What we learned…
Variety in performance makes a smart choice essential
1 Picking a golf ball need not give you
sleepless nights. A few years ago the choice between balls was really complicated. Unless you had a solid understanding of how you launched shots into the air with a driver, iron and wedge you couldn’t really make an informed choice to benefit your game. Taylormade has changed all that with the TP5 and TP5X, bringing the choice down to softer or firmer – it’s as simple as that.
2 Once you’ve decided whether you want a ball to give you more distance or more spin, there’s still a difference between the largest brands’ tour balls. Comparing all the ‘X’ type balls our test pro saw 10 yards of difference in carry distance and 13 yards in total distance. That’s over a club of difference when it comes to playing your approach shot into a green, and who doesn’t prefer standing over a 7-iron instead of a 6? 3 Picking the right ball can make a difference on the golf course. Obviously every golfer’s results will be different to our test pro’s, but we can’t hide how differently each ball performed in our test. A 12-yard deficit between the firmer Taylormade TP5X and TP5 and nine-yard gap between the Callaway Chrome Soft X and Chrome Soft gives a great idea of how much you put on the line by purely choosing a ball for softer feel or more spin.
4 The difference between the new Pro
V1 and Pro V1x was closer than we expected. We reckon previous versions would have been more discernibly different. With just three yards’ carry distance difference with a driver, one yard with a 6-iron and 275rpm of backspin change with a wedge, it suggests the two are closely matched, even if the Pro V1 does feel softer. There couldn’t be a better time to reassess if you’re a Pro V1 or Pro V1x player.
5 Callaway’s Chrome Soft is a top ball,
yet it’s significantly cheaper than most premium balls. We’ve proven Callaway’s Chrome Soft balls are absolutely top notch when it comes to performance, but as consumers we’re also likely to factor cost into our buying decision. These two are £19.01 cheaper per dozen than the most expensive ball on test, the Pro V1. Break that down into cost per ball and £2.75 for the Chrome Soft looks very attractive compared to the Pro V1 at £4.33.
6 Lower spin means greater accuracy, too. We talk a lot about spin in golf, but very often the chat is around backspin rather than sidespin. You have to realise lower spin also means less sidespin, which increases accuracy. It’s really interesting how some Callaway players wouldn’t play the original Chrome Soft as they felt it took away their ability to shape shots, which for club golfers could be a really good thing!