balata golf ball

[chip75]

On 7/14/2023 at 4:35 AM, Bigarch said:

Got a tingle on my neck hairs when I saw those EV Extra Spin.  One of my all time fav solid balls along with the MC Spin from Precept. 

I've got a three pack which I combo with my Bobby Grace and Zebra putters, they feel pretty soft compared to a ProV1.

 

Was a fan of the Bridgestone Dynawing double cover ball. The wound surlyn balls were durable, but they had a funky feel as they clicked off putter faces. The balatas felt fantastic.

[bellview17v2]

Hitting a balata ball with a Ping Eye 2 SW. Pure and 50000 rpms of spin....nothing like it

[greenlight]

I love the shapes of the balata balls in my old shag bag - some very odd "spheres".

 

[Maine Golfer]

I have a Ping Pal that feels good with some of the Balata's ive gathered. I hit a 5 iron sunset last week really hard that felt funny and good with a balatas. 

[LeftyMac]

Most of the balatas out there are now are at least 25 years old.  If stored correctly they may be ok, but most of the ones I have tried loose their shape after a couple of hits.  I'm guessing the elastic windings don't age well.

[elwhippy]

I remember the Dynawing. Great ball. Another brilliant non balata , urethane ball was the Kasco Tour RS366. 

[greenlight]

I have one sleeve of Titleist Tour Balata 100s tat I got in high school for a match. Haven't touched them since. They look round, very yellow, but I bet if I rolled a putt with it, it would go out of round. Still kind of cool. 

[NRJyzr]

8 hours ago, LeftyMac said:

I'm guessing the elastic windings don't age well.

 

Dean Snell addressed this in one of his videos.  I think he said the shelf life of a wound ball was 3 to 5 years.

 

[Bigarch]

Such a shame that today's youngsters will never know the pleasure of cutting off a balata cover and unwinding the rubber bands down to the core.

[bcstones]

44 minutes ago, Bigarch said:

Such a shame that today's youngsters will never know the pleasure of cutting off a balata cover and unwinding the rubber bands down to the core.

that does bring back some memories 🤣

[greenlight]

On 7/29/2023 at 8:22 PM, Bigarch said:

Such a shame that today's youngsters will never know the pleasure of cutting off a balata cover and unwinding the rubber bands down to the core.

Or the feeling of dread after you catch one a little skinny and haven’t yet seen the ball or its condition as you walk up to it. 

[Bigarch]

2 hours ago, greenlight said:

Or the feeling of dread after you catch one a little skinny and haven’t yet seen the ball or its condition as you walk up to it. 

You gotta tip toe up there and sneak up on it with your teeth clenched...LOL

[farmer]

Also a huge fan of the EV Extra Spin.  My go-to for years.  As to balata, I was at a tournament and saw Andy Bean BITE the cover off a ball.

[elwhippy]

Nick Price won majors with the EV Spin. Great ball. 

[Davewn]

The EV Extra Spin was my go to ball back in the day- it was long, stopped and had good durability to boot.  Very reasonably priced for the performance it offered.

[DoughBack18]

On 7/29/2023 at 8:22 PM, Bigarch said:

Such a shame that today's youngsters will never know the pleasure of cutting off a balata cover and unwinding the rubber bands down to the core.

You gotta be careful doing that! I remember being 10 or 12 years old and cutting open an old wound ball and there were little rubber band shreds all over the basement.

[Robert L.]

I have an old Titleist Tour Balata 100 that I've had for many years now, which I keep for old time's sake. It's got scuff marks on it, and a single lump that I've succeeded in rolling down some on the kitchen table. I've tried lightly tapping it down with a small hammer, with mixed success. It's never going to be hit again, it's more like a museum piece to me. BTW that little black dot on the ball is where the lump was.

[Robert L.]

Since this is a balata ball thread I figure I'll ask this question. I was looking at some balata balls on eBay, and I noticed that there were some Spaulding Z-Balata balls for sale. Question - is there a difference between regular balata and Z-Balata? Or is it just marketing?

[Pastit]

8 minutes ago, Robert L. said:

Since this is a balata ball thread I figure I'll ask this question. I was looking at some balata balls on eBay, and I noticed that there were some Spaulding Z-Balata balls for sale. Question - is there a difference between regular balata and Z-Balata? Or is it just marketing?

I well-remember finding them. I recall they were a cheap alternative but I’ll try and check and get back to you. You’re going back c 30 years. 

[Robert L.]

9 hours ago, Pastit said:

I well-remember finding them. I recall they were a cheap alternative but I’ll try and check and get back to you. You’re going back c 30 years. 

Thanks. I wouldn't mind buying some balata balls so I can try them with my classic set sometime in the future.

[MrParr1Noid]

 

The first ball I'd ever hit 300 yards.  fwiw.  Hogan Apex II persimmon driver.

Edited September 4, 2023 by MrParr1Noid

[Pastit]

5 hours ago, Robert L. said:

Thanks. I wouldn't mind buying some balata balls so I can try them with my classic set sometime in the future.

If I’ve any lying about you are welcome to them. 
 

I see this subject is well-covered in earlier posts you could search for yourself. These confirm my opinion above: snog, marry, avoid. Ie. There is no affinity between Z-ballata and true balata. 

Edited September 4, 2023 by Pastit

[elwhippy]

The problem with wanting to hit balata balls is that they won't perform like they were new. The windings will have withered and snapped and the ball will feel softer than a marshmallow. 

[Orchardist]

The wound balata ball, hell, Any wound ball would sure humble a lot of the current golf population.

Balata vs. surlyn, the cover choice sure separated our skill set when I was young.

[Orchardist]

Nothing plays like a wound balata.  This one has a liquid center.  It says so on what's left of the cover.

 

[LeftyMac]

On 9/4/2023 at 3:08 AM, Robert L. said:

Since this is a balata ball thread I figure I'll ask this question. I was looking at some balata balls on eBay, and I noticed that there were some Spaulding Z-Balata balls for sale. Question - is there a difference between regular balata and Z-Balata? Or is it just marketing?

 

The Spalding Z-balata wasn't a true balata ball.  It was a solid ball with a soft synthetic cover they called z-balata.  I used them back in the day and they did spin, not as much as a Tour Edition, but an Eye 2 wedge and a Tour Edition did silly stuff.  The grooves used to rip little streamers off the cover and you'd could get stupid amounts of spin.

[elwhippy]

Tour Editions were insane. Short off the tee but amazing control around the greens. 

[BIG STU]

On 7/14/2023 at 9:44 AM, RobotDoctor said:

Surlyn is a thermoplastic.  Very hard cover.  I would never hit a persimmon wood with one of those as they will leave dimple marks on a strike that is on the wood itself.

They will also destroy a pressed fiber face. I learned that the hard way with one of the first Surlyn balls that came out the Golden Ram. I always liked the pressed fiber faces. I did not hit a ball as far with them but had more control. I had a master club builder named Harold Dale in Charlotte do all my club work then except grips. I destroyed the face on one of my beloved Power Bilt drivers. I took it back to him and he said uggh you have been hitting those new fangled balls with that. For that reason I do not hit my prized Izette woods anymore. Most of the loose balls in my Balata stash have went bad and you can not tell how you hit the driver with them. So for now I just look at them and relish in the memories.

[BIG STU]

On 7/19/2023 at 7:39 PM, chip75 said:

I've got a three pack which I combo with my Bobby Grace and Zebra putters, they feel pretty soft compared to a ProV1.

 

Was a fan of the Bridgestone Dynawing double cover ball. The wound surlyn balls were durable, but they had a funky feel as they clicked off putter faces. The balatas felt fantastic.

As far as modern balls the Bridgestone U-Tri-Tour spun the best. A close 2nd was the first generation Bridgestone Treo Soft

[BIG STU]

On 7/29/2023 at 3:18 AM, LeftyMac said:

Most of the balatas out there are now are at least 25 years old.  If stored correctly they may be ok, but most of the ones I have tried loose their shape after a couple of hits.  I'm guessing the elastic windings don't age well.

You would be correct there. I have a dozen new in the box and sleeve PGA brand balata balls. A fellow WRXer sent them to me several years ago. Now I had them stored in the bottom of the closet in the house in a Tupperware container. A couple of weeks ago when I started playing Classic Golf on a little Par 3 up the road I pulled a sleeve out. First hole about 65 yards I hit one with my FC 11 iron man it felt good and spun and did a "zipper" Man I was in heaven. About the 3rd hole I was hitting into the wind about 85 yards up the hill. I did a 5 iron punch for kicks and giggles. The ball did a duck dive. I figured it was me and a combo of the wind and balata. I attempted a bump and run and the ball hit the green and went sideways. I knew then it was out of round. Over the course of a week I have destroyed 4 total of those balls

I switched to the Maxfli Elite 90s that @NRJyzr graciously sent me a few years back. So far they play and hit well. I had previously used 3 of them in the Shootouts for wedge shots because some of our greens will not hold. I had "haired" one up with my legal Cally PM 56*. The 2 out of that sleeve I have been rotating out on the Par 3 are still holding up well. I plan on using them today in my after church round

Funny someone mentioned the liquid core on the Balata balls. Those PGA brand balls have all kinds of warnings printed on the inside flap of the sleeves and inside the box about not cutting them open and the core being liquid under extreme pressure.