Best tour balls we compared
These are the ball comparisons on our desk this year — not a ranking we invented in a lab we do not have. I would start with the Costco argument, then the Pro V1 split.
Start here
The tour twins
Tour B X or XS? I would start with your wedge, not the tour sticker.
Two Bridgestone tour balls. One letter. I wanted to know if the XS is actually the one most golfers should skip.
Chrome Soft or Chrome Soft X? The X is not automatically better.
I keep seeing golfers buy the X because it sounds like the tour version. That is not a fitting.
TP5 or TP5x? I would not guess from the box.
Same price. Same five-piece story. Different ball. I compared them the way you actually buy a dozen.
Pro V1 or Pro V1x? The short answer is: stop guessing.
I keep getting asked which one to buy. The difference is real. It is also smaller than the internet wants it to be.
Value urethane
Maxfli Tour or Vice Pro? I wanted the urethane that is not a costume.
Two balls that claim Pro V1 performance for less. I compared them as golf balls, not as a protest vote.
Supersoft or Tour Soft? Budget balls still have a job.
I compared the two-piece-ish options people actually finish. Not the ones they lose and do not care about.
Vice Pro Plus or Snell MTB-X? Direct-to-consumer is not a free lunch.
Two DTC urethane balls. I compared the ball, not the unboxing.
Also on the desk
e12 Contact or ERC Soft? Distance balls that do not need a tour sticker.
I compared them as weekend balls. If you wanted a Pro V1, you would have bought one.
Tour Response or Z-Star XV? Mid-range is where the math gets honest.
A cheaper TaylorMade urethane versus Srixon’s firmer tour ball. I compared who each one is for.
Wilson Staff Model or Honma? I wanted a tour ball without the default logo.
Two premium balls that do not win the parking-lot argument. That might be the point.
Chrome Soft or Z-Star? I wanted a tour ball that is not a default.
Callaway’s soft tour ball versus Srixon’s. I compared flight and greenside, not the staff bag.
Tiger’s ball or the Pro V1? I am not Tiger. Neither are you.
Tour stickers are not a fitting. I compared Tour B XS and Pro V1 as amateur golf balls.
AVX or TP5x? Low spin is a fitting. Again.
Two premium balls that want to fly flatter. I compared them for the golfer who already hits it high.