R11S Features:

• Tune loft up or down by 1.5° with Flight Control Technology (FCT)
• Tune the face to one of five angles (±3°) with Adjustable Sole Plate (ASP) Technology
• Tune the center of gravity toward the heel or toe with Movable Weight Technology (MWT)
• 460cc titanium head with Thick-Thin Crown design for lower CG
• Inverted Cone Technology (ICT) promotes more ball speed on off-center hits
• White non-glare crown and black clubface for easy alignment

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Having tried the first version of the Top Flite Gamer golf balls and really liking them, I was excited to learn that Callaway (which owns Top Flite) had decided to come out with a new version of the golf ball.  The Gamer V2 still features dimple in dimple aerodynamics and is a three piece golf ball.  The changes that were made to the ball include a new DuPont mantle layer to increase distance and add greater feel.  Changes were also made to the core and outer layer to increase feel and durability, which were severely lacking in their first version of the Top Flite Gamer golf balls.  Here is my review of the new Top Flite Gamer V2 golf balls.

Positive

Similar to the first version, the second version of these golf balls have fantastic distance.  The distance is actually comparable to golf balls that are more than twice the price of these, and that is really something remarkable.  I couldn’t believe the distance I was getting out of the golf balls, especially off the tee.  For the woods and irons as well from the fairway, the distance was still very close to that of a Pro V1 Tour iS golf balls.

Another positive came in regards to the short game.  Much emphasis was made upon improving the feel of the golf ball to make it softer for the second version, and one can truly notice the difference when trying out the two versions side by side.  When it came to chipping the ball would check up nicely on practically every shot.  One almost never sees an inexpensive golf ball checking up like it is supposed to on the green, and it is truly refreshing to find one that does.  Whether it was a lob, flop, bump and run, you name it, the golf ball would come to a rest quickly every time.  I also noticed that the golf ball had a very soft feel coming off the putter, and it really inspired confidence when it came to the shorter putts.

Negative

One of the main negatives I found when reviewing the first version of the Top Flite Gamer golf ball was that it did not have sufficient spin for mid or long iron shots.  Unfortunately the same can be said of the second version as well.  When it came to shots with a 4 iron one should expect that the golf ball should stop fairly quickly and not keep rolling on the green.  There were quite a few shots on the golf course where I would hit the high iron and when the ball hit the green it just kept rolling and rolling.  It was truly frustrating watching the ball roll of the green many times after hitting a shot that landed near the flag.  When it came to the short irons the golf ball would simply stop wherever it hit, which can be a good or bad thing depending on one’s particular golf game.  My golf game revolves around getting a good amount of spin for these types of shots, so the golf ball performed below average in this area as well.

Overall

Overall the Top Flite Gamer V2 golf ball is one of the best low price golf ball alternatives out there on the market today.  They have made many positive improvements with the golf ball since version one, especially ramping up the soft feel of the ball when it comes to the short game.  The golf ball still performed below average when it came to spin for short and long iron shots, but that is what one should expect from low priced golf balls.  The Top Flite Gamer V2 golf ball is certainly one of the best bang for your buck options out there when it comes to golf balls.

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Product Review: Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 Fairway Woods

Taylormade Golf Company has come out with a new brand of golf clubs that really have a striking appearance to them.  The Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 fairway woods are a part of this new trend, in which the clubhead is white while the clubface itself is black.  It is truly a unique blend of colors that match well together.  As far as other specifications, the fairway woods are comprised of very lightweight clubheads that are designed to increase swing speed, along with the Winn Lite grip and Matrix XCon shaft that come stock with the club. The Superfast fairway woods are also designed for greater carry, with the clubface having a low center of gravity.  With that said here is my overall review of the Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 fairway woods.

Positive

The first positive that I noticed came on the first tee box, where the ball just jumped off of the clubface.  I don’t know what it is about all the new technology these days, but I like it more and more as my distance goes down with age.  It was not just the tee shots either, but practically every shot that was hit felt solid.  I even tried putting a golf ball in an old divot and the ball still shot out straight and true.  This goes into my next positive, in that the Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 fairway woods are extremely forgiving.  It did not matter if I hit it off of the toe or the heel, the golf clubs still performed well above expectations.

The third positive that I found with these fairway woods is that it is easy to work the ball either way, more so off the tee than in the fairway.  If there was a hole that required a draw for instance, I could simply use my draw swing and the club would do the rest for me.  It is truly effortless swinging these golf clubs, and a lot of that is due in part to the lightweight features I mentioned earlier.  Lastly, the fairway woods are extremely durable and could probably last for years and years.  After a few long sessions on the driving range I thought the clubs might have lost their distance but they certainly proved me wrong out on the golf course time and time again.

Negative

It was truly difficult trying to find any sort of negatives with the Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 fairway woods, but if I had to be nitpicky I would have to go with its performance out of the rough.  When it came to fairway bunkers the clubs would work perfectly and get the ball straight up in the air upon impact, but it just didn’t feel the same when hitting them out of the rough (and especially deep rough).  I just could not get solid contact between the club and ball at all in the rough, and maybe this is due in part to the clubs being so lightweight.  Regardless, this was the only real negative that I could find when it came to these fairway woods.

Conclusion

The Taylormade Burner Superfast 2.0 fairway woods are a great step in the right direction for Taylormade Golf Company.  If you have been with them for their drivers, you should definitely try out their fairway woods, as they are as good as, if not better than, many other competitiors out on the market today.  These fairway woods are that good.

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Bridgestone has been quietly jumping up the ladder as far as the golf ball market is concerned.  One of the areas in which they have strived to match their competition in is tour-level golf balls, known as the Tour B330 line.  The first two balls that Bridgestone came out with, the Tour B330 and B330S, were a huge success and are currently used by PGA Tour players such as Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker, and Davis Love III.  Since then Bridgestone has come out with a new type of golf ball, one that provides tour level performance for amateur players, known as the RX line.  The RX line includes the B330 RX, which is more geared for players looking for distance, and the B330 RXS, which is geared for players looking for more short iron spin.  I decided to give the Bridgestone B330 RXS golf ball a try to see if it can really provide tour performance for amateur golfers (those with swing speeds less than 105 miles per hour).

Positives

Even through the B330 RX is supposed to offer more distance as opposed to the RXS, I found the RXS to have great distance both off the tee and in the fairway.  The distance was certainly comparable to that of a Pro V1 or a Callaway Tour golf ball.  On average I was getting about 3 to five yards extra distance on both my iron and wood shots, which is certainly surprising to find in a golf ball.  If anything it proves that in order to increase distance one of the first things to try out is better golf equipment such as new clubs or balls such as the B330 RXS.

When it came to the short game, I was also pleasantly surprised to find out how well it performed.  There wasn’t very much backspin on say 75 yard pitch shots, but how many amateur golfers are really looking for that to happen when hitting a pitch shot from that distance?  In either case, the ball did stop quickly whenever I wanted it to, not only on pitch shots but also when it came to chipping.  Whenever I needed to hit a bump and run chip the ball would always check up.  The Bridgestone B330 RXS golf ball also feels great when putting.  There is a very useful putting alignment on it that makes it easier to line up putts where you want them to go.

Negatives

As far as negatives, the only major one that I found came in regards to shots into the green using mid to high irons.  The golf ball just would not stay on the green no matter what I tried; it would hit the green and then just keep rolling.  How can a supposed tour-level performance golf ball not provide decent spin for mid and long iron shots?  Also, I found it a bit harder to shape shots with as opposed to similar balls such as the Pro V1.  The ball is fine if trying to hit low or high shots, but it seemed to exaggerate fades and draws, making them instead slices and hooks.

Overall

Overall it is a very solid golf ball for amateurs looking for a high performance golf ball.  It provides distance comparable to any other golf ball on the market today and could even add a few extra yards to your iron and wood shots.  It is also great for the short game as well, but one should be a little cautious when it comes to mid to long irons shots when hitting into the green.

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Cleveland Launcher Fairway Woods

Positives

When playing out at my local golf course a few times the first positive that I noticed right away with the clubs was their distance. They were very long both off the tee and in the fairway. They certainly inspire confidence when playing with them during the course of a round. This can be especially important when it comes to golf holes that have tight fairways to deal with. Instead of taking out the driver and risking it going into the trees, one can be assured that they will still get great distance off the tee by going with a Cleveland Launcher fairway wood. The same applies to par 5s as well. I am usually very hesitant in trying to go for par 5s in two when I can reach them because if I am only a little bit off it can result in a pitch from an awkward distance, thus reducing my chance at getting birdie. With these fairway woods I just grip it and rip it, and the club does the rest by giving me the distance I need.

Another great feature that I found when using Cleveland Launcher fairway woods was how easy it was to shape shots with. There are a couple of holes at my local golf course that require a hook because it is a dogleg left hole, and I like many others struggle to get the ball to go left. With this club it was much easier to turn the clubhead over and get the right to left action on the golf ball. The ball flight with these fairway woods was tremendous to say the least.

Negatives

There were two negatives that I found when using the Cleveland Launcher fairway woods. The first came in regards to its forgiveness. Whenever I hit off center shots with the woods they were severely off in both distance and accuracy. It may be a different case for others, but I just could not get much forgiveness out of these golf clubs. Also, these fairway woods did not perform very well for me out of bad lies, especially from the rough. The clubs just never seemed to glide through the grass like others could, and it resulted in a lot of distance lost. I also found that I couldn’t get very good distance out of fairway bunker shots when compared with other fairway woods in a similar price range.

Overall

My overall opinion of the Cleveland Launcher fairway woods is that they are some great clubs for those looking to add distance to this specific part of their game. The clubs can certainly inspire confidence both on the tee box and in the fairway. However, they certainly are not the best when it comes to forgiveness and out of bad lies. If you are willing to overlook these two flaws then I would highly recommend getting these fairway woods.

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Callaway Tour iS Golf Ball Review

Over the past few years Callaway has been making great strides in the golf ball market. It now offers golf balls for practically any handicap imaginable, and has great quality golf balls that are played by the likes of Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els on the PGA Tour as well. One of the more recent high-end golf balls that has come out is the Callaway Tour iS golf ball. It has received a lot of hype since it has come out, being featured on Golf Digest’s Hot List for 2011 for instance.

The Callaway Tour iS is technologically advanced as a four piece golf ball (I guess three isn’t good enough these days or something) and its main purpose is to help golfers with their short games. Along with most of their other golf balls the Callaway Tour iS has HEX Aerodynamics; this means that when you look at the golf ball the dimples are hexagons instead of regular circles. This supposedly makes the ball better able to get good ball flight in practically any weather condition imaginable. Another feature concerning the Callaway Tour iS is its dual core technology, which is pretty self explanatory in which the golf ball has two cores (hence being a four piece golf ball instead of three piece), and it supposedly help in getting maximum distance along with great short game feel. With all of that said, does all of this technology in a golf ball really help your game? I decided to give the Callaway Tour iS a try over a few rounds to see if it can really live up to its hype. What follows is my review of the golf ball.

Short Game

As far as the short game, the ball lives up to its hype; it is truly a great short game ball that can rival any other brand on the market today. Especially from 100 yards and in the golf ball checks up beautifully and provides a good amount of backspin when needed. When it came to chipping bump and runs were very easy to execute and the Callaway Tour iS checks up every time. It was even great out of bunkers too. As anyone knows it can be quite difficult getting a golf ball to stop on the green when hitting a greenside bunker shot, but I was able to consistently get the ball to stop on the green; the same applied to fairway bunker shots as well. When it came to putting the golf ball felt great and rolled true every time. It certainly provides added confidence when putting on the green.

Long Game

The Callaway Tour iS is a really great ball to shape shots with, whether it is a fade, a hook, or even a riser (where the ball starts low and increases height). I just used the appropriate swing for each shot and the golf ball did the rest for me. I got some pretty good distance out of the fairway woods and driver, and I would it was comparable to similar golf balls. The major downside for the Callaway Tour iS came in regards to long iron shots (5 iron to 3 iron). The distance that I got for this kind of shot was well below average (about 5 yards shorter than a Pro V1). I play from the back tees and 5 yards means a lot, so I pleasantly surprised to find this out.

Conclusion

The Callaway Tour iS certainly lives up to its hype as a great short game ball. I would say that it is a great fit for someone who already gets good distance and is looking to improve their short game stats. The only downside that I found when using the ball was long iron shots, but other than the Callaway Tour iS performed very well.

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