so much rain here this week have not been able to et out other than rolling a few in the office with he putter. Feel nice off the scotty. Have an 0730 tee time for Saturday to put it into play....
Titleist Tour Speed Golf Ball Review
Good info. I play the tp5x some at home, and being able to control this particular shot is a big part of my game. It doesn't surprise me you and your coach work on it. It's a pretty important one.
I think those numbers for the tour speed could play for most, and aren't unexpected, but a 16-17% drop off in spin is pretty massive on that shot, imo.
Good stuff. I can't wait to get home and start getting a feel for these compared to my gamers.
Who ever here mentioned durability issues, I concur. I have 2 full rounds with the TS(don't loose balls that often), and the cover does scuff easily compared to the AVX. Don't know if it's the type of urethane cast vs injection don't know, just that the cover will scuff easier with the TS. I don't think it affects anything as far as driving/putting but appearance wise it's very visible.
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got a tee time for Saturday am and one for Tuesday morning.....gonna bang the Tour Speed for a couple of rounds
What an interesting start to my review.... Long story short, I thought the golf balls were lost, but turned out, my neighbor had them, and hadn't had a chance to bring them by. I finally got them tonight, and have 18 with them tomorrow.
First of all, thank you to THP and Titleist for this awesome opportunity. I always enjoy Golf Ball testing, because I personally think it is one of the parts of the game that is least thought about by most, but can definitely be impactful to a persons score at the end of the day.
Packaging: When I think of Titleist, I always think of "Classy." They are always the "Premium" offering, the "Country Club" choice, and I think this packaging is very "Titleist." I think it is minimalistic, while still having just the slightest bit of an edge to it, that would make me want to pick it up off of the shelf.
Feel: Putting in my living room, comparing it to my gamer (Bridgestone Tour B XS), it feels slightly softer, but not something I feel I would truly notice if they weren't side-by-side. As expected, when I roll a good putt, it rolls true, it is, after all, a premium golf ball.
Alignment: This is an area I REALLY think Titleist nailed with this ball. While I don't think we will ever see it on a Pro V1/V1x, I think this alignment aid is much nicer than one we see on a typical golf ball. The arrows really help to line up a putt, and I look forward to trying them out on some tough greens tomorrow.
All in all, initial thoughts are promising, but I have yet to hit a full shot. I have 18 scheduled tomorrow, and 18 more on Monday to really get a sense of how these perform from tee to green. I am going to be most interested to see what happens on wedge shots, as that is area where I rely and play a good amount of spin, so we will have to see if it performs similar, if not better, to my current gamer.
As always, please ask any questions you have, and I will do my best to get them answered.
First of all, thank you to THP and Titleist for this awesome opportunity. I always enjoy Golf Ball testing, because I personally think it is one of the parts of the game that is least thought about by most, but can definitely be impactful to a persons score at the end of the day.
Packaging: When I think of Titleist, I always think of "Classy." They are always the "Premium" offering, the "Country Club" choice, and I think this packaging is very "Titleist." I think it is minimalistic, while still having just the slightest bit of an edge to it, that would make me want to pick it up off of the shelf.
Feel: Putting in my living room, comparing it to my gamer (Bridgestone Tour B XS), it feels slightly softer, but not something I feel I would truly notice if they weren't side-by-side. As expected, when I roll a good putt, it rolls true, it is, after all, a premium golf ball.
Alignment: This is an area I REALLY think Titleist nailed with this ball. While I don't think we will ever see it on a Pro V1/V1x, I think this alignment aid is much nicer than one we see on a typical golf ball. The arrows really help to line up a putt, and I look forward to trying them out on some tough greens tomorrow.
All in all, initial thoughts are promising, but I have yet to hit a full shot. I have 18 scheduled tomorrow, and 18 more on Monday to really get a sense of how these perform from tee to green. I am going to be most interested to see what happens on wedge shots, as that is area where I rely and play a good amount of spin, so we will have to see if it performs similar, if not better, to my current gamer.
As always, please ask any questions you have, and I will do my best to get them answered.
Another thing, I spent quite a bit of time tonight doing some research on the difference between Urethane (Honestly, I didn't realize there was much of a difference, but apparently there is!)
More Premium balls like the Pro V1, use Cast urethane covers, the Tour Speed has a cover made from a proprietary thermoplastic polyurethane. From what I was able to gather, this leads to cheaper manufacturing processes, which makes sense, but will be interesting to see what kind of a difference that makes on the golf course.
More Premium balls like the Pro V1, use Cast urethane covers, the Tour Speed has a cover made from a proprietary thermoplastic polyurethane. From what I was able to gather, this leads to cheaper manufacturing processes, which makes sense, but will be interesting to see what kind of a difference that makes on the golf course.
- Admin
- #182
In this instance perhaps, but not all premium balls are cast urethane. Srixon, Callaway and Bridgestone do not use cast urethane. Taylormade and Titleist do.
- Admin
- #184
Possibly. But not always. What’s interesting is how many types of proprietary items are used in gold balls. The process in some can be less expensive.
I didn't get a chance to do any more ball testing on my skytrak with all the packing but that is coming. I also will be playing at least one round on vacation and this will be in play. I got a chance to hit some chips with this and it seemed to come out a fraction lower and roll out a little more. I quickly got used to this and holed a few chips on the practice range. If I want a higher chip that rolls out less I found that opening the wedge up a fraction would do just that. I will note that I've used the same ball in all the half swings & chipping and the cover is still pristine. After I put one in play and hit full shots I'll update on how well the cover holds up!
Cleared for take off Sunday morning!
Today is the day
Low spin monsters - that’s what these balls are. They fight through the wind real well as a result. I like the ball flight and performance on full short irons and mid irons because they go for days and the launch gain cancels out the lost spin for stopping power. I don’t love them off the driver through long irons because the spin drop is essentially too much for my current setup and really highlights and exasperates my misses. I’m still pretty ambivalent on the alignment aid but that’s a pretty minor critique.
So here we go:
I played at Prairie Lakes Blue/Red in Grand Prairie Texas. Hole by hole and what i felt with he ball.
1, Par 4 straight away with a Large Tree blocking the green on the right side of fairway, I pulled it left. Felt really good of the Driver though, slight draw and I had 131 left to the pin. Ball on an upslope and i was able to get it up with the PW to the right pin, just off the green behind, ball bait of the pitch and made the 4 footer coming back for par. Ball felt good of the putter all day!
2. Slight Draw right down Broadway with 120 left to a back pin and i hit it about 15 feet behind it, the ball stopped within 3 feet of the drop on a 50deg shot, 2 putt par.
3 slight Dog leg left and i shoved a 4 iron right into the trees. Punch out and left 95 yds, pulled the wedge to left of the green then ripped on and ball bit nicely for a bogie.
4. par 3 151 yds and i played a 9 iron flag high, the ball actually stopped within a couple of feet from where it hit and my first birdie of the front nine.
5 par5 drive right down the middle, lay up and then a 50 deg to the green. Kinda pulled the 3rdshot so i had a 50 footer to the pin and ir rolled within 2 feet for my par.
t this point in my rounds i am thinking this ball is reating pretty well for me. I am clubbing myself off my Bridgestone Tour B X normal yardages and its performing quite well. I am hitting fairways and rolling it well with the putter. I will also say that this was the first day with my new Kirkland putter. I hit maybe 15 putts before starting at a tee i putting the putting green.
This was a 50 deg into the 7th green from 95 yds and stopped in 3feet. Second Birdie of the front nine.
I will not run you through the entire 18. but, I was hitting a few on the center of the club face on drives and the balsas flying. I told the guys in my 4 some that it was anew Titleist and they were impressed but i was having a good ball striking day.
M hy over all impression? I shot 74. Ended the front nine 1 under 35, played the back nine at 3 over with a double bogey on the Par 5 4th on the Red, stupid mistake hitting a fairway, laying up to 100 yards and pulling the 3rd into the lake, damn near pulled the next in there too. I hit a few knitting chips that did, crushed a drive across the lake to 20 yards short of the 8th and hit the chip to 2 inches for a gimme bird.
Played the same ball for 113 holes and the pull into the par 5 cost me 18 with one ball.....I need a dozen. I can see me buying these when the closet empties of my Bridgestone.
I was able to flight it, when i hit the center of the driver, it flew. I caught a few low on the club and it still went straight. Lot of early dew from a week of rain, but distance was not an issue. It was a lower flight ball, not a bullet like the AVX, but somewhere in between. It was funny, There were times i felt like i got more out of it and there were times it just felt good and turn out to be a bomb.
the ball seemed to be durable and kept up with my pinching it when i needed to and i hit down and through the ball, i AM NOT a sweeper.
The aiming lines are okay, i tend to draw a line anyway
do i think this box
will fit in this line up?
Yes, i believe it will and I would buy it......
I played at Prairie Lakes Blue/Red in Grand Prairie Texas. Hole by hole and what i felt with he ball.
1, Par 4 straight away with a Large Tree blocking the green on the right side of fairway, I pulled it left. Felt really good of the Driver though, slight draw and I had 131 left to the pin. Ball on an upslope and i was able to get it up with the PW to the right pin, just off the green behind, ball bait of the pitch and made the 4 footer coming back for par. Ball felt good of the putter all day!
2. Slight Draw right down Broadway with 120 left to a back pin and i hit it about 15 feet behind it, the ball stopped within 3 feet of the drop on a 50deg shot, 2 putt par.
3 slight Dog leg left and i shoved a 4 iron right into the trees. Punch out and left 95 yds, pulled the wedge to left of the green then ripped on and ball bit nicely for a bogie.
4. par 3 151 yds and i played a 9 iron flag high, the ball actually stopped within a couple of feet from where it hit and my first birdie of the front nine.
5 par5 drive right down the middle, lay up and then a 50 deg to the green. Kinda pulled the 3rdshot so i had a 50 footer to the pin and ir rolled within 2 feet for my par.
t this point in my rounds i am thinking this ball is reating pretty well for me. I am clubbing myself off my Bridgestone Tour B X normal yardages and its performing quite well. I am hitting fairways and rolling it well with the putter. I will also say that this was the first day with my new Kirkland putter. I hit maybe 15 putts before starting at a tee i putting the putting green.
This was a 50 deg into the 7th green from 95 yds and stopped in 3feet. Second Birdie of the front nine.
I will not run you through the entire 18. but, I was hitting a few on the center of the club face on drives and the balsas flying. I told the guys in my 4 some that it was anew Titleist and they were impressed but i was having a good ball striking day.
M hy over all impression? I shot 74. Ended the front nine 1 under 35, played the back nine at 3 over with a double bogey on the Par 5 4th on the Red, stupid mistake hitting a fairway, laying up to 100 yards and pulling the 3rd into the lake, damn near pulled the next in there too. I hit a few knitting chips that did, crushed a drive across the lake to 20 yards short of the 8th and hit the chip to 2 inches for a gimme bird.
Played the same ball for 113 holes and the pull into the par 5 cost me 18 with one ball.....I need a dozen. I can see me buying these when the closet empties of my Bridgestone.
I was able to flight it, when i hit the center of the driver, it flew. I caught a few low on the club and it still went straight. Lot of early dew from a week of rain, but distance was not an issue. It was a lower flight ball, not a bullet like the AVX, but somewhere in between. It was funny, There were times i felt like i got more out of it and there were times it just felt good and turn out to be a bomb.
the ball seemed to be durable and kept up with my pinching it when i needed to and i hit down and through the ball, i AM NOT a sweeper.
The aiming lines are okay, i tend to draw a line anyway
do i think this box
will fit in this line up?
Yes, i believe it will and I would buy it......
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Played TS today and was quite pleased with the results. Played in a 20MPH wind and the ball cut right through it. Hit really nice draws with off the driver. Really impressed.
Tomorrow is the day! Tee time is a go... Live round is a go... Let's do this....putter is good to go
Got the chance to put these in play again yesterday. Although my swing was total garbage (couldn’t get off the tee to save my life). The iron play was fairly solid. The ball felt good off the irons, when struck pure, it felt like the ball just jumped off the club face. Mis-hits did not feel too harsh, but you definitely knew it wasn’t pure.
I was still getting the 3-4 foot roll out with shots into the green so that consistency was comforting. Durability did not seem to be an issue, The cover held up pretty well even after it met a few trees up close and personal.
I was still getting the 3-4 foot roll out with shots into the green so that consistency was comforting. Durability did not seem to be an issue, The cover held up pretty well even after it met a few trees up close and personal.
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That's a great write up. Thanks @donny475
I am sure that I do not know what I am talking about because a company like Titleist would have teams of people analyzing what I conclude with no data, simply anecdotal observation. However, the more I think about it, the more I believe Titleist risks redistributing its pie, rather than growing it. Here’s why.
I play a lot of golf as a single, so I see what many different players and what ball they use. I believe that more than anything else, I see average golfers using Titleist Pro V balls. It is clear from watching their games that they cannot make use of the ball. However, they buy Titleist because it is the name to play and they perceive it is better.
With that frame of reference, why would they not simply switch to a cheaper urathene ball that is still a Titleist? I think it is a big risk to Titleist.
I play a lot of golf as a single, so I see what many different players and what ball they use. I believe that more than anything else, I see average golfers using Titleist Pro V balls. It is clear from watching their games that they cannot make use of the ball. However, they buy Titleist because it is the name to play and they perceive it is better.
With that frame of reference, why would they not simply switch to a cheaper urathene ball that is still a Titleist? I think it is a big risk to Titleist.
Thank you, I really enjoyed the ball and Played well with it. I have been fighting swing changes the last few months and changes to the new clubs, Speedzone OL with recoil 110's. I "Should" have gone with more of a blade, i know that, then covid and i do not play as much as i used to.....I had a good warm up this morning, and things seemed to click, great day to try a new ball.
The feel off the driver was great the first shot, I hit a few low on the driver, but still hitting a 9 or 8 into the green instead of the wedge or 50 deg, not an issue for me. Again, this was the first day with the new Kirkland Putter..... a little light for me because i have not been able to get the weight lit yet, I putted very well....THe ball felt really good and not clicks off the putter. True Roll
Ok soooo a very thorough run with with these Tour Speed balls. What did I notice, a bit hard on the putter, but great roller. Clicky cover which makes sense in a little bit.
Ok sooo let's start with the big clubs... Hammered off the face today with driver and wood... No use for a hybrid today and pretty straight ball flight. Not sure if there was spin reduction in the cover/core, but they produced pretty straight balls. Could be me. Great piercing flight with good roll I'm fairways. Driver were we long ones when compared with other balls definitely a great feeling. Almost booking off the driver when I was on.
Irons felt a tad hard off the face and these ran out a long way after the carry... Some helped hitting fairways but approaches I didn't get enough room to stop.
Chipping and less than 100 were more roll out and release than current gamers that had check, but still a good amount of spin into greens, but mostly made for letting any shot into the front and them release to the hole... This hurt a few times as didn't plan on it but also didn't kill me
Good response on putter and the alignment was nice touch for aim...
All in all good balls the price point is a little more but very comparable to others offerings.
Ok sooo let's start with the big clubs... Hammered off the face today with driver and wood... No use for a hybrid today and pretty straight ball flight. Not sure if there was spin reduction in the cover/core, but they produced pretty straight balls. Could be me. Great piercing flight with good roll I'm fairways. Driver were we long ones when compared with other balls definitely a great feeling. Almost booking off the driver when I was on.
Irons felt a tad hard off the face and these ran out a long way after the carry... Some helped hitting fairways but approaches I didn't get enough room to stop.
Chipping and less than 100 were more roll out and release than current gamers that had check, but still a good amount of spin into greens, but mostly made for letting any shot into the front and them release to the hole... This hurt a few times as didn't plan on it but also didn't kill me
Good response on putter and the alignment was nice touch for aim...
All in all good balls the price point is a little more but very comparable to others offerings.
Friend gave me one of his new Tour Speed balls, unfortunately not what I expected. Nice drive, PW into green about 125, landed soft. Went to mark my ball and noticed about a half inch cut on the ball...not the kind of durability I expected. I have played a bit with the Tour Soft and no issues with durability. My guess is was just a fluke.
So I went and played my second sleeve of Titelist Tour Speed balls today while playing 9 at my home course, The Players Club at Woodland Trails in Yorktown, In. Conditions were a consistent 15 mph wind, 75 and partly sunny (glass half full kinda guy).
I only played 9 holes so I could get back to the family. The last 27 holes I played with the balls went well. Penetrating ball flight, and great for producing consistent iron shots. I was very happy with the amount of check the balls had in comparison to what I was expecting. The ball seemed to me that it looked like I was going to fly over the target but I would only end up slightly past each time. At the time didn’t see a noticeable spin or distance increase off the tee. Chipping and putting I was satisfied with. All in all I thought it was great and would recommend.
I noticed a lot of people were mentioning it scuffing easily. I didn’t see this at first. Today though as the box of the sleeve was falling a part and my balls fell out onto the parking lot from a foot high two of the balls scuffed up. Nothing too crazy but for sure noticeable.
Anyway with wind at my back the increased spin off the tee was absolutely noticeable. Balls were leaping 20 yards on the first bounce. However, the balls generally would end up the same distance as my chrome soft gamer. Part of that was my crappy swing putting me in the rough, but the increase in distance with the roll out was a real thing. As I got through the first couple holes the ball started to scuff more but no chipping in the cover. The irons, just like last time out were a low penetrating ball flight that was consistent and didn’t have too much roll out where I couldn’t hold a green. Very satisfied with how that played. My chipping with this ball was much harder this time around as the greens were baked out and very fast. Tough to go after the ball knowing if you don’t put the right spin on it, the roll out is more penalizing. I love how the balls rolls of the putter and have no qualms there. Overall I really like this ball. I’m worried about the durability, and If I’m going to spend the money will probably stick with my truvis. However, if I am in the pro shop and need to purchase balls in a pinch then these are certainly near the top of my list. I love that Titelist is offering a lower priced utherine ball that can really add some spin and bounce for drivers who hit the fairway.
Below is my scorecard for the round. Unfortunately didn’t play my best and came out with a score slightly worse than average for me. This ball isn’t Michaels secret stuff from space jam but helped me drive a 322 par 4 to set up a birdie. I think this a ball that will help me score when I’m playing my best.
Here is a hole I filmed to see what it looks like playing this ball. I apologize for the bad camera work and even worse golf.
1st shot: Driver 275 to the right rough.
2nd shot: PW 160 left of the green
3rd Shot: Epic Fail, 60 degree chip to 8 feet
4th Shot: 8 foot putt miss on the right edge
5th shot: Tap-in Bogey
I only played 9 holes so I could get back to the family. The last 27 holes I played with the balls went well. Penetrating ball flight, and great for producing consistent iron shots. I was very happy with the amount of check the balls had in comparison to what I was expecting. The ball seemed to me that it looked like I was going to fly over the target but I would only end up slightly past each time. At the time didn’t see a noticeable spin or distance increase off the tee. Chipping and putting I was satisfied with. All in all I thought it was great and would recommend.
I noticed a lot of people were mentioning it scuffing easily. I didn’t see this at first. Today though as the box of the sleeve was falling a part and my balls fell out onto the parking lot from a foot high two of the balls scuffed up. Nothing too crazy but for sure noticeable.
Anyway with wind at my back the increased spin off the tee was absolutely noticeable. Balls were leaping 20 yards on the first bounce. However, the balls generally would end up the same distance as my chrome soft gamer. Part of that was my crappy swing putting me in the rough, but the increase in distance with the roll out was a real thing. As I got through the first couple holes the ball started to scuff more but no chipping in the cover. The irons, just like last time out were a low penetrating ball flight that was consistent and didn’t have too much roll out where I couldn’t hold a green. Very satisfied with how that played. My chipping with this ball was much harder this time around as the greens were baked out and very fast. Tough to go after the ball knowing if you don’t put the right spin on it, the roll out is more penalizing. I love how the balls rolls of the putter and have no qualms there. Overall I really like this ball. I’m worried about the durability, and If I’m going to spend the money will probably stick with my truvis. However, if I am in the pro shop and need to purchase balls in a pinch then these are certainly near the top of my list. I love that Titelist is offering a lower priced utherine ball that can really add some spin and bounce for drivers who hit the fairway.
Below is my scorecard for the round. Unfortunately didn’t play my best and came out with a score slightly worse than average for me. This ball isn’t Michaels secret stuff from space jam but helped me drive a 322 par 4 to set up a birdie. I think this a ball that will help me score when I’m playing my best.
Here is a hole I filmed to see what it looks like playing this ball. I apologize for the bad camera work and even worse golf.
1st shot: Driver 275 to the right rough.
2nd shot: PW 160 left of the green
3rd Shot: Epic Fail, 60 degree chip to 8 feet
4th Shot: 8 foot putt miss on the right edge
5th shot: Tap-in Bogey
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