Titleist Blind Ball Test Thread

[ZMendle10]

I started with a bit of testing off the putter to get a sense of feel and there is a distinct difference between the two balls. I don't want to say which is which as feel is subjective and I don't want to influence my fellow testers but the process is underway.

[Clayton]

“Pakken din 965870565870 skal leveres av FedEx i dag. Vil du ikke ha flere SMS? Svar STOP”

That says mine will arrive today!  Can’t wait!

[Shankster]

I am returning from a way too long of “vacation” tomorrow.  I will catch up on work stuff by Friday.  Plan to take one of each to the short game area for some wedge and putting testing. Still waiting on the survey from Titleist, or any sort of instructions from them, but I figure those two are safe from donation if I only use them there.

 

Looking to get out for a round on Tuesday, where I will use those same two on a few full PW approaches against the AVX. 
 

Stay tuned.

[TCUfrog]

Weather here has been absolutely horrible. Got another inch of rain overnight. All I've been able to test with so far is putting indoors with the balls but hoping to get out Thursday/Friday for a little test 9.

[GaDawg]

33 minutes ago, TCUFrog said:

Weather here has been absolutely horrible. Got another inch of rain overnight. All I've been able to test with so far is putting indoors with the balls but hoping to get out Thursday/Friday for a little test 9.

I am in the same boat as you! More rain and not good testing weather. Hopefully later in the week.

[Tom D.]

On 7/12/2021 at 4:41 PM, Larryw said:

Just a guess but the code stamps are probably manufacturing quality control codes to identify different molds and/or manufacturing fixtures and not specific to the design of the balls. We always used QC markings for identity purposes.

Larry, you got that exactly right.  I found out from another thread that the two letters stamped in adjacent dimples are in fact mold codes used for QC purposes.

[Tom D.]

Except for one of the number 3 balls, all of the others had small paint bubble imperfections in certain spots (some of them in several spots).  The #3 balls had a small  C and Z stamped in adjacent dimples, and the #4 balls had Y and P stamped in them (as I subsequently found out these are mold codes). 

I'm getting a little bit more of a "click" off the putter with the #3's, as that is the only thing I've tested so far.

[ZMendle10]

A course near me has a huge learning center with short game area and 2 full length practice holes. I will be taking the golf balls to the practice facility this Saturday to put them through their paces. I will also be doing all of my comparisons to my gamer ball the Bridgestone Tour BX. The reason being is that it is not a Titleist ball so I won't be influenced trying to compare it something I think the balls being tested are. I also know what to expect from the Tour BX which makes it great for a control ball.

[tommc23]

1 hour ago, ZMendle10 said:

A course near me has a huge learning center with short game area and 2 full length practice holes. I will be taking the golf balls to the practice facility this Saturday to put them through their paces. I will also be doing all of my comparisons to my gamer ball the Bridgestone Tour BX. The reason being is that it is not a Titleist ball so I won't be influenced trying to compare it something I think the balls being tested are. I also know what to expect from the Tour BX which makes it great for a control ball.

That sounds like a great place to test things out! Wow that’s a practice area if I ever heard of one!!!!

[Shankster]

Hit some pitches today.  Wow.  Talk about a complete opposite.  They both are really soft, softer than the AVX.  Makes me think this could be a replacement for it?  But the covers are similar to the V1 and V1x.  The 3 is a fun ball, as a high ball flight guy, seeing a flatish trajectory is amazing, hoping that it is the Left dot.

30-65 yards with the new 54°.

37 yards, yeah, weird number but it’s where I dropped the ball. The one in the back here is an AVX, the pitch mark closest to the furtherest right ball is from that shot, carried it a bit further than the rest.

65ish, the 2 way in the back are the AVX’s no check compared to the 4’s, which are the two front ones, the 3’s are the middle of the group. But it is possible that I carried them a bit further like on the 37 yard pitches.

#3 launched super low, like low low. And felt like a Balata, it is quite pleasing.

compared to the AVX, this thing is lower launching.  Even on the 7 iron that I hit.  

#4 launched a bit higher, but had more check. Same with the 7 iron.

 

#3 from 120 with the 54°, stopped right near the pitch mark.

 

Yes, I repaired the pitch mark.  And about 50 others today.

[BMart519]

Initial thoughts: 

#3 has bigger and therefore less dimples than #4

They feel very similar off the putter indoors on Exputt, will need to try and hit some long putts outdoors to confirm but it feels like #3 might be softer. But I was back and forth on feel over the course of my first session. 

[GaDawg]

My 9 Hole Quick Review - 7/21/21:

1. The #3 ball is softer, it feels really good off the club face. It seems to be a little bit longer than #4 and stops quickly on the green. In my opinion, it is similar to the Pro V1.  

2. The #4 ball is firmer, but not a hard ball. It is close in distance to the #4 and stops really good too, maybe rolls out 4-6 inches past the pitch mark. It is similar to the AVX in my opinion.

They putt similar, but the #3 has a softer feel, which I really like. I didn't have time to practice enough chipping to give an opinion. Trying to beat the thundershower and darkness.

More to come...

Edited July 22, 2021 by GaDawg
Correct Spelling

[heavygolffeels]

Nice to see you guys are getting after it!

I did a quick epsom salt test for COG, and all of the balls were well balanced. I marked the high points out of the water and gave them all a spin 3 times, and never did the same point return, so that's speaks to the quality of the core albeit in a small sample size.

Like Tom, I noticed that all but 1 3 ball and 1 4 ball had at least one paint bubble on them. Maybe some slight issues with the mold or painting process, but not going to read too much into it considering these are not production quality retail balls yet.

First outing was to the putting green. I must say that I did squeeze each ball in my fingers and I feel like the 3 compresses easier. At least the outer mantle is softer in my mind. I was hoping to verify on the green, but I must say they feel the same to me. Perhaps its my Evnroll putter that sort of feels dead. I love it, but its not the best feel putter. Might be a good thing as I'm not picky yet. Will back up and chip and pitch this weekend and get more feedback where it really counts for me. 

[BMart519]

Outdoor putting:

3 is confirmed softer than 4... Both are notably softer than a Pro V1X. The differences between the test balls and a Pro V1 or Tour Speed are much harder to notice on the putting green with an EVNROLL. 

[Tom D.]

Well, my worst shot of the day meant the watery demise of one of my #3 balls this morning at the par 3 course I played early.

Hit them both pretty well over all, and not finding too much difference performance-wise on the short course anyway.  Still haven't hit them with woods (or into the woods) yet.

[heavygolffeels]

A wet weekend in Arizona derailed my short game testing plans. Not a good sign when you can kayak to the golf course.

 

Instead, I took shelter at Hornacek's Golf and rode out the storms. Couches, hitting bays, beer, and you've won my attention. Everyone knows you start testing balls from the green back - putt, chip, hit some pitches, some wedge and short iron approaches, etc. I know, and I tried, but you only live once. I just saw a helicopter rescue a guy standing on top of his car in 4 feet of water, so we are going straight to the big stick because I'm not sure if I am going to make it home. 

 

BACKGROUND

My normal SS is usually in the low 100s - peaks at 105. I've gotten really good at hitting the ball slightly low on the face and am used to playing with a little more than ideal spin. I'm usually spinning 2500-3000 rpm on a good hit. Gaming G400 MAX with Aldila Rogue White 60s. Every time I've been fit and try to cut some spin for distance, I tend to introduce some nasty hooks that fall out of the sky. Not something I like to see when I try to setup for a straight ball with a slight fade. The driver is probably the most inconsistent part of my game. From swing to swing I can look like a scratch golfer or a 18 handicap, so I alternated balls after every 5 swings during testing. 

FEEL

First, both of these balls are soft off the driver. I usually play a Z Star XV or Snell MTB-X. And both balls are much softer. I don't dislike the feel of a firm ball. I'm used to it, but I quickly adapted to the softer feel and can admit that I do prefer it. Seemed to have a better sound as well, but I cannot say how much the acoustics indoors may have played a factor in that. I would have thought the sound would have been enhanced, but it was more muted. Also welcomed. So far so good. 

TESTING

I started with BALL 3 and fell into an immediate comfort zone. To my eye, the results looked like my course distances, ball flights, and numbers I had been fit to into the past. I immediately noticed that I wasn't being punished properly for slightly low misses. They launched low with less carry but didnt have abnormal spin to them. Every once in a while I managed to get my patented balloon ball, but thats a normal miss for me and I was happy with the distance and that it didnt slice either. 

 

As I switched over to BALL 4, I was expecting to have to really be discerning to pinpoint the differences, but that clearly was not the case. I actually had to really work to keep the spin down. Everything wanted to launch higher (something I would welcome), but also spun like crazy at times. I had a hard time keeping balls in the fairway. What felt like I good hit would just keep drifting off line.  I thought it was a odd set or two, but every time I switched to the #4, same results. I started hitting 1 and 1 and it just confirmed everything. 

 

RESULTS

Below are the averages of 30 good swings with each ball. Ultimately, I was able to get more distance and hit a more playable ball with BALL 3. Although the carry numbers were similar, I think in real conditions on normally firm and fast Arizona fairways, BALL 3 would roll out even more. With my current equipment, this would be the ball I would immediately choose based on numbers with the driver. And I would consider BALL 3 as a worth contender against my gamer. 

However, I might be slightly tempted to throw in a firmer shaft to test BALL 4. I do like the higher launch and the consistency of the launch angle and carry distance. As someone who sometimes struggles to get the ball up in the air, I did appreciate the ball flight.  I've steered clear of low spin shafts in the past because it only hurts my game, but maybe something that could keep the launch above 12 and cut spin (ventus blue?) would bring the carry up? Could be worth it if iron and wedge testing dramatically favored BALL 4. We'll see.  

 

 

 

TYPE	Distance	Carry	Launch	Ball Speed	Back Spin	Side Spin
BALL 3	271.40	252.82	11.60	152.90	2644.56	266.64
BALL 4	265.63	252.70	12.43	150.12	3567.15	324.28

[GregGarner]

I opted not to put them in play during my Sunday morning money game, but I did chip, pitch, and putt with them before the round. Overall in these three areas, #3 was softer/thuddier for me. Off the putter, nothing in it. Basically the same ball (which is a positive in my book). Chipping and pitching started to show some differences with #3 having a bit more hop-and-stop while #4 was check-and-run. I had a 58 degree and hit shots as close as the fringe and as far back as 30 yards, including some greenside bunker shots. I found I could really pinch the #3 and hit a low, spinny shot that would take one hop and stop while the #4 would take the same hop and then trundle out a few feet (with comparable strike quality). Didn't really notice flight differences, though I wouldn't expect to one these kinds of shots. Both balls felt great; #3 a little softer than #4, but I thought both felt very middle-of-the-Tour-ball-road in firmness, probably clocking in close to 90 compression if I were guessing?

I did manage to scuff one of the #4 balls, so I'm only going to use it on full shots if I lose the other two. Which is to say, by the third hole, it'll probably be in play.

[GregGarner]

Got out this morning for a pre-work, dewsweeper 9 and decided to put them into play starting on the 4th hole. Somehow I didn't lose any...

Hole 4:
#3 ball - 306 yards (calm down, it's downhill) through the fairway; 9 iron hit just short of the pin and ripped back several feet. Very soft feel, mid-flight.
#4 ball - 302 yards, in the fairway; 9 iron hit pin high and hopped back about 18 in.

Hole 5:
#3 ball - 285 fairway, PW pin high just off green
#4 ball - 265 pulled into left rough, moved ball up to #3 ball and hit PW pin high on green

Hole 6:
#3 ball - 4 iron hit thin right, appx 185 yards (210 to hole)
#4 ball - 4 iron hit flush, but about 8 yards short of what I would expect with no roll-out; starting to think this #4 ball has way too much long game spin for me to game it

Hole 7:
#3 ball - heely pull-cut driver ~282 yards
#4 ball - very, very solid strike 283 yards
this was the most eye-opening for me. Off the face, I expected the #4 ball to be ~20 yards longer than #3. As you can see, if a golf ball can be classified as "forgiving," the #3 ball is deserving of this moniker. The rest of the hole was pretty comparable. #3 flies lower and spins more on short irons, #4 flies higher and spins less on short irons

Hole 8:
#3 ball - 285, solid but pulled into left rough; floaty 7i into the green, small hop and rolled out (wet rough isn't conducive for spin I suppose...)
#4 ball - 245 (not a typo), slightly low-heel in the fairway. Was going to take a picture but couldn't even see the #3 ball from where this one ended up. Picked it up and played it from where the #3 ball ended up. Solid 7i that stopped about a foot after the pitch mark on the green.

Hole 9:
#3 ball - 290 yards down the middle, 4w center of the green, but missed into right greenside bunker
#4 ball - 258 yards in right rough (not as dead center on the strike, but certainly wasn't a poor strike); pulled up to where the #3 ball ended up and hit a very curvy 4w into center of green that stopped about 7 yards after ball mark. Really gathering a lot of evidence that these #4 balls are VERY spinny in the long game. Definitely does not fit my game, despite enjoying watching a high hard draw 4w into this green.

 

SUMMARY
#3 is a bomber. This plays like a tour ball. Very soft feel, mid/low flight and low spin on long game with mid flight and high spin on short game. Reminds me a lot of the TP5. Obviously I have no idea of the price point, but anything under $45-50 and I'd game this ball.
#4... well... I don't know who would game this ball. Very high spin in the long game and mid/low spin in the short game. High launch on all clubs. Your suggestions for who benefits from this profile are welcome, because I can't think of any player at my club that I would recommend this to.

I should be able to get on a Quad later this week to get some data to go with my on-course assessment, which will be very interesting to see. Additionally, I'll probably game the #3 in my Thursday night league (insert Club Pro Guy reference here), especially since it won't be dew-y, but I don't think I'll play the #4 in any scenario where I care about performance. The testing continues!

[Clayton]

I played a round today, but before the round I did a lot of putting and pitches with both numbered balls.  3 sounds softer off the 2-ball putter I have with me, 4 sounds a little clicky. They both putt nice and if I just use one version or the other I'm "used to it" after a very short period of time.  I found 3 to stop quicker and 4 to release a bit with a 56* wedge.  In play, 3 has the same certain something that I really like about the ProV1X.  All golf balls fly high for me this year and these are no exception.  I did hit a pretty nice bomb 296 yards (Arccos user here) with the number 4, but it was partially aided by hitting over a fairway bunker with some downhill after it.  I also hit the 3 ball uphill 284 so I think it's longer for me.  On 17 I again hit the 4.  It's a downhill shot that should have went a lot further than it did - seemed to balloon quite a bit and... didn't fly a pond it should have.

[TCUfrog]

Just got back from my local Edwin Watts. They recently installed a new GC Quad launch monitor so was able to get really solid numbers for my 8 iron test. Summary of results below:

Titleist 3 (Green Results):

• Launch higher on average
• Ball Speed slightly lower
• Carry Average: 156 yards

Titleist 4 (White Results):

• Tighter Dispersion
• Higher Spin
• Carry Average: 159

[Shankster]

Put the two in play today on a safe hole against the ProV1.  Snap hooked the V1, and the #4 the to exact same spot.  Couldn’t have done that again if I tried.

 

the 3 is really low launching for me, too low off the driver.  Here is a full 48° wedge from 148 yards, little helping wind, still came back quite a bit.  Launched amazingly low of the club too.  I welcome the low launch from this type of club, but driver not so much.

 

The V1 and the 4 are very very similar.  They ended up .5” from each other from this same spot… just out of frame top left in this picture. Landed on green and spun back to the fringe.

 

[ZMendle10]

Going to do some launch monitor testing on trackman later today. I will be doing a 7iron and driver testing. The reason I am opting out of the wedge is that I feel the best way to gauge spin around the greens is how the ball reacts outside rather than in a simulator. More to follow and stay tuned.

[Kaplack]

Round balls tend to work fine for me

[ZMendle10]

Work was busy last night so I didn't get the ability to do the kind of testing that I wanted to. However I did take them out to the indoor putting green to verify the difference in feel I felt my first time during testing. Initial testing made me think that the 3 ball was softer than the 4 but after further testing both on a putting green and at a practice facility I am leaning towards there is not much discernable difference between the two.

They feel the same off the putter face, 100 yard wedge shots ripping back nicely with both balls, around the green they were rolling out the same, and on a 150 yard par 3 they both had the same stopping power and flight. I haven't hit the driver yet but I will have another chance today to some simulator testing on trackman so maybe there is where the differences will show up. So far though either I can't tell the difference between the two golf balls or they are the same golf ball and Titleist is pulling a fast one. 

[twyatt700]

So I was able to go and play 9 holes at an executive course yesterday after work. Between the two balls I like number three better.  Both were longer than the Vice Pro, TP5x, and CSx LS I had in my bag.  They felt great on iron shot and responded well to around the green, I was able to get both to check up on wedge shots from 40-85 yards out. And they held up on 10 consecutive bunker shots. Bad new was on one hole I lost one of each with driver. Basically hooked them around some trees and couldn't locate them and I had a group behind me so I didn't spent much time looking.  I the next 300 yeard plus hole I was able to pull driver and both the 3 and 4 ball were super straight and farther than to previous montioned balls.  Made a smooth swing a got about 285-295 out of them (the other three were 265-275).  One ball was on the fringe and the othe was a few paces off the front on a 315 to the center of the green.  Overall I liked them both, I'm very curious to see what each ball is, either way, I'm going to be switching to Titelist.

I'll do more chipping and putting next week to rellay get a sense of the around the green spin. 

[twyatt700]

7 hours ago, ZMendle10 said:

Work was busy last night so I didn't get the ability to do the kind of testing that I wanted to. However I did take them out to the indoor putting green to verify the difference in feel I felt my first time during testing. Initial testing made me think that the 3 ball was softer than the 4 but after further testing both on a putting green and at a practice facility I am leaning towards there is not much discernable difference between the two.

They feel the same off the putter face, 100 yard wedge shots ripping back nicely with both balls, around the green they were rolling out the same, and on a 150 yard par 3 they both had the same stopping power and flight. I haven't hit the driver yet but I will have another chance today to some simulator testing on trackman so maybe there is where the differences will show up. So far though either I can't tell the difference between the two golf balls or they are the same golf ball and Titleist is pulling a fast one. 

I feel the same way. I liked three more though. Felt more responsive. 

[ZMendle10]

18 minutes ago, twyatt700 said:

I feel the same way. I liked three more though. Felt more responsive. 

At times I thought the same but it's just so dependent on where you strike the ball to get the true "feel" of it. I very rarely hit the same exact spot on the face so I never really cared all to much for feel in general. I used to play the softer golf balls chasing feel but after seeing how much ball speed I could be losing by playing a softer golf ball I moved away from that.

[TBGumby12]

I can test which ones are easier to loose and wich ones bounce best off of cart paths and trees.

[Beakbryce]

I received a 3 ball sleeve from Titleist to test about ten years ago. Took them out for play on a known course, IE, my regular course where I know distances for drivers, irons, and green side shots from most positions. My problem is you never get any feedback after the testing from the manufacturer. In my case, since balls usually last me 10 rounds or more, I gave plenty of feedback which was, they didn't seem to perform any different than the current Pro V1.  Now that I have seen the video testing the 2020 Pro V1 against the original, without much difference in flight characteristics, I feel that was probably a pretty good assessment. No feedback from Titleist to the testing info I sent. Maybe it wasn't what they wanted to hear. My point is this forum should provide some really good feedback but I doubt that there will be a whole lot of difference in distance or spin, hoping for feedback that the ball goes straighter.

The ball manufacturers need a new paradigm. The original Pro V1 was it, and basically on its own forced all the ball manufacturers to improve the ball AND golf club makers to make clubs that exploited that ball. The last 20 years have been refinements to that shift in golf balls and clubs, not something revolutionary.

[twyatt700]

1 hour ago, Beakbryce said:

I received a 3 ball sleeve from Titleist to test about ten years ago. Took them out for play on a known course, IE, my regular course where I know distances for drivers, irons, and green side shots from most positions. My problem is you never get any feedback after the testing from the manufacturer. In my case, since balls usually last me 10 rounds or more, I gave plenty of feedback which was, they didn't seem to perform any different than the current Pro V1.  Now that I have seen the video testing the 2020 Pro V1 against the original, without much difference in flight characteristics, I feel that was probably a pretty good assessment. No feedback from Titleist to the testing info I sent. Maybe it wasn't what they wanted to hear. My point is this forum should provide some really good feedback but I doubt that there will be a whole lot of difference in distance or spin, hoping for feedback that the ball goes straighter.

The ball manufacturers need a new paradigm. The original Pro V1 was it, and basically on its own forced all the ball manufacturers to improve the ball AND golf club makers to make clubs that exploited that ball. The last 20 years have been refinements to that shift in golf balls and clubs, not something revolutionary.

Well that's disappointing, I really like both these that I'm testing and I want to know what hey are so I can buy them!