Unscientific Golf Ball Test

alii1959

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A wee bit about me: i haven't played a lot since 2004. I took time off, but the addiction returned. Low and behold times sure have changed. All of the golf balls I really liked....are gone. Nobody makes them anymore. I hardly recognized anything at any of the stores. So, I have been experimenting. Started with the Nitro balls from Wally World...figured they were cheap to lose. Then I tried a bunch of others. None of them suit me exactly as I remembered. Thus, this afternoon's ball test.

I have gotten my hands on the following balls: Nitro Ultimate distance, Nike Mojo, Wilson chaos, Wilson Duo, Wilson Staff Fifty Elite, a Srixon of some sort, a Titleist DT toursoft, and a Titleist ProV1X. I have used all of them on the course with the exceptions of the DT and the Srixon. With varying results, as you might imagine. So, i set up my test as follows. I place targets, hula hoops, across from one another and used matts to hit off of. This gave me, more or less, the same conditions and lies for each shot. I then varied the distance between the hoops thinking that maybe a longer shot would make a difference. Thus, I was using my lousy swing, with the same club, from the same lie, to the same distance on each shot. Now for the results:

I am really glad I didn't by a box of Srixons.....hate that ball. I don't seem to have any control over it at all.

The Wilson Duos aren't far behind. Can't seem to stop the buggers. Hit 'em high, low, medium, etc. it just keeps going, and going, and going.

The Wilson Chaos weren't too bad. Still were harder for me to control than the rest, but I did have an idea where they would end up.

The Titleist DT was nothing remarkable, at all. Wasn't better or worse than those listed above.

The Nike Mojos were better than the Wilson Chaos. I could tell when I hit a good shot without looking. They did run out a bit more than I wanted, at times, but i could control the run out, the trajectory, and the distance....well, most of the time.

The Nitro balls were a blast to hit. They tended to drop where I intended and didn't roll out very much. I was able to treat them much like I did the Mojos with similar results.

Now, for the big dog on the block. ProV1X, for me very low trajectory. The ball stopped quickly. If I made a great shot it was amazing. BUT, if I didn't, there wasn't much help coming from the ball. Felt like hitting a marshmallow. It did not jump off of the club face. It did not instill much confidence.

All that said, I must confess that I am not a tour professional. My swing isn't always repeatable. I made an effort to differentiate between bad shots, bad hops, and truly bad results. So, obviously your results may vary.

I am neither a ball or club snob. I play what works for me. I buy used stuff. I buy cheap stuff. I just now replace a Dunlop driver from WalMart with a used Ping Rapture 10.5 degree (really love this driver).

Now, the analysis of my unscientific results: Me, I like a ball that jumps off the club face. One that gives me a high trajectory...I usually hit the ball low. And, one that will roll out a bit. I tend to play for that roll out. The results above are a mirror image of the results I saw on the course, with a lot more variance in the lies, conditions, etc. I like the "click" sound off the club face, for some strange reason. Thus for me, the Mojo (and the nasty old) Nitro ball seem to fit the bill, for now. I cannot guarantee that I will always hit the ball well, swing properly, or have a great lie, so the ProV1X, probably won't be a regular in my bag. (on the course i hit a couple of shots that stuck 10 feet from the pin from beyond 150 yards. I was amazed. Of course, then later I couldn't clear the short tree that was in my way, or the trap, or....well, you get the idea.) Especially while my handicap continues to hover around 10. When I get back down to single digits, consistently, maybe. As far as he others are concerned....I absolutely despise the Wilson Duos. Hate, hate, hate. Can't lose them in the woods fast enough. The rest you can read above.

Hope you enjoyed by little rant, review, experiment, and frustration.
 
Sounds like you had some fun with the testing.
 
That I did. Generally speaking, it is very difficult to test golf balls. Unless something is extraordinary or awful, it is hard to tell what suit you. Especially, if you are like me, and your swing is constantly redefining itself. Testing on-course isn't controlled enough for me to trust. Yes, this was fun. And, I plan to do this some more over the next few weeks. Thanks for the reply.
 
That I did. Generally speaking, it is very difficult to test golf balls. Unless something is extraordinary or awful, it is hard to tell what suit you. Especially, if you are like me, and your swing is constantly redefining itself. Testing on-course isn't controlled enough for me to trust. Yes, this was fun. And, I plan to do this some more over the next few weeks. Thanks for the reply.

Always. Fun is the name of the game.
 
Sounds like you had a good time testing what works out for you the best. I know that can definitely instill confidence out on the course while you are playing when you know you have the ball that fits your game the best.
 
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