Srixon XV v. Callaway Hex Black

[quote name='SullyOSU' timestamp='1336837170' post='4900916']
I bought a few sleeves of various "tour" balls and have been using them on the chipping and putting green. Haven't gotten the chance to play them.

So far I've tinkered with the Hex Black, ProV1, ProV1x, Zstar and Zstar XV.
I'm steering away from the Titleist for now because of durability and want to try something different.

I did not notice too much difference in the short game between the Zstar and XV. Zstar a little softer off the putter, but barely noticeable.
The Hex Black was addictive in the chipping game. One hop, stop on pitches. No bounce, 1 foot back up on flops. Chunk and runs were smooth.

Downside, the Hex Black sounds horrible off the putter (Seemore) and doesn't feel quite as good.

[b]My question, how is the long game between the XV and Hex Black?[/b]
I could live with the putter if the long game was as good as better than the XV. If the XV performs better with the driver and irons, I would probably sacrifice the bite around the greens.

Thanks
[/quote]

not many balls play better in the long game than the XV in my opinion but the Black comes close. both balls play well in the wind as well. i'd make the decision around the short game - you can get a bit more creative with shots around the green with the Black (check-backs) than the XV (hop and stop)... or at least that's how they play for me. the other deciding factor is that the Black is a little more flexible to different types of driver speeds where the XV has a little more demand favoring the higher impact (SS) drivers.

but as everything on this board - feedback is always subjective.

[quote name='skaarsgard' timestamp='1336844714' post='4901238']
[quote name='SullyOSU' timestamp='1336837170' post='4900916']
I bought a few sleeves of various "tour" balls and have been using them on the chipping and putting green. Haven't gotten the chance to play them.

So far I've tinkered with the Hex Black, ProV1, ProV1x, Zstar and Zstar XV.
I'm steering away from the Titleist for now because of durability and want to try something different.

I did not notice too much difference in the short game between the Zstar and XV. Zstar a little softer off the putter, but barely noticeable.
The Hex Black was addictive in the chipping game. One hop, stop on pitches. No bounce, 1 foot back up on flops. Chunk and runs were smooth.

Downside, the Hex Black sounds horrible off the putter (Seemore) and doesn't feel quite as good.

[b]My question, how is the long game between the XV and Hex Black?[/b]
I could live with the putter if the long game was as good as better than the XV. If the XV performs better with the driver and irons, I would probably sacrifice the bite around the greens.

Thanks
[/quote]

not many balls play better in the long game than the XV in my opinion but the Black comes close. both balls play well in the wind as well. i'd make the decision around the short game - you can get a bit more creative with shots around the green with the Black (check-backs) than the XV (hop and stop)... or at least that's how they play for me. the other deciding factor is that the Black is a little more flexible to different types of driver speeds where the XV has a little more demand favoring the higher impact (SS) drivers.

but as everything on this board - feedback is always subjective.
[/quote]

I swing the driver right around 110 mph with high launch. Looking at the compression data I would have guessed the Hex Black would be harder to hit for a range of swing speeds - or is that the benefit of a 5 piece?

For me the hex Black spun more on all shots. I got used to the extra spin on irons as it was nice and soft feeling but I need the lower drver spin which is where I liked the XV.

Distance with irons was pretty similar, however with the woods, the XV is both longer and straighter for me. The Hex black isn't far behind, but every little bit helps. Both performed fairly well in the wind. For me, the Hex Black only outperformed the XV with the short game spin, but to be honest, I'm happy with the amount of spin I get with the XV.

All in all, the XV remains in my bag. Another bonus for this ball is the incredible durability and the availability of Tour Yellow.

the callaway feels softer to me and definitely spins more around the greens. i am used to the srixon xv and generally go for hitting the green and stopping it a few feet later. i was not used to the ball spinning back off of the green when i used the callaway yesterday. durability wise the xv holds up better than the callaway hex black. i did not notice any obvious distance loss with the long clubs, but for my game, the xv is a better choice. my swing speed with the driver is 102-106 and i play to a 7.9 index.

I've played Callaway balls since the i(x) came out. Once I run out of my stock, the XV will be taking over. I just got a sleeve from the BST and I really like them. They perform equal to the Cally for me, but the difference is in durability. I have only played about 15 holes with them, but hit shots that would shred the Cally and the XV is still good. I was really pleased with the spin around the green. It seems easier to control the spin for me with them as well. With the Cally it always checks, even when I want to play a runner. With the XV I could play a runner or check it.