For a high handicapper is it better to choose...

[PingPoncho]

a ball that is firmer and add more distance so he is closer to the green or

a ball that spins more and is softer?

 

I tried the Pinnacle Gold and feel that ball does give me more distance than a Pro V1 or other balls that claim to spin and hold the green.

 

I guess what I am asking is for a high handicapper, to better his score, it is better for him to hit the ball farther with a firmer ball and not a softer spinner ball ?

 

 

What other longer hitting balls would you recommend for a high handicapper? Is the Bridgestone E6 improved this year?

[bellview17]

I am a 3 and play a distance ball. Always have... Pick one type and practice with it..
I chip and run and hit the ball real high on approaches...

Try each type and pick the one that matches your game and stick with it...

[Tony772]

Firm or soft is really about what you prefer in feel. You can get distance from a soft ball.

Spin is another matter. Most mid-high handicaps don't hit the ball square so a spinnier ball will accentuate a slice or hook so it goes even further into the woods. I personally went to the E6 because of the lack of spin on that ball and eventually moved to the B330 because the E6 was a little too mushy for my taste.

[Jonnybagadonuts]

Honestly the pinnacle gold should be a long drivers ball because the thing does not spin whatsoever . an 8 ball will spin better the the pinnacle gold.


Something like the top flite gamer or Wilson duo fits the bill . Long off the tee and spins moderately ( nowhere near prov1) but it's somewhat predictable .

Those 2 balls or something like the Bstone e6 have slightly softer surlyn covers that help with spinning chips and 150 yds and in shots better then pure distance balls .

[rcain1us]

Pinnacle gold is one of my winter balls and one of the longest I've hit off the tee but still feels ok on the greens (not like top flites and some of those other rocks)

[cristphoto]

If you hit the ball fairly straight you should be able to handle a ball that spins. A "distance" ball is more advertising than anything else. Titleist literature says the difference between their longest and shortest ball is only 5 yards with the driver. To me that's not enough to trade off the ability to stop a ball on a green. If you tend to hook or slice a lot then you would be better off with a lower spin ball. Remember that even the high spin balls spin rates are fairly close to the distance balls when struck with the driver. If you tend to hit straight pushes or pulls then you need to work on your technique (the same goes if you hit hooks or slices).

[Matt J]

I think you should try and match the compression to your swing speed regardless of your handicap. As stated, cover material and dimple pattern are more personal preference.

[NJpatbee]

You do not have to go the the extreme on either end of the spectrum. Many good in between balls like the Gamer, e6, NXT Tour, and Supersoft.

[bigsting]

Supersoft, e6, duo, softfeel, dt solo, these sort of softer 2 piece balls are good for high handicappers until you improve. They are fairly straight balls, and once you improve you will find out what you want in a ball. Until then stick with the cheapies! it will reduce your stress when you shank them into the woods! I know this from personal experience. Always buy them on sale though.

[Golf64]

Prefer soft balls myself. And I don't want to pay big $ for a dz. Chrome soft for spin, Super Soft for not a lot of spin.

[Tex1986]

I recommend the TF gamer. In my opinion, it all the ball that most people need. It cheap (2 doz for $30) and can be worked right and left, but doesn't punish you on miss hits quite as bad. There's a soft version as well.

As a 14 handicap, Nothing feels as good as a nutted prov1/x, however the sound of a $4 golf ball hitting the water hurts a lot more.

[RenoHack]

[quote name='bellview17' timestamp='1423342789' post='10907129']
I am a 3 and play a distance ball. Always have... Pick one type and practice with it..
I chip and run and hit the ball real high on approaches...

Try each type and pick the one that matches your game and stick with it...
[/quote]

100% agreed. Fwiw I'm not a 3 guy , I used to use cheap distance balls which would help some with forgiveness & getting me the distance I needed. A lot of bump & run approach shots were used. As I started striking the ball more consitantly and getting more aggressive with my mid iron shots down I started sampling softer balls with more spin. I seen no real improvement in overall performace spending $40+ a Dozen. Im not good enough to get all the advantages of all of spin. I generally found that distance balls that claimed to be soft were a good match for my game. Gamers / noodle long & soft / nike pd soft / precept laddie / and I now pretty much only game e6's. I feel they have a good mix of forgiveness , softness and respectable amount of spin when struck correctly.

[Mahamilto]

High handicappers really need to choose carefully, more carefully than low cappers IMO.

A low cap can play virtually any ball well, and improves scores most by playing a ball to max out their strengths. If a low cap relies on spin around a green or workability, any tour level ball will fit them well. Max your strengths!

A high capper needs a ball that minimizes their weaknesses. HUGE DIFFERENCE!

I recently bought into the strokes gained(or lost) theory. I feel when you look at it, most 15+ cap players lose more strokes from penalties and duffed short game shots (ball no help with these... Sorry), where as most low cap players lose strokes on hitting 30-130 yard shots too far away from the pin or from hitting into a troubled area from lack of working ball away from mega misses.

When I was around a 20 cap a few years ago, my game from 150 out was as good as any 12 cap, but I was losing strokes by going OB off the tee or having to punch out from the trees. When I found driver consistency, I became a 12 cap overnight. Now I see my biggest differences between myself and a single digit caps to be my putting approaches and pitches too far from the pin, forcing a 2/3 put and leaving small chance of 1 putt for par or birdie.

With that in your head you can see how a high cap should pick a ball (and other equipment) to minimize the weakness in their game.

If you are losing strokes off the tee pick a ball that's straight and forgiving. Supersoft is a great choice. If you can get off the box and still play at a 15+, you either horribly lack distance (tee it forward!), or have zero short game (get lessons).

I feel that if you get off the box in play with 230+ you should never shoot over 95 unless you just cannot chip or putt.

This applies to most, but not all high cappers.

[Smiley_Face]

IMHO, the best overall performance for price ball is the MG C4. At $20/doz. you get distance and spin. Good luck!

[BrianB]

It think there really isn't generally any tradeoff with distance. The tradeoff is more spin vs. cost.

[billownm1]

[quote name='Mahamilto' timestamp='1424121587' post='10965647']
High handicappers really need to choose carefully, more carefully than low cappers IMO.

A low cap can play virtually any ball well, and improves scores most by playing a ball to max out their strengths. If a low cap relies on spin around a green or workability, any tour level ball will fit them well. Max your strengths!

A high capper needs a ball that minimizes their weaknesses. HUGE DIFFERENCE!

I recently bought into the strokes gained(or lost) theory. I feel when you look at it, most 15+ cap players lose more strokes from penalties and duffed short game shots (ball no help with these... Sorry), where as most low cap players lose strokes on hitting 30-130 yard shots too far away from the pin or from hitting into a troubled area from lack of working ball away from mega misses.

When I was around a 20 cap a few years ago, my game from 150 out was as good as any 12 cap, but I was losing strokes by going OB off the tee or having to punch out from the trees. When I found driver consistency, I became a 12 cap overnight. Now I see my biggest differences between myself and a single digit caps to be my putting approaches and pitches too far from the pin, forcing a 2/3 put and leaving small chance of 1 putt for par or birdie.

With that in your head you can see how a high cap should pick a ball (and other equipment) to minimize the weakness in their game.

If you are losing strokes off the tee pick a ball that's straight and forgiving. Supersoft is a great choice. If you can get off the box and still play at a 15+, you either horribly lack distance (tee it forward!), or have zero short game (get lessons).

I feel that if you get off the box in play with 230+ you should never shoot over 95 unless you just cannot chip or putt.

This applies to most, but not all high cappers.
[/quote]

Thanks for posting this. You made a lot of really good points. Most of my misses are off the tee - that's how I post high crooked numbers. Makes me wonder if I should switch to a harder distance ball that spins less

[AFatMonkey]

What part of your game is your worst? Assuming, I'd guess it's probably side spin. Aka Id choose a firmer ball that reduces side spin. To be honest, using a ball that spins around the green isn't always good. You need to have very consistent ball striking to take advantage of this. If you have a ball that is always a chip and run, there is much more room for error. Rather than trying to hit a one stop bounce, or something similar.

[playa]

I'm a 5-8 range cap, and I had a recent dalliance with mid tier balls. I used the Nike PD Long and found it to be a very good ball for my game, just that bit less firm and less spinny off the driver. It was a better fit than the high end premium balls I had been using. That was until I tried the chrome soft. For me the CS is.the perfect combination of tour level spin with softer feel. I didn't want to like it and wanted further vindication that two piece balls were better for me, but after only a couple of holes I knew I was hooked. I would recommend the CS to just about anybody, but especially to guys who don't quite have the chs to really compress tour level balls.

[DaveyGolf]

The biggest issue I see is that golfers tailor their ball to their swing and not to the course conditions they face most often.

[Mahamilto]

[quote name='billownm1' timestamp='1424744985' post='11015083']
[quote name='Mahamilto' timestamp='1424121587' post='10965647']
High handicappers really need to choose carefully, more carefully than low cappers IMO.

A low cap can play virtually any ball well, and improves scores most by playing a ball to max out their strengths. If a low cap relies on spin around a green or workability, any tour level ball will fit them well. Max your strengths!

A high capper needs a ball that minimizes their weaknesses. HUGE DIFFERENCE!

I recently bought into the strokes gained(or lost) theory. I feel when you look at it, most 15+ cap players lose more strokes from penalties and duffed short game shots (ball no help with these... Sorry), where as most low cap players lose strokes on hitting 30-130 yard shots too far away from the pin or from hitting into a troubled area from lack of working ball away from mega misses.

When I was around a 20 cap a few years ago, my game from 150 out was as good as any 12 cap, but I was losing strokes by going OB off the tee or having to punch out from the trees. When I found driver consistency, I became a 12 cap overnight. Now I see my biggest differences between myself and a single digit caps to be my putting approaches and pitches too far from the pin, forcing a 2/3 put and leaving small chance of 1 putt for par or birdie.

With that in your head you can see how a high cap should pick a ball (and other equipment) to minimize the weakness in their game.

If you are losing strokes off the tee pick a ball that's straight and forgiving. Supersoft is a great choice. If you can get off the box and still play at a 15+, you either horribly lack distance (tee it forward!), or have zero short game (get lessons).

I feel that if you get off the box in play with 230+ you should never shoot over 95 unless you just cannot chip or putt.

This applies to most, but not all high cappers.
[/quote]

Thanks for posting this. You made a lot of really good points. Most of my misses are off the tee - that's how I post high crooked numbers. Makes me wonder if I should switch to a harder distance ball that spins less
[/quote]

Hard doesn't mean long and straight. As I said, the supersoft is both long and straight, and obviously is not hard by any stretch of the imagination.

It really is big to look where you lose strokes. When I don't get out much, I will post an abhorrent score sometimes, and almost always its from a day where I am spraying the driver. If you play over a 15, minimize weaknesses, if you play under a 10, maximize strengths... If you are in between, evaluate where you lose or gain strokes and pick accordingly. I think its really good advice and many of us just don't think about it that way.