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Are premium golf balls really worth the extra £


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I do expect the Pro V1/V1X to fare well, but I gather we may all be surprised at the quality rankings versus value proposition of many other brands. Beyond that I could speculate, but I think I’ll wait for the 2020 MGS ball test results...

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  • Titleist TSR2 16.5º HZRDUS Red 60 CB 6.0 & TSR2 21º HZRDUS Black 4G 70 6.0 w Lamkin UTx Midsize
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TXG dropped an interesting tidbit in their most recent video of whether distance balls are actually longer than premium golf balls. Ian mentioned that a Titleist study of high handicap players found that they shot on average 4 shots better per 9 holes with a premium ball versus a cheaper distance alternative.

Saving 8 shots per round by playing a premium ball is absolutely worth the investment if a player is genuinely interested in getting better.

Ian postulated that the majority of the gains from playing a premium ball can be found inside 100 yards and around the green as the short game performance of premium balls are so much better than a distance ball.

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DRIVER PXG 0811XF GEN4 (10.5°)

FAIRWAY WOODS PXG 0341XF GEN4 (16°)

HYBRIDS PXG 0317XF GEN4 (19°), PXG 0317X GEN4 (22°)

IRONS PXG 0311T GEN3 (5 - 9)

WEDGES TAYLORMADE MG3 (45°, 50°, 55° TW Grind, 60° TW Grind)

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TXG dropped an interesting tidbit in their most recent video of whether distance balls are actually longer than premium golf balls. Ian mentioned that a Titleist study of high handicap players found that they shot on average 4 shots better per 9 holes with a premium ball versus a cheaper distance alternative.

Saving 8 shots per round by playing a premium ball is absolutely worth the investment if a player is genuinely interested in getting better.

Ian postulated that the majority of the gains from playing a premium ball can be found inside 100 yards and around the green as the short game performance of premium balls are so much better than a distance ball.

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Yep, and with the high handicaps missing greens most every hole, the advantages the Tour ball gives on those short shots were where the high handicapper got those 4 strokes each 9 holes.


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Driver: Ping G430 Max 9*, Ping Tour 70X

Fairway: Ping G425 15*, Ping Tour 70X

Hybrid: Ping G425 22*, Ping Tour 80X

Irons:  Ping i230 4-GW, TT DG X100

Wedges: :edel-golf-1: SMS 50D/54V/58D:Nippon:Modus 130 stiff, +1”

Putter:  :edel-golf-1: EAS 1.0

Ball: Titleist 2023 AVX

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Every time we get an update about the ball lab progress, I keep feeling like there are no balls worth playing besides the top handful of brands.  Titleist, Birdgestone, Srixon, and maybe Snell (I only say maybe because I know very little about Snell, but it seems a popular ball on the forums).  It's just a feeling I get and it bothers me.  I know the staffers aren't pushing any brands at all, but the possible results make me anxious.  I play Srixon Q Star Tours and I'm worried that there may even be a big difference between them and the higher tier Z Star/XV.  I've never seen anything crazy that would reinforce that, but I wonder where the lower price really comes from.

 

Edit:  Somehow I forgot about the TP/X from Taylormade.  My bad.

Edited by AmishJason

Driver: Cobra Speedzone 10.5 Mitsubishi AV Blue S flex

Wood: Cobra Bio Cell 3-4 Grafalloy Pro Launch Blue (low launch original version) S flex

Hybrids: Taylormade GAPR 3 KBS graphite shaft

              Strata 4 and 5 hybrids R flex

Irons: Strata 6-PW R flex

Wedges: Texan Classics 52, 56, 60 R flex

Putter: Odyssey Red Ball mallet

Ball: Srixon Q Star Tour

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I think they are to a point. They tested a Pro V against a distance ball... what did they use as the distance ball? A Top Flite, or an Ultra? Obviously there's going to be a huge performance difference in the short game between those balls.

I want to know the difference between a tour level ball and the mid levels- Q Star Tour, Project A, Tour Soft etc.

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Driver: PXG 0211 10.5* 

Fairway: Titleist 917 F3 15*

Hybrid: Adams Idea Pro Boxer Gold 18*

Irons: MacGregor MT-86 Pro

Wedges: Vokey 50/54/58

Putter: SeeMore X2 Costa del Mar

Ball: Srixon Z-Star

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Titleists says high handicappers can shave 8 strokes per round by buying their $50/dz balls. LOL

I'm sorry Titleist, but I'm calling BS on that. I have several friends with high double digit hcps and no top ball (ex Titleist PV1) on the market will fix their game. Their swings -  fundamentals are seriously flawed. 

 

My Sun Mountain bag currently includes:   TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png 771CSI 5i - PW and TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png PFC Micro Tour-c 52°, 56°, 60 wedges

                                                                               :755178188_TourEdge: EXS 10.5*, TWGTLogo2.png.06c802075f4d211691d88895b3f34b75.png 929-HS FW4 16.5* 

                                                                                :edel-golf-1: Willimette w/GolfPride Contour

 

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So I think there is a definite benefit with a premium ball mentioned by TXG below and MGS many times the Urathane covers and multi layers really give that extra benefit. Obviously I think there will be some interesting things play out when it comes to the Ball Lab.
The only think I'm worried about is proving what real difference .004" out of round or size variations will do for the ball. If 1 in 6 has a low/high compression how will that affect your game? Same goes for out of round, visual defects, off center cores, etc.

This is where price vs quality really comes in. You can pick up Snell , Vice, or Costco for $30 or less or spend $45-50 for a ProV or TP5 and the spectrum in between.
I really liked the metric that shows you need to expect X out of 12balls to be out of round or large compression difference and so on.



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Driver:  Ben Hogan GS53
4W:  Maltby KE4 
2i: Maltby KE4 FDI 
4-PW:  Maltby TS-1 - C-Taper 120g 
50,54,58: Maltby TSW

Putter:  L.A.B. DF2.1 Accra Shaft 2023 Forum Testers - L.A.B. Putters
Ball: Mixed prefer ProV1 or Snell
Handicap: 9.2  -  Best Score: 72 (E) Springdale CC, Canton NC -2022

2020 Forum Tester - Ben Hogan GS53 Driver

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Not all premium balls are equal as shown by the ball study.

Balls where the manufacturer owns more of the process than others are going to be higher quality and better consistency. I would rather pay the price for predictability on the course than wonder if it was my swing or the ball that cause my errant shot

Driver: PXG 0811 X+ Proto w/UST Helium 5F4

Wood: TaylorMade M5 5W w/Accra TZ5 +1/2”, TaylorMade Sim 3W w/Aldila rogue white

Hybrid: PXG Gen2 22* w/AD hybrid

Irons: PXG Gen3 0311T w/Nippon modus 120

Wedges: TaylorMade MG2 50*, Tiger grind 56/60

Putter: Scotty Caemeron Super Rat1

Ball: Titleist Prov1

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I think that whether or not they are worth it is really a personal decision.  I think that if you are someone who loses balls pretty often, playing an expensive ball isnt good because you are going to worry about losing expensive balls and its going to hurt your game because you will be playing with fear and tension.

I also dont think that there is a ton of difference in terms of short game because if you are playing cheap balls, all you have to do is pick a landing spot short and let the ball rolls out.  Granted, there will be some situations where you might shortside yourself where you cant just land it short and let it roll but you could always just plan your shots to where you never shortside yourself.

Im of the mind that the spin is nice but you dont really need it to play good golf.  Ive played expensive balls and Ive played cheap balls and the only difference I ever really noticed was that I get less angry when I lose the cheap balls.

"I suppose its better to be a master of 7 than to be vaguely familiar with 14." - Chick Evans

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Hybrid: Mizuno MP Fli-Hi 3H

Irons: Mizuno T-Zoid True 5, 7 and 9-irons

Wedge: Mizuno S18 54* and Top Flite chipper

Putter: Mizuno Bettinardi A-02

Ball: Maxfli Tour X

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11 hours ago, Middler said:

I do expect the Pro V1/V1X to fare well, but I gather we may all be surprised at the quality rankings versus value proposition of many other brands. Beyond that I could speculate, but I think I’ll wait for the 2020 MGS ball test results...

Based on what Tony discovered last year before Ball Lab, I'd speculate the so called "value" of DTC brands to drop dramatically - most are reliant on the ball plant to provide QA which is a pay for play type scenario (as in the level of quality is directly proportional to what DTC brands are willing to spend).

I've been a fan of DTC brands in the past and still support the business model, but OEMs have the upper-hand when it comes to controlling product manufactured in their very own facilities. That doesn't mean all will do well (just look at Callaway), but it is much easier for them to step up their QA game.

Driver: :mizuno-small: ST190 9.5* Fujikura Atmos Blue 5S
Fairway Wood: :mizuno-small: ST190 15* Fujikura Atmos Blue 6S
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Irons: :bridgestone-small: J40 CB (3-PW) Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
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Putter: :odyssey-small: Tri-Hot 5k Two 34"
Bag: :titleist-small: Players 5 Stand Bag
Ball: Maxfli Tour

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5 hours ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Not all premium balls are equal as shown by the ball study.

Balls where the manufacturer owns more of the process than others are going to be higher quality and better consistency. I would rather pay the price for predictability on the course than wonder if it was my swing or the ball that cause my errant shot

That wasn’t the case for Callaway in 2019. We’ll see for 2020.

  • Titleist TSR2 11° HZRDUS Red CB 50 6.0 w Lamkin UTx Midsize
  • Titleist TSR2 16.5º HZRDUS Red 60 CB 6.0 & TSR2 21º HZRDUS Black 4G 70 6.0 w Lamkin UTx Midsize
  • Mizuno JPX923 HMP 4-GW, T22 54.12WS, T22 58.04DC w Lamkin ST+2 Hybrid Midsize
  • Evnroll EV5.3
  • Maxfli Tour & ProV1
  • Ping Pioneer - MGI Zip Navigator AT
  • Payntr X 002 LE, Ecco Biom C4, FJ DryJoys
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2 hours ago, TR1PTIK said:

Based on what Tony discovered last year before Ball Lab, I'd speculate the so called "value" of DTC brands to drop dramatically - most are reliant on the ball plant to provide QA which is a pay for play type scenario (as in the level of quality is directly proportional to what DTC brands are willing to spend).

I've been a fan of DTC brands in the past and still support the business model, but OEMs have the upper-hand when it comes to controlling product manufactured in their very own facilities. That doesn't mean all will do well (just look at Callaway), but it is much easier for them to step up their QA game.

I don’t get the impression all DTC balls are created equal, but we’ll see soon. In 2019 Snell/OnCore>Vice>Cut.

  • Titleist TSR2 11° HZRDUS Red CB 50 6.0 w Lamkin UTx Midsize
  • Titleist TSR2 16.5º HZRDUS Red 60 CB 6.0 & TSR2 21º HZRDUS Black 4G 70 6.0 w Lamkin UTx Midsize
  • Mizuno JPX923 HMP 4-GW, T22 54.12WS, T22 58.04DC w Lamkin ST+2 Hybrid Midsize
  • Evnroll EV5.3
  • Maxfli Tour & ProV1
  • Ping Pioneer - MGI Zip Navigator AT
  • Payntr X 002 LE, Ecco Biom C4, FJ DryJoys
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15 minutes ago, Middler said:

That wasn’t the case for Callaway in 2019. We’ll see for 2020.

And TaylorMade who owned about the same amount of the process had better success. It’s not a guarantee but the chances are better 

Driver: PXG 0811 X+ Proto w/UST Helium 5F4

Wood: TaylorMade M5 5W w/Accra TZ5 +1/2”, TaylorMade Sim 3W w/Aldila rogue white

Hybrid: PXG Gen2 22* w/AD hybrid

Irons: PXG Gen3 0311T w/Nippon modus 120

Wedges: TaylorMade MG2 50*, Tiger grind 56/60

Putter: Scotty Caemeron Super Rat1

Ball: Titleist Prov1

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15 hours ago, FrogginBullfish said:

TXG dropped an interesting tidbit in their most recent video of whether distance balls are actually longer than premium golf balls. Ian mentioned that a Titleist study of high handicap players found that they shot on average 4 shots better per 9 holes with a premium ball versus a cheaper distance alternative.

Saving 8 shots per round by playing a premium ball is absolutely worth the investment if a player is genuinely interested in getting better.

Ian postulated that the majority of the gains from playing a premium ball can be found inside 100 yards and around the green as the short game performance of premium balls are so much better than a distance ball.

Sent from my Pixel 2 using MyGolfSpy mobile app
 

Love TXG 👏

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For a lot of golfers a middle of the road ball is best like an NXT. If you are a hard swinging golfer with in consistent hits a ProV1 premium golf can actually spin more off of the club face and create a bigger slice/hook. 

M5 Taylormade w/Hazrds Yellow (small batch)

Ping G410 Hybrid w/Evenflow protoype

Taylormade 4-PW P-750 w/C-Taper Lite 

Taylormade HiToe 50, 54, 60 w/project-x 

Scotty Squareback or Spyder X 

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