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Looking for a unbiased STATS page for ball evaluations

SuperStroke
zbeekner4

zbeekner4

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Ok so I cant ever seem to find a stats page online that truly is unbiased. I am specifically looking for a side-by-side comparison of premium golf balls and their distances off the driver if all other factors are the same. I am sure that some company with one of those robot golf swing machines has done this test, right?? I just want to know if I hit a Bridgestone, Callaway and ProV1 with my driver exactly the same, which would give me the best distance. I know there are other factors like swing speed, spin, etc but just want to know which ball goes farthest and then go from there.
 
I'm not sure where you are located but most fitters around here do ball fittings as well. In my experience distance with all the premium balls are basically identical. Where it matters for me is around the greens.
 
Honestly how far the ball goes has more to do with your swing than the make up of the ball. Now if you play a lower spinning ball, you might end up longer than a high spinning Pro V when you don't strike it true, but comparatively they should go about the same distances. It comes down to personal preference and ultimately testing them yourself. Here's a chart to narrow down the compression and spin you're looking for first, then test which one works best. https://public.tableau.com/profile/mathieu7002#!/vizhome/2014GolfBallsComparaisonChart/Dashboard1

With that said, I've yet to find another ball longer than Wilson Velocity (Orange) off the tee and all other shots. The downfall is it has virtually no spin around the greens.
 
Zbuechner4 said:
Ok so I cant ever seem to find a stats page online that truly is unbiased. I am specifically looking for a side-by-side comparison of premium golf balls and their distances off the driver if all other factors are the same. I am sure that some company with one of those robot golf swing machines has done this test, right?? I just want to know if I hit a Bridgestone, Callaway and ProV1 with my driver exactly the same, which would give me the best distance. I know there are other factors like swing speed, spin, etc but just want to know which ball goes farthest and then go from there.
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Golf digest used to do some pretty cool ball testing, not sure if they still do. It compared spin off driver and in short game.

As far as the longest ball I don't think it exists. I think it will all depend on what you need out of a ball off the tee.
 
Zbuechner4 said:
Ok so I cant ever seem to find a stats page online that truly is unbiased. I am specifically looking for a side-by-side comparison of premium golf balls and their distances off the driver if all other factors are the same. I am sure that some company with one of those robot golf swing machines has done this test, right?? I just want to know if I hit a Bridgestone, Callaway and ProV1 with my driver exactly the same, which would give me the best distance. I know there are other factors like swing speed, spin, etc but just want to know which ball goes farthest and then go from there.
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That would come down to multiple things. Driver spin is removed by properly compressing a golf ball. Here is a great interview with an engineer of golf balls that explains how golf balls work. Where to find ball speed and why? And more.

http://www.thehackersparadise.com/the-golf-industry-uncut-volume-15-srixon-golf-balls-rd/
 
I own a monitor and probably have spent more time looking at launch, spin, carry numbers than most people. Full disclosure, I am of average swing speed.

The ball has been the equipment thing that has surprised me the most on how much it changes the outcome. It obviously depends on the strike quality. Back to back, you can see some very different numbers, but if you hit enough shots it does start to normalize.

What has surprised me is how much better the low spin balls are for launch and distance. One can easily see 1-2 degrees higher launch angle difference and 500-800 RPM reduction in spin. Higher launch and lower spin definitely picks distance up. I've personally also seen a little less side spin off the driver. If you're after this, go for the "cheap" two piece balls that most scorn.

The counter is around the greens and wedges. I've seen up to 1000 RPM difference on average and peak numbers being even larger spread on the higher spin balls. On wedge spin, the quality of strike seems to have more impact than the ball. The ball has impact, but delivering the club will spike or reduce spin a lot more. I also personally find the higher spin balls to spin more on other clubs, so it kind of cuts both ways. For me, some of the "better" 4 piece balls aren't good fits for what is best for me out of a ball, including the #1 ball in golf.

As with anything, your mileage may vary.......
 
I've never seen a comparison but I've played quite a few. I find that soft surlyn cover balls such as the E6, supersoft, AD33 and TrueSoftetc. go the longest of the tee for me by about 5-10 yards.

The premium urethane balls such as pro-v1, chrome soft, z-star and B330 lose a little distance but have much more feel and spin on the irons / wedges.

I see your profile says 36 handicap. I was there not that long ago and from my experience I would get as far away from tour Balls as possible. If you slice / hook sometimes the tour balls exaggerate that spin at least 2 fold. I would look in the cheaper surlyn cover balls for distance and a straighter flight. I use to love the Wilson 50 Elites, Nike Super Far and Noodle+. All at about $1 a ball and all play pretty decent from tee to green. The tour balls start to benefit you when you can choose to shape a shot and adjust your angle for punch, flop or knockdown shots.
 
ryebread said:
I own a monitor and probably have spent more time looking at launch, spin, carry numbers than most people. Full disclosure, I am of average swing speed.

The ball has been the equipment thing that has surprised me the most on how much it changes the outcome. It obviously depends on the strike quality. Back to back, you can see some very different numbers, but if you hit enough shots it does start to normalize.

What has surprised me is how much better the low spin balls are for launch and distance. One can easily see 1-2 degrees higher launch angle difference and 500-800 RPM reduction in spin. Higher launch and lower spin definitely picks distance up. I've personally also seen a little less side spin off the driver. If you're after this, go for the "cheap" two piece balls that most scorn.

The counter is around the greens and wedges. I've seen up to 1000 RPM difference on average and peak numbers being even larger spread on the higher spin balls. On wedge spin, the quality of strike seems to have more impact than the ball. The ball has impact, but delivering the club will spike or reduce spin a lot more. I also personally find the higher spin balls to spin more on other clubs, so it kind of cuts both ways. For me, some of the "better" 4 piece balls aren't good fits for what is best for me out of a ball, including the #1 ball in golf.


As with anything, your mileage may vary.......
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I have found the same thing from various monitors and just around the green hitting a bunch of different balls.
 
BamBooBender said:
I have found the same thing from various monitors and just around the green hitting a bunch of different balls.
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Its not just wedge spin, its every club. In general terms, you can break up the club face into sections and spin will either go up or down dependent on that strike. For instance, lower on the face will increase spin and decrease launch. Higher on the face, will decrease spin and increase launch, but also decrease ball speed.
 
JB said:
Its not just wedge spin, its every club. In general terms, you can break up the club face into sections and spin will either go up or down dependent on that strike. For instance, lower on the face will increase spin and decrease launch. Higher on the face, will decrease spin and increase launch, but also decrease ball speed.
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100% correct. That is what I have found as well, makes more difference than sliding CG weights also.
 
ryebread said:
I own a monitor and probably have spent more time looking at launch, spin, carry numbers than most people. Full disclosure, I am of average swing speed.

The ball has been the equipment thing that has surprised me the most on how much it changes the outcome. It obviously depends on the strike quality. Back to back, you can see some very different numbers, but if you hit enough shots it does start to normalize.

What has surprised me is how much better the low spin balls are for launch and distance. One can easily see 1-2 degrees higher launch angle difference and 500-800 RPM reduction in spin. Higher launch and lower spin definitely picks distance up. I've personally also seen a little less side spin off the driver. If you're after this, go for the "cheap" two piece balls that most scorn.

The counter is around the greens and wedges. I've seen up to 1000 RPM difference on average and peak numbers being even larger spread on the higher spin balls. On wedge spin, the quality of strike seems to have more impact than the ball. The ball has impact, but delivering the club will spike or reduce spin a lot more. I also personally find the higher spin balls to spin more on other clubs, so it kind of cuts both ways. For me, some of the "better" 4 piece balls aren't good fits for what is best for me out of a ball, including the #1 ball in golf.

As with anything, your mileage may vary.......
Click to expand...

So lets say you're playing in a scramble and you're on the long-drive hole....assuming you would use one of the 2-piece balls that you referred to, what ball would you use?
 
Zbuechner4 said:
So lets say you're playing in a scramble and you're on the long-drive hole....assuming you would use one of the 2-piece balls that you referred to, what ball would you use?
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Zack: I personally think things like the Supersoft, Wilson Duo, Srixon Soft Feel, etc. are all about the same. Pick the one you like aesthetically or that are on sale.

JB: Agreed on the club face sections and club delivery. The number 1 thing for performance is always how the club is delivered and the quality of the strike.

I'm just talking about trends I've seen and where the ball can make a difference. More expensive and more layers isn't necessarily better. I think the average 15-30 handicap player would be much better off tee to green (and ultimately on the scorecard) playing a Supersoft than they would a ProV1. Their wallet would appreciate it and I'd appreciate it when playing behind them. :)
 
The cover really is not going to impact spin off the tee. That comes from compressing the golf ball. There are golf balls with urethane covers that are multilayer and easy to compress. Wilson DUO Urethane and Bridgestone RX come to mind.

The bal can only spin in one axis therefore it will be straighter flight. That is of course assuming one isn't steep and over the top, those two things are creating a glancing blow and won't be reducing spin generally speaking no matter what ball is used.
 
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