As he walked on to the 4th green during the first round of the Sanderson Farms Championship, the confusion on M.J. Daffue’s face was readily apparent. He was sure he’d hit a decent shot, yet didn’t see his ball on the putting surface. As his eyes scanned the surrounding area, a volunteer quietly said, “It’s in the hole.”
“Oh, I’m in the hole?”
As he raised his arms in celebration, he probably didn’t have time to realize that his ace was the very first for Titleist’s 2023 Pro V1 and Pro V1x line. While it officially launched a week later at the Shriners Children’s Open, Titleist had quietly allowed Daffue (Pro V1x), Garrick Higgo (Pro V1), and Gary Woodland (Pro V1x), who had been testing prototypes for the last month, to put the new balls in play. A month later, Seamus Power gave the 2023 Pro V1x its first tournament win at the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
More importantly to us though, the golfing world at large can begin writing their 2023 Pro V1 story. Titleist believes the newest generation of their flagship line will fit a wider swath of players while providing more distance, more consistent flight, and the same greenside control consumers have come to expect.
Redesigned High Gradient Core
Central (literally and figuratively) to the Titleist 2023 Pro V1 line is their reimagined high gradient core. In the simplest terms, a high gradient core has progressive firmness from the center outwards. Firmest on its outer areas, the core gradually softens on the inside. According to Titleist, the result of this design is faster ball speed and lower spin with long clubs, which they believe will bring more distance and control off the tee.
It should thrill many equipment fanatics to know that Titleist took inspiration from the high gradient cores of their two most popular custom options, Pro V1 Left Dot and Pro V1x Left Dash, when designing their new 2023 line. While many readers may not know much about those two balls, they are slight variations on the 2021 core line, have a strong underground following, and are used by several professionals.
Considering this, and the fact Titleist believes they can fit even more players with their new line, we asked if they expected any of their Tour staff to migrate from these custom options to either the 2023 ProV 1 or Pro V1x.
“Several players have already made the transition and we anticipate some others to follow as the season progresses and they have the opportunity to test and practice with the new models,” said Jeremy Stone. “Among those already making the switch are Keith Mitchell, Ben Taylor and SH Kim (Left Dot to new Pro V1); Vince Whaley (Left Dot to new Pro V1x); Richy Werenski (Left Dash to new Pro V1); and Charley Hoffman (Left Dash to new Pro V1x).”
In addition to the redesigned high gradient core, ProV1x’s inner core was increased in size from 1” to 1.13”. Titleist tells us this change, “works in concert with the high gradient core, as the larger and softer center helps to drive down long game spin and increase stability through the air.”
Titleist says that consumers should expect the same basic attributes from Pro V1 and Pro V1x.
- Pro V1, a three-piece ball, delivers a softer feel and lower, penetrating ball flight with excellent greenside spin.
- Pro V1x, a four-piece ball, will feel firmer and offer higher flight and spin with irons and wedges, while still providing low spin on longer shots.
Titleist says they’ve improved the feel of both balls in 2023, but believes that their customers will find the feel of both balls familiar and pleasing.
Surrounding the newly designed cores of the 2023 Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x is a “high-flex casing layer” that works with the core to reduce driver spin, and at the same time interacts with the urethane cover to produce short game spin. The picture above shows the casing as a clear layer directly underneath the cover.
Speaking of the cast thermoset urethane cover, many consumers believe there isn’t another one quite like it on the market. It’s the one part of the ball that everyone can see and feel, and Titleist is quite proud of its formulation and the way its manufactured.
Titleist states, “Two separate components are mixed, and the liquid urethane is cast into Titleist-manufactured cavities which form the appropriate dimple pattern into the cover. The precise timing of the curing process and temperature are integral to the consistency of the urethane and the performance the golfer experiences on the course.”
The company believes their manufacturing process is critical to the consistency and quality of their product and takes immense pride in the fact that its precision tooling is machined and inspected in-house by Titleist employees.
Aerodynamics
Spherically-tiled Tetrahedral Dimple Designs. How’s that for a mouthful?
That’s the technical language Titleist uses for the 388 dimples on Pro V1 and the 348 on Pro V1x. They were designed to give both golf balls “optimized aerodynamics to fly consistent and far”. It is worth mentioning again that Pro V1x is the slightly higher-flying ball of the two, and a big reason for that is its dimple design.
We asked Titlist whether they made changes to the 2023 dimple pattern, and they confirmed they had not. To clarify further, Stone explained:
“Both were first utilized in the previous generation Pro V1 and Pro V1x and carried over for the new 2023 models. As is often the case, one innovation leads to another, and the updated aerodynamics and softer cast urethane cover first introduced in 2021 have allowed for more research into High Gradient core technologies that push the new golf balls forward in both distance and consistency.”
Details
- Available in white or high optic yellow
- White available in numbers 1-4, 5-8, and all the same play numbers 00 or 1-99.
- High optic yellow available in numbers 1-4.
- Price: $54.99/dozen
