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Golfer’s Diary: How much does the right ball matter?

I’m still moderately new to golf, having been playing for less than a decade. Sure, I immediately fell in love with the sport and have played an awful lot of rounds in the past seven years, but I’d be naive to think that I know everything about golf.

One of those many (and I mean MANY) things that I’ll admit I don’t know much about is the golf ball itself.

For the first five years of playing, I’d use literally whatever I could get my hands on. Find a ball in the woods? Great! Tee it up. Get a sleeve of balls at a tournament? Sure, whatever. I don’t care what brand they are. The strange part was, I never really noticed a difference in distance, spin, compression, feel, etc. with any specific ball.

Two years ago, however, I was at the store and the clearance aisle was absolutely loaded with various golf balls at insanely low prices. I can’t remember how many different boxes I picked up that day, but it was at least 10. I spent that next season really trying to figure out which ball was right for me. Naturally, all of the boxes advertised that the balls were “longer and straighter” because that’s what people want to hear.

Long story short, I learned that not all balls are created equal. There was one I loved, two I liked, several that were neutral and then a handful that I absolutely hated. I honestly did not expect that result after years of seeing zero difference with switching balls.

This past year, I bought a giant box of used, but virtually spotless Titleist NXT Tour S balls. They were my favorite from the slew of random stuff I bought the year prior. Sadly, they’ve been discontinued and replaced with the Titleist Tour Soft, which I haven’t tried. I have full faith that these new balls will be great, too, but they’re also quite expensive, so I’m not sure what to do.

But as I said before, I’m not going to pretend to know a lot about the physics and composition of a golf ball. Therefore, I once again turned to the Facebook community for help. I simply asked people what brand of golf ball they use if they’re particular, how often they change out for a new ball and for any other golf ball related anecdotes. Here are some of the responses:

Ryan – “Titleist ProVI X. I have gotten multiple rounds out of the same ball and will continue to use a ball until scuffed. To those who think the ball doesn’t matter, you are wrong! The best ball for your buck is probably the Oncore Elixr! We sell at Pinehurst for $9/sleeve.”

I put Ryan first because he’s probably the best golfer I know. He’s also the coach of the very successful St. Bonaventure golf team, so I’d like to think he knows what he’s talking about. And I don’t even feel bad including the plug for the awesome course that he owns…because it’s awesome.

Ben – “I’ve been playing with One Ball since 2004, since I lost the other to testicular cancer. But…when it comes to golf balls, I prefer TaylorMade Preferred and Titleist ProVI. I pull out a new sleeve or ball whenever I’m playing in a tournament, but I’ll grab a used one from the bag for a casual round.”

Besides being a good golfer, Ben is one of the best people I know. He donates a lot of his time and resources to running One Ball events such as the golf tournament and Wiffle Ball tournament that raise funds for testicular cancer research and awareness. Please consider supporting these events if you’re looking for a great time. Quips aside, however, count Ben among the many that named ProVI.

Matt – “At this point in my game, anything will work. When I was good, Titleist NXT Tour.”

My brother-in-law has two young daughters, so yes, his golf time has been cut drastically over the past couple years, but don’t let him fool you, he’s still a great golfer. I was happy to see another vote for my personal favorite golf ball.

Troy – “I like to buy used ProVI. I can get a dozen for 15-20 bucks in good condition. I’m not good enough to need brand new shiny balls. On a great round I can use the same ball. On average, I’ll use 2-4 balls.”

Troy was the only other person who mentioned buying used balls. Honestly, that’s the only way I’ll go these days. The price is around 1/3 of new balls and I’ve never had any issue with them. In fact, I watched a video of a pro golfer doing a blind test between new and used ProVIs and the results were exactly the same across the board. Don’t be afraid to buy used ones, people.

Kari – “I love Callaway Super Soft! It has a soft cover that makes a low compression. I like odd numbers. The pink is great to spot in the fairway or rough.”

Stacey – “I also love the Callaway Super Soft, especially the bright colors. I also like playing TopFlite D2 Diva because they’re pretty and give me a pretty decent ball speed.”

I’m always happy when women chime in on the conversation because I know there are women out there that are intimidated by the thought of starting golf, so they never even try. Both Kari and Stacey even mentioned the same ball, so that probably tells you something. I also thought it was hilarious that Kari prefers that odd numbers. Superstition in sports is very real. Maybe I’ll have to start paying more attention to which number ball leads to my best scores.

Josh – “It doesn’t matter what ball. Titleist or MaxFli, if the operator can’t hit shots, ball selection means nothing.”

There were a few answers along a similar vein. Josh himself is a pretty darn good golfer, so I imagine he does have a favorite, but his point is well taken. I’ve seen an awful lot of terrible golfers insist on using some insanely expensive golf balls (and clubs, for that matter) even though they don’t have even the very basics of a swing down. But who am I to tell people how to spend their money?

I hope that was informative (or at least entertaining). The No. 1 consensus by a mile was Titleist Pro VI, but if you have something else you love to use, please shoot me an email. I’d love to hear why you use what you do.

Until next time, golf is great. Go get some.

Stefan Gestwicki is an OBSERVER contributing writer. Comments on this article can be sent to golfersdiary@gmail.com

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