A few months ago, a group of forum members got a chance to head to California and more specifically Callaway Golf HQ for a trip of a lifetime. During that visit, they learned about the new Chrome Soft line of golf balls and immediately put them into play. Since that time the reviews have been posted on the THP Forum and you can read all of those here.
The Chrome Soft hits retail today and we wanted to dive in a little deeper to not only the technology that makes them different, but also what golfers should expect to see on the golf course. We chatted with Jason Finley, Director of Brand and Product Management about the specs, the story and most importantly the expectations of performance.
THP: Chrome Soft has been a huge success over the last few years for Callaway. 2020 is a fairly large change to the product, can you summarize some of the biggest differences people will see over the previous generation?
Jason Finley: What is so exciting with the new Chrome Soft in particular is that we have taken a product that golfers love and made everything about it better. We have taken all that everyone loves and improved upon it by making it longer, more consistent and higher quality. The big key to this that made it all possible is the investment we have made in our Chicopee ball plant. We would not be able to make the balls we are in 2020 without the improvements we have done in Chicopee.
THP: Both core and mantle have been redesigned, but for a lot of golfers, those changes are going to be seen rather than heard. What will they see from the new core and mantle while playing?
Jason Finley: The biggest key is that both balls will be faster but also each of the balls is designed to fit different types of golfers with more differentiation between our two balls than we have ever had. The different construction of having the mantle and core working together is what is going to drive not only the ball speed gains but also the total performance the two balls are providing.
THP: More spin around the green and less spin on full shots is the unicorn in some ways. Early testing by forum members says that Callaway has in fact nailed this. How different is it than previous offerings?
Jason Finley: This is all part of the optimization process that we are going through. Certain variables are so important to this – like the Larger inner core in the CS golf ball which is really helpful for that player type and the Dual Mantle working with the large single core in the CSX. It is also a part of our design philosophy for the Chrome Soft family of golf balls where we take more of an approach of stroked gain and how golfers who play each ball actually play the game and what they are looking for out of a golf ball.
THP: Recently a documentary aired on Callaway Golf and the Golf Channel talking bout the Chiopee plant. Learning about the investment being made over the last few years (yes years) has been staggering. How will this bring innovation and quality that is different than before?
Jason Finley: As we talked about before, all of these changes are not only allowing us to make a ball we have never been able to make before, but also dramatically improves the quality and consistency we are able to deliver in our golf balls.
THP: Callaway offers a lot of golf balls. Who do you think the Chrome Soft is best for?
Jason Finley: The vast majority of those who are BUYING golf balls are going to benefit most from Chrome Soft. It is going to be longer all around the golf course and provide tremendous spin and control around the green. The Chrome Soft and its lower compression will also be a more forgiving golf ball which will help to be longer around the golf course as a result of losing less speed on mishits.
THP: Triple Track, Truvis, White. How many choices exist for our readers?
Jason Finley: Depending on the ball, there are a lot of choices and we think that is good for golfers. Leading the way is Triple Track which is rooted in the science of Hyper Acuity and how our eyes work. This is aimed for the player to look for help with improving alignment. Truvis provides a unique visual alignment option for players looking for better focus and visibility and also some unique color combinations.
The new Callaway Chrome Soft hits retail stores today. Pricing is $47.99 per dozen. Are you going to try them? Have you tried them? Drop a note in the comments below and let us know your thoughts.
That’s interesting. Your findings differ from nearly every professional review I’ve watched. Also, what about the Mavrik driver build is fragile?
UPDATE: Nevermind. Let’s keep it on topic.
Looks like my decision was made for me, at least for another day or so. The mini DSG near my house was out of the CSX, so I grabbed some TT CS for league tonight. Planning on running some errands later this week, so I’ll just include a visit to a real golf store.
They will be going with me for our golf weekend away this week though, so will likely give them a try out over the 4 days at some point
Also his facts are wrong. 9 out 27 is 33% not 90%. He must be one of those folks who makes up things to fit his own narrative, facts be damned. This 2020 wins by club contract. 2 of the mixed bags had a TaylorMade fairway wood (Reed and Brendan Todd) only and one had a set of TaylorMade irons (Daniel Berger) in case everyone is wondering.
I need to snag a sleeve of these new Chromesofts. The latest offerings from Bridgestone and Srixon have been awesome, I really want to see how this new model performs against the others. CS has usually been higher launching and lower spinning for me which I really like. The lower spin has never been an issue for me since I play softer muni greens anyways.
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Dang, those look reallllll good!
I still think the 2020 CS is a bit shorter than my regular gamer, the Q-Star Tour, not just with the driver, but with irons and wedges too, but not enough to be a deal breaker.
Feel and spin on and around the greens is this ball’s strongest point for me. Chipping with it gives me a very predictable check and release, I hit the pin on one long chip today, and left two others within a foot or so. All of these were low bump and run type chips, my go to shot around greens, checking up just right on that first bounce, then releasing to a smooth roll. The feel off the putter is excellent too, pleasantly soft, but not so soft to feel dead or mushy.
Nice drive with the 2020 CS, left this 100yd approach on a short par-4.
Not sure about that. I have played both and can hit both straight. The CSX is designed for a bit higher swing speed players and guys/gals who work the ball with ease.
I would guess the CS will give you everything you need
Feel is very dependent on the user. I prefer the 2020 version for feel. Is it club specific that it feels firmer or all the way thru the bag?
All the way through the bag but WAY more noticeable on the irons. I still have 6 left and I’m going to give them another go until I loose them.
Yeah I’m guessing I should buy a sleeve of both to test if I’m being honest. I also sit in that grey area with my swing speed, where Callaway puts me in the CS. When I played with their ball fitting tool it would leave me in the CS until you said your average drive was 300 yard, only then did it move the recommendation to CSX. I can get the ball out to 300+ but I’d say I more regularly live in the 280 range.
The most noticeable thing was that I continued to have some directional issues off the tees. I putted quite well today – I like how this ball feels on the firmer end of the spectrum but that it is not clicky like the prior version of this ball off the putter (really off all clubs). Iron distances seemed a little short but remember those winds. Distance off the tees…really hard to tell too much given the conditions. There were a few instances where I reached areas I normally dint reach, which is a good sign.
I’d give it a 8.5 out of 10.
Per recommendation from a few folks in this community to lower my ball flight, I bought a sleeve of 2020 CS. With regards to feel, I do like the ‘clickier’ feel of the ball. Again, like others have said, this is really personal.
Feel
Compared to the previous generation Chrome Soft standard, the new X definitely feels more firm off all clubs with a different sound at impact, especially off the driver, but I would expect that as I am not really comparing the same ball
Good
In the wind it appeared to perform very well for me, at Close House I hit a downhill tee shot into the wind that carried 250yds before plugging in the top of a bunker which had me wondering how much total distance I might have managed if I had missed the bunker, and at my home course I hit one around 270yds and followed that with an approach that led to a birdie
My usual result with full shot approaches is to see the ball stop fairly quick, and I was seeing this all day with this ball, including one approach that I hit slightly long on purpose to ensure I carried the ball far enough (short is dead and will spin back off the green) and it hit the slope behind the pin and spun back and right towards the pin
Partial shots around the green had some nice bite which allowed me to be quite aggressive, and even up to around 60yds the ball would be pretty much stuck to the pitch mark
Bad
The only thing I can question about this ball is the durability – for only a couple of rounds it had more marks than I would have expected to see considering it only clipped a couple branches, but it didn’t seem to have an impact on performance, just the visual appearance
Overall it has performed well for the limited time I have had it in play, and hopefully I can get more information over this weekend playing at my home course where I know what to expect
I will also try to find some time to try the standard 2020 Chrome Soft, but playing in comps both days I might stick to the X this weekend
I was very impressed with this ball off the tee. I was able to successfully shape the ball, but did not have any swings that resulted in a slice or hook even when attempting to hit that shape. I’ve found often that I exaggerate everything when trying to shape the ball which leads to the slice/hook. I didn’t have that issue at all yesterday. Whether I just had my good swing or the ball was helping I’m not sure, but I loved it.
I was a little disappointed with greenside and wedge spin. I had been seeing chips and wedge shots check and stop nicely with the 19 CSX ball. There was considerable rollout on everything with the wedges. I will caveat that statement though as it was cold (45 at tee-off), and dew was present throughout the round so that may very well be the reason for lack of spin (of course, user error can never be ruled out). I have been playing most of my golf mid-day or later when the course has dried out.
I’ll try to get some pictures uploaded of the ball condition. The ball did survive all 9 holes for me, which is rare, but did meet a couple trees and a cart path once. The ball did show some wear, but I’m not sure if it was enough to effect playability.
Conditions were very windy but it seemed to handle it quite well, although not quite as well as the X from what I could tell
I swapped to the X for the back nine of the comp on Sunday and whether I had just finally got my game together or whether it was the ball but I shot a 1 over par 37 for that stretch in the winds we had
Unfortunately I probably won’t get to play for a couple of weeks as we are going to stay with my mother for a week whilst the builders knock a load of walls down at home so we need to move all of Jen’s work equipment up to her house this coming weekend and then move it all back again the weekend after
The good:
– the ball seems to cut through the wind really well which is a big deal in our area since it’s constantly windy.
– distance is right up there with anything in the market and probably a little longer than most. I seem to get a good amount of roll out off the driver. Compared to the regular CS I would say it’s maybe a couple yards longer.
– spin has been really good. From 100 yards and in I can be quite aggressive when going at the pin.
Neutral feedback:
– this ball is probably a bit more firm than I prefer feel wise. It’s not a deal breaker but I tend to like a little softer feel. This is where the regular CS wins for me.
The bad:
– this could be in my head but it seems like this ball is less forgiving on bad swings. I feel like I lose a little more distance when it’s not struck well.
– here is my biggest complaint: durability. So far in 27 holes I’ve had scuffs on 4 different balls. 3 were from sand shots. The fourth I can’t figure out because I didn’t hit any sand or objects after putting it in play. It wasn’t a huge mark but it’s not something I would expect from this level or price point of a golf ball.
Overall I’ve really enjoyed the ball so far. The firmness off the putter is taking some adjusting but I’m going to put another putter in play next round and see how that goes. I’ll be honest the durability is a little troubling but looking at pure performance it’s been pretty impressive.
I will try putting both balls in play for a a few holes at a time and see if there are any other things I notice – will be keeping an eye on the X specifically to see how much more it scuffs up (unless I manage to lose it quickly) as it has been played for a couple of rounds now
I couldn’t figure it out until you said it, this is the issue I’m having though. Not so much bad swings, but the not as good of contact/center strikes lose more distance than I see with the regular CS.
It’s weird, I’ve never really thought about ball forgiveness but I swear there is a difference compared to the regular CS.
i agree 2020cs is not as soft as 2018cs, but that’s a good thing for me.
I agree. I love that they firmed the regular CS up a bit. The last version was just a little too marshmallowy for me.
Swing harder. Duh.
Crazy I see this today after noticing this exact thing last night. Course was dead so I played the CS and CSx. I definitely noticed on poorer contact that the CSx wasn’t as long. Thought I was going crazy because the CS was almost always the same distance regardless of the strike (within reason of course) and the CSx had more variance in my distances.
Well not all of us are built like a Greek god my friend.
What does @ArmyGolf have to do with this?!
Clearly I need you guys to talk to my wife, or just brush up on your Greek mythology.
Nope, we have it figured out.
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Nailed it.
so perfect
This is how I feel about the CS and CSX. I am still trying to figure out which I like better overall and even have been throwing ERC into the mix since I have played quite a bit with that ball.
I have hit some really nice drives with the CSX but prefer everything else of the CS ball.
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I still have a full sleeve left, two still new, the other in very playable condition, so I will post more next time out.
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2018 is noticeably softer. It feels like hitting a hard rubber ball, wrapped in a marshmallow. Other than that, from what I saw, spin was better off short irons and wedges, side spin off the driver was reduced, and feels like a little harder ball. I’m in the minority and prefer the 2018 version over the 2020 in CS. If you like the 2018 ball, try the 2020. It does preform better, but for my game, that little bit of performance enhancement is not going to make much of a difference, and when you bring the price into it, to me it’s not worth it. Again, this is only MY opinion, as others have had more success than I have.