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 was sort of the reason I was asking. My parents live on a golf course and have quite the supply of balls that have landed in their yard over the years (they’re on the left side of the first fairway and in the 220-250 yard range from the tee box, so they’re in prime position for a lot of balls). In any event, I have been experimenting with balls, and I’ve had a few CS in the bag that I pulled from my parents’ collection, and feel like I’ve been hitting them really well (related note: I hit a pitch on Tuesday with a Truvis version and because of that, it was easy to see the change in spin direction once it hit the green, bounced in the air, landed and stopped, which was sort of cool).
In any event, I’ve been contemplating trying them out more extensively to compare to the Z-Star, Maxfli Tour and Tour X, Kirkland Sigs, and the Tour BRX that I have "in stock" at the house. But, I am currently at a level, where I am probably unlikely to notice a huge difference between the 2018 and 2020 balls, even with changes, though I suppose you never know until you try them.
For me, the new balls feel similar to the Q-star. Compression on the new ball (depending on where you look) is around 75 where as the 2018 was supposed to be 65 ish. Both new and old (again for me) were noticeably farther off every club in the bag by at least 5 yards over the Z-star and on well hit shots were an entire club longer. Hands down, I would choose the new CS over both the Z&Q-Stars. Never played the Maxfli balls, and would choose the CS over the Kirkland balls (new and old) any day of the week. The BRX is definitely going to be more firm than the CS and will possibly feel like the CSX, but don’t quote me on it as I like the soft feeling (not a big fan of the 100 compression stuff).
Took a couple holes to get used to (especially the feel off the putter), but am really liking it so far. Felt dialed in with it last night. Good off the driver, great feel and spin off my wedges. Highlight was on 9, about 60 yards left on approach, then hit a pitch that had one hop and stopped 10 inches from the hole for a tap in birdie.
I’ll disagree on the wind aspect. I thought that the 2018 ball was dynamite in the wind, whereas the 2020 is more affected by it.
Just my mileage of course.
Interesting. I always felt like the last model ballooned on me. I saw some ballooning today but that’s mostly on me adding loft to my irons.
I agree. I didn’t think that prior gen ball handled the wind well at all. This 2020 model is a different beast all together.
I played it today in 15mph winds and had no issues. Love the check up it gives me and the feel on the short game and putter.
Especially with irons – I think the CS does better on mishits. Maybe it’s a feel thing and not real, but overall I think I’ve found I overall play better with the CS. It’s a fantastic all-around ball, and one I keep going back to.
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Same here, man.
I need a yellow CSX TT. I’d buy 10 dozen ?
So there you have it, a really good ball, and one I would highly recomend trying. It pretty much checks all the boxes, the only minus for me is value, and that is simply the result of the QST giving me nearly as much performance, and so much more bang for the buck.
I’ve found the CSx to perform so well for me. The CS is interesting because on the monitor it doesn’t win any single category. Its not the fastest or the highest or the spinniest with an iron – but it always plays well on the course for me.
I’d agree on price point, especially since it joined the upper echelon in that regard. I think it was better priced at $39.99 and even better when on sale at $34.99 for prior year releases. The CSX on the other hand has been stellar for me. I still miss the lower price point but it’s been so good!
Everything this!
I really hope they do a 4 for 3 deal in late winter/early spring. I will pay the extra freight but they need to do it to compete with everyone else.
i really like this ball off the tee and into the greens with wedges. It allows me to be aggressive with my wedges knowing the the ball will check and have minimal roll out.
off the putter whatever firmness i felt early on is gone. I’m not sure if it’s my putter or what, but the “click” I heard/felt at impact is gone.
Should there really be inconsistencies in production batches after $50 mil in facility upgrades to eliminate inconsistencies though? I feel like that hopeful statement is equally troubling if true or not true.
i think 2020 is a hall pass year. staffing issues. materials issues. logistics issues. it’s a year where if it can go wrong, nobody should be surprised if it does go wrong. i have no idea if the issue is batch related, or just me making a crap swing or a piece of rock caused the scuffs. it’s not like i’m seeing scuffs out of the middle of the fairway or off a tee. the worst i have seen are out of bunkers. and rocks are very common where i live, even on nicer courses. but yesterday i was in a lot of bunkers, and played the same ball almost the whole round with no issues. who knows?!
While I applaud your willingness to understand (seriously, how nice are you?! Lol), I don’t think a manufacturer who had the ball issues they did really gets a hall pass year. I’d argue that they should, if anything, hold themselves to an even higher standard than expected by consumers.
That’s all IF there was some kind of batch inconsistency. All of mine (4 different sources and purchase dates) were pretty crap on durability.
i wish your durability issue was an isolated incident. alas, i’ve heard more people with similar issues than those who have seen really good durability like i have. it’s such a good ball, i don’t care about a few scuffs here and there.
But you have to ask yourself, what do you expect from a premium ball(s) where the core is as large as possible for speed and the cover is so blasted thin? The more go fast material used means there’ll be less cover materia which generally leads to less durability. I think it’s not a manufacturing issue as much as it is a design outcome.
I have seen similar results on the course and on the launch monitor.
I’m going to describe the process of doing upgrades to a production environment is unfortunately more difficult.
That said, I hope these upgrades work and they tighten up the QC issues.
I say this as a huge fan of the TXG guys. Honestly, I love their stuff and I’m an avid watcher and subscriber. They’ve kind of hilariously proven this last year though that they can’t fit Matty for **** ‘in studio’ for on course performance. They spent all last offseason doing ball tests and deciding what was best for him and 3 ROUNDS into the season he was telling Ian during a live chat, adamantly, that they needed to do a ball fit. lol That he was seeing too much spin and was coming up short, etc, etc, etc. It really showed the problem with indoor, closed settings ball fits when guys that good can’t put one of themselves in the right ball for the course. There was a whole thing about it in the comments, and it’s the most grief I’ve ever seen them take.
I do like some things about the CSX, personally, and don’t doubt that it fits you well. I don’t think it deserves anywhere near the loyalty it receives though either. People want to like it, even when it’s a bad fit for them, in the same weird way the always have from my perspective. I’ll never understand it, especially at the price.
Its probably best for another thread but I do remember that. They really put themselves out there with what they’re doing.
There are 3 balls that I can put in play and know that I’m not sacrificing anything or making any trade-offs, and the 2020 CSx is one of them.
I could understand if you were speaking about the 19 and before CSX. It was a mushy ball to me and the ball speed wasn’t there which lead to 9 yards less off the tee against the ProV1X. The 20CSX beat the 19 ProV1x for me. The triple track also helps me line up putts which is a benefit. I really like it in the wind too, it just seems super stable.
i agree with @ArmyGolf this is probably better for a different thread, but both matt and ian have said matt is changing his game to be less about power and more about control. that could definitely mean a need for new equipment.
as to the ball, the txg guys made some pretty bold claims about just how good the 2020 csx is. great spin into the greens. fast off irons but with elevated spin. fast and consistent off driver but with perfect spin to hit the correct window and stay there. i know our grandaddy team has all seen extremely impressive performance out of the 2020 csx. it’s absolutely the best ball i have ever played.
It has been a great ball for me. I can definitely say that it is every bit as good as ProV1x if not better for me. I played the regular CS in the early months of the season. The CSX definitely gave me more stopping power on irons and wedges. And, it’s longer off the driver. Only one complaint about the ball. I cannot find it locally. The most I had ever seen in stock in one location is 2 dozen. Never found the Triple Track version. I would go in looking for a dozen balls and walk out with Z Star XV’s because the CSX was nowhere to be found. I meant to order online a few times. But, I never thought of it until I was low on balls. Then, I couldn’t wait for shipping so I would gamble and hope I could find them. Even the regular Chrome Soft didn’t seem to be well stocked.
If you ever need them in a pinch, I should be able to get them to you in a day or 2. They usually have them at PGATSS.
Sadly, my days of needing golf balls are over for at least the next 6 months
But, appreciate the offer
Yeah, I almost stopped reading because this tried to completely subvert my point. The ball they had just finished deciding he would play for this year from studio tests is the one that didn’t work. There were no changes made then. They didn’t spin any into greens yesterday, hit any real world windows either, or into any wind, or anything else, which is what I was saying. He hasn’t actually played it yet and it took one weekend doing that last time around for him need to change balls. Not a strike on the ball necessarily, just on indoor numbers. Just an imperfect crossover.
I’m glad it’s been a good fit for you. If it held up better for me, I would play it some. On one course especially.
Curious about this statement. Have you witnessed this first hand? Anyone that I have talked to that has it in play seems to think it’s a great fit for them. I am not foolish enough to say it will work for or fit everyone. But, I can’t write off the buzz that it has received.
i’m not sure if you’re saying i’m trying to subvert your point? i’m honestly not even sure what your point is. you don’t like the ball, and that’s completely understandable. your game is much more dialed in than mine, and your feedback is super helpful for anyone thinking about trying it. because as you say, it’s a very expensive product, so more information is always good as people decide what to test. you always give great feedback and detailed analysis, which is awesome for the forum!
To the bolded I will disagree. Ever since the Chrome Soft line came out I have tried each version and have gone away for some reason or the other. Too soft, too firm, or something was just off and I couldn’t pinpoint it. I played other balls that gave me more consistency. Even the 2018 CS line I liked and played, but left myself wanting more spin.
Fast forward to the 2020 CS and I didn’t like the CS. It was not what I wanted off the tee or my irons. Having sat and listened to why the 2020 CSX was not the ball for me, I tried it on a whim and it blew me away. I put it up against a Bstone, Prov1x and ZStar….it wasn’t close for ME. So for me it’s not about deserving loyalty, it’s about finding the right ball to help me maximize my inconsistent swing every shot. The price itself is not out of line with the others I have mentioned and you can find deals on them to bring the cost closer to $40 a dz versus $50.
You absolutely need to be open minded in both settings. If you aren’t seeing the results, it is time to go back to the drawing board.
After the ball presentation, I didn’t think the CSX would make any sense for me. Just didn’t think I had the speed. But then I randomly put a sleeve in play, and on three straight holes I stopped 8 irons on a dime, which is NOT something I normally do. So I was pretty sold then.
As to durability, I’m probably the worst person to opine on that because (a) I tend to lose several balls per round ?, and (b) I can rough up any ball with all the trees, cart paths, rocky areas, etc. I hit each round.
Without speaking on the performance or the ball, it is the #2 selling golf ball line on the market. That is going to generate buzz.
By line, do you mean ProV1 and ProV1X umbrella and then the CS and CSX umbrella?
Yes, @radiman . I’ve seen a bunch of people play them despite them being a poor fit. Which is definitely not unique to any one ball. It seems way easier to talk sometime off a ProV1x than it is a CSX though. Now and historically from my observation. I know this version is different and it played differently for me, there has always just been a confusing loyalty to the line from my observation. I like this ball better. The last ones were crap in my opinion, but people bought the **** out of them anyway. There’s a loyalty. Like how Chris (not picking on ya, just a recent example) immediately made a production excuse for the durability when mentioned. What other ball would people try to look past that without issue? Baffles me is all.
Damn. Got this thread running..
Correct.
The number one ball in golf had absolutely **** durability for a decade before changing.
Its not a singular brand thing…And its certainly not absolute about golf balls. Take a look at the Ping iron finish issues. Or TaylorMade iron breakage numbers over the last two years.
That’s a really good point.
I’ve fallen in love with TT, felt naked without it the other day.
the durability is a major concern, however. I am not in the sand often and don’t tend to hit trees, yet I’m seeing major gouging unlike I’ve seen in any other tour ball. As we’ve said, this is an expensive product, so it sucks to see them beat up so easily. Question going forward is whether I just suck it up and pay the price for it and live with the lack of durability, or move on. The ball is so damn good, I don’t think I can leave it behind.
photo Below is 1-2 bunkers per ball.
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