The longest ball?

[TheNatural]

There was a golf digest article about ball distance, NXT Extrem Tour was like the longest....does anyone have those test results? I remember they were only 10 yards longer than other balls at 90mph ss, but at 115-125 wouldnt it be more accentuated? There was another test for higher SS but I cant find it.

I

[TinCupTampa]

The one I saw from a few years ago had bridgestone and callaway neck and neck at the top by about 5 yards over taylormade in 3rd. Surprising... Titleist was in 4th. Goes to show you how far a marketing dollar can take a company.

[klaymon]

Longest I've ever played are the Callaway HX Hot and the Callaway Tour ix.

[TheNatural]

The one I saw from a few years ago had bridgestone and callaway neck and neck at the top by about 5 yards over taylormade in 3rd. Surprising... Titleist was in 4th. Goes to show you how far a marketing dollar can take a company.

Should we put any value in the magazines tests? More Marketing dollars could do wonders for your balls distance, What??? Slazenger wants a 3 page spread in our spring ball issue? That ball just went 10 yards further....

[SteelDriver]

Longest ball out there...Cally Warbird hands down! 2 piece rock off the putter, dont check up well, but those birds fly!!!! straight too considering how much spin they resist. my 2 cs

[anthonykim3]

there is a thread on this check it out it was made by stacey e forget the name though i think it is free ball comparisons thread

[emcee]

i have just become a member, therefore i cannot create a new thread. in my experience, i have hit a titleist NXT and a topflite GAMER (actually a really good, inexpensive 3 piece ball).

my question is not about the longest ball, but the most resilient covers. i have played titleist PROv1, many other titleist balls, and most recently began playing with the topflite GAMER. i even had some cheaper 2 piece topflites, and some nikes as well. my problem is: the way that i strike the ball (i pinch the ball very aggresively), all of the balls that i play with are shredding upon impact. after i hit an iron shot, i am playing 3 and 4 iron hybrids, the ball is destroyed. it looks like someone took a tiny cheese grater and there are curled up plastic shreds on the ball where the grooves dug into the ball. there is even more plastic to clean out of my grooves than dirt or sod.

i know that, by seeing this, the curled up plastic debris must affect the flight of the ball. those strips of plastic are creating more resistance while the ball is in flight. i am noticing about a 10 yard decrese in my iron distance since i bought new irons and started using better balls.

i am wondering if anyone else has this problem, and what balls they are using that do not "shred" like i am experiencing? if anyone could provide some assistance i would be thankful. i only had the problem with the newer wedges i bought in the last year, until i got the newer irons (tommy armour, not even top of the line), so i'm just confused. to me, a golf ball should not be compromised at address, and affect the ball flight as a result.

thank you............................mc

[Dub]

I agree that the NXT Tour ball gives long distance....especially off irons. When I started playing again last May I picked up a few dozen Titleist X-Outs from Wal Mart. I figured these would be great fodder to get my rusty game kick-started with.

I lucked out and had one dozen of them actually turn out to be NXT Tours. I was highly impressed with the performance.

Emcee...I don't think your observations are unusual at all. I noticed that little pieces of "chatter" or "peel" being carved off the balls at times with short irons and wedges. I usually pull it off and keep the ball in play. I've never noticed a huge difference in distance, but I'm sure it has some effect.

The worst balls I saw for this were, in fact, the Gamers and a Callaway HX Hot ball that I tried. Happens on other balls, too. I get it occasionally on the two balls in my sig line.

I generally only game a ball for less than two rounds until it's lost somewhere. Water hazards and leaves in the fairway have been unkind to me as of late. A fresh replacement is only a reach into the pocket away.

[TheNatural]

That article did say nxt tour was the longest of all...

[snoofer]

This might help.... http://www.golf.com/golf/features/flash/ballguide3.html

[bogeyhitter25]

Freak's are pretty long, it's just that I wouldn't use them unless you plan on driving every hole since they aren't gonna hold onto the green at all.

[Jcp907]

Should we put any value in the magazines tests? More Marketing dollars could do wonders for your balls distance, What??? Slazenger wants a 3 page spread in our spring ball issue? That ball just went 10 yards further....

I am in the automotive industry, and some of the magazines in the auto industry are owned by the same publishing companies that own some of the golf magazines. Based on my experience in the auto industry, data isn't fabricated, but might be manipulated. (I stress the word might) In other words if they tested a car part from 1500 RPM to 6000 RPM on a test stand (dyno), and a manufacturer that spends considerable money with that magazine title had a product that lost power between 1500 RPM and 2500 RPM, the data in the article might start at 2800 RPM. Some magazine titles will do this, others won't. Some manufactures will ask for this, others won't.

Golf was built as a game of honesty and integrity, however the power of the dollar certainly has influence. I believe that if the manufacturer or magazine title is owned by an investment firm as opposed to individuals that started the company because they wanted a career in the industry that they love, the liklihood is higher that the dollar will have more influence.

[TheNatural]

after a bit of research ....the pinnacle fx gold long drive is the longest ball, it is used in remax long drive champship. however, with the online test links the tests are done using 90 mph ss. if you take into account the compression rating of prov1 - the pinnacle and the bridgestone 330. the highest compression ratio is 119 for wilson tx4 pro...these ratios are designed for the 115 mph ss,hence every mph ss category has its own long drive ball. the 80 mph ss long drive ball is a 60 compression ball,

ANYbody with WILSON experience on the TX4 PRO?

[emcee]

i have actually found that the titleist covers "shear" or "fray" more than the gamers and the nike's. i am pinching the ball very well right now, and i am talking about even my 4 hybrid having white plastic completely filling the grooves. i can't believe it, i played with a friend and he just shook his head, all of the balls i hit (even some free topflite superlong or something like that) are all shredding. i use a brass brush to get the plastic out, and then i have to peel away the shavings on the ball (that look just like peeled orange peel all curled up) with my fingers or scrape them off.

i just refuse to believe that there is not a decent ball on the market that will not shred like this after just one decent iron strike. i might try some pinnacles, i used them a lot when i was younger. they were always too hard to get any spin on the green, but i would have to say that the way i'm striking the ball i can even back up my 4 hybrid about a foot on a nice green. so, i might be creating enough speed that i can deal with a 2 piece ball.

if ANYONE else has had this problem, please offer up some advice.

thanks, and happy golfing...................mc

[HytrewQasdfg]

From referenced chart - 90 mph swing speed (in yards).

Only six balls over 256 yards:

TaylorMade TP Black - 259.1
TaylorMade Noodle+ - 259
TaylorMade TP Red - 258.6
Titleist NXT Extreme - 257.5
TaylorMade Noodle+ Lady - 257.1
Precept Laddie X - 256

The shortest balls (I left out the Top-Flite which all fell in the 248-250, except the Freak which was 254.)

Nike One Platinum - 239 (ouch!)
Srixon Z-URC - 247.2
Srixon Z-URS - 247.5
Nike One Black - 249
Titleist Pro V1 - 249
Nike Ignite - 249.1

It is interesting that the review of the TaylorMade TP balls on this site says he consistently hits his longest drives with the TaylorMade TP Black.

The moral of the story seems to be that unless you swing like the pros, you shouldn't be using the same equipment as the pros. A duffer spending big bucks on the Nike One Platinum balls could add 20 yards to their drives just by switching to the inexpensive Noodle+ or the more expensive TaylorMade TP Black (which is supposed to be much better around the greens than the Noodle+.)