Golf ball Compression ratings.

[Bamberdele2.0]

cut a long story short - I played with grade A/B ProV1x balls purchased from eBay.

Recently had an awful round and ended up losing a few which left me to play with balls I found on my travels.

Up steps a TaylorMade RBZ soft and I eagle, birdie and par two of the last 5 holes. I’m converted.

Now as a mid-handicapper I don’t think balls will have too much of a difference but the feel I had on the greens were very nice.

Just ordered two packs and it says compression rating is 60. What affect will this have the on ball and my game (long and short) compared to my ProV1x ‘s?

 

[Orikoru]

My personal feeling on ProV1s as that they're designed for elite players, with top swing speeds, but amateurs everywhere pay top dollar for them just because their heroes on TV use them and they think they're the best of the best - despite the fact they wouldn't benefit them at all. I have tried ones that I've found and I never get the best distance from them (as I mentioned, they're designed for faster swings than mine), and they spin too much for me so a slice is exacerbated.

It takes a bit of research and trial and error to find the ball you like most usually. I found this useful, purely because their "slow" speed happened to be pretty much exactly my speed: https://mygolfspy.com/best-golf-balls-2021/

Consequently I'm now using the Tour Response or the Bridgestone RXS depending on how I feel or what's cheaper - their numbers are pretty much the same. Compression around 70 according to that.

 

[hovis]

Go to 13 minutes

 

[Backsticks]

Unless you are low single digits, the leadt spinny ball you can get, the better. You cant spin it enough to control it on the greens anyway. And the less side spin to reduce the amount of hook and slice the better. The great thing is, the cheapest balls are also the best ball for 95% of golfers. War Birds, Pinnacles, RBZs are the best choice.

 

[hovis]

Unless you are low single digits, the leadt spinny ball you can get, the better. You cant spin it enough to control it on the greens anyway. And the less side spin to reduce the amount of hook and slice the better. The great thing is, the cheapest balls are also the best ball for 95% of golfers. War Birds, Pinnacles, RBZs are the best choice.

This is so wrong it's untrue. First of all hook and slice is irrelevant as the spin numbers on a crap ball and a pro v are in the same ball park with longer clubs anyway. I agree that high handicap golfer's don't produce the shots to get the most of the benefits but that's not to say the budgets balls are better for them. A poorly struck wedge with a pro v still spins more than a poorly struck shot with a Dunlop ddh

 

[jim8flog]

The real difference between balls like the Prov1. Bridgestone B330 Series, TaylorMade TP5 is the type of construction.

RBZ soft is a two piece ball and the more expensive balls are three or more piece balls.

Balls are always a trade off between spin and distance and this can be mitigated somewhat by 3 piece balls.

When it comes to compression it very much depends on you club head speed, too low compression and distance is lost if you have a very fast swing speed hence the pros using balls with a higher compression rating. Low compression can also mean more spin as the ball stays on the club face fractionally longer. More spin can equate to a higher flight and loss of distance.

All very technical but in the end if the ball works for you use it.

 

[hovis]

As much as I dislike crossfield I agree with this

 

[Crow]

The distance difference is pretty minimal between balls and you need to be good to control spin well so I just go for what feels best.
For me that's a soft ball, 30 to 50 compression, I started playing these in consideration of the old wooden heads on my clubs but now I just like the feel, even on putts where many dislike softer balls.

 

[Oddsocks]

I’m sure titleist did a chart which pretty much showed all balls within 5-8 yards of each other so it’s more about what suits your game

 

[sunshine]

Unless you are low single digits, the leadt spinny ball you can get, the better. You cant spin it enough to control it on the greens anyway. And the less side spin to reduce the amount of hook and slice the better. The great thing is, the cheapest balls are also the best ball for 95% of golfers. War Birds, Pinnacles, RBZs are the best choice.

??? utter rubbish

 

[IanM]

2 good videos.

 

[Orikoru]

Go to 13 minutes

That was interesting. Funny how myths get perpetuated, most likely by manufacturers trying to sell golf balls. When I got back into playing, 6-odd years ago, I read loads of stuff saying slow swings should be using a soft ball for more distance, and he's basically shot that idea down in flames there. I believe there is still some truth at the other end of the scale though - that your swing could be not fast enough to activate the core on a ProV1 for example? Although who knows anymore. I just know I don't love them and they cost more than any other so there's no point.

 

[IanM]

And loving them is not compulsory.

But the lesson about focusing on what works best from 150 and in is a good one@

 

[Bamberdele2.0]

I noticed some play with similar 2 piece low compression balls.

How do you feel these lower compression balls affect your game compared to the more premium 3 piece balls?

Areas of my game I am needing some serious restructuring

1. 100 yards in , especially around the green.

2. Putting

3. Cost

From the 5 holes I played recently I found a significant difference in feel. I’m really looking forward to my next round to see if it was just a ‘confidence click’ or my scoring was indeed helped by the ball.

It’s got to the point that I don’t really trust the second hand eBay balls no longer. I am clearly looking for excuses for my dip in form but what I will say is the cost of the RBZ balls is significantly cheaper than I imagined. A brand new dozen for £15 to me sounds too good to be true? I’m paying more for used ones.

Playing brand new balls is something I have never done and i’m thinking it might just give me a psychological edge upstairs perhaps?

 

[Bdill93]

I noticed some play with similar 2 piece low compression balls.

How do you feel these lower compression balls affect your game compared to the more premium 3 piece balls?

Areas of my game I am needing some serious restructuring

1. 100 yards in , especially around the green.

2. Putting

3. Cost

From the 5 holes I played recently I found a significant difference in feel. I’m really looking forward to my next round to see if it was just a ‘confidence click’ or my scoring was indeed helped by the ball.

It’s got to the point that I don’t really trust the second hand eBay balls no longer. I am clearly looking for excuses for my dip in form but what I will say is the cost of the RBZ balls is significantly cheaper than I imagined. A brand new dozen for £15 to me sounds too good to be true? I’m paying roughly the same price for used ones.

Playing brand new balls is something I have never done and i’m thinking it might just give me a psychological edge upstairs perhaps?

Ive never purchased a ball since starting to play golf 2 years ago and Im not doing too badly. Its certainly not the balls fault that you need improvement in these areas.

Find a ball and stick with it. Have you tried the classic Srixon Distance - cheap to buy, good firm ball and all you need at our level.

 

[Foxholer]

...

Playing brand new balls is something I have never done and i’m thinking it might just give me a psychological edge upstairs perhaps?

Don't start with ProV1s and expect great things though.
FWIW. I play medium-ish low compression balls (ebay purchases as new are simply too expensive for me/my loss rate) purely because I like the all-round feel best. I've never really spun balls into greens and (therefore?) normally land them short of the pin anyway. I've never liked the feel of ProV1Xs and simply don't have the swing speed to utilise its attributes.

 

[Bamberdele2.0]

Find a ball and stick with it. Have you tried the classic Srixon Distance - cheap to buy, good firm ball and all you need at our level.

A lot of my friends play with these but the word ‘distance’ instantly puts me off.

I imagine the firmness of it is probably the opposite of what I’m looking for to improve my short game?

Might just stick with these RBZ’s for the rest of the summer and see how I get on.

Don't start with ProV1s and expect great things though.
FWIW. I play medium-ish low compression balls (ebay purchases as new are simply too expensive for me/my loss rate) purely because I like the all-round feel best. I've never really spun balls into greens and (therefore?) normally land them short of the pin anyway. I've never liked the feel of ProV1Xs and simply don't have the swing speed to utilise its attributes.

Prov1x’s were recommended to me on here because of my lower launch angle and found it hard to hold greens. Maybe I looked too much into it but it’s all trail and error at this stage.

Probably just need a few lessons

 

[Foxholer]

A lot of my friends play with these but the word ‘distance’ instantly puts me off.

I imagine the firmness of it is probably the opposite of what I’m looking for to improve my short game?

Might just stick with these RBZ’s for the rest of the summer and see how I get on.







Prov1x’s were recommended to me on here because of my lower launch angle and found it hard to hold greens. Maybe I looked too much into it but it’s all trail and error at this stage.

Probably just need a few lessons

Yep...Looking at the wrong 'solution' for getting spin on the green imo. It's mainly about the strike!

Srixon Distance is my Winter ball. Got a load cheap as chips some time ago. Feels light, therefore not excessively hard. And with little spin in Summer, but imbeds just as well as more expensive ones on soft greens.

 

[Bdill93]

A lot of my friends play with these but the word ‘distance’ instantly puts me off.

I imagine the firmness of it is probably the opposite of what I’m looking for to improve my short game?

Might just stick with these RBZ’s for the rest of the summer and see how I get on.







Prov1x’s were recommended to me on here because of my lower launch angle and found it hard to hold greens. Maybe I looked too much into it but it’s all trail and error at this stage.

Probably just need a few lessons

Did you watch the video above?

You wont score better or worse because of your ball at the mid handicap range.

Buy cheap and save some P! You work hard for it after all!

 

[Orikoru]

I noticed some play with similar 2 piece low compression balls.

How do you feel these lower compression balls affect your game compared to the more premium 3 piece balls?

Areas of my game I am needing some serious restructuring

1. 100 yards in , especially around the green.

2. Putting

3. Cost

From the 5 holes I played recently I found a significant difference in feel. I’m really looking forward to my next round to see if it was just a ‘confidence click’ or my scoring was indeed helped by the ball.

It’s got to the point that I don’t really trust the second hand eBay balls no longer. I am clearly looking for excuses for my dip in form but what I will say is the cost of the RBZ balls is significantly cheaper than I imagined. A brand new dozen for £15 to me sounds too good to be true? I’m paying roughly the same price for used ones.

Playing brand new balls is something I have never done and i’m thinking it might just give me a psychological edge upstairs perhaps?

As per the video that was posted earlier - a three-piece urethane ball will spin more than a two-piece soft ball (which are usually not urethane). So that means with your two-piece balls you can expect them to run on a lot more on pitches, which can make them harder to judge and control since you'll need to land them shorter to allow for that roll. With the three-piece you can land it a bit closer to the pin since it will check a little bit. But you're not going to be seeing epic backspin or anything since you're not an elite golfer obviously.

You might find a softer ball feels better for putting, which is linked to the sound it makes too - a lot of people don't like the 'clicky' sound a harder ball makes off the putter.

Personally I started spending a bit more on balls once I realised I wasn't losing one every round. If you are losing one or two a round I wouldn't bother spending more just yet. If you can go a couple of rounds without losing one, then maybe look at the cheaper three-piece balls in the £30+ category and see how you do. I'm currently using TM Tour Response or the Bridgestone RXS which are both in this category, you've also got the Srixon Q-Star Tour as another option here I think. Personally I avoid Titleist balls nowadays on grounds of cost, as I just feel every Titleist ball is priced £5-10 more than it's equivalents, due to the sheer number of tour players they're paying to sponsor.