has a little click to it and seems to jump off the face. 

My results did show the Tour B RXS to be a little hotter with 8 or 9 balls ending up on the fringe or rough from each distance and the ProV1x only  4 or 5 ending up on fringe or rough from each distance.

As far as dispersion I could tell no difference, I can roll both balls straight at target. 

[fixyurdivot]

18 minutes ago, FiveGs said:

Since it’s a rare rainy day here in San Diego, I decided to do some wet ball / wet wedge testing from 25 - 35 yards. I will be comparing 2 B XS against 2 TP5 balls.


The wedge used is a fairly new Milled Grind 2 Raw 54 degree.



As you can see they are pretty close in distance.



From 35 yards.

The feel was soft from both balls and I could not tell the difference between the two

I also did some putting practice drills and once again found them to be equal in feel and roll.

So far I’m really liking this ball. I’m playing a round tomorrow so I will have another 18 holes of data and feedback to post my final thoughts.


Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Hmm... your post has more or less answered the question whether we're likely to see rain here in Yuma.  Raining in San Diego, wind here coming from the southwest, and dark clouds building .  On the upside, I'm out for today's round because of my back.  On the downside, I'm out for today's round because of my back.  I've been playing several Tour B RX I won for a CTP Par 3 and really like them.  They sure seem to wear very well and hit as long as any others I'm playing.  That's a really interesting groove pattern on your wedge.

[Mr. 82]

Can any of you tell the difference between the three rows of balls below?

Top row, balls without colored dots have not been hit yet.

Red dot balls have been played for 18 holes.

Blue dot balls have been played for at least 36 holes, if not more.  A couple of these have at least 54 holes in them.

My point to all this is that if you are looking for a ball with fantastic durability, I think we have a winner here.

Side note to durability test.  I rarely hit trees, and from time to time find the cart path on the fly.  I should have taken a picture of the one ball I hit the cart path on repeatedly, but it got lost in the woods before I could photo it.  The above balls all lasted their stated length without trees or cart path abuse.  Keep this ball in play, such as I typically do (I rarely lose a ball in a typical round) and you can play it for quite awhile.  The blue ball on the bottom right lasted 54 holes, over three days, including two tournament rounds.

 

 

Edited February 10, 2020 by Mr. 82
removed duplicate pic

[fixyurdivot]

I mention the durability because several of the courses here in Yuma have some rather rough ground off the fairways (even on the fairways in some places).  I like the way Titleist balls wear and these seem equally durable.

[Mr. 82]

I found the ball on the left on the course yesterday.  I am assuming it's an older model of the B XS.  But I thought it makes an ideal comparison of the looks of the alignment side of the ball.

I'm not picky about alignment lines, but the bolder look on the older model might be more beneficial to some golfers.

[Mr. 82]

4 minutes ago, fixyurdivot said:

I mention the durability because several of the courses here in Yuma have some rather rough ground off the fairways (even on the fairways in some places).  I like the way Titleist balls wear and these seem equally durable.

Having played many a round with a Titleist ball, these Bridgestone are much more durable, at least in my experience.  I can typical get through 18 holes with a ProV1 before it needs to be retired.  Once you get into the 2nd round with a ProV1 it shows very visible signs of wear.  These Bridgestone can go 2 or 3 rounds without major visible wear under normal conditions.  I'm comparing a ball not hit into trees or onto cart paths, fwiw.

[fixyurdivot]

8 minutes ago, Mr. 82 said:

Having played many a round with a Titleist ball, these Bridgestone are much more durable, at least in my experience.  I can typical get through 18 holes with a ProV1 before it needs to be retired.  Once you get into the 2nd round with a ProV1 it shows very visible signs of wear.  These Bridgestone can go 2 or 3 rounds without major visible wear under normal conditions.  I'm comparing a ball not hit into trees or onto cart paths, fwiw.

To the best of my knowledge, Titleist never engineered and manufactured vehicle tires... so Bridgestone should know a thing or two about a thing or two when it comes to durability .

[ga_pike]

53 minutes ago, Mr. 82 said:

Can any of you tell the difference between the three rows of balls below?

Top row, balls without colored dots have not been hit yet.

Red dot balls have been played for 18 holes.

Blue dot balls have been played for at least 36 holes, if not more.  A couple of these have at least 54 holes in them.

My point to all this is that if you are looking for a ball with fantastic durability, I think we have a winner here.

Side note to durability test.  I rarely hit trees, and from time to time find the cart path on the fly.  I should have taken a picture of the one ball I hit the cart path on repeatedly, but it got lost in the woods before I could photo it.  The above balls all lasted their stated length without trees or cart path abuse.  Keep this ball in play, such as I typically do (I rarely lose a ball in a typical round) and you can play it for quite awhile.  The blue ball on the bottom right lasted 54 holes, over three days, including two tournament rounds.

 

 

One dot, two dot, red dot, blue dot.  

I will hit them to the left, I will hit them to the right,

I will hit them all day, I will hit them at night,

I will hit them long, I will hit them short,

I will hit these balls to play my sport,

I do enjoy them, yes I do, 

I do enjoy them, how about you? 

Will you hit them in the rough, will you hit them in a tree?

Will you hit them in the fairway longer than me?  

I will hit them here, I will hit them there,

I will hit these golf balls everywhere...

I seem to like them Mr. 82,

But will I like them more than you? 

 

Edited February 10, 2020 by ga_pike

[daviddvm]

30 minutes ago, fixyurdivot said:

To the best of my knowledge, Titleist never engineered and manufactured vehicle tires... so Bridgestone should know a thing or two about a thing or two when it comes to durability .

I wonder if anyone from the Tire side of Bridgestone actually works on the golf side of Bridgestone ? 

[fixyurdivot]

16 minutes ago, daviddvm said:

I wonder if anyone from the Tire side of Bridgestone actually works on the golf side of Bridgestone ? 

Don't know but I'll bet their have been more employee transfers from the tire side to the golf side .

[DrMJG]

Final report is on the way.

Here is a short summation.

I am an older player with a slower swing and ball speed; so when we did our video, Bridgestone recommended I play their e12.  I already play that as my gamer.  

So the best option for me to test was the RX. I cannot really express my surprise and even shock at how much this particular ball has helped my game: cleaner straighter drives, more consistency with my group of irons and my hybrids, and, finally, the spin needed on chips and pitches.

No, all my mediocre skills were not miraculously improved. 

I may change to this ball.

I have loved Bridgestone spheres since I returned to golf after a 2 decade period.  The confidence I have come to expect with their balls was re-confirmed.  Heck, I even tried to mash one ball using non-golf methods with no luck.  One ball I played for over 34 holes (would have finished the round with it until I sent it swimming).

Considering I have 2 boxes of e12 and a few sleeves of e6 in the trunk of the car, it will be a few months before this retired person needs to resupply.  When that time comes, I will be sure to get some RX.

They will not make me senior tour ready, but this month, I have found good results and good fun in the Tour RX.

 

Edited February 12, 2020 by DrMJG

[Mr. 82]

This is one of many videos coming, when I finish my final review, but see if you can tell the difference in sound that the ball makes upon contact with the putter face.  I hit a Titleist ProV1 first, then the Bridgestone B RXS, then a Srixon Z Star, and then a Titleist AVX.  My apologies for the limited audio quality, as it's just the iphone speaker on the other end of the putting green on a tripod.  I will probably do the test outdoors on a real putting green, and place the camera behind me for better audio quality, and try the same test that way outdoors.

 

[StrokerAce]

Gotta say - I am duly impressed with how well you guys can feel and hear the ball coming off the putter.  Other than range rocks I have a real hard time differentiating between various balls.

[daviddvm]

5 hours ago, Mr. 82 said:

This is one of many videos coming, when I finish my final review, but see if you can tell the difference in sound that the ball makes upon contact with the putter face.  I hit a Titleist ProV1 first, then the Bridgestone B RXS, then a Srixon Z Star, and then a Titleist AVX.  My apologies for the limited audio quality, as it's just the iphone speaker on the other end of the putting green on a tripod.  I will probably do the test outdoors on a real putting green, and place the camera behind me for better audio quality, and try the same test that way outdoors.

You must be lethal on straight puts inside 12 feet !  Great video. 

You must be lethal on straight puts inside 12 feet !  Great video. 

[Mr. 82]

1 hour ago, daviddvm said:

You must be lethal on straight puts inside 12 feet !  Great video. 

Thanks!  I am when there is no wind, break, or bumps or ball marks on the green.   

The video was an 8 foot putt, fwiw.

[Trial&Error]

TXG thoughts on the new balls also now

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTvUD3cSnd4