TaylorMade Blind Ball Testing Results
Jeanthemachine
Earl of Limerick
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Finished my testing just before the feast. My first testing was done at the practice green with a session of putting, chipping and short pitches. Other testing was done on the course, sometimes playing two balls and today an eighteen hole round with friends.
Putting: WOW - this ball is the softest feeling since I played my last Titleist Tour Balata. Great feel, sound and distance control.
Chipping - a little disappointing. I could not get the same checking action that I get with the ProV1. Maybe I was not nipping them like normal but I had a lot of run. Not so good on the small greens I play on. This was very surprising considering how soft they seem off the putter.
Pitching - much like the chipping. There was more run-out than I would have expected.
Mid Irons, Hybrids - Another surprise. I felt that the ball carried and ran farther than the ProV1. This is much appreciated as I get a little long in the tooth.
Driver - ditto. I think this ball was 10 or more yards longer than the ProV1. Again this was a big surprise considering the softness.
Overall - I like this ball. Because of my need to spin my chips I might still prefer the ProV1 BUT at the right price point I would change to this ball. I have most of my sample left an will continue to play with them. If I figure out how to get the chips to check I will post again to this thread.
Thanks again to Taylor Made and THP for this opportunity.
Putting: WOW - this ball is the softest feeling since I played my last Titleist Tour Balata. Great feel, sound and distance control.
Chipping - a little disappointing. I could not get the same checking action that I get with the ProV1. Maybe I was not nipping them like normal but I had a lot of run. Not so good on the small greens I play on. This was very surprising considering how soft they seem off the putter.
Pitching - much like the chipping. There was more run-out than I would have expected.
Mid Irons, Hybrids - Another surprise. I felt that the ball carried and ran farther than the ProV1. This is much appreciated as I get a little long in the tooth.
Driver - ditto. I think this ball was 10 or more yards longer than the ProV1. Again this was a big surprise considering the softness.
Overall - I like this ball. Because of my need to spin my chips I might still prefer the ProV1 BUT at the right price point I would change to this ball. I have most of my sample left an will continue to play with them. If I figure out how to get the chips to check I will post again to this thread.
Thanks again to Taylor Made and THP for this opportunity.
mdbuschsr
Just playing for fun
I played 18 today with the test ball and compared it to the Bridgestone E6 on the front and E5 on the back. I ended up scoring better with the test ball (my best score ever 88) but I am having a hard time wrapping my head around the round. How I felt versus the stats are completely different! I'm really confused!
mdbuschsr
Just playing for fun
Yesterday was quite fun, though like I noted it was rather confusing in the end. I played the TMTB for the full 18 alongside the E6 on the front and E5 on the back. I alternated tee shots, playing the test ball first every other hole.
Off the driver the TM ball was shorter on every shot with two exceptions. I had an up and down day off the tee yesterday but when I struck it well on one shot I managed to strike it well on the second. Meaning a straight drive was matched with a straight second drive, push matched by push etc. On average the TM ball was 15-20 yards shorter than the E6, and 10 yards shorter than the E5. I did hit the TM ball further than each of the E-balls one time. I didn't notice a big difference in side spin off the tee with balls coming to rest within a few yards of one another regarding intended or actual flight path.
I had a pretty rough day with the irons. On the range I could help but hit the ball dead right with every club. On the course that translated to very tentative swings. It was rather interesting never the less as each approach was a club longer with the TM ball. For the most part the TM ball showed as much run out as the E6 and the E5 stopped a little quicker. I still say spin can be imparted on the TM ball as I had a 6 iron from 170 stop within 2 feet.
It's a little more difficult to compare wedges on this round. For the most part I tend to play more of a bump and run style in close. With my poor iron play I was coming up just short on a lot of approaches. Again the TM and the E6 were comparable as I had to land them quite a bit shorter than the E5 to allow for more run out. I did have a couple occasions to hit the 60* nice and high. Again it seemed the TM and E6 reacted the same on landing. As I have said I don't generate a ton of spin so I appreciate the cover on the E5 and it's ability to check up more quickly for me.
Off the putter I am undecided. Most have said that they love the ball off the putter, but the numbers didn't bear that out for me yesterday. I felt like I was putting the TM ball the best but at the end of the day the stats say I had 4 more putts with it than the E5/E6 combo.
I'm still on the fence with this ball. My opinion is that it is very similar to the E6. I believe I could play the ball and learn to love it, but I still prefer the E5 by a wide margin.
Off the driver the TM ball was shorter on every shot with two exceptions. I had an up and down day off the tee yesterday but when I struck it well on one shot I managed to strike it well on the second. Meaning a straight drive was matched with a straight second drive, push matched by push etc. On average the TM ball was 15-20 yards shorter than the E6, and 10 yards shorter than the E5. I did hit the TM ball further than each of the E-balls one time. I didn't notice a big difference in side spin off the tee with balls coming to rest within a few yards of one another regarding intended or actual flight path.
I had a pretty rough day with the irons. On the range I could help but hit the ball dead right with every club. On the course that translated to very tentative swings. It was rather interesting never the less as each approach was a club longer with the TM ball. For the most part the TM ball showed as much run out as the E6 and the E5 stopped a little quicker. I still say spin can be imparted on the TM ball as I had a 6 iron from 170 stop within 2 feet.
It's a little more difficult to compare wedges on this round. For the most part I tend to play more of a bump and run style in close. With my poor iron play I was coming up just short on a lot of approaches. Again the TM and the E6 were comparable as I had to land them quite a bit shorter than the E5 to allow for more run out. I did have a couple occasions to hit the 60* nice and high. Again it seemed the TM and E6 reacted the same on landing. As I have said I don't generate a ton of spin so I appreciate the cover on the E5 and it's ability to check up more quickly for me.
Off the putter I am undecided. Most have said that they love the ball off the putter, but the numbers didn't bear that out for me yesterday. I felt like I was putting the TM ball the best but at the end of the day the stats say I had 4 more putts with it than the E5/E6 combo.
I'm still on the fence with this ball. My opinion is that it is very similar to the E6. I believe I could play the ball and learn to love it, but I still prefer the E5 by a wide margin.
SW
Grinder
Ok, so I've limited my reading in this thread until I could get out and formulate my own opinions of this ball. I am totally perplexed with this ball!
Got out Thursday and Friday for some testing, Thursday I played a short executive course (using the TM and Vapor balls) and yesterday I played a new coursewww.valenciagolfandcountryclub.com. The course has just reopened from installing new greens :clapp: I played the front 9 with my new love, the RXS. On the back I played better ball between 3 balls since there was nobody on the course and I didn't have to worry about pace of play. Played the RXS, a distance ball from Maxfli and the TM mystery ball.
With the greens being new they were quite firm so reader beware.
On Thursday and Friday both I did not like the TM ball off the driver, tended to have a little to much side spin for me, which resulted in some dreaded shots right. I know I do not have the most consistent swing, but I found it interesting that I only missed 2 fairways with the RXS and hit all with the Maxfli yet really struggled with the TM Ball. I hate to admit it but I lost two of them in 9 holes (though I blame construction for one of those :angel: ) To me the balls feels hard off the driver, not rock-like mind you but extra firm.
Hybrids: I hit alot of hybrids on Thursday and I did like the TM ball off these clubs, seemed like it had a little higher launch angle than my normal ball flight. On Friday I made it a point to compare a little closer. This ball was consistantly shorter than the RXS and Maxfli but had tremendous feel, which further confused me as to what this ball is. I can't figure out why I like it so much off the Hybrids yet do not like it at all off the driver or 3 wood.
Irons: Great feel, great distance! Hit all three balls from wherever the better ball landed and all three performed fairly consistent in regards to distance. The RXS felt softest, the Maxfli felt like a rock and the TM was somewhere in the middle. It reminded me of a Callaway Diablo in this regard. With the greens being new they were rather firm, think concrete! So sticking shots was very tough, only the RXS was able to able to hold greens with any regularity and even then it was with considerably more roll. Taking that into consideration I will hold off on forming an opinion until I get back out next Thursday.
Full Wedges: Again with the firm greens I could not get aggressive so i can't give a honest assessment just yet, but what I experienced was fairly even between the three balls. The results from the TM ball were closer to the Maxfli than to the RXS, but with that I understood the rollout and adjusted for it. I thought it was predictable and not once did I notice something different. I love that about this ball, the fact that I can make the swing I want and I know the ball will react accordingly, well that does alot for confidence. (Take that Pro V1 commercial guys!) Even with a brand new Jaws wedge in the bag I didn't notice any shredding of the cover so durability is a plus.
Partial Wedges: Again hit a little softer and let it release to the hole. I did not notice any glaring difference in results between the 3 balls on these type of shots, I blame that entirely on the greens being so firm. However I really like feel of this ball on these shots, which rely so much on feel. I could easily tell if I hit it a little off or got it right just by feedback, something I really enjoy in a golf ball.
Putter: :in-love: it's freaking perfect to me. I don't know how to explain it other than adjectives of joy. I was using a Cleveland Classic #2 FWIW and the combination of that putter and this new ball is a match made in heaven. I am tickled with the firm feel off the face, it does have slight clicking sound but I find that pleasing.
Got out Thursday and Friday for some testing, Thursday I played a short executive course (using the TM and Vapor balls) and yesterday I played a new coursewww.valenciagolfandcountryclub.com. The course has just reopened from installing new greens :clapp: I played the front 9 with my new love, the RXS. On the back I played better ball between 3 balls since there was nobody on the course and I didn't have to worry about pace of play. Played the RXS, a distance ball from Maxfli and the TM mystery ball.
With the greens being new they were quite firm so reader beware.
On Thursday and Friday both I did not like the TM ball off the driver, tended to have a little to much side spin for me, which resulted in some dreaded shots right. I know I do not have the most consistent swing, but I found it interesting that I only missed 2 fairways with the RXS and hit all with the Maxfli yet really struggled with the TM Ball. I hate to admit it but I lost two of them in 9 holes (though I blame construction for one of those :angel: ) To me the balls feels hard off the driver, not rock-like mind you but extra firm.
Hybrids: I hit alot of hybrids on Thursday and I did like the TM ball off these clubs, seemed like it had a little higher launch angle than my normal ball flight. On Friday I made it a point to compare a little closer. This ball was consistantly shorter than the RXS and Maxfli but had tremendous feel, which further confused me as to what this ball is. I can't figure out why I like it so much off the Hybrids yet do not like it at all off the driver or 3 wood.
Irons: Great feel, great distance! Hit all three balls from wherever the better ball landed and all three performed fairly consistent in regards to distance. The RXS felt softest, the Maxfli felt like a rock and the TM was somewhere in the middle. It reminded me of a Callaway Diablo in this regard. With the greens being new they were rather firm, think concrete! So sticking shots was very tough, only the RXS was able to able to hold greens with any regularity and even then it was with considerably more roll. Taking that into consideration I will hold off on forming an opinion until I get back out next Thursday.
Full Wedges: Again with the firm greens I could not get aggressive so i can't give a honest assessment just yet, but what I experienced was fairly even between the three balls. The results from the TM ball were closer to the Maxfli than to the RXS, but with that I understood the rollout and adjusted for it. I thought it was predictable and not once did I notice something different. I love that about this ball, the fact that I can make the swing I want and I know the ball will react accordingly, well that does alot for confidence. (Take that Pro V1 commercial guys!) Even with a brand new Jaws wedge in the bag I didn't notice any shredding of the cover so durability is a plus.
Partial Wedges: Again hit a little softer and let it release to the hole. I did not notice any glaring difference in results between the 3 balls on these type of shots, I blame that entirely on the greens being so firm. However I really like feel of this ball on these shots, which rely so much on feel. I could easily tell if I hit it a little off or got it right just by feedback, something I really enjoy in a golf ball.
Putter: :in-love: it's freaking perfect to me. I don't know how to explain it other than adjectives of joy. I was using a Cleveland Classic #2 FWIW and the combination of that putter and this new ball is a match made in heaven. I am tickled with the firm feel off the face, it does have slight clicking sound but I find that pleasing.
coolbreeze
Aspiring Golferr
Great reviews SW, mdbuschsr, SD Charlie, Jeanthemachine and everyone else. Sounds like a good ball, but am really looking forward to finding out what the ball is after reading everyones reviews.
KellyBo
Golf, Have Fun or Quit!
Great reviews everyone and I especially liked the facts that Biggsy provided. They pretty much confirmed my thoughts that I was losing distance off my drive. I played 12 holes on Thanksgiving day and used my Srixon Z-Star yellow and was much more satisfied with the results off the tee. As for the rest of the game, the new ball performed well to me.
junior lefty
High School Golfer
After playing 18 more holes today, I have decided that I will not game this ball when it comes out. Toe shots off the tee don't go nearly as far as with the Gamer V2 or Pinnacle Dimension. It hooks too much and doesn't go as straight, thus loosing more distance I don't kill it off of the tee and I need all the help that I can get. I will keep using the dozen that I recieved, but after that, I'm done.
Bridges
New member
Hey TC, I thought about this today. I noticed you could back the ball up some and put some spin on it(by you pictures), then I also remembered that you had the DG spinner shafts, how much do you think that is contributing to being able to spin it some more?
I can only get it to spin a little on full wedge shots but on chips/pitches its not working out very good.
Off topic a little, I like some of the balls like this one for the feel and others for more distance off the tee but most of use arent able to spin the 2 piece or lower end balls so maybe those DG spinner shafts would be the way to go. We all seem to like everything about some of the lower end balls except for them spinning around the green, that shaft could be the ticket to us saving a little more money of golf balls. Just thinking out loud and thought Id throw it out there.
I can only get it to spin a little on full wedge shots but on chips/pitches its not working out very good.
Off topic a little, I like some of the balls like this one for the feel and others for more distance off the tee but most of use arent able to spin the 2 piece or lower end balls so maybe those DG spinner shafts would be the way to go. We all seem to like everything about some of the lower end balls except for them spinning around the green, that shaft could be the ticket to us saving a little more money of golf balls. Just thinking out loud and thought Id throw it out there.
Bridges
New member
Dont think you where suppose to post that until JB announced what ball they where and until everyone was done testing.
junior lefty
High School Golfer
That post will be deleted in 3... 2... 1...
- Admin
- #513
That is exactly right. This could effect the entire purpose of this testing. JB will be making a post shortly.
- Thread starter
- Admin
- #514
We asked not to put up a video or pictures of the ball being cut in half. Why you thought it was important to do so before feedback has been given by everybody is beyond me. But thank you for heeding to our advice.
Was this really necessary? The goal behind all of this was to find out how a ball works for a person WITHOUT information, marketing, etc... This is EXACTLY why we said NOT to put this up before feedback was given. If we wanted to show what was inside of the ball or what the ball was made out of beforehand, we could have just handed out the marketing materials and the box too.
Again, we asked NOT to do this and you chose to. Thank you for that.
Was this really necessary? The goal behind all of this was to find out how a ball works for a person WITHOUT information, marketing, etc... This is EXACTLY why we said NOT to put this up before feedback was given. If we wanted to show what was inside of the ball or what the ball was made out of beforehand, we could have just handed out the marketing materials and the box too.
Again, we asked NOT to do this and you chose to. Thank you for that.
Last edited:
- Admin
- #516
I am extremely disappointed in what just happened. I have to back up JB and the others 100% this was completely unnecessary and with your permission I ask that you please take the video down in an effort to save this study if it can even be done at this point.
Chunkylover77
Proud JakeNation Member
It was like a car crash. I could not help but click on that link! Oh well. I will still continue to play this ball and put it through the paces. Heck maybe I'll just get silly drunk tonight and forget that post ever happened.
junior lefty
High School Golfer
The only reason that I clicked on the link was because I was done with the main part of testing and had posted my thoughts. I knew it wasn't for me.
mdbuschsr
Just playing for fun
I am basically done with my testing but I'm glad the offending post has been removed. I didn't see it and I'm glad for that!
Dr. Teeth
Well-known member
Disappointing! I was not selected to participate in the testing, however, I have really enjoyed reading the different reviews. It was made perfectly clear that pictures/videos were not to be posted. I did not click on the link but I am sure there were many who did. It is just disappointing that someone who was selected to participate in such a cool experiment couldn't abide by the rules previously set forth. I guess there will always be those type of people, but it is still disappointing.
Sent using Tapatalk please forgive my spelling
Sent using Tapatalk please forgive my spelling
Oregon Golfer
#XBomb
I got out to do a little practice today at a local practice facility today and here are the results. I was concentrating on 40-60 yard pitches with my 60*. For me, this is a 1/3-1/2 swing. I used 4 kinds of balls; Bridgestone Tour B330-RX, Titleist Pro V1, Srixon Z-Star, and the TM test ball.
Feel 1=hardest, 4=softest
B330-RX: 1
Pro V1: 4
Z Star: 2
TM Test: 3
The test ball was very soft feeling. I usually play the B330-RX, and was surprised just how hard it felt compared to all of the others. I never took the time to realize the difference. Since this category is just about feel I won't elaborate too much on the performance, (proximity to hole, etc...)
Spin: 1= least spin, 4=most spin
B330-RX: 1
Pro V1: 4
Z Star: 3
TM Test: 2
With the B330-RX I was getting 10-15ft of roll out. Pro V1 had 0-5ft of roll out, a couple of shots spun back a couple of feet. The Z Star had 2-8ft of roll out, no shots spun back. The TM test ball had 5-10ft of roll out, no shots rolled back. I play more of a pitch style of short game, rather that a chip style, bump and run short game. Even from 40 yards I prefer a high, lob shot with lots of spin.
I haven't been able to do any real testing with driver. Last weekend I played at Chambers Bay and since pace of play was an issue and because I didn't want to play a "once in a lifetime" type course with a new ball, I only hit 1 drive with the test ball. In fact, I gave my 2 other playing partners a test ball to hit also. All 3 of us had been driving the ball very well that day. Unfortunately all 3 of our drives with the test ball veered right and were lost. Is it coincidence that all 3 of us hit bad drives or does it spin too much? I don't know. I do know that while the results of our drives was horrible all 3 of us honestly said it felt great. Hard to describe, but it just felt like a solid hit and it felt like the ball really jumped.
I hope to get out tomorrow for a round at a local course where there shouldn't be very many people out and I hope to play the test ball side-by-side with my regular ball. More to come...
Feel 1=hardest, 4=softest
B330-RX: 1
Pro V1: 4
Z Star: 2
TM Test: 3
The test ball was very soft feeling. I usually play the B330-RX, and was surprised just how hard it felt compared to all of the others. I never took the time to realize the difference. Since this category is just about feel I won't elaborate too much on the performance, (proximity to hole, etc...)
Spin: 1= least spin, 4=most spin
B330-RX: 1
Pro V1: 4
Z Star: 3
TM Test: 2
With the B330-RX I was getting 10-15ft of roll out. Pro V1 had 0-5ft of roll out, a couple of shots spun back a couple of feet. The Z Star had 2-8ft of roll out, no shots spun back. The TM test ball had 5-10ft of roll out, no shots rolled back. I play more of a pitch style of short game, rather that a chip style, bump and run short game. Even from 40 yards I prefer a high, lob shot with lots of spin.
I haven't been able to do any real testing with driver. Last weekend I played at Chambers Bay and since pace of play was an issue and because I didn't want to play a "once in a lifetime" type course with a new ball, I only hit 1 drive with the test ball. In fact, I gave my 2 other playing partners a test ball to hit also. All 3 of us had been driving the ball very well that day. Unfortunately all 3 of our drives with the test ball veered right and were lost. Is it coincidence that all 3 of us hit bad drives or does it spin too much? I don't know. I do know that while the results of our drives was horrible all 3 of us honestly said it felt great. Hard to describe, but it just felt like a solid hit and it felt like the ball really jumped.
I hope to get out tomorrow for a round at a local course where there shouldn't be very many people out and I hope to play the test ball side-by-side with my regular ball. More to come...
SprayTech
New member
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- Sep 7, 2010
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I have been following this thread with everyones reviews ( great reviews by the way ) , and its been very interesting to say the least .
Just got home from eating dinner at my Mother-in-laws house and glad I did not see the video that was deleted !
And am highly interested in finding out what type of ball it is and designed for when all the testing is done !
Just got home from eating dinner at my Mother-in-laws house and glad I did not see the video that was deleted !
And am highly interested in finding out what type of ball it is and designed for when all the testing is done !
Tmex
Paul Casey, WINNER!
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I havent clicked the link and I wont but I really don't understand why it is so hard to follow the rules of the testing. If the post hasnt been removed I hope so soon.
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