TaylorMade has never shied away from taking chances where technology is involved. The company that brought us three different ways to adjust a driver and a slot behind the face of a fairway wood to increase the CoR is back, and continues to up their golf ball game.
Already the first company to introduce a five-layer golf ball, TaylorMade has seen their golf ball line take off recently. The TP5 is the fourth premium golf ball TaylorMade has brought to market since their entrance in the mid-2000s, and they're gaining traction on the PGA Tour as well as in pro shops worldwide. 25 million Pentas were put into play around the globe in 2011, and Darren Clarke used a PentaTP en route to his Open Championship victory.
TaylorMade's golf ball market share doubled in 2011, continuing their inroads into a business dominated by the likes of Titleist, Bridgestone, Callaway, and others, and this year they're aiming to bring their (healthy) obsession with innovation back to the golf ball. Read on to see how they did.
The new Callaway Hex Black Tour ball hits all the marks to compete with the other premium balls on the market.
Many golfers might be surprised to know that, in terms of dollar market share, Bridgestone Golf has grown to become the number two golf ball in the industry. Bridgestone Golf began manufacturing its first golf balls on U.S. soil in 1990 under the Precept brand, and while it's only been seven years since the Bridgestone Golf U.S. brand was launched, the company has been producing golf balls since 1935 and they are the number one golf ball producer in Japan.
Bridgestone golf might not have the notoriety or the reputation of a big company like Titleist or Nike, but they are quickly making significant inroads into the big business of golf balls.
First released back in 2005, the e-Series balls from Bridgestone set out to help the amateur that was looking for the boost in distance that the softer balls couldn't provide. Throughout the last few years, the e-Series balls have been tweaked and polished
TaylorMade can't be accused of shying away from technology. If anything, the company behind "MWT" and "FCT" and countless other technology acronyms is one of the most technologically adventurous around.
When the 800-pound gorilla in the market (see: Titleist) releases a new version of their premium balls, what are their competitors to do? Srixon has answered the challenge with the release of their newest balls, the Z-Star and Z-Star X.
Titleist has had the number one ball on the market for as long as I can remember, and I have a few gray hairs. Every two years Titleist releases a new version of their high-end balls. I sometimes think that if it isn't broke, don't fix it. Titleist seems to use the mantra of "every moment we rest gives our competitors a chance to catch up."
