Titleist Introduces Radar-Enhanced Pro V1/V1x RCT

[iacas]

The press release is here:

Titleist Partners with Trackman to Develop Pro V1 and Pro V1x with Radar Capture Technology - The Clubhouse - Team Titleist

Basically, the ball enhances radar readouts of spin (axis, RPMs, etc.). The balls have an interior "reflective" design (see the images below), so you don't have to use the metallic stickers on the golf ball, nor do you have to align the golf ball before hitting it. The external sticker dots are annoying in that they rub off, they wear, they're expensive (for what they are), they fundamentally (though barely) change the performance of the ball, etc.

Some interesting points from the press release:

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RCT was specifically engineered for radar-based launch monitors to deliver the most accurate golf ball data available for all indoor golf experiences. Gone are the days of attaching reflective stickers, and properly aligning the golf ball prior to each swing.

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With RCT technology, indoor data capture of spin rate increases to over 99%. The result is more accurate total flight data, which leads to more appropriate fitting recommendations, more useful feedback on technique and training and instructional plans that are based in fact.

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Does RCT work with other launch monitors?

Pro V1 RCT has been optimized and validated in collaboration with Trackman. Early testing indicates other radar-based launch monitors benefit from this golf ball technology. To provide the most accurate golf ball data on these devices for the indoor golf experience, Titleist recommends utilizing RCT golf balls with TrackMan launch monitors.

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Is RCT USGA/R&A Legal?

Yes, Pro V1 and Pro V1x RCT are conforming golf balls. Pro V1 and Pro V1x RCT deliver identical performance outdoors as Pro V1 and Pro V1x. They appear on the USGA/R&A List of Conforming Golf Balls with the same markings as 2021 Pro V1 and 2021 Pro V1x.

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How far away from the simulator screen (or hitting net) do I need to be for a radar-based launch monitor to capture accurate spin data with an RCT ball?

For adequate spin capture with drivers, Titleist recommends at least ten feet of distance in the fitting bay.  All of the testing completed in Titleist R&D has been completed with at least ten feet separating the teed-up Pro V1 or Pro V1x RCT ball and the screen. 

[Slim_Pivot]

That’s pretty sweet, I wonder how much they will cost

[iacas]

7 minutes ago, Slim_Pivot said:

That’s pretty sweet, I wonder how much they will cost

Availability: Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x RCT golf balls will be available through authorized Titleist trade partners in North America and EMEA, as well as titleist.com beginning November 3, 2021, with global distribution to follow in April 2022.  MAP: $64.99/dozen.

[nevets88]

So I was wondering if other launch monitors benefited from this and saw this tweet thread. Will have to wait for further info from Flightscope. Not sure about other companies.

 

 

[iacas]

My guess is they may have you specify that you're using the Titleist ball, but it will be better with the FlightScope too.

[DeadMan]

I wonder what the durability is like on these balls. When I'm hitting indoors at home, I'm hitting in my garage. The balls I use get worn pretty easily, as they are bouncing around on concrete. Something to consider if you are looking at buying these balls to hit in your garage.

[iacas]

26 minutes ago, DeadMan said:

I wonder what the durability is like on these balls. When I'm hitting indoors at home, I'm hitting in my garage. The balls I use get worn pretty easily, as they are bouncing around on concrete. Something to consider if you are looking at buying these balls to hit in your garage.

The durability is the same as the regular Pro V1 and V1X, which they rate at 500 hits in the press release i linked to. We have Pro V1 practice balls at our indoor facility and they have been hit far more than 500 times.

[iacas]

So, I spent a little time testing out these golf balls with my Mevo+. As many know, indoors, the spin can be off due to the short amount of time a radar has has to measure spin. Metal dots help, but even then, FlightScope users will occasionally see an italic spin number. Italics are your FlightScope's way of saying "I think this is a decent spin number, but I'm not super confident in that."

Sometimes the number is half, or double, and sometimes it's just off by some random factor. Sometimes it's dead accurate. The point is, when the number is italic, your FlightScope is unsure. It's not confident.

I tested these balls out by hitting a Pro V1 RCT and a Pro V1x RCT along-side a 2021 Pro V1 and Pro V1x. The regular golf balls were "stickered" with a single metallic dot, which we oriented at the top of the golf ball*.

A few mid-irons were chosen, with ball speeds ranging from 115 to 135 MPH. Shots were distributed somewhat randomly, while all clubs were hit with all clubs evenly. 20 shots were hit with each ball (4 each with a 5I, 6I, 7I, 9I, SW). Truly bad impacts were discarded.

Here are the results.

• The Pro V1 Dot saw spin numbers that ranged from 3592 to 10918. 8 of the 20 results were italicized. All of the italicized numbers were in the 3590 to 3950 range, while the lowest non-italicized number was 4816. Some of the italicized results were hit with higher lofted clubs than the 4816 club.
• The Pro V1 RCT saw spin numbers in a much tighter range, and more consistent when hit with the same club. Spin numbers ranged from 5221 to 11875, but within each club, spin numbers were within ± 750 RPM. There were no italic numbers.
• The Pro V1x Dot saw spin numbers again that ranged from 3586 to 9342. Six of the 20 numbers were italicized.
• The Pro V1x RCT saw spin numbers that ranged from 4791 (this was a toe-biased contact with a 5I) to 11752. Spin numbers were relatively consistent within each club, and once again, there were no italic numbers.

Of 40 balls hit with the dotted V1/V1x, 14 were italicized. 14/40 is 35%.

Of the 40 balls hit with the RCT versions, 0 were italicized. All got standard, "trustworthy" spin results according to the FlightScope Mevo+.

As you may know, the FlightScope Mevo+ and all other launch monitors, particularly when used indoors, have ballistics models. They read what they can — launch angles, ball speed, spin (RPM, spin axis) — and combine those with the environmental factors you've set (like altitude, temperature, etc.) to calculate the ball's trajectory: the peak height, the distance, the landing angle, the curve.

If the spin is off — say, instead of being 7200 the Mevo+ or your launch monitor thinks it's spinning at 5500 — you're going to get a poorly calculated ball flight. Your sim game will not be accurate, or your range or practice session, or your skills challenge, or whatever you're doing on your launch monitor.

WOW.

I'm impressed. Now, it wasn't the biggest sample size, but 14 (35%) >> 0.

I'm going to be buying a few dozen of each of the V1 and V1x RCT models. Though they were developed with Trackman, the press release says they should work with all other radar, and that seems to be true. Further enhancements may be possible, too, but even if there are none the results were quite believable.

I plan to use my Mevo+ (with the Pro package at some point) in the GEARS bay, and occasionally for regular lessons. It'll be nice not to have to worry about the metallic dots — how they're oriented, whether they're wearing off from impact with the net, etc.

* You'll often read to place the dot on the front of the golf ball, because then when you hit the ball with backspin, it spins front to back. Placing the dot on the top accomplishes the same thing while spreading out the contact point on the golf ball around the "equator" instead of the one place opposite the metal dot.

[iacas]

 

[iacas]

 

[boogielicious]

I ordered a dozen of the ProV1x RCT a few days ago.

[ChetlovesMer]

1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

I ordered a dozen of the ProV1x RCT a few days ago.

I think these work better if you play Golden Earing's "Radar Love" in the background while you use them. ... Maybe that's just me....

[billchao]

1 hour ago, boogielicious said:

I ordered a dozen of the ProV1x RCT a few days ago.

I just ordered mine last night.

[boogielicious]

14 minutes ago, ChetlovesMer said:

I think these work better if you play Golden Earing's "Radar Love" in the background while you use them. ... Maybe that's just me....

Thanks for the ear worm!

[ChetlovesMer]

18 minutes ago, boogielicious said:

Thanks for the ear worm!

There are far worse ear worms out there... Like the White Lion version for example. 

[woodzie264]

@iacas, would you use this much with teaching or primarily with fitting? You mentioned using it with Gears, so I’d guess you would, but just curious if that’s just because it’s a new toy or whether you feel like there’s real practical use for teaching purposes. 

[phillyk]

I plan to order some and use primarily for my mevo+ while hitting into my net. No way I’m hitting these out into the range. I’ll use them for fittings and regular data collection. It’ll be nice to have confidence in the spin capture. 

[iacas]

1 hour ago, woodzie264 said:

@iacas, would you use this much with teaching or primarily with fitting? You mentioned using it with Gears, so I’d guess you would, but just curious if that’s just because it’s a new toy or whether you feel like there’s real practical use for teaching purposes. 

As @phillyk said… I'll use them sparingly (not hitting them out onto the range, obviously!) for the times I want to get super accurate ball info.

For general GEARS usage, I bought some AAAAA Pro V1 and V1x (48 of each) from LostGolfBalls.com. When I want to put the Mevo+ or FlightScope Xi Tour/X3 up, I'll get the RCT out. Or maybe for some sim golf on the Mevo+.

They won't be hit for just general practice, if that's what you're asking. 😄