6/6/6 The 3 Ball Shootout

[bens197]

Tomorrow during a friendly round with some work friends, I want to try out a little head to head comparison of one ball I’ve grown to adore in comparison to two other highly acclaimed balls.

This was made possible from the generosity of my friend @chisag and It should be fun. 
 

It will be between these three…

Srixon Z Star Diamond (Holes 1-6)

Kirkland Performance + (Holes 6-12)
Maxfli Tour X (Holes 13-18)

The “diamond” has become my favorite and preferred ball after two seasons of playing the XV. Sam and I were discussing golf balls recently.  He’s suggested I try the Maxfli for a variety of reasons.  It’s no secret this ball has scored incredibly well for value and performance  

Each ball will get 6 holes and will be graded on the following (very non-scientific, subjective) criteria:

Length, Trajectory, Feel, Short game spin and durability. The scoring…well, I haven’t yet figured that out however I’ll do my best. 

I’ll do my best to keep this fun and hopefully offers some of you, additional consideration for some top performing golf balls. 

[cksurfdude]

Have you also thought about .. time on the course permitting .. hitting the same shot two or three times and changing golf balls?

[bens197]

2 hours ago, cksurfdude said:

Have you also thought about .. time on the course permitting .. hitting the same shot two or three times and changing golf balls?

I have…time will be the issue. 
 

We’re approaching end of season and two of the popular courses for play are sponges. This is my best opportunity in this manner. Does not mean I won’t be able to try other means. 

[Berg Ryman]

2 hours ago, bens197 said:

I have…time will be the issue. 
 

We’re approaching end of season and two of the popular courses for play are sponges. This is my best opportunity in this manner. Does not mean I won’t be able to try other means. 

Well the rain hasn't helped matters on the sponginess, I can't wait to see what happens... And what I might see in person soon *hint hint*

[bens197]

Checking in. First 6 complete with the Diamond. 
 

Exactly what I expected and started as a good baseline for today’s yardages. Currently +2. 
 

Kirkland is up. 406 par 4. 100 yards in and 50* to 12’. Good spin off the wedges not aggressive, more controlled. Missed the put high for a four. 
 

Interesting is how I’d describe the Kirkland. 

[bens197]

Onto the anticipated star for me, the Maxfli. 
 

Kirkland was a very suitable ball, I’ll get into it later. 
 

 

Edited September 11 by bens197

[bens197]

All wrapped up and some thoughts for consideration.  All said, they are all very similar performing and I would be pleased to play all three.

Distance, trajectory and spin, they were all within a very similar margin.

The Srixon Z Star Diamond was easily the best performer off short wedges inside 30 yards.  I had plenty of opportunity due to the course’s smaller green complex’s and throughout the entire round, I hit 58* wedges with each of the three.  Srixon, possibly due to my familiarity with it, performed better and it really was not close.

I did not play any holes today believing my golf ball held me back.  I also believe none of the three really gave me a head and shoulders advantage over another outside of the green side wedge shots. 

Durability is where one stood out amongst the crowd.  The Z-Star Diamond was the least durable and mostly attributed to wedge shots.  This photo below shows the wear from 6 holes (did not lose a ball today…just awesome) where the Kirkland and Maxfli look near-new.  I really love the Srixon however how they hold up is a big deal…it really was not close in comparison to how well the others performed regarding durability.

Feel wise, purely subjective of course, the Kirkland was the least pleasant feeling ball.  Not clicky or too firm, just not an immediate love connection.  The Kirkland is a good golf ball.  I was pleasantly surprised but did not necessarily think I would need to keep playing it over an alternative.

Maxfli was great.  After the round I would be confident in saying the Maxfli should contend with the Diamond moving forward.  The hype is real @chisag you were correct. And since golf is expensive, it would make little sense to not pursue this venture further.  It was more durable, performed equally well and costs less than the Srixon.

Next season I have some options!

 

 

[PrayingForPar]

On 9/11/2024 at 12:22 PM, bens197 said:

Feel wise, purely subjective of course, the Kirkland was the least pleasant feeling ball.  Not clicky or too firm, just not an immediate love connection.  The Kirkland is a good golf ball.  I was pleasantly surprised but did not necessarily think I would need to keep playing it over an alternative.

So glad to hear you say this! Was given a box of the Kirkland last year and just couldn't get used to the feel and I thought it was just me because of how many people you see playing them.

When you say that the Diamond was the best within 30 yards, do you mean that from a spin perspective or feel?

[bens197]

25 minutes ago, PrayingForPar said:

So glad to hear you say this! Was given a box of the Kirkland last year and just couldn't get used to the feel and I thought it was just me because of how many people you see playing them.

When you say that the Diamond was the best within 30 yards, do you mean that from a spin perspective or feel?

So that Kirkland is a good ball and I’d still place it in this tier.  It wasn’t for me but could be good for someone else.

I really like the feel of the Diamond and it’s difficult to quantify subjective like feel. 
 

This was based on control from inside that 30 yards. It’s a little slighted as I’m more familiar with this ball however even with that experience it did outperform the others. 
 

 

[Josh Parker]

Love the review man!  I really like the Maxfli Tour X. 

Kirkies typically fly about 10yds shorter off the tee for me.  Haven't played the Srixons but have so many other ones I'm trying right now. 

[bens197]

1 minute ago, Josh Parker said:

Love the review man!  I really like the Maxfli Tour X. 

Kirkies typically fly about 10yds shorter off the tee for me.  Haven't played the Srixons but have so many other ones I'm trying right now. 

I can see why so many really appreciate the Maxfli. It’s a real performer and there was no faking it. As soon as it went in play it made sense why it’s tested so well. 
 

Thanks for the kind words.