RECAP: CALLAWAY GOLF BALL LIVE Q&A: Tuesday, July 24th. 2 PM ET/11 AM PT. Ask questions now!

[HISPL]

Thank for the opportunity to ask some questions.

 

I love the Chrome Soft and it is by far my favourite ball on the market, it I guess the next question is how do you move forward from here?

 

Because it is such an exceptional ball how do you improve on that?

 

I can really only think that greater spin separation between driver and wedge would be the only real answer?

 

Is it possible to get a ball spinning less off the driver and more on the wedges?

 

What other products do you benchmark against?

 

Thanks for your contribution to Golf WRX!

 

Adam

[Donzelly2]

Do you plan on having special or limited truvis colors? If so any hints on upcoming colorways?

[kiw1982]

Have you ever considered gps traceable ball?

[Optimus-Par]

Any plans for a higher compression chrome soft ball?

[Miles of Lief]

Are the alignment arrows on the Chromesoft balls strategically placed so the balls are in perfect balance?

[Cbur]

I currently game the ProV1 and have not yet tried the Chromesoft but am intrigued, what does Chromesoft offer that is different from other premium balls on the market that could compliment my game?

[getair23]

Have you considered not changing a ball from year to year?

[larciel]

After the success of CS, is callaway preparing any alternative? ala AVX? Or are you sticking with what has worked wonderfully so far?

[NavyLD12]

Which parts of performance are you looking to improve most when designing a new ball. Is it distance or wedge performance?

[PlayingThrough]

How long does it take for a concept to go to production on average? For example, how long was the idea of implementing graphene discussed before it was actually developed. It always amazes me how much breakthrough technology that may never have been thought of before has actually been developed behind the scenes for years.

[HTownCPA]

With the growth in Players Distance Irons, would you guys recommend the "spinnier" ball for individuals playing those irons? Or what would be your recommendation for ball fitting?

[Hernasco]

There are now so many different models of golf balls on the market and consumers get confused keeping up. Do players really need so many different golf balls to choose from?

[tsecor]

What other synthetic materials or raw materials do you plan on using in the future?, ala Graphene

[Marks23]

Can you talk about the tour adoption of chrome soft and chrome soft x on both the pga tour and champions tour? Can you see a recreational player being fit into the chrome soft x if the driver swingspeed is less than 100 mph? I’m a big fan of the Truvis colors. Is there any correlation between right eye dominance and which color Truvis the golfer should select?

[2012BFT]

I just won long drive in a scramble yesterday with a new CSX a buddy gave me to try! Pretty awesome round with it.

 

In testing/design, is there a distance difference between standard and the "x" model?

 

Also, based on description the "X" is said to be lower flying with Driver. Is there plans to make a higher launch ball with higher compression to match players looking for Pro-V1x characteristics, in a advanced Chrome Soft ball?

 

Thanks!!!

[kkennedy]

What specific factors within the ball determine how it performs in the wind?

[Callaway Golf Official]

 

 

How do you reconcile developing balls to compete with a comeptitor’s offering vs creating a ball that may appeal to a new/underserved market segment? What’s the next big thing to come in ball development?

 

This is a key part of what we do every single day. The real answer is that it is a little bit of both. But, the primary objective is to have the most innovative products to drive performance benefits for the golfer. We very closely monitor the marketplace and what is working for golfers and certainly have a very deep understanding of competitive products to ensure we have a ball to help golfers like you play better.

 

Jason Finley

[Callaway Golf Official]

How did you discover the potential of graphene affecting golf ball production, and when did it become a reality? FWIW, I'm really looking forward to trying the new CSX. I haven't had a chance to yet.

 

Graphene has been an active material in our research department for some time now. The team started researching it years ago and overtime began to get more and more excited regarding the potential performance possibilities with golf balls. The new CHROME SOFT and CHROME SOFT X are the first commercial products using graphene introduced to the marketplace in February of this year. The reality for us was about 1 year before that, when we became very excited about the tech.

 

Vince

[Callaway Golf Official]

Does a golfer with a moderate swing speed really benefit from a lower compression Call away ball, as opposed to a 100 compression ball? Please explain why, thank you.

 

This is Rock Ishii. Yes, I believe so primary reason is because moderate to lower swing speed golfers can't compress the golf ball enough to pull the best performance from its "engine" which is Graphene Double Core for us. In general, % of higher handicap players may increase in moderate to lower swing speed golfer and they may have little more off-center striking. Soft compression helps it! More speed and less excess spin including side spin if it's softer compression golf ball. Higher launch angle especially with mid to long iron is a great benefit when you play softer compression balls.

[Callaway Golf Official]

1. Does Callaway have any interest in a ball testing system similar to Titleist where someone signs up and gets sent a few sleeves of prototypes to try out and report back on? 2. Does Callaway have a ball in the works with around 100 compression to better compete with the ProvV1x (As I understand the chromesoftx has a compression of 90)?

 

1. We do a ton of research and testing as we move through the process of bringing balls to market. We do this as a mix of testing with Tour players, In House testers, Consumers (golfers), and a variety of machine/mechanical testing. When we test with consumers we do not have any formal process like your specific example but always a good idea to follow along to our community and places like GolfWRX for opportunities to test products.

 

2. We have lots of golf balls and prototypes that have compressions higher and lower than what CSX is today but found where we landed was the best all around product for a variety of golfers. Compression is certainly one metric to judge a ball but far from the only or most important, in fact there is not really a consistent method or tool used industry wide. Compression is just one of the metrics our designers will look at when designing a ball but the most important will always be the performance.

 

Jason Finley

[Callaway Golf Official]

What, if any, are the future plans for the Truvis line? Loving the Green ones (Dick's special), but are you guys going to make any others with a different main color than White, or Yellow, or expand the Yellow line?

 

Keep up the awesome work!!

 

Thanks for the support. We currently have about 20 qualified colors for TRUVIS and working on more everyday including several custom applications. Different colors work in different markets, for example in the Japan market we have launch blue, pink, and orange with shapes other than pentagons. Look for more colors in the US soon and perhaps different color combinations, not unlike the Stars & Stripes version we launched earlier this year.

 

Vince S.

[Callaway Golf Official]

Where do you think you will find the next "revolution" in golf ball design?

 

Well, I would say that we found it with Graphene as it has really unlocked our ability to dramatically improve the performance of the Golf Ball by using this amazing material that is relatively new to consumer products.

 

Beyond this, there are a ton of very cool ideas, some further along than others that our R&D/Innovation team is working on that I look forward to see move through our cycle and hopefully we will get to share them all with you some day.

 

Jason Finley

 

Thanks for taking our questions. * * Would you recommend the Chrome Soft versus the Chrome Soft X for a moderate swing speed player or or is it just a matter of feel off the driver or putter ? **

 

This is Rock. Yes, I would recommend Chrome Soft over Chrome Soft X for moderate swing speed golfers. Imagine how much PGA guys compressing golf ball and thing about moderate swing speed golfers. Softer compression golf balls are basically designed for mid to lower swing speed golfers for them to be able to compress then pull as much as possible energy from its core. Feel is an important part too because it helps you build up more confidence. Softer compression Chrome Soft won't give you bad feedback even when you hit it by off-center location on the face.

[Callaway Golf Official]

Any plans to release a custom truvis for college or high school teams? Or I guess even individuals who might want that sort of thing.

 

Really good question. We are constantly thinking about ways to expand or enhance the TRUVIS line and custom colors is within the consideration set. Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on your point of view!), the marketplace success of TRUVIS has us in a production constraint and we don't have much excess capacity right now. However, I would expect to see many more and different color combinations in the future, perhaps even custom configurations some day.

 

Vince S

[Callaway Golf Official]

When you look to improve/change a ball from year to year. Do you do it to benefit tour players first and consumer second, or vice versa?

 

Hi, this is Dave Bartels - when it comes to designing a new or improved golf ball it really depends on the market we're targeting. We segment golfers based on their swing profile (speed, spin, launch characteristics) and then design the best products for that given profile. PGA Tour players tend to be at the high end of the speed spectrum and often require a slightly unique design target. If we are designing a tour ball to bring to market we like to use tour players to test because they're so talented and give great feedback. But any product that we bring that would be considered a "tour ball" we try to do it for the benefit of all golfers.

 

Has Callaway considered producing a mid-range priced urethane covered ball? Some other manufacturers have shown initiative in this area. This would help us budget minded golfers who do not want to spend $45 for a dozen golf balls. Thanks.

 

Yes, we have certainly considered this segment. There have been some that have gotten into this market in more of a non-traditional way or more through promotional pricing. We have been at a lower price than we are currently at, even with the original Chrome Soft. As our costs have gone up with the addition of materials like Graphene and new construction techniques all of which are a result of the R&D efforts we are putting into the ball, the model just does not allow us to price a ball at those levels that stands up to our performance expectations. Our goal is to have the highest performance products we can in each of the price points that we compete in and we believe our current line up does that for sure.

 

Jason Finley

[Callaway Golf Official]

I played your Hex Chrome+ for years. I stocked up when it was discontinued. What current Callaway ball would you recommend considering my replacement to the Chrome+ is the Srixon Z Star XV?

 

Hi, this is Rock. HEX Chrome+ is the ball developed before I joined Callaway. But I'm understanding it is a fire compression (105) Urethan cover 4P construction golf ball having a good speed. From our current line ups, I would recommend Chrome Soft X. It says "Soft" but it is not that much soft like Chrome Soft. About 10 points softer than your old gamer with more energy inside because Graphene infused Double Core construction. Chrome Soft X is in the same compression area as other tour models. Srixon's Z Star XV maybe similar with HEX Chrome+, so feel wise similar. It depends on how much spin you have especially with your mid to short irons. But I believe Chrome Soft X's spin separation/slope is better.

Thanks

[Callaway Golf Official]

Guys, thanks for taking time to answer our questions. It seems as though Titleist filled a hole in their lineup with the AVX with a softer ball that spins less. I really enjoy the feel of the Chrome Soft and I like the feel of the AVX, but I think they possibly got it wrong by not letting it spin as much for the slower swing speed hitters. How do the Chrome Soft and CSX compare to the AVX? Thanks, Drew

 

This is Dave B again - thanks for playing Chrome Soft and your feedback. To your point, our testing has shown AVX to have a very low spin profile and less spin around the green than Chrome Soft or CSX. We feel our graphene-infused Dual SoftFast core design allows us to put a much softer urethane cover on the outside of the ball to generate more spin on scoring shots, while still maintaining low spin (= long distance) off the tee and with full clubs. The complexity of our construction is more challenging to manufacture, but we feel like the added performance is worth it!

[Callaway Golf Official]

Any plans to release a custom truvis for college or high school teams? Or I guess even individuals who might want that sort of thing.

 

My question is along the same lines.....Callaway has great "Custom" options with clubs, wedges including colors, stamps etc... How long before we have the option of custom Truvis colors/logos? Even MLB, NFL teams......

 

I love Chrome Soft in the Truvis pattern, I'd love to have more options.

 

Appreciate your support of TRUVIS. We have invested quite a bit of time and energy and capital in getting TRUVIS to the level it is now. Without giving up too much about our future business plans, I don't think it will be too long before you see different color combinations (we have already done this in most markets) as well as the custom offerings. It's a bit challenging right now because of the current marketplace demand for TRUVIS but customs and and possible "udesign" options could very well happen. There are lots of really cool ideas in the development hopper for sure.

 

Vince S.

[Callaway Golf Official]

How has the "roll back the ball" argument affected R&D for next gen balls? Do you believe the argument that the ball is to blame for the guys on tour overpowering some courses?

 

To this point the "roll back the ball" conversations, have been just that....conversations. To date, the rule has not changed and we have not been told if it will change or what it will change to if it does. So, it has not impacted our work on future products to this point as we are continuing to develop products that fit into the rules as they are today and trying to make the best products we can within what the rules are. If the rules do change, we will continue to try and make the best products we can within the rules set forth by the governing bodies. What has impacted our team is work we are also having to do to better understand what the changes could be and how that would impact our products but at this point we are focused on maximizing our products within the rules as they are today.

 

As far as my feelings on the ball being blamed for players overpowering courses, I think it is a little short sided. There are many factors that have contributed to players hitting it further but it is certainly more than just the ball. And the next golfer I hear tell me that they hit it too far will be the first!

 

Jason Finley

 

Is the purpose of truvis to make the ball appear larger at address?

 

This is Dave B again - thanks for your question on TruVis. You picked up on one of the key "technical" benefits of TruVis - it actually makes the ball appear larger at address and (hopefully) inspires more confidence and better contact. The other "technical" advantage is that it gives your eyes something to focus on while addressing a putt, and resists their desire to stray and stay unfocused on the white ball. Other than the technical component of TruVis, sometimes it's just fun to play and helps you relax on the first tee!

[Callaway Golf Official]

Are the alignment arrows on the Chromesoft balls strategically placed so the balls are in perfect balance?

 

Hi, this is Rock. The answer is NO. Good golf balls shouldn't have "balance point". Some people talk about it or even measure balancing point. But only golf balls having off-centered inner layers (outer core, mantle layers....etc.) shows "balance point", which basically means CG if off from the inter of golf ball. Well manufactured golf balls shouldn't stop at the same point after you rotated or spun in salt water. Arrows is more for you to set up the line better. Wish we can do longer or more obvious alignment support stamps but there are some manufacturing challenges.

[tocino]

I've had a chance to use the chrome soft golf balls a few times on course and love them. This is more of a cosmetic issue for me but any chance you might make a basketball version rather than soccer?