Bridgestone B330 & B330-S Testing Thread
TC
Keg Thrower
17 is a par 3 i think and 18 is a risk/reward par 4 i think hanks. but if they could reach 18, that's crazy.
Puttin4Bird
Say what again mf'er!
Sounds like these guys are gamers, handicaps in play we can take em JB!
the Belbs
Everybody Clap your Hands
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2010
- Messages
- 3,116
- Reaction score
- 12
- Location
- Nova Scotia Canada
- Handicap
- TMEX 1.001
I think that the distance comes from Hockey, which lets face it pretty much Canadian played growing up. The slap shot creates the lag, which results in harder shots, so we look for the same feel in the golf swing. 
To be fair, again this was a 5 man scramble, and the first guy off the tee hits it 220-230 and straight 95% of the time, so we could let R Rip.
To be fair, again this was a 5 man scramble, and the first guy off the tee hits it 220-230 and straight 95% of the time, so we could let R Rip.
Hanks
On the Fringe
I think that the distance comes from Hockey, which lets face it pretty much Canadian played growing up. The slap shot creates the lag, which results in harder shots, so we look for the same feel in the golf swing.
To be fair, again this was a 5 man scramble, and the first guy off the tee hits it 220-230 and straight 95% of the time, so we could let R Rip.
That's it we are calling you Belbin Madison from now on lol
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
- Staff
- #181
I think that the distance comes from Hockey, which lets face it pretty much Canadian played growing up. The slap shot creates the lag, which results in harder shots, so we look for the same feel in the golf swing.
To be fair, again this was a 5 man scramble, and the first guy off the tee hits it 220-230 and straight 95% of the time, so we could let R Rip.
forget GolfTec, heading up to Canada and taking Hockey lessons this winter
RxGus
Argyle Warrior
Another round under my belt and I still have 2 of these balls left.
They are continuing to impress me, EVEN in the fridgid weather that we have been having in these parts. I will say this is not the softest ball I have in my bag and when it gets in the low to mid 50's I just can't compress it anymore and loose a lot of distance. I swear they are magic because I am not losing them! I NEVER keep balls this long. Either that or I am getting better at this game.... but we all know that doesn't actually happen
They are continuing to impress me, EVEN in the fridgid weather that we have been having in these parts. I will say this is not the softest ball I have in my bag and when it gets in the low to mid 50's I just can't compress it anymore and loose a lot of distance. I swear they are magic because I am not losing them! I NEVER keep balls this long. Either that or I am getting better at this game.... but we all know that doesn't actually happen
- Moderator
- #183
I really wanted to get a third round under my belt with these balls before offering my review, but it seems that a nagging knee injury is going to put that opportunity on the shelf, coupled with the dwindling daylight and mediocre weather around here.. So apologies on the delay, but here we go!!
There were a couple major factors I placed at the top of my list... Durability, ball flight, spin, feel, and accuracy. I'll go ahead and break up my review based on those criteria;
Durability: I was surprised in the quality of these balls. In my personal experience with high end golf balls, most had the appearance of being used after only a couple of holes (for whatever reason I seem to murder the covers) but these did not follow that same characteristic. While I do enjoy a ball that suits my game, I usually favour the balls that hold up longer, and I can honestly say this was not a factor of concern while using this ball.
Ball Flight: I was not disappointed in this category. My current gamer is the e7, and a major reason behind that is the piercing flight. Switching to the B330 didn't hinder distance, while maybe going slightly higher in the air. It had solid feel off the tee without giving off the feeling of 'mashing' the ball on the club head.
Spin: It has been a long time since I have gamed a ball with good spin, so I apologize if I take this a step further than most others, but frankly, I couldn't believe the action I was getting with these balls. I pulled back at least 5 irons (generally inside about 150yds) anywhere from 1-10 feet (note: I don't usually 'spin' the ball when it lands, but I am consistently a dart thrower, aka the ball lands and bounces back a bit). Around the greens, I was able to punch the ball to very tight pin placements and finding the ball really bite the green and show limited release. Again, this likely stems from me playing low spin balls on average, but I was extremely impressed with how responsive this ball was around the greens.
Feel/putting: I know I already touched on this a bit, but I wanted to mention again how soft the ball felt in general. Easily comparable to any Titleist on the market, and it could be my favourite ball to putt with. the labeling convention on the ball was a bit wider than what I am used to, throwing off my alignment on the putting green, but that is again more of a user error than a ball construction error. The feel exceeded my expectations.
Accuracy: This is one of those things that I was hoping to really update after my third round. I had some really strong shots, and some pretty mediocre shots over the last couple rounds, and the ball performed pretty much as best as it could under those circumstances. The one thing I do believe is that my driving accuracy increased a bit. Whether that is reflective of my game on those days, or whether the ball is the direct result, I can't be sure, but mishits still seemed to find the fairway, and flight was strong regardless. I also felt like the balls I 'went after' off the tee were a bit straighter than usual, and without question a number of yards further.
Thanks again for sharing the opportunity with me THP. I will likely update this again if I get another opportunity to play soon.
There were a couple major factors I placed at the top of my list... Durability, ball flight, spin, feel, and accuracy. I'll go ahead and break up my review based on those criteria;
Durability: I was surprised in the quality of these balls. In my personal experience with high end golf balls, most had the appearance of being used after only a couple of holes (for whatever reason I seem to murder the covers) but these did not follow that same characteristic. While I do enjoy a ball that suits my game, I usually favour the balls that hold up longer, and I can honestly say this was not a factor of concern while using this ball.
Ball Flight: I was not disappointed in this category. My current gamer is the e7, and a major reason behind that is the piercing flight. Switching to the B330 didn't hinder distance, while maybe going slightly higher in the air. It had solid feel off the tee without giving off the feeling of 'mashing' the ball on the club head.
Spin: It has been a long time since I have gamed a ball with good spin, so I apologize if I take this a step further than most others, but frankly, I couldn't believe the action I was getting with these balls. I pulled back at least 5 irons (generally inside about 150yds) anywhere from 1-10 feet (note: I don't usually 'spin' the ball when it lands, but I am consistently a dart thrower, aka the ball lands and bounces back a bit). Around the greens, I was able to punch the ball to very tight pin placements and finding the ball really bite the green and show limited release. Again, this likely stems from me playing low spin balls on average, but I was extremely impressed with how responsive this ball was around the greens.
Feel/putting: I know I already touched on this a bit, but I wanted to mention again how soft the ball felt in general. Easily comparable to any Titleist on the market, and it could be my favourite ball to putt with. the labeling convention on the ball was a bit wider than what I am used to, throwing off my alignment on the putting green, but that is again more of a user error than a ball construction error. The feel exceeded my expectations.
Accuracy: This is one of those things that I was hoping to really update after my third round. I had some really strong shots, and some pretty mediocre shots over the last couple rounds, and the ball performed pretty much as best as it could under those circumstances. The one thing I do believe is that my driving accuracy increased a bit. Whether that is reflective of my game on those days, or whether the ball is the direct result, I can't be sure, but mishits still seemed to find the fairway, and flight was strong regardless. I also felt like the balls I 'went after' off the tee were a bit straighter than usual, and without question a number of yards further.
Thanks again for sharing the opportunity with me THP. I will likely update this again if I get another opportunity to play soon.
Tmex
Paul Casey, WINNER!
- Joined
- Oct 1, 2009
- Messages
- 21,982
- Reaction score
- 100
- Location
- Paul Casey's Twitter Page
- Handicap
- RCGA 14.2
Nice write up Canadan. Awesome you found a good match with this ball!
Hanks
On the Fringe
Spent some more time with the 330 this weekend. Having been playing with the 330-S and loving the results so far, I was tentative when I was sent the 330 for testing. I don't have a pro SS (100-107 with a max out of 112) soI wasn't sure if I'd be benefitting from the technological goodness of this ball. Here are my thoughts:
Woods: Definitely long. Great feel off the club face and didn't feel as hard as I was expecting. Ball flight was a little lower than my current ball and run out was more noticeable
Irons: Even though it's a little harder, there's no clicky feeling with these at all. Feeling was the same no matter where it was hit on the club face and the ball flight was a little more penetrating than what I'm used to but was contollable and the adjustment period was short.
Wedges: Responsive and predictable. Felt the same as the other tour level balls in Bridgestone's line regardless of the more solid core. Not quite the one hop and stop performance of the S or RXS but it landed and rolled softly for a 'harder' ball.
Putter: buttah. no click and such a true roll. the alignement aid is simple yet effective.
Woods: Definitely long. Great feel off the club face and didn't feel as hard as I was expecting. Ball flight was a little lower than my current ball and run out was more noticeable
Irons: Even though it's a little harder, there's no clicky feeling with these at all. Feeling was the same no matter where it was hit on the club face and the ball flight was a little more penetrating than what I'm used to but was contollable and the adjustment period was short.
Wedges: Responsive and predictable. Felt the same as the other tour level balls in Bridgestone's line regardless of the more solid core. Not quite the one hop and stop performance of the S or RXS but it landed and rolled softly for a 'harder' ball.
Putter: buttah. no click and such a true roll. the alignement aid is simple yet effective.
rockyray6
New member
Would have love to got in on this one going to the beach next weekend to play. Would have like to have put them to the test.
Tmex
Paul Casey, WINNER!
- Joined
- Oct 1, 2009
- Messages
- 21,982
- Reaction score
- 100
- Location
- Paul Casey's Twitter Page
- Handicap
- RCGA 14.2
I hit the 330-S a few times again yesterday and I still love the ball. It's just crazy how consistant the ball is.
Hanks
On the Fringe
+1 it's hard for me to get off the 330-S bandwagon. I really hope it gets the yellow treatment
Tmex
Paul Casey, WINNER!
- Joined
- Oct 1, 2009
- Messages
- 21,982
- Reaction score
- 100
- Location
- Paul Casey's Twitter Page
- Handicap
- RCGA 14.2
Yessir. I agree. It would make choices harder but to have the option would be great.
Danilo
Master Blaster!!
Gotta post an update on this...
Did not get to play today due to foretasted storms in the morning... but needless to say, the weatherman was wrong again... woke up and it was a nice sunny day outside, with no clouds in sight! But since it was later than I planned on playing so I just went to do some range time and putt/short came practice.
I grabbed a friends Vokey wedges to try out (50/54) And it seems to make a big difference with the ball around the green.
My initial review on this ball was not good for the short game, but I will now blame my old wedges for that. I did some short pitching onto the green, and the ball was not rolling like the first time I used them, it was actually taking a slight bounce, and stopping after a short roll (less than a foot usually). That is much better results than the balls running away upon landing. I still had my usual troubles in the sand, I did not expect that to change, but there was one or two shots that will go into the memory banks, to hopefully be replicated when the scorecard needs it!
The feel on the putter was also better! I brought out the old brass one, and the SS Machine... The brass putter makes the ball feel like a wet noodle, but I was not expecting anything different. Against the SS putter (no insert on the face) it felt very predictable. It was not at all like before. It made a "click" sound when it was struck... the only thing off was the pace, I need to adjust to the new putter/ball combo.
I was so taken back on the short practice today, that I have ordered a bucket of 50 330S's from lostgolfballs.com.
Did not get to play today due to foretasted storms in the morning... but needless to say, the weatherman was wrong again... woke up and it was a nice sunny day outside, with no clouds in sight! But since it was later than I planned on playing so I just went to do some range time and putt/short came practice.
I grabbed a friends Vokey wedges to try out (50/54) And it seems to make a big difference with the ball around the green.
My initial review on this ball was not good for the short game, but I will now blame my old wedges for that. I did some short pitching onto the green, and the ball was not rolling like the first time I used them, it was actually taking a slight bounce, and stopping after a short roll (less than a foot usually). That is much better results than the balls running away upon landing. I still had my usual troubles in the sand, I did not expect that to change, but there was one or two shots that will go into the memory banks, to hopefully be replicated when the scorecard needs it!
The feel on the putter was also better! I brought out the old brass one, and the SS Machine... The brass putter makes the ball feel like a wet noodle, but I was not expecting anything different. Against the SS putter (no insert on the face) it felt very predictable. It was not at all like before. It made a "click" sound when it was struck... the only thing off was the pace, I need to adjust to the new putter/ball combo.
I was so taken back on the short practice today, that I have ordered a bucket of 50 330S's from lostgolfballs.com.
Super Tuna
You can't scale this!
I know this thread is from long ago in the mists of yore and I kinda feel bad about bringing to back. However, I wanted to put a large thanks here for all the reviews you guys did on these balls. Before doing my ball fitting last night at Golftec I had a chat with him about what I think I might or might not like. He seems to love to hear that people want to play a V1 or the like and then shocks them when someone else works fay better. Anyways one of his suggestions was to look at the B330 and S line and I'll admit I thought he was a bit crazy. What's the answer to crazy? THP reviews of course. You guys rocked the ball review and between it and seeing the numbers I'm much more comfortable using the B330s then I would have been otherwise, so cheers!
I also want to add for anyone else reading that if you think the S on the end of the B330's means it's a super spinny ball, you're going to be suprised. Very much like the V1X but with better durability, a slightly harder feel (which I like) and good touch around the greens. Bridgestone you make a very good cookie. Errr....ball.
Interesting note from the Golftec guy as well is that he felt not only was the 330s good for those with 105 plus but it's a really good ball for the tweener's who are over compressing the 330RX but the straight 330 is too much. It also allows for guys in the 105-108 range who slow down when they get tired to still see excellent performance from the ball.
I also want to add for anyone else reading that if you think the S on the end of the B330's means it's a super spinny ball, you're going to be suprised. Very much like the V1X but with better durability, a slightly harder feel (which I like) and good touch around the greens. Bridgestone you make a very good cookie. Errr....ball.
Interesting note from the Golftec guy as well is that he felt not only was the 330s good for those with 105 plus but it's a really good ball for the tweener's who are over compressing the 330RX but the straight 330 is too much. It also allows for guys in the 105-108 range who slow down when they get tired to still see excellent performance from the ball.
Thanks for the added info ST! I just ordered the RXS this past week and they will be in play the next 2 days for the first time. I saw more spin from the Penta TP than the regular RX so wanted to see if the RXS would be a better comparison to the Penta TP. If it is, I just found my permanent gamer.
crazygolfnut
Let's have fun out there!
This ball has been out for awhile. Any idea if it is going to be replaced in 2012?
omikey
New member
Cookie I'll be VERY INTERESTED in your thoughts after you've played a couple of rounds with the 330 RXS !
