Cold Weather Golf Balls

[idrive]

We play Golf year round here... but we do have some colder days.

 

When it gets colder what is the best ball?? The Pro V doesn't perform the same/as well at 45-50* as it does when it's 70-80*+.

 

Still want a ball that will spin and perform like the Pro V at 45* temps if there is such a thing....

 

Any recommendations??

[bpalmer21]

Lol....

Just be glad ur playing, and just have fun. Dont worry about what you ball is doing.

I just came back from a meeting with my coach, its 24 outside....nothing felt good.

BP

[idrive]

[quote name='bpalmer21' post='800223' date='Nov 23 2007, 01:47 PM']Lol....

Just be glad ur playing, and just have fun. Dont worry about what you ball is doing.

I just came back from a meeting with my coach, its 24 outside....nothing felt good.

BP[/quote]

Grateful to still be playing..

I should add that the Greens get a bit hard as well....

[NJGolfer72]

Wear wool underwear.

Seriously, try something softer like a Wilson 50/50, Pinnacle Exception or Volvik.

[joeb]

I agree with the Wilson 50/50. I was skeptical at first but it is super soft even in cold conditions, and the ball went forever too. I was really surprised

[telluwhat]

[quote]Still want a ball that will spin and perform like the Pro V at 45* temps if there is such a thing....[/quote]

Unfortunately, I don't think such a ball exists.

This time of year when it's colder here in the Northwest, I play a softer, lower spinning ball like the E6+, Trispeed, or 50/50 in order to get more distance. I adjust my approach shots to land shorter and release a bit more.

[turnbowm]

Another vote for the Wilson 50. With a compression rating of 50, it has a nice soft feel at impact and offers better short-game performance than most other low-compression balls. FWIW, early reports on the new Wilson Zip, a 3-piece version of the 50, indicate even better greenside "manners" than the 50. Haven't seen the Zip in the stores, however.....

[idrive]

Looks like we'll be picking up the Wilson 50/50 and looking for the new Zip ball.

thanks everybody

[Stuy Pegleg]

Heard that Noodle was good from my pro...he says that he doesn't use the prov1 during winter, either.

best thing was keeping my nike supersoft warm in my hands....

[Wookieedog]

for more info regarding your cold balls see:

[url="http://www.dealsongolfballs.com/technology/wind-temperature.html"]http://www.dealsongolfballs.com/technology...emperature.html[/url]

its a pretty informational article.

[d0n]

My old golf instructor said prov's are not good in the cold. He said NXT's play better in the winter. Not sure about that as I lose too many balls to play with prov's regularly. I've read threads where a lot of people use the Srixon AD333's in the winter though from this thread it looks like a lot of people are using the 50/50's.

[arrowcreek900]

I live in Reno. so... just get used to it and be glad you are playing in 50* on a bad weather day! haha

[LSeca]

[quote name='d0n' post='801394' date='Nov 24 2007, 11:10 PM']My old golf instructor said prov's are not good in the cold. He said NXT's play better in the winter. Not sure about that as I lose too many balls to play with prov's regularly. I've read threads where a lot of people use the Srixon AD333's in the winter though from this thread it looks like a lot of people are using the 50/50's.[/quote]

I was just going to suggest the AD333, tee'd off with it last week at around 37 degrees. The Srixon performed so well for me I am sticking with it this season and may even try it out when it warms up. However, I am comparing it to the TP Black or Red, not the Pro V.

[boxerglocker]

Another vote for the Srixon AD333.... Played it for the first time ever today, initially bought them for price, didn't want to lose a premium ball plugged in the middle of a soggy fairway....temperature on the first tee was 39*F and never got over 46*F until the round was over. The AD333 played well, soft of the Driver with decent distance and controlability when needed. Also had plenty of spin and bite with the short irons. No Pro V1 around the greens or with the flatstick, but decent enough and at $19.99 a dozen is definately easy on the wallet as well.

[Golfdog]

Interesting discussion here. I have compared the compression of the balls mentioned in this thread. The bad performing balls all tend to have higher compression ratings, and the better performing balls have lower compression ratings:

Pro V1: 92
Pro V1x: 101

Wilson 50: 73
AD333: 84
NXT: 75

Apparently, the biggest performance killer in cold temps is the increased desnity of the air. There's nothing we can do about that (except take more club), but playing softer balls appears to help.

Some other soft balls not mentioned here include:

Bridgestone e6: 73
Nike PD PowerSoft: 66
TopFlite D2 Feel: 72
TopFlite D2 Distance: 71

[Big Ben]

Srixon Soft Feel and Bridgestone e6. I'm going to play today in Cleveland, 10:30 tee time...36*. I can play in shorts when it's 50.

[alexthegrrr8]

[quote name='idrive' post='800220' date='Nov 23 2007, 05:44 PM']We play Golf year round here... but we do have some colder days.

When it gets colder what is the best ball?? The Pro V doesn't perform the same/as well at 45-50* as it does when it's 70-80*+.

Still want a ball that will spin and perform like the Pro V at 45* temps if there is such a thing....

Any recommendations??[/quote]

For colder weather conditions try the W/S 50. The 50 stood up well for me in the summer as well for some odd reason (even with a slightly higher swing speed) and I do switch between the ProV and the Tx4 and NOB.

Try it...our season is officially sunk here...darn snow.

Alex

[webmstrk9]

Possibly try a woman's golfball such as the hx pearl. I havent played with them but some of the guys I play with swear by them. You're not going to get the same performance as a prov in warm conditions.

Otherwise, compensate for the loss of distance

[gticlay]

I play a ton of golf here in the very Northwest tip of the USA. It's so muddy on even the premium courses (like Semiahmoo...) that many times a ball will plug never to be found again. So expensive balls are *really* expensive to play this time of year. Here are some winter things I do and balls that I've found to work well:

1. hand warmers - go to Costco and buy that box of them. Put a couple in your pockets and keep a couple of balls in your pocket. If you have a real winter, you'll need to do this.
2. Switch balls every hole to keep a warm one in play.
3. If you have a real winter (30-40*), then you will certainly have lift clean and place - so do it - it makes a huge difference on course playability.
4. get a plastic bristle brush. I use one from cycling that has a yellow handle and black bristles made for cleaning bike stuff. I think they are $3. That'll work well for getting the mud clumps off your club after a shot.

The balls that I have found to work well are: Srixon Softfeel, Precept Laddie and Xtreme (my current winter ball - I had 2 doz left over from last year), MC Lady though they seem to play 'harder' than the original ones did about 5 years ago.

Premium balls - they tend to fly a little bit short and spin too much. The greens, unless frozen solid like yesterday, tend to be too receptive and a premium ball with something like a full PW will suck back on me 10-25 feet if they don't plug so I sort of stay away from them.

For premium balls, STAY AWAY FROM THE BRIDGESTONE B330. That ball frigging hates cold weather and goes nowhere. Dunno why but it's painfully bad.
When I find a ProV1 - even cold they do well but if you warm them up they do really well.
Callaway HX - they are just OK. They feel kind of hard but fly fine. The cover seems to tear easy when colder. I can cut through to the second layer when it's cold with a full SW.
The new TaylorMade TP balls are actually really good in the cold.

That's all I can think of right now...

[Golfdog]

FYI, the HX Tour is one of the hardest balls out there, along with the B330, both TM balls, and the Z-UR & Z-URC.

[Parker0065]

Today the weather was in the mid to low 50's with a strong wind. I played a Nike PD Soft and I was amazed at the preformance in cold weather. I normally play either the Taylormade TP Red or Callaway Tour(iz). The most amazing thing that I did not expect was the spin I was able to produce with the Nike PD Soft . Approach shots bit very well and the ball had a soft feel on chips and pitches. The distance was excellent with this softer compression ball as well. Much better than I've experienced in the past with premium balls like ProV1x, Taylormade, or Callaway in cold weather. For me, the Nike PD Soft is the ball to play in cold weather!!!



As far as the round today, I played 9 holes and it started out ugly bogeying the first 3 holes. I ran off 4 straight pars then on the par5 8th I hit driver and a beautiful 4-Iron to 5 feet and made the putt for Eagle! I was pumped up and on #9 a 195yd par3 into the wind I gripped down a inch on my 4-iron and drove it low into the wind. The ball bit hard and settled 10 feet from the hole for birdie. I missed the putt but I felt good shooting +1 from the back tees in cold windy weather after that ugly start.

[beau-tech]

For us just being able to get out is enough. We don't care about what the score is. Some greens will be under repair for the winter and a flag will be placed in front of the green.


That being said, we just use a decent ladies ball that was on sale (ex. Top flite D2, Precept, etc). When it's 38* and sunny we just have fun and stay warm. Free drops out of snow !

[3fiddyz]

Handwarmer in the pocket and a spare ball or wrapped up in a sock in the ball section of my bag and then switch nxt's between holes works for me....

Having crazy weather here at the moment, bright sunshine and 18 degs so shouldnt need to get the hand warmers out for a few weeks!!

[storm319]

[quote name='gticlay' timestamp='1196009615' post='801707']
For premium balls, STAY AWAY FROM THE BRIDGESTONE B330. That ball frigging hates cold weather and goes nowhere. Dunno why but it's painfully bad.
[/quote]

Because it is a high compression ball with 4 layers. The best option for someone who wants urethane spin in cold temps is the B330RXS. If you don't care about spin try really low compression two-piece balls like the Noodle Easy Distance.

[idrive]

Well....

After starting this thread 4 years ago I have now played all the balls mentioned when it's cold.

IMO, Best balls are.....

Wilson 50
Srixon Ad333
B-stone e6

gave the nod to the Wilson because it seemed the most durable.

[tombong]

interesting post guys! i'll have to give the wilson 50/50 a try for this coming winter!

[ALPINE240]

at what temp does the ball actually make a difference? in other words at what temp should i swtich from my premium ball to one of the recommended balls listed above? under 50 degrees? under 60 degrees?

ive been playing in the low 60's this past week and noticed some distance loss from my premium ball...

Thanks!

[marte]

Anyone ever tried "ColdFusion Golf" golf balls. They are talked about on a Golf Digest New Stuff blog. Large core 70 compression ball designed specifically for cold weather. The inventor says "it's a lousy 2-piece ball when it's warm." Might be worth a try. I play a lot in under 60*F temps and the season is done here until spring. I might try a dozen in spring/fall
'12.

[Laws of Woo]

[quote name='ALPINE240' timestamp='1322585672' post='3866507']
at what temp does the ball actually make a difference? in other words at what temp should i swtich from my premium ball to one of the recommended balls listed above? under 50 degrees? under 60 degrees?

ive been playing in the low 60's this past week and noticed some distance loss from my premium ball...

Thanks!
[/quote]

I noticed a loss in performance when the weather dropped below 60*. Don't know if this is true for all balls or everywhere, just what I observed.

As for my cold weather ball of choice, this year it was Bridgestone Treosofts. Very soft and felt great off all my clubs. Not quite as durable as I'd like, but good none the less. Plus they were on sale, 2dz for $22.

[marte]

[quote name='Laws of Woo' timestamp='1322690508' post='3872693']
[quote name='ALPINE240' timestamp='1322585672' post='3866507']
at what temp does the ball actually make a difference? in other words at what temp should i swtich from my premium ball to one of the recommended balls listed above? under 50 degrees? under 60 degrees?

ive been playing in the low 60's this past week and noticed some distance loss from my premium ball...

Thanks!
[/quote]

I noticed a loss in performance when the weather dropped below 60*. Don't know if this is true for all balls or everywhere, just what I observed.

As for my cold weather ball of choice, this year it was Bridgestone Treosofts. Very soft and felt great off all my clubs. Not quite as durable as I'd like, but good none the less. Plus they were on sale, 2dz for $22.
[/quote]

From the Golf Digest "New Stuff" blog...."""Frank Thomas, former USGA technical director, has the answer in his book, "Dear Frank: Answers to 100 of Your Golf Equipment Questions." Generally, he wrote, for every 10 degrees drop in temperature you will lose from 2 to 2 1/2 yards.

"So, at 40 degrees, the ball will travel about 10 to 12 1/2 yards less than at 90 degrees," Thomas wrote."""