How does the brand of ball factor into your score?

May be jumping the gun but the last two rounds I played have been horrible! My balls have been more like tree seeking missiles. (no joke, probably lost 8 strokes per last two rounds due to hitting trees or overhanging branches) However, I am striking the ball well at the range and on the course. The only variable that has changed other than the courses played is the type of ball I played. Callaway Warbirds (these jumped off my putter soooooo fast) and Callaway Hex Chromes. Prior to these two boxes I played either Pro V1x or NXT TourX and never had an issue with too much side spin off the tee (which has gotten me in trouble last two rounds). So before this posts turns into a book my question to other is this: Can you notice in your game a difference when introducing a new ball? And, how much does the ball brand/type really matter?

There is a reason the pros play Titleists, right?

The question is, do you think a pro would be hitting trees and branches and adding 8 strokes to their scores if they played a different ball?

Balls can make a difference, but they don't make you hit bad shots.

They are a great golf ball. They seem to be year and year out one of the top golf balls, while other golf balls can fluctuate between models. If you search you can find a few premium golf balls each year that play just as good.

I think it is more mental than anything. The name brings in a lot of confidence.

Pretty much this.

Brand of ball, not at all.

Type of ball, maybe 2-3 strokes in a round.

Yes, the reason is they are a good ball and Titleist give them to the pros for free.  I'm with @Shorty ke a difference but not to the level you describe.

Thanks Captain Obvious. Great value you added there with that post.

I never compared my game to a pros. The real issue is the side spin i create off the tee. I used to have a nasty slice on my driver but have fixed the problem before I began playing more frequently this season. I still have some left to right action off the tee but prior to the last two rounds I had no problem hitting fairways. I feel as though the titleist balls I mentioned mitigated some of that spin. Hitting trees and overhanging branches is not my problem it is the result of my issue off the tee.

OK . I'll be even more obvious then, given your abrasive and defence retort.

The ball does not cause your slicing.

Who said you compared your game to pros?

You were talking about balls and seemed to think that the brand of ball might cause your mishits.

If you have "no problem" hitting fairways the ball won't make any difference at all.

If you are "striking the ball well" you won't be hitting trees and branches.

There are balls where the claim is that they lessen side spin, but they still slice.

The brand of ball does not factor into my score in the least.

Also not sure why you felt the need to be so harsh to @Shorty because his was a solid point that added a little perspective to the question.

Balls do what the club face tells them to do, and the club face is told what to do by the golfer' grip, and swing. I don't think the ball's brand actually matters, except for the mental aspect that the golfer has about playing a particular ball.

Me, I like e-7 Bridgestone balls, only because the Volvik brand is not as readily available as the Bridgestone. I like the feel of the Volvik ball when putting.  I also like lower compression balls. It's my opinion that lower compression balls help with short game accuracy more so than a ball with 100+ compression value.  I shoot the same scores regardless of what brands I happen to be using. Some days my swing, and putting stroke are just better, than other days.

There's a reason why many people play Titleist Pro V1/x, but I've hit my share of trees with them too. In fact, I can safely state that I've hit every type of tree with every type of ball. But it was a pro-V1 that bounced off a tree 20 yards behind me on an errant drive.

Certainly ... it's a good product but the main reason is outstanding marketing.

When I hit trees with ProV1's, the tend to just bounce right back into the fairway.

Possibly Gnomes, but Leprechauns have also been known to sell them on the gray market. . .

When I play Pro-V's I have to switch to a new Pro-V every few holes or they get wandering golf ball syndrome and end up lost.