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David Ledingham

Chestfield Golf Club PGA Golf Professional

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Greetings from David Ledingham
David Ledingham, PGA Professional


Good afternoon golfers,

Well as I look out of my window at thick grey skies and falling rain I have to admit I'm not very sad to be jetting off to Vilamoura for a Pro-Am on Monday! If you've been watching the Portuguese Masters on Sky you will have seen the bright sunshine there which looks lovely. However, the forecast is set to change there so you might be laughing at me next week after all! 

I was also lucky enough to have to visit The London Club to view next year's Titleist and FootJoy offerings which were very impressive as usual. What was very noticeable was how the market leader in golf balls is still driving forward in answer to the demands of you, the customer.

No doubt many of you will be aware that certain manufacturers, most notably Bridgestone, have been selling the importance of finding the correct compression ball for your swing speed. This is yet another way for you to 'optimise' your game the same way getting your clubs custom fitted does. There is no doubt this is absolutely true but it is actually not a very new thing and, I'm sure this will be a surprise to a lot of you, most of the manufacturers have been doing the same thing for a while now. I have mentioned this before but I do think it is something we all need to know about so I am going to take you through the ranges that we sell and a few others as well, and explain why certain balls might be better for you than you think.



The science behind it all

When we hit a golf ball it compresses and then 'springs' back to its normal shape. Too much compression and we lose energy, too little and we don't optimise the spring effect. That's it in a nutshell. A quick explanation of who might need what:

  1. Low handicapper - Technique will probably dictate that you create lots of head speed and as you hit the ball relatively straight you want a ball that spins well so you can control your approach shots.
  2. Low to mid handicapper - You create reasonable speed but are prepared to lose a little control for extra distance
  3. High Handicapper - two types: A) Slow swing speed (perhaps getting older) and could use as much distance as possible. B) High swing speed but because of imperfect technique you slice or hook the ball and don't want much spin as a result.



What's the difference between all of Titleist's balls?

Pro V1 and Pro V1x - basically the same ball but with a slightly harder compression in the X - both balls will only give optimum distance for someone with a driver swing speed in excess of 90mph, otherwise the ball doesn't 'bounce' off the face as much as it might, losing you distance. Tour quality spin rates though so ultimate control. The reality is the distance you might lose is very small, maybe a few yards, so it doesn't mean you shouldn't be using this ball, or another very like it, if you are reasonably close in swing speed. 

NXT Tour and Tour S - this is actually the kind of ball most should be using. The S stands for Soft! Both are softer in compression than the Pro V1 and therefore give more bounce off the face. As an example - I have a driver speed of about 100 mph (when I'm warmed up!!!) but I actually get more distance with an NXT Tour - around 5 yards per iron! The only slight loss is with spin in the shorter clubs but it is not that significant - I can stop these even with chips around the green. A great ball for most players. 

Velocity - Softer still but with less spin - that simple. So if you have a slower swing speed this will definitely give you more yardage. Very similar to the Srixon AD333. 

DT SoLo - Even softer! 

Pinnacle - next season there is a new Pinnacle coming out with a compression of 35 - Pro V1s are around 95! This will literally act like a bouncy rubber ball and is incredible for very slow swing speeds. There is a lady version as well. There is also a harder version for those that need a harder compression ball but with very low spin - ideal if you hit the ball hard but put lots of sidespin on the ball and don't want your new ball disappearing into the trees all the time!



Why are Srixon balls so popular?

Z-Star and Z-Star XV - Very similar to Pro V1. For higher swing speeds that demand ultimate control as well. The yellow ball is the best available and a Godsend in the winter - I use them! 

AD333 and 333 Tour - much softer which is why you all like them! The biggest selling ball in the UK for a few years and the reason is it feels soft and, as a result, really does come off the clubface, which is what you've all suspected without knowing for certain! The Tour gives you higher levels of spin so is very similar to the NXT Tour. 

Soft Feel and Lady Soft Feel - Very soft so better for slower speeds. Feels lovely but will lose distance for the harder hitter as the ball compresses too much and absorbs energy.



Are Nike's balls any different?

RZN Black and Platinum - these are a bit different. The Resin core (RZN) is hard in comparison with other balls and feels it. The first 20XI balls felt like rock. These are much better but as a result really are only suited to powerful, fast swings. Rory McIlroy stated that he felt his driver and ball set-up last year (Vapor Pro and RZN Black) was the best combination he'd ever used. That may well be the case but you must understand he has a swing speed of around 122mph with his driver. There is one young guy in the South Region playing professionally who hits it that hard - one! The RZN White and Red are much more useable for most but don't spin as much, like an AD333 but a bit harder. 

Their best ball is the PD Soft that we sell in their dozens! Very soft compression with lower spin. It feels similar to the AD333 but costs less. What's not to love??



What about the others?

Most ranges have similar balls but there are a few stand outs:

Callaway Chrome Soft - very nice ball that scores really well in tests. Softer compression and spins well - but it is actually very similar to the NXT Tour and S!

Callaway Supersoft - It does what it says! Like a bouncy ball - around a 40 compression! 

TaylorMade Tour Proven - Lovely ball. Note they only have one compression as against the Pro V1 and X. It feels fairly soft like a Pro V1 but has a great cover. Very long in tests but only for higher swing speeds. 

Bridgestone - A different compression balls than most and to me that's a little confusing for most of us. The point I should make is this - we are talking about the odd yard here or there and that's if we hit the ball consistently. If you custom fit your clubs then one degree of lie will make almost no difference but 4 most certainly will. Same with balls - I'm not sure we need so many options. Their balls are very nice though - lots of soft options and they perform very well.



My review

You will have noticed the ever-increasing use of the word 'soft' in many ball names. This will continue next year! It has been proven that the word soft is very attractive to us users where balls are concerned. I would just like you to all be aware that it is not always the best thing but also that there are options available that you might not be aware of. 

One truth remains though that is one to ponder - I guarantee that the number of you playing at Chestfield who have a swing speed in excess of 95 mph is less than 10%. That's less than 60 of you! But our biggest selling ball and of all of my competitors (around 40% of all ball sales) is the Pro V1 or X. Why is that? I think mainly because we want the best and that ball is understood to be the best. 

Hopefully you will now know a little more and this may change a bit. It is not the best if it doesn't optimise your game, especially if there is a different ball that does!

I will leave you with that this week. We have just received our winter FootJoy range which includes the FootJoy Boot - ladies too! Please remember that we can also help if you are looking to make any larger purchases in the coming weeks - I might very well be able to save you money!

 
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