TaylorMade TP Black First Impressions

with the current state of my game I can't say anything about these balls except the fact, that the "black" (which is supposed to be the harder one) feels softer off the putter face than prov1x, I liked it a lot...

Any other analysis attempts (trajectory, distance, etc) don't apply in my case if you do however insist on my personal impression - here it is: 1. ball goes 30yds further when bladed (no cut marks left on the ball!) 2 bounces hard off the trees (about 25% off "back in play" bounces ) 3. when shanked -it has beautiful line-drive , power-fade trajectory as Forest Gump said "That's all I got to say 'bout that"

I'm playing this Saturday if the rain holds off. I plan on playing 9 with the Red and 9 with the Black. Hopefully I can form an impression about the balls after that. I'll post back sometime after Saturday's round...

I just can't wait for them to hit the shelves. I want to buy a sleeve and test them out.

Both balls feel the same to me off the driver. Off the irons I like the feel of the black.

I've had some monster spin with the red so far. Flew over a green and spun it back onto the green once. And hit the middle of the green and spun it sideways off the green.

If the Black is their answer to a V1x (which I can't play because it's too hard), then I like it much better in comparison.

They're both pretty damn long too. Hit a couple 330ish.

I will have to try to hit them with my garbage can cover

We Haven't Got Them Over Here In THe U.K Yet!!

Erik: Any distance difference off the driver between the Red and Black? How about distance off the irons?

Here are my initial thoughts on the TM Black/Red ball from my round on Saturday:

Black:
I honestly couldn't tell it apart from the Pro-V1x other than it felt a slight bit softer off the face of the club...it may have been the sound. As for ball flight, it was marginally higher than the Titleist. There was not too much of a difference in distance either. There was one shot that summed up what I thought of it. I hit a 4-iron from about 210 to a downhill par 3. The ball was a bit higher than normal and came down soft on the green even though the ball had a penetrating ball flight. I think the Black spins a bit more than the Pro-V1x.

The negative is that the ball scuffed easily. Any well-struck iron grated the cover and after 9 holes, even if I wasn't switching to the Red, I would have had to get another Black out.

Red:
I played better on the back, so my thoughts are better with the red...I don't think it was entirely the ball, but I did seem to like it better.

The first iron shot I hit with it was a 115 yard wedge out of a fairway bunker. I hit it 25 feet past the hole and spun it back to pin high with the help of a slope. The next hole I pulled my drives into the trees and had to hit a 3/4 six-iron from about 170 and hit a beautiful shot with a slight draw to 20 feet to a pin tucked behind a bunker. Next I hit a 4-iron from 215 to 2 feet...As you can see, I really hit the ball well with the Red but I felt like I could shape the ball and control it much easier. I hit 6 greens on the back and had no more than 20 feet on every one of them.

I may have lost a bit of distance...but again, it wasn't much and I think it may be worth it if that is how the ball reacts off of the irons. I've never spun the ball that much...and don't care to, but the Red seemed to spin less than I ever remember the Pro-V1 and was still a ball I could work easily. One other thing to note is that there wasn't much wind during the round. I'm curious to see how the Red holds up under more severe conditions given it's increased spin over the Black.

Also, the Red did not scuff at all. Strange, but the ball that spun more scuffed less...I would have thought it would be the other way around.

I've got a chance to play with both Black and Red (Thanks Erik ) and I agree with Dave. Substract 30yds from the distances quoted (and add 10ft to his "distance from pins" info) and you'll see what I'd about to write
I also noticed the "shaved-off" effect on the black and didn't see it on the red ball... strange indeed. Can not say much about the spin on the greens, since my home course is right now so dry, that it doesn't matter what ball you use - you won't see spin.

I just looked at Golf Galaxy and they have the balls listed but as "out of stock". BTW they are listed at $42.99

Tried out the TP Blacks today... liked them but not enough to give up the X's... Looks like the 300 pound gorilla isnt leaving the room anytime soon!

I've played three rounds with the TP black and one round with the Penta, both great golf balls, but I'm now sold on the TP Black. All four rounds were in windy, firm fairway conditions (Texas, New Mexico) The TP black flies higher and curves less. For me, the TP black feels a bit lighter and firmer off the clubface. The Penta spins more and feels softer. The reason I'm addicted to the TP black; two or three times a round I'll be rewarded with a freakishly long drive--the ball will just leap off the clubface and soar high and straight with only a hint of curve. I feel the TP black is more forgiving, the ball just wants to fly straight.