Golf balls

[Tannerbug33]

My son is a fan if Chrome soft. His distance is the same as everyone else's and he loves the way they check on the greens.

But after hearing all this talk we may try some other balls if I can get him to

[yellowlover519]

A 9 year old should play with what they find or dig out of their parents shag bag. You are goofy if you think they need a pro v

 

You should mosie on over to the Jr Equip forum.

 

They’re getting fitted for M5s, too!

 

Other than compression issues, I have no idea why anyone cares if a child is playing a pro v1, newest driver or other equipment. Re ball - they aren’t strong enough to lose them or cut them up with short irons, so they are probably getting more use out of the ball than an adult golfer. Re driver and other equipment - it’s their money so who cares. While I highly doubt performance changes much between OEMs these days, what does it matter if a junior is playing pxg, Miura, major OEMs or USKG.

 

Now if you have a problem with equipment matching the junior bc of weight issues or some other argument that affects their swing, I get it. But if a kid can’t compress a pro v1x bc of compression rating but likes the feel around the greens and generates more spin to hold greens and the parent is willing to spend the extra $20 a box, who cares? I don’t play either ball, but I know my son had longer measured tee shots with the pro v1x than the project (a) even though the latter matches his compression. We play neither and have moved to a different ball, but I just don’t get the hate...

[tiger1873]

I am curious to what everyone’s thought on why titliest says swing speed doesn’t matter for their balls. I’ve seen them advertise it a lot. I can find a link somewhere but I am sure others have heard it too.

 

I know other ball manufacturers all say swing speed matters. So someone is lying. I would say titliest but they do have a ton of market share and everyone else fights for scraps.

[heavy_hitter]

I am curious to what everyones thought on why titliest says swing speed doesnt matter for their balls. Ive seen them advertise it a lot. I can find a link somewhere but I am sure others have heard it too.

 

I know other ball manufacturers all say swing speed matters. So someone is lying. I would say titliest but they do have a ton of market share and everyone else fights for scraps.

 

Money.... Market Share

[BeerPerHole]

I'd certainly let the kiddo try the Srixon Q Star Tour.

[leezer99]

[tiger1873]

 

Here is what Titleist says

 

 

I will add this disclaimer Personally I don’t like Wilson balls I just think there not the best company for manufacturing tolerances. I like Callaway Bridgestone and titeist personally

[darter79]

Wilson known for low compression balls says it matters, Titleist says it doesn’t it doesn’t matter.

 

Has anyone done an independent testing with trackman??? The few times I’ve let her hit higher compression balls I’ve seen no distance difference abs of course increased spin on shorter shots with higher compression balls.

 

Interesting videos but they seem more like marketing videos than facts

 

I should add my daughter currently plays a marshmallow ball.

[yellowlover519]

I would say ball compression and dimple pattern do matter. They say for pros it’s the hardest equipment change and pros are all over the place on the type of ball they choose with the only commonality being a urethane cover for spin into greens. On Fehrety, Johnny Miller thought you could solve the distance debate by making the dimples uniform and limiting depth of dimples a la the old balls so that side spin separated the great ball strikes from the elite.

 

But I don’t believe lower compression alone means longer distances. Distance is a function of launch and spin rate. This varies considerably depending on swing and swing speed. I think some people may feel like a lower compression provides more distance because they can feel the ball being mushed, when it may make no difference at all. I thought the Titleist video was quite convincing.

[BertGA]

I would say ball compression and dimple pattern do matter. They say for pros it's the hardest equipment change and pros are all over the place on the type of ball they choose with the only commonality being a urethane cover for spin into greens. On Fehrety, Johnny Miller thought you could solve the distance debate by making the dimples uniform and limiting depth of dimples a la the old balls so that side spin separated the great ball strikes from the elite.

 

But I don't believe lower compression alone means longer distances. Distance is a function of launch and spin rate. This varies considerably depending on swing and swing speed. I think some people may feel like a lower compression provides more distance because they can feel the ball being mushed, when it may make no difference at all. I thought the Titleist video was quite convincing.

 

A couple of points to this...

 

That it matters to the pros doesn't mean it will matter to the masses, unless you are a highly skilled amateur. They are 3 levels beyond the average golfer. Their consistency and power and ability to make that little white ball dance is remarkable.

 

I can't say that the pro, unless they are doing a blinded test, is truly making an objective decision on the ball they use, any more than you or I or my daughter. They try balls and they know exactly what ball they are using. If they have an emotional feeling about a ball, it could possibly influence their decision. Unless they are blinded to the ball they use during testing, they are susceptible to that bias. Maybe not as much as your or me, but it can still influence.

[darter79]

I would say ball compression and dimple pattern do matter. They say for pros it's the hardest equipment change and pros are all over the place on the type of ball they choose with the only commonality being a urethane cover for spin into greens. On Fehrety, Johnny Miller thought you could solve the distance debate by making the dimples uniform and limiting depth of dimples a la the old balls so that side spin separated the great ball strikes from the elite.

 

But I don't believe lower compression alone means longer distances. Distance is a function of launch and spin rate. This varies considerably depending on swing and swing speed. I think some people may feel like a lower compression provides more distance because they can feel the ball being mushed, when it may make no difference at all. I thought the Titleist video was quite convincing.

 

A couple of points to this...

 

That it matters to the pros doesn't mean it will matter to the masses, unless you are a highly skilled amateur. They are 3 levels beyond the average golfer. Their consistency and power and ability to make that little white ball dance is remarkable.

 

I can't say that the pro, unless they are doing a blinded test, is truly making an objective decision on the ball they use, any more than you or I or my daughter. They try balls and they know exactly what ball they are using. If they have an emotional feeling about a ball, it could possibly influence their decision. Unless they are blinded to the ball they use during testing, they are susceptible to that bias. Maybe not as much as your or me, but it can still influence.

 

if i play this ball i get $1M if i play that ball i get $750K yeah pretty easy decision for them to make. I would have a bias as well

[tiger1873]

I tried balls both with my kids and myself. I honestly have never found that much difference off the tee. I know though a ball too soft for sure causes a problem. Anytime I personally hit one of my wife's lady pink balls there is no telling where it goes. So I tend to think a ball too soft is more of an issue then anything else. Most balls thankfully are not this way.

 

I hate paying the price of Prov1's there too expensive but I always had the best days on the course with them. Same thing with my kids when ever I try them they seem to putt better. In fact every multilayer ball that is $4 seem to work better for my kids and wife as well around the greens. I tried them all and lately come to the conclusion that I need to buy more used premium balls to save money and just buy the new ones for tournaments. Honestly i don't think you can wrong with a Chomesoft, RX or Prov1 ball. All of them are way to expensive but they all seem to work about the same.

[darter79]

I tried balls both with my kids and myself. I honestly have never found that much difference off the tee. I know though a ball too soft for sure causes a problem. Anytime I personally hit one of my wife's lady pink balls there is no telling where it goes. So I tend to think a ball too soft is more of an issue then anything else. Most balls thankfully are not this way.

 

I hate paying the price of Prov1's there too expensive but I always had the best days on the course with them. Same thing with my kids when ever I try them they seem to putt better. In fact every multilayer ball that is $4 seem to work better for my kids and wife as well around the greens. I tried them all and lately come to the conclusion that I need to buy more used premium balls to save money and just buy the new ones for tournaments. Honestly i don't think you can wrong with a Chomesoft, RX or Prov1 ball. All of them are way to expensive but they all seem to work about the same.

 

buying used balls for practice is ok however just note they don't preform the same way. Any urethane ball submerged in water won't perform the same after a few hours.

[yellowlover519]

I would say ball compression and dimple pattern do matter. They say for pros it's the hardest equipment change and pros are all over the place on the type of ball they choose with the only commonality being a urethane cover for spin into greens. On Fehrety, Johnny Miller thought you could solve the distance debate by making the dimples uniform and limiting depth of dimples a la the old balls so that side spin separated the great ball strikes from the elite.

 

But I don't believe lower compression alone means longer distances. Distance is a function of launch and spin rate. This varies considerably depending on swing and swing speed. I think some people may feel like a lower compression provides more distance because they can feel the ball being mushed, when it may make no difference at all. I thought the Titleist video was quite convincing.

 

A couple of points to this...

 

That it matters to the pros doesn't mean it will matter to the masses, unless you are a highly skilled amateur. They are 3 levels beyond the average golfer. Their consistency and power and ability to make that little white ball dance is remarkable.

 

I can't say that the pro, unless they are doing a blinded test, is truly making an objective decision on the ball they use, any more than you or I or my daughter. They try balls and they know exactly what ball they are using. If they have an emotional feeling about a ball, it could possibly influence their decision. Unless they are blinded to the ball they use during testing, they are susceptible to that bias. Maybe not as much as your or me, but it can still influence.

 

This is actually my point. The ball characteristics mean more to an elite ball striker than a junior. The tour level balls are developed with the pro in mind. The elite ball striker actually takes advantages of the different layers. A junior is inconsistent and lacks the swing speed to matter enough to pick a ball soley on the ability to compress.

 

Do you think Tiger went to Bridgestone for the money? TM wouldn’t have matched that contract? Rickie switched to TM for the money?

[tiger1873]

I tried balls both with my kids and myself. I honestly have never found that much difference off the tee. I know though a ball too soft for sure causes a problem. Anytime I personally hit one of my wife's lady pink balls there is no telling where it goes. So I tend to think a ball too soft is more of an issue then anything else. Most balls thankfully are not this way.

 

I hate paying the price of Prov1's there too expensive but I always had the best days on the course with them. Same thing with my kids when ever I try them they seem to putt better. In fact every multilayer ball that is $4 seem to work better for my kids and wife as well around the greens. I tried them all and lately come to the conclusion that I need to buy more used premium balls to save money and just buy the new ones for tournaments. Honestly i don't think you can wrong with a Chomesoft, RX or Prov1 ball. All of them are way to expensive but they all seem to work about the same.

 

buying used balls for practice is ok however just note they don't preform the same way. Any urethane ball submerged in water won't perform the same after a few hours.

 

I agree you should never use a Used unknown ball in a tournament. Heck you should be switching out a new ball during a round every few holes too. After the round inspect them and cull any balls with imperfections tournaments.

[its_ikon]

I happen to do switch between two balls for my son (8 years old). Using Skytrak I have noticed different spin rates which has prompted that decision. My son was playing the Srixon Q-Star, but it was spinning a lot and not going as far. His driver is a Callaway Epic with a women's shaft and no weights. We played around with other balls like ProV1, Supersoft, ChromSoft, Bridgestone, etc. The best numbers have been with Snell MTB Black and Snell Get Sum. We will play MTB Black most of the time for a bit more control, but if it's a long hole or weather comes into play we use Get Sum. Get Sum is longer off driver, but as they advertise it is not as good at holding the greens.

[golfrl]

Thanks everyone for all the feedback. Looks like a controversial subject.

 

Thought I mention here, we tried other brands both soft and super soft and Titleist prov1x hit the farthest. I’ll give couple others mentioned here a try. My primary concern was windy days.

 

Question - what would one expect in performance difference in yardage for juniors with SS 70mph for various compression types?

[mrshinsa]

Don't change balls, unless maybe winter time and that ProV1x feels like a rock.

Try to keep the number of variables to a minimum. Golf is already difficult as is.

 

If headwind, club up. If downwind, club down.

If you have an adjustable driver, maybe look into lowering the loft. That way you're not changing your short game or putting.

[wildcatden]

 

Thought I mention here, we tried other brands both soft and super soft and Titleist prov1x hit the farthest. I’ll give couple others mentioned here a try. My primary concern was windy days.

 

 

What protocol did you follow for testing the different balls? Were you on a Trackman to determine distance?

[golfrl]

We tried them during practice rounds.

[hangontight]

TItleist AVX anyone ? Found a new one the other day so put it in play for a practice round the other day. Side by side - it Out drove the Trusty Chrome soft on every hole he played. Spin seemed as good As well. Anyone’s junior play it?

[leezer99]

Gotta be honest, the only ball I'm excited to try is the new Mizuno line of balls.

[golfrl]

Good to know the comparison with chrome soft. Titleist AVX was on our list to try as well along with others.

[mrshinsa]

TItleist AVX anyone ? Found a new one the other day so put it in play for a practice round the other day. Side by side - it Out drove the Trusty Chrome soft on every hole he played. Spin seemed as good As well. Anyone's junior play it?

 

We didn't like it as it didn't stop as well as chromesoft on approach shots.

YMMV, as I've seen good players use them.

[yellowlover519]

Thanks everyone for all the feedback. Looks like a controversial subject.

 

Thought I mention here, we tried other brands both soft and super soft and Titleist prov1x hit the farthest. I’ll give couple others mentioned here a try. My primary concern was windy days.

 

Question - what would one expect in performance difference in yardage for juniors with SS 70mph for various compression types?

 

At that swing speed, I think the compression distance gains off the tee is going to be minimal (maybe less than 5 yards). If your child prefers the feel of a softer/mushier ball, go something like the duoU, but that’s going to be more of a feel issue rather than actual performance. However, shots into the green/around the green will be different between premium and non-premium ball with the former generating considerable more spin. If you want to maximize distance off the tee at that swing speed, try to get his launch to 15-18* with 3000-3500 spin; that will be more beneficial than a ball.

 

With someone that has a high swing speed, the ball characteristics matter much more off the tee. Tiger could gain 8-10 yards easily with a tpx-5, but it seems like he prefers the spinnier Bridgestone that he uses (this was a topic of discussion with Ryder cup partners saying his ball spins a lot more than others they’re used to).

[TripleBogeysrbetter]

Good to know the comparison with chrome soft. Titleist AVX was on our list to try as well along with others.

 

Son started playing the AVX went they were first released for pro type, He added probably 10 yards off the tee last year with it.

 

Personally, he considered switching to pro1v recently. We have tried three ball over the winter pro1v, bridgestone XS, and Srixon Z star.

 

Going with the XS.

 

The AVX is a great overall ball.

[leezer99]

[Compression Doesn't Matter](https://www.tgw.com/golf-guide/golf-ball-compression-ratings-dont-matter/)

[golfrl]

Agree with leezer99. After trying different balls over the summer, we settled down on V1. It is hard to argue with the 10yr. old when clearly the ball of his preference flies further than the rest.