changing golf balls

[JonMA1]

Thanks @1badbadger. Hopefully, you know I was joking about buying a ball based on what's printed on the box.

I'll re-think my opinion about the ball not making a difference and consider going to a launch monitor. I'll have to make some calls in the area concerning a fitter I can trust.

With my present swing, I think spin is likely more an enemy than a friend. I associate low compression with less spin, probably due to information on the web. Whether that is too much of a generalization, I don't know.

My iron swing produces a high shot with less roll out - even a well-struck long iron. It's both a tendency and a preference.

My short game does not involve any attempt to control spin - other than trying to avoid a thin chip or pitch.

My driver is a mess right now, but it's all poor mechanics. When I am able to hit a good driver shot, it's higher with less roll out. It's not uncommon to get almost none - possibly due as much to the wet fairways I often play as anything. A two-way miss due to hook or slice spin is not uncommon. This is why I think lower spin would be better, but as you suggested, all these things should show up on a launch monitor and a qualified fitter would be able to make suggestions.

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Regarding the most expensive not necessarily being the best fit, I will add this... I find a lot of golf balls in the woods at my course and ProV 1's are one of the most common. While I'm partial to playing Titleist's DT Solo or TruSoft on the course, the ProV1's I find are used strictly for practice.

[RussUK]

Im an absolute cheapskate so anything that is under £20, preferably £15 or even free .

[mcanadiens]

1 hour ago, RussUK said:

Im an absolute cheapskate so anything that is under £20, preferably £15 or even free .

Judging by my last trip around the local par-3, I'd say that somebody paid $4 (£3) for a small bucket of range balls and just took em on the course. 

[RussUK]

52 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

Judging by my last trip around the local par-3, I'd say that somebody paid $4 (£3) for a small bucket of range balls and just took em on the course. 

Now thats a "budget minded" golfer. Makes sound a bit flash in comparrison!

Currently have a dozen or so Srixon AD333 i got with a magazine subscription and a dozen Polara XD i got as an experiment with a gift card. I class those as free.

Cant bring myself to use the couple of Pro V1's i have lying around though.

[MarvChamp]

I mostly play a low to mid-compression ball like Callawaay ChromeSoft or Hex Soft. Got 6 ProVI's in a tournament and finally played them on a trip to South Carolina last month. Very impressive...Long enough and stopped on a dime on the greens. I never gave ProVI's much thought due to price and my tendency to lose balls. So I ordered 24 "refinished mint AAAAA" ProVI's off eBay for $40 total. Haven't hit them yet, but they do look brand new.  -Marv

Edited October 19, 2017 by MarvChamp
Couth to South misspell

[Bill926]

On 10/17/2017 at 11:01 PM, 1badbadger said:

I have conducted thousands of golf ball fittings for players of all types and skill levels, and I can tell you a few things based on my experience:

I did a ball fitting at one of the golf superstores a few years ago and wasn't satisfied.  First they asked me what brand of ball I wanted to try, and then it turned out they recommended the most expensive ball of that brand.  I would like to be able to start from scratch and have them give me recommendations on different brands and models based on my swing parameters, maybe narrow it down to 3 balls that wont make a difference with which one I pick.

[1badbadger]

1 hour ago, Bill926 said:

I did a ball fitting at one of the golf superstores a few years ago and wasn't satisfied.  First they asked me what brand of ball I wanted to try, and then it turned out they recommended the most expensive ball of that brand.  I would like to be able to start from scratch and have them give me recommendations on different brands and models based on my swing parameters, maybe narrow it down to 3 balls that wont make a difference with which one I pick.

There are a couple of things to keep in mind...

First, you can't really "start from scratch".  You have to start somewhere.  I always began with the ball the player normally used.  If the player tended to switch around, I'd go with the model he played most of the time, or the model he liked best.  Hitting shots with their normal ball of choice gave me a starting point to work off of.  I would then analyze the data and look for areas that needed improvement.  I would show the player what I saw, and explain where their launch conditions are currently, and where they should ideally be, so they would know what I was trying to accomplish.  It's important that the tech explains these things.  I would then recommend a ball that will help make their trajectory more efficient. 

My recommendations were based purely based on performance, not price.  I would show the player hard numbers on how much difference the ball makes, then give them samples to try on the course.  Sometimes my recommendation was a more expensive ball than they usually play. I would let the player decide if the increase in performance was worth the additional cost.  More often my suggestion happened to be less expensive. 

Narrowing your selection down to 3 models that won't make a difference which one you pick pretty much defeats the purpose of ball fitting.  The idea is to find the best ball for your game.  This removes any doubt in your mind that you are playing the correct ball and eliminates switching around.  All golf balls are a little different, and even if your launch numbers are close, there is a difference in feel and the way they react in certain circumstances.  Playing the correct ball every time creates consistency which leads to lower scores.

[arturo28mx]

I'm just a mid handicapper, but after trying many balls over the years I like Pro V1 more than others. It's not just spin around the greens, there's something about the feeling off the face and about the flight of the ball that I like more.

Recently I've been playing Z Star (I like yellow balls) and it feels just as good as Pro V1 and it's cheaper. I like Z Star more than Q Star Tour.