2019 Srixon Z Star and Z Star XV Golf Balls

I was lucky enough to get selected to test the 2019 Srixon Z Star and XV Prototypes on twitter.





Z Star Core



XV Core

Cool. Looking forward to your feedback. Both balls in the Z Star line have always felt a little harder to me than I prefer. The XV I can understand but hoping to see the regular Z Star play at a little softer feel / lower compression in one of these generations.

Srixon Z Star and Z Star XV 2019 Ball

Srixon Z Star and Z Star XV 2019 Ball

Initial Thoughts:

Putting:

I’ve been rolling both versions of the balls at home on carpet practicing putting and the sound is a nice click off of both balls.

Nothing too different from the balls I’m typically gaming (Chromesoft graphene Truvis) or old Bridgestone B330 ball the click might be a bit louder and less muted but I’m not really a big sound guy with putters.

The balls roll true and react well off of both a milled face and the Odyssey Microhinge/white hot face in the EXO.

Putting On Course:

Today was the first day I actually was able to play a round with them. Greens were that weird softer because it had rained but still firm because the average temp this time of year is 39*

In the elements the cold and wind, the sound was less audible and seemed a bit more mutes but still the click. Which is fine.

The XV felt softer off the face to me than the Z - but that may have been conditions/ today.

Short Game:

The Z Star really outshone the XV (however neither ball is a slouch and both perform great in that distance) for me today from 50 yards and in.

With the Z Star I was getting more check and spin keeping it within 3” of my divots.

I even chipped in for birdie with the Z Star from 5 yards off the green - low runner, rolled right in.

XV was still a solid ball and on the longer wedge shots I liked the ball flight a bit better seemed to be a steeper launch angle and still came down and bit hard - however the closer around the green and where I was short sided and needed the high shot to just die, it rolled out a bit more.

Both of these balls I feel like I could game with some practice and getting them dialed in though.

Approach Shots:

The XV had a higher more penetrating trajectory for me than the Z Star.

I could get the Z Star up in the air, however it seemed to struggle a bit more in the wind for me than the XV, it got up but didn’t cut through like the XV

The XV was the superior ball for me with the shaft/head combination I have right now in the wind.

Z Star stopped better (it was close) on more shots than the XV though.

On Par 3s (And this is swing dependent) I hit my better approaches of the day with the Z Star GIR nothing thinned and solid birdie opportunities with close proximity to the hole.

Driver:

I played multiple drivers with different shaft combinations today so it wasn’t the best day for consistent strikes.

I also played more driver shots with the XV than the Z Star.

However on two specific holes the XV cut through the wind and delivered the distance I was looking for on a line that I had intended.

I also hit some Bombs today where my distance was equal to or better than the B330 ball which I play in the winter.

The one well executed drive with the Z Star was probably my highest peak height (into the wind on a downhill par 4 and I was about 10 yards longer than my playing partner (this was the only drive I outdrove him all day)

Cons:

In my past experience with the Z Star and XV the cover was one of my favorite aspects because the durability I felt was superior to many other comparable balls in the market.





I don’t know if the pics are doing it justice but I’ve never had a previous version gouge the cover like this - cart path and tree damage

I lost the one Z Star I was playing but the damage to that one was minimal (barely some scuffing) before it took the dreaded swim in the pond

Overall thoughts:

Both balls are right where I would expect them to perform- I think I was shocked about the short game difference more from past history and current gamers - but if you told me I was playing either one of these for 2019, I would have no problem putting them into play.

Also I was blown away (pun intended) by the XV performance in the wind, in some other OEM balls I’ve had issues with them being eaten up by the wind and disappointed with the performance but I think I’ve found my 2019 wind ball in the XV

Nice review Alex! I’d like to try the ball when it’s available. If it drives in the wind that well, I can see how it compares to what I’m using currently. My home course is a Links course right off a large lake and the wind is no joke here.


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Nice review.

Man that XV cover is pretty chewed up. I recently played a round with the XV and ZStar as I have a few dozen left of these and the covers didn't do that. I like these balls when I'm not playing Chromesofts.

Nice write-up, hoping they have those 6 pack trial sleeves again to give these a shot! Always been a fan of Z-Star and still have a dozen or so of pre-2019 version in the basement stockpile.

That's my favorite part of the z star line, how the cover doesn't gouge. While I had the odd one gouge on short irons or full wedges, it was significantly better than the prov1.

I'm most likely going to transition to one of these balls, but I'll be sure to do get a trial pack of both before committing to one.

Nice write up. Will be looking for some more info.

Great input Alex. Enjoyed reading your thoughts!

lots of filler in those balls. golf isn't very eco-friendly, but I think there is something to be gained from marketing the use of recycled materials.

i find it interesting that the mantle layer is so much thicker in the XV

Great review Alex. I'm looking forward to gaming the 2019 versions of both balls


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Great review thank you.

Good stuff Alex. I've been a fan of both prior versions of those balls. I'll have to check out the 2019 versions soon.

Thanks for the info. My gamer last year was the Q Star Tour but im looking to see what the Z Star and XV have to offer me this year over the Q.

Just to add - the majority of my time with previous versions of the ball was/is the XV Star vs the Z Star

I've always been a fan of prior Z Star versions. Thanks for the initial write up.

OITW said:

Just to add - the majority of my time with previous versions of the ball was/is the XV Star vs the Z Star

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good stuff Alex.

if you ahd to chose, would you pick the short game abilties of the Zstar or the long game for the ZstarXV? or would it be wind dependant?

MPlefty said:

good stuff Alex.

if you ahd to chose, would you pick the short game abilties of the Zstar or the long game for the ZstarXV? or would it be wind dependant?

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The past couple of seasons I started choosing my ball from the green out.

So I might lean toward Z Star, my swing/game has changes significantly since I last gamed these regularly.

However, with the wind peformance - XV might become my go to in Windy conditions regardless of the time of year.

I think I’ll end up grabbing a dozen of each of these balls and put them up agains the Chromesoft when we get in season and make a decision when it’s not 40* and 30mph winds lol

Nice review! I’ve always loved the distance of the XV and the feel of the regular Z. I hope they kept the same bright white cover. It was always the brightest ball in the group.


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Thanks for the good writeup and photos Alex.

Does it have the same cover material as the QST?

I'm keeping an eye on these because I've been using the QST for the last couple of years and really like it but I think that it might be a bit too soft for me so I'm considering going back to the Z-Star XV.

kenh said:

Thanks for the good writeup and photos Alex.

Does it have the same cover material as the QST?

I'm keeping an eye on these because I've been using the QST for the last couple of years and really like it but I think that it might be a bit too soft for me so I'm considering going back to the Z-Star XV.

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I don’t have any QSTs handy - if my regular playing partners have them I will let you know

OITW said:

I don’t have any QSTs handy - if my regular playing partners have them I will let you know

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I might have one kicking around. I’ll check and let you know.

Nice write up. I've always loved Z-star with its greenside bite and predictable ball flight. I have also experienced similar durability when bounced off things that aren't green.

OITW said:

I don’t have any QSTs handy - if my regular playing partners have them I will let you know

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I have a sleeve I might be willing to trade for some of them fancy new Z-Star balls :alien2:

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I'm a Z-Star player so I'm looking forward to hearing all your thoughts on this ball. It just seems to really fit my game well.