New Versus Used Golf Balls

New Versus Used Golf Balls

Recently we saw results of a test of New versus Scuffed Golf Balls, where the new golf ball outperformed the scuffed golf ball by 32.5 yards in a distance test with a driver. 

Here at Drive Golf Performance, when fitting for golf clubs, we use a combination of new and used golf balls, some of the golf balls have scuffs on them but we really haven't noticed any drop off in the performance of used/scuffed golf balls over the new ones.

Normally we tell golfers to use a golf ball until they lose it, that it would take 9 or 10 rounds of golf before the ball looks like it might lose any performance.

We decided to do our own test on golf balls and compared 12 used golf balls versus 12 new golf balls.

 

 

Used Pro V1

 

New Pro V1

We took 12 new Titleist Pro V1 out of a box and gathered up 12 used ones, both are pictured above, the wear and scuffs are pretty clear on the used golf balls. Both are the same model Pro V1 and the new balls were the yellow version.

The test was done on a good early June evening with temperatures around 20 Celsius and very little wind. The same diver was used to compare the golf balls, a Titleist TSR3 with 10.0 degrees of loft and a Fujikura Ventus shaft.

12 drives were hit with each type of ball and the results were recorded with a Trackman IV launch monitor. Each type of ball was hit three times and then alternated to the next one until 12 shots were hit with each.

The main performance numbers that we looked are were club head speed, ball speed, carry, total distance, accuracy, launch angle, peak height and spin rates. Ultimately the main ones to be interested in are ball speed, carry, total distance and accuracy.

 

Results

 

Dispersion of the Shots

 

Golf Ball	Club Speed MPH	Ball Speed MPH	Carry Yards	Total Distance Yards
New	102.7	152.7	246.5	270.5
Used	102.5	151.6	248.1	272.2
	Dispersion Feet	Launch Angle	Spin Rate	Height Feet
New	23.22	12.9	2653	94
Used	32.96	12.3	2755	93

We can see from the results that both new and used balls gave very similar results in ball speed, carry, total distance, launch angle, spin rates and height. 

There was a difference in accuracy. The accuracy measurement was calculated from the average left or right the balls were from the target. The used balls were more accurate than the new balls, nearly 10 feet more accurate. You'd have to say this is significant enough.

Analysis and Conclusion

From this test we can say that used balls in it had no drop off in performance in comparison to new balls. This test would strongly suggest that you can use a Titleist ball until you lose it. If anything the used balls were better than the new balls with the difference in accuracy.

Why would the used balls be better? Did the golfer just randomly hit better shots with the used balls? It's a possibility but having a sequence where not all the same type of balls were hit in a row would mitigate against this a little. Hitting more balls would give better data but 12 is similar to the number of drivers a golfer hits in a round so is a reasonable data set.

Did some of the scuff marks make the used balls fly better? Again it's a slight but unlikely possibility given how much research golf ball manufacturers do on golf ball dimple patterns, they would have discovered this already and be selling balls with scuff marks on them.

There is another possibility, the new balls were the yellow version of the Titleist Pro V1 and the golfer reacted differently to the yellow ball in comparison to the used balls which were white. It's a possibility but not a certainty. It would seem another test is needed to compare the white version to the yellow version.

Comments and questions are always welcome.

How does Grip Size affect your shots?

Testing Grip Size

 

Drive Golf Performance Grip Fitting Matrix

 

Grip size is often an overlooked component in a golf club. Typically the advice given is that the grip size is related to your hand size, the bigger your hands the bigger the grip size. Frequently it is also said that thinner grips promote draw shots and thicker grips fade shots. That is to say grip size has an impact on club face control and accuracy of shots.

In order to check this out we tested different grip sizes. We wanted to see did they have an effect on the accuracy of shots and also would they have an affect on other factors such as club head and ball speed.

 

6 iron Grip Sizes

 

We tested grip sizes on both a 6 and a driver. For the 6 iron we used a Mizuno MP18 SC with a Dynamic Gold S300 shaft. For the driver we used a Cobra King SZ 10.5 with an Accra 65 gram Stiff shaft. 

The grip sizes that were tested on the 6 iron were, Standard, 2 layers Extra, 4 layers Extra, Midsize and Oversize. The extra layers were added with masking tape underneath a standard grip to make the grip bigger.

The grip sizes that were tested on the driver were Undersize, Standard, Reduced Taper, Midsize and Oversize.

The testing was done over a couple of April days, one day for 6 iron and another day for the driver. Temperatures were around 14 degrees both days and there was a slight breeze against. The golfer performed a warm-up before the testing. The ball used in the test was the Titleist ProV1. The methodology of the test was to hit 3 shots with each grip size starting with the smallest progressing to the largest returning to the smallest and following the same procedure until 12 shots were hit with each. The shots were recorded on a Trackman 111 launch monitor.

 

Results

6 iron

 

Grip Size – 6i	Club Speed MPH	Ball Speed MPH	Carry Yards	Total Distance Yards
Std	82.2	113.6	152.0	160.6
+2	82.3	111.6	148.6	157.3
+4	82.8	111.7	148.8	157.8
Midsize	82.2	112.8	150.4	158.6
Oversize	82.0	112.6	148.8	157.0
	Dispersion Feet	Launch Angle	Spin Rate	Height Feet
Std	18.9	14.8	6106	75
+2	15.7	15.5	6048	74
+4	15.6	15.0	5963	72
Midsize	17.3	15.0	5872	75
Oversize	28.7	14.8	6117	74

 

Dispersion Pattern of 6 iron

What we are mainly looking for length and accuracy. Dispersion is the indicator used for accuracy. Ball Speed, Club Speed, Carry and Total Distance are the indicators used for distance.

 

The +4 layers gave the best accuracy with an average distance of 15.6 feet off the target line, the +2 layers wasn't too far behind with an average of 15.7 feet. The oversize was the worst with an average of 28.7.

 

The best ball speed, club head speed, carry and total distance came from the standard grip. The lowest came from the +2 layers 

 

Overall the standard grip would seem to be the best performing with the longest distance and ball speed (best indicator of strike) and an accuracy close to the best but not quite the best accuracy. The oversize was definitely the worst, with a dispersion quite a long way off then the others. The other 3 performed well enough, with not much difference in accuracy between them.

 

Driver

Grip Size – Dr	Club Speed MPH	Ball Speed MPH	Carry Yards	Total Distance Yards
Std	99.6	149.8	234	259.3
Undersize	98.8	148.6	235.2	257.5
Reduced Taper	98.2	147.4	233	257.3
Midsize	99.0	149.2	233.5	261.0
Oversize	98.4	146.7	230.1	251.8
	Dispersion Feet	Launch Angle	Spin Rate	Height Feet
Std	31.6	10.1	2880	77
Undersize	39.2	11.7	2861	88
Reduced Taper	57.2	12.3	2861	83
Midsize	42.2	11.0	2613	75
Oversize	43.0	11.8	3127	88

 

 

Dispersion Pattern of Driver

The standard size gave the best accuracy with an average distance of 31.6 feet off the target line. The reduced taper was the worst with an average of 57.2.

 

The best ball speed and club head speed came from the standard, carry from undersize and total distance came from midsize. The worst distance with the highest spin came from the oversize. 

 

Overall the standard grip would seem to be the best performing. The oversize and reduced taper both performed poorly.

Grip Size -6i	Attack Angle	Club Path	Face to Path
Std	-6.0	-4.4	5.0
+2	-5.6	-3.7	4.5
+4	-4.8	-3.1	3.7
Midsize	-4.7	-2.8	3.3
Oversize	-3.8	-1.5	2.3

 

Grip Size -Dr	Attack Angle	Club Path	Face to Path
Std	-1.2	0.2	-1.1
Undersize	-1.6	-0.2	-0.8
Reduced Taper	-0.9	-1.1	2.6
Midsize	-1.2	0.1	-0.1
Oversize	-0.9	-1.1	0.9

 

While we were mainly looking at distance and accuracy we also checked the impact factors. With the 6 iron the grip sizes did seem to have different influences on club path and face to path, with the driver not as much.

 

Notable with the driver the biggest disparity between path and face to path was with the reduced taper grip which did have the worst accuracy.

Analysis and Conclusion

When recommending a grip size, we recommend the one that gives the best performance and we can see with this test that grip size does change performance. If the performances are similar, go for the one that feels the most comfortable in the hand. 

 

Overall for this golfer you would say that the standard grip size was best for them. It gave the best combination of distance and accuracy in both the 6 iron and driver. For the 6 iron as the grip sizes went up there wasn't a big difference in performance until the oversize. 

 

With the driver there was a bigger difference between dispersion as we changed sizes. Can we surmise that as the driver is harder to control and that having the correct grip size in the driver is more important?

 

Did we see thicker grips more likely to go left to right? With the driver the oversize grip definitely went more left to right, with the iron it was more of a general difference rather than a side pattern

 

We have also noticed over time that there isn't a big correlation between hand size and grip size, which means testing is required to find the optimal size. 

Our best guess as to why grip size is not related to hand size, is it seems to be more closely related to the previous sport history of the player. What the player uses first is what they get used to and continue using.

Any questions and comments are welcome.