- 10 hours ago
This video, in which Neil Tappin is joined by Titleist golf ball specialist Tom Hiscock, explains what these misconceptions are and will hopefully help you make a smarter choice when it comes to selecting the right ball for your game.
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00:00Hello everyone, Neil Tappan here from Golf Month B and welcome to West Hill Golf Club
00:03in this video in which we're going to take a look at seven of the biggest golf ball myths.
00:09Now we've partnered up with Titleist for this one and I'm going to play golf with Tom Hiscock
00:13who's a golf ball specialist at Titleist and he's come up with a list of seven misconceptions
00:18I guess you'd say about the type of golf ball that certain players should be using.
00:23We're going to talk about what they are and hopefully debunk some of those myths in order
00:27to help you make a better choice about what actually is the right golf ball for your game.
00:33Right, let's head out onto the golf course and get started.
00:43Okay, so the first one on our list to talk about and this is one I've heard a lot over the years
00:48is people say I don't spin the ball and well that's just not true, right?
00:54Absolutely, yeah and this is the reason why we've got so many different clubs,
00:57isn't it? The loft of the golf club helps us spin the golf ball and as soon as the golf ball is in
01:02the air or it's left the ground, left the club face, it's spinning and it's spinning backwards.
01:07So we're talking about backspin but we're not talking about how you might perceive backspin
01:12like you do on the TV, you see the players hit it into the green, it's spinning backwards.
01:15We're talking about the golf ball slowing down.
01:17Yeah, okay.
01:18So it's all about for us trying to find out how much spin or stopping power or rollout
01:25the golfer's looking for.
01:26Right, okay.
01:27We're not talking about curvature, that's something we can come to later,
01:30but it's more about how the golf ball's reacting when it hits the green.
01:35So spin is backspin but it's stopping power and not seeing the backspin.
01:38Right, and so the sort of the follow-up for me then on this, Tom, is that because of the
01:43different way that different golfers attack the ball, they will create different spin profiles.
01:50You might think, I don't spin the ball but because actually the way that the club attacks the ball,
01:54you are creating more spin than you need to in certain shots and therefore it might be ballooning
01:59up into the air.
02:00Am I talking nonsense?
02:00No, not at all.
02:02So every golf ball has a different spin profile so we have to match that in with your delivery
02:07and how you deliver the golf club.
02:08So like I said, every golfer that comes to see us will spin the golf ball.
02:12It's then down to us, if they're having a track man fitting for instance, it's down to us to
02:16to guide them or recommend a golf ball based on how they deliver the golf club.
02:21And every golf ball, because they perform differently, is really important to get the
02:25right one.
02:25Okay.
02:26Especially if you're chopping and changing from hole to hole or round to round.
02:30Yeah.
02:31It's really important to settle on the one that's performing best for you.
02:33Yeah, because then you're going to understand how it's going to react when it hits the green.
02:36You're going to know what club to hit presumably as well.
02:37Absolutely.
02:38Yeah.
02:38Absolutely.
02:39Right, Tom, you have, do you know what, you've got 180 in here.
02:44180?
02:44It's into the wind.
02:45Okay.
02:46And there's just not a lot going in your favor.
02:49I don't want to sort of put you off before we've even got started, but.
02:52This is, this is, this is an opener, isn't it?
02:55This is a bit of a, it's quite daunting this, isn't it?
03:01Oh, it's a bit pulley.
03:02It's a bit pulley, but do you know.
03:04It nearly fell over.
03:05Good flight.
03:06It's on the green.
03:07You've got to take that, it's fine.
03:08Yeah, it's okay, isn't it?
03:09Okay.
03:10So for our next one, we are going to talk about soft versus hard golf balls and how that affects
03:16performance.
03:17And I think the, the myth here, certainly the, the conception that a lot of people will have is that a
03:23softer golf ball is going to spin more.
03:25And that by contrast, the harder golf ball is going to offer me less control.
03:29Yeah.
03:29In the short game.
03:30Is there any truth to any of that?
03:32Not really.
03:33No, it's a, it's a big myth.
03:35And the word soft is very misunderstood.
03:38So soft golf balls are soft through compression.
03:42They feel soft.
03:43Right.
03:43Okay.
03:44Soft covered golf balls are typically higher in compression, firm feeling,
03:48but offer you more spinning control.
03:50Right.
03:51Okay.
03:51So, but you have different compression golf balls in your range, right?
03:57Absolutely.
03:57So why do you have different compression golf balls?
03:59So the, the compression is, again, very much a feeling thing.
04:02So every, every golf ball will have a preference.
04:04Some golfers prefer a slightly softer golf ball.
04:07Some people prefer a firmer feeling golf ball.
04:09So within our performance range, which encapsulates, um, true feel, velocity,
04:15TORSOFT and TORSPEED, all those golf balls are, uh, a different compression.
04:21They're all two piece golf balls, right?
04:22TORSPEED is actually three piece.
04:24It's a three piece.
04:24It's multi-layered, but, um, true feel, velocity, TORSOFT,
04:28the two piece golf balls, and, and they have different compressions.
04:30They'll feel different, but with them being two piece,
04:34they're going to offer you low spin for distance off the tee, which we all want.
04:37Yes.
04:38But as we get closer to the green, because they're two piece golf balls,
04:42you're going to get some control and stoppability from, um, loft,
04:47but with them being a harder cover over a softer core,
04:50you're going to compromise a little bit when it comes to spinning control.
04:53Right, okay.
04:54But there will be a feel, a feel difference between the three of them,
04:57and therefore there'll be an option for everybody.
05:00Come on, let's hit this one.
05:10Good hit.
05:12Okay, so for this one, we're going to talk about golf in the winter,
05:16and I think it feels like a fairly sensible idea to play maybe a different
05:19golf ball in the winter when conditions underfoot are different.
05:22It's wet here today at West Hill.
05:24The temptation might be to use a harder golf ball.
05:27What's the sort of tightest thinking on that front?
05:29Yeah, it's a really good question, Neil.
05:31And it's a question we get asked all the time.
05:34The consistency of playing the same golf ball from season to season,
05:38from wet conditions to drier conditions remains the same.
05:42We would much rather the golfer change their club selection or their,
05:48um, their technique to suit the conditions.
05:51Because if you change the golf ball to suit the wind,
05:54say for example, or where the golf ball's landing,
05:57it's also going to feel very different when you're putting and chipping,
05:59when the conditions are not going to be too different to how they might be in,
06:05in some conditions, for example.
06:07But for us, the most important thing is consistency.
06:09You play the same ball all the time.
06:12Obviously we reference the tour players a lot
06:15and they play at a different venue every single week.
06:18They might go from a Lynx venue to an inland venue.
06:21Do you ever get golfers on tour changing their ball?
06:24Very, very rarely.
06:25No, because you're trying to discourage them from doing it.
06:27Yeah, absolutely.
06:28But they would be quite comfortable maybe taking a long iron out and putting a hybrid in
06:33or changing their wedge selection.
06:37But they would never change the golf ball because they know what that golf ball does,
06:41but also they're hitting that ball on every single shot.
06:44Yes.
06:45Well, so in that spirit, I've changed my...
06:47I've gone down in loft.
06:49I'm going to try and hit it in a wee bit lower.
06:51Great.
06:59Well, it's quite high.
07:02Yardage was good.
07:04Look at that.
07:04I'll take it.
07:05Perfect.
07:05I'll take it.
07:08Right.
07:08So the next myth we are going to cover is around swing speed.
07:12The idea being here that a lot of golfers would say,
07:14well, I have a swing speed of, let's say, 100 miles an hour.
07:18Therefore, I need to use X golf ball.
07:21But Tom, Titus would say that's not actually how golfers should be thinking about it at all.
07:26Yeah, absolutely.
07:27Absolutely.
07:27Neil, our methodology is quite different.
07:31So when we're recommending golf balls, we start from the green and we work our way back to the tee.
07:35Because if we think about it this way, when it comes to club head speed, yes, you are going to swing your driver faster than any other club in your bag.
07:42But as soon as you exit the tee and make your way towards the green, every golfer is going to slow down.
07:47And we've got 14 clubs.
07:49Every club is swung at a different speed.
07:51Yeah.
07:51What speed do you swing your seven iron?
07:52I don't know the answer to that question.
07:54Absolutely.
07:55Yeah.
07:55And then you think about your sand wedge and you could even include your putter.
07:59Yeah.
07:59We spend loads of time on the green and the club's still moving at a speed.
08:03So for us, it's not about the speed.
08:06It's more about the club conditions.
08:07Right.
08:08So loft, spin loft and how the golf ball reacts to the loft that we're presenting.
08:14Right.
08:14That's interesting.
08:15So I was fitted by Tom into a golf ball last year, went through the whole fitting process.
08:20I ended up with the Titus Provy 1X.
08:21I'll put in a link below to that video if you're interested in taking a look.
08:25And I know from that experience that you start at the green, work your way back towards the tee,
08:30but you would fit the club to the ball once you get to the tee.
08:32Is that right?
08:33Absolutely.
08:34Yeah.
08:34So yeah, you're absolutely spot on.
08:36So we fit the golf ball to the wedges and the irons.
08:38We fit the driver to the golf ball.
08:40There's far more we can change from the driver setting, whether that's loft or
08:44centre of gravity or head design, to influence spin and distance from the tee.
08:50So we focus primarily on the shorter shots.
08:53Given that we spend more time there, all of our golf balls are designed to be
08:57low in spin from the tee to give you optimal distance.
09:02And then we focus primarily on the shorter shots.
09:04Right.
09:05Okay.
09:05So there will be balls in the range that are lower in spin,
09:09but they'll be lower in spin around the greens as well.
09:11Absolutely.
09:12Yeah.
09:12When we're talking about lower spin golf balls, it's more with irons and wedges.
09:16So we're talking about stopping power as opposed to distance from the tee.
09:21Right then.
09:22Let's have a hit.
09:22Give it a whirl.
09:30Oh, come back.
09:32Oh, it's at the post on the left.
09:33Get out.
09:34Get bounce.
09:35I squeaked out.
09:36And then just bounce.
09:43Bit heavy.
09:45Oh, it just skipped over the ground.
09:47Fine.
09:49Okay Tom, so for the next one I wanted to ask you was about female golfers.
09:54And the idea, the myth here being that female golfers should use a golf ball that's designed
10:00specifically for women.
10:02I know that's not a kind of a school of thought that Titleist buy into.
10:06Why not?
10:07And how should female golfers should be thinking about their golf ball choice?
10:11It's a really, it's a really good one there.
10:12And again, it's one we tackle every day.
10:16I always say the golf ball doesn't know who's hitting it.
10:19So the golf ball doesn't know whether you're male or female, whether you're older or younger,
10:23and vice versa.
10:24So for us, it's more a case of what does the goal, what's the goal for looking for,
10:29regardless of their gender?
10:30Yeah.
10:30How do they want the golf ball to form, perform?
10:33What are their, what are their preferences when it comes to golf balls?
10:35But typically women's golf balls are softer for slower club head speeds.
10:40But again, from our, our methodology, working from green to tee for us, speed doesn't come
10:46into it because from here, every golfer is going to swing the club slowly.
10:50Yes.
10:50And we spend more time around the green.
10:52Yes.
10:52So it's more about our approach from fitting green to tee, the long clubs,
10:58everybody wants the same thing.
10:59So all the golf balls are going to be distance orientated from the tee.
11:03But then it depends on what the female or male golfer wants from, from here.
11:07Yes.
11:07And how they want to see the golf ball perform.
11:09It's not about speed.
11:10Soft is a big word when it comes to women's golf balls.
11:13And for us, soft is more of a feeling thing.
11:16It's not performance based.
11:17And all those differences between the golf balls that you've spoken about,
11:20they're going to be noticed by whoever's hitting them, whether they're male, female,
11:24older, younger, et cetera, as you mentioned.
11:25Absolutely.
11:26And you can't link a club head speed with a gender because there will be some females
11:31that swing it faster than some males and vice versa.
11:33Yeah.
11:33So it's, yeah, it's more, it's more about what the golfer is looking for and not gender.
11:38Yeah.
11:38Okay.
11:39Right.
11:39I'm going to have a go at this.
11:40This is not my forte, this particular shot, Tom, but.
11:46I've got faith in you, Neil.
11:47You've actually got a long putt.
11:48You're in three putt territory there, so I feel fine.
11:54Oh, what a little, little kick forward.
11:57Hit the collar of the thing.
11:58I'll take it.
11:58It's fine.
12:00Great.
12:12That's beautiful.
12:14Great shot, Tom.
12:16So, Tom, next one I wanted to ask you was about coloured golf balls.
12:19Now, I don't want to offend anybody who uses a coloured golf ball that watches this video,
12:24but I have heard people say from time to time things like, oh, you know, serious golfers
12:28don't tend to play coloured balls, but that's a myth, isn't it?
12:32Yeah.
12:33Again, it's a big myth, isn't it?
12:35You know, there are coloured golf balls being used on tour now.
12:38So some of the senior players, it might be more of a visual thing.
12:41But to be honest, for us, it's more preference.
12:44We always talk about when we're fitting and recommending golf balls, we're talking about performance
12:49primarily if the golfers looking for that, but it's really important to find out what the preferences are.
12:55I remember fitting a gentleman who was struggling to hit the white golf ball.
13:00As soon as I put an orange golf ball down,
13:02he could make really good contact and it completely revolutionised his game.
13:06That's very interesting.
13:09What I found, Tom, is that I've used
13:11a yellow golf ball in not dissimilar sort of sunlight to today.
13:16So kind of like dappled sun where it's quite bright, but then there's shady areas
13:20and it can be quite hard to see.
13:22Yeah.
13:23And I feel like I can see a yellow golf ball maybe a little bit better in that scenario.
13:27Yeah. I mean, the good thing from our side of things is that the coloured golf balls,
13:31whether it's yellow or some of our matte finished golf balls,
13:35they all they all perform as the same as the white golf ball.
13:37So it's not a performance thing.
13:39It's just a preference.
13:40And yeah, in winter conditions, for example,
13:44like you just referenced or if the light's changing,
13:47then some of the other golf balls might be a bit easier to pick up in flight.
13:51Yeah.
13:51And have you not just launched a blue golf ball?
13:54We have.
13:55Yeah.
13:55Yeah.
13:55Yeah.
13:55So in our velocity range, we have white, obviously,
13:58and then we have orange, green and blue.
14:00Yeah.
14:00So it's not for everybody, but.
14:02Do you know, there'll be a lot of people out there
14:05that are excited by that proposition.
14:06Yeah.
14:06And I always worry with blue, for instance,
14:09that it's going to be a bit dark and I might not see it as it goes into the shade.
14:12Yeah.
14:13But I take it they've worked on that.
14:15Yeah.
14:15To make sure that you can.
14:16Anything we do is researched before we launch any product.
14:21So there's been some great research behind the colour schemes
14:24and the options that are available.
14:26Yeah.
14:28And it's from a visual perspective, it's great for some golfers and not for others.
14:33So it's going to be it's going to be a very individual thing.
14:36But yeah, it's we'll see how it goes.
14:39Yeah.
14:39Quick question.
14:40Do you use a coloured golf ball?
14:41If so, which colour do you use?
14:44Why do you use it?
14:44Be interested to hear what you have to say.
14:46Right, go on, Tom.
14:51OK, so this myth is I'm not good enough to play a premium golf ball.
14:56And I suspect there's people watching this video that probably will feel a little bit like that.
15:00And my theory on this, Tom, is that it stems a bit from tour,
15:04because you're watching tour players using premium golf balls
15:07and your equipment set up is quite different to a tour player set up.
15:10So people might automatically think, well, my golf ball set up needs to be quite different
15:14to a tour players set up.
15:16What are your thoughts on that one?
15:17Yeah, again, it's a big myth.
15:19It's a misconception.
15:21You know, those golfers are the best golfers in the world
15:23and they're looking to optimise their performance.
15:26If they're looking to optimise their performance, then we should as well,
15:30especially given the fact that we're most of us are striving to be as good as we can be.
15:34And typically when it comes to handicap and ability,
15:37a lot of golfers don't think they're good enough because potentially
15:40they just feel like they're losing too many.
15:42So it might be more of a cost thing, but actually from a performance standpoint,
15:46if the golfer is looking to improve and develop as a player and get as good as they can get,
15:52when you're hitting shorter shots into the green,
15:54you could argue that higher handicappers miss more greens.
15:58So therefore having a premium golf ball, which gives them more spin and more control,
16:04makes their target bigger.
16:06So it actually makes the game easier.
16:07They're more forgiving golf balls with the shorter shots.
16:10Right.
16:10So it gives the golf the best opportunity to get the golf ball as close as they can to the hole,
16:16have shorter putts and shoot lower scores.
16:18So it's, it is a big myth, but I can kind of understand potentially from a,
16:23from a, a cost effectiveness point of view.
16:26Yeah. Right.
16:27We've been looking at this shot for a time now.
16:29Yeah.
16:30So it's time for you to knock it in.
16:32I should know, I should know the read by now.
16:33I should know.
16:40Oh, I hate to say it, you missed on the amateur side there.
16:43I did.
16:43Low side, not good.
16:44So there you have it.
16:47That's our look at golf ball myths.
16:49Hopefully you found that useful.
16:51Hopefully there's been some guidance in there about some of the things that you might be thinking
16:55were true about selecting a golf ball that actually either aren't true or actually really
16:59aren't that important when it comes to finding exactly the right golf ball for you.
17:04If you do have any questions, please post them below.
17:07We'd love to hear what you think.
17:07But for now from West Hill, it's goodbye.
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