BALL TESTING LIKE BRYSON PT2 / DOES IT MATTER?

[@skithewhitestuff]

Great video. This is something that I can’t get enough of . My Golf Spy have done endless tests on this and it seems that the effects of the weighting seems to be those while in the air. A future video maybe?

[@EFGMC]

I like it. Going to need more subscribers so I can afford buying that golf hitting robot!

[@djones1304]

Save your money. The average KZbin golf viewer is looking for a 🦄

[@goodknight37]

Awesome video. Now I don’t need a ball spinner👍

[@Master...deBater]

I did this same test about a decade ago...but instead of a pvc ramp I used a length of toy car track set at an angle...and my living room carpet rather than an actual putting green. I got exactly the same result...no discernable difference. Which is precisely what I was hoping to find since the saltwater test is a pain in the arse!😁

[@dtlocke]

Love your videos and especially your no-nonsense approach to golf technology! Can I make just one small suggestion for how you might run a slightly better test of off center balls? Just take one ball and orient the heavy side to the left and roll at 100 times. Then take the same ball and orient the heavy side to the right and roll it 100 times. I think that would give a clearer picture of whether off-center weighting really makes a difference.

[@johnvelella2473]

I agree, also think about going to a better/faster green. it will show the weighting easier. on slow greens it is very tough to get it to make a difference.

[@kennethrobie8789]

One caveat to your test. The first 3 Callaway balls ended up going left into the cup. As you can see the more balls that you rolled the more pronounced the ball "track" became on the grass. I would try the same test on a hard surface that was not effected by the ball track displayed on the grass surface.

[@EFGMC]

Agree. Synthetic turf might be better. Or waiting a few minutes between rolls to let the grass rebound.

[@djones1304]

@@EFGMC or. Save yourself some time and conclude that golfers want someone else to blame.

[@honkingdonk3981]

@@EFGMC also doing the test indoors might help. Wind and temp might not be as big a factor but the rotation of the earth would still be an issue. I'm pretty sure the earth's rotation is causing my slice.

[@bigpardner]

A bowling alley?

[@Master...deBater]

@@EFGMC I did this test years ago on my firm living room carpet...same results you got!

[@dkvalour3574]

What an interesting experiment! My kind of video. Thank you for this.

[@danielwoodall3984]

What I took away from this video, as a very average golfer, is don’t think too much. Great video!

[@Bamaolive]

Seems to me that the ramp would only show minimal effects of the off center core. With the ramp there is no strike/compression in which the heavier side would possibly cause a slight turn/spin/twist in reaction. Just my opinion and something to consider.

[@BendmeovrNick]

These kind of videos keep me coming back 👍👍👍

[@EFGMC]

Glad to hear that!

[@kentbrown3736]

Loved the video by the way. Your content is always watchable. Thanks.

[@deanmccormick8070]

Maybe differences, if any, would show up more clearly on artificial turf, and/or with a pendulum putter with a mechanical release for maximum uniformity. This shouldn't be too expensive or troublesome to set up.

[@richardcanete6969]

Great video…been watching your channel lately now I’m a follower. Keep up the good work.

[@glennmcilvenna3142]

Love that you gave Rick shiels a shout in the vid, cool video keep em coming

[@EFGMC]

Hoping one day he returns the favor!

[@thigson189]

Without doubt, there is plenty more to be concerned with in the game of golf. "Time to go home there, ball ... are you too good for your home!" Jus' tap it in, tap, tap, tap it in. Interesting information nonetheless and a great job presenting. Very well done.

[@johnfrancisspencer6324]

Thanks AJ informative and unbiased analysis 👍

[@Beekeeper58]

Again, AJ excellent content!! Have you tried the Driver and moving the dots side to side, front to rear?? Just curious if it would effect the Driver more than the putter.

[@EFGMC]

Would need to enlist some of my + handicap golf buddies. My driver would have too many variables to make for a good test.

[@paulmilsom1346]

Interesting experiment AJ, now I can't blame the ball 😤 must be the putter, it's definitely not me to blame😅

[@EFGMC]

Don’t forget the shirt. It can always be the shirt!

[@tjmeyer3037]

Thanks for your efforts, AJ. I have a suggestion for a test video. This season I switched all my clubs grips to kangaroo leather. I've had extremely good luck with them on the hottest days of the year and I can't say enough good things about them. I still have to dry my hand before a shot but I'm not really sure if that's routine or necessity. I just know they work. I don't know why everyone, including pros, don't use them. I will say they are a little cost prohibitive up front but payback happens over the course of use. No gloves required as well. The solution for grip is soaked into the leather so they retain that attribute for the years (yes years, plural) of service. The kangaroo leather is twice as strong as cowhide at half the thickness so they will last. The kangaroo option is gonna run a little over $20 per with other materials being $15 plus. But the benefits are multi-season service life and no glove needed, but of course is optional if only to adjust to the feel. I purchased Gripmaster grips and couldn't be happier, but there are other brands out there and to each his own. Thanks buddy, TJ Meyer

[@EFGMC]

Thanks for the info. What's the weight on those?

[@Durwin-ny4zf]

@@EFGMC Kangaroo leather makes sense since irons have bounce. ;)

[@jgm911t]

Great video thanks for posting. I would think that higher layered ball would be the toughest to balance in manufacturing. Maybe test ProV1 vs ProV1x. Or 2 layer vs 5 layer ball.

[@saltaddict685]

Great video! Love this stuff 👍

[@kingshark5938]

Next, tee box shot comparisons

[@EFGMC]

Just need a better golfer to hit them!

[@andyss5582]

Interesting set of experiments, thanks for taking the time to run them. I don't think a 10 foot putt is enough to identify any effects of a ball where the center of mass is not in the center of the sphere. Too small a spin rate. I think of an off center COM acting the same as a bit of mud on the ball which on a full strike will alter the axis of rotation and produce an altered flight from the "ideal" centered rotation. The distance off center would determine how much the axis would move - closer less alteration than further. You can't really know how off center the COM is with the float test, but if you get a tight cluster, I'd say its safe to put that ball in the shag bag if you are worried about it. I'd also like to see a clustered dot pattern ball put in a Check-Go to see if the axis line goes through the dots.

[@edwinlambley2801]

Very interesting subject I have seen a few of these. I think the first was My Golf Spy. The subject can get a bit anal quick. The question is WHAT can we do about it in reality don't buy golf balls. Yes we can complain but it's not just one manufacturer. Is it the core mix, layer thickness or combination. If it is then its product control. The bottom line is we still buy them and it does give us all the excuse when we hit it into the crap we can blame the ball :)

[@robd38]

Great informative videos, I like the ideas, very interesting, Thanks. I used to balance my new golf balls I found it only made a mental difference. After hitting them I tried to balance them again funny thing the dots were not in the same place.

[@EFGMC]

From what I did in the first video and confirmed in the second, the balls with better balance will show dots all over. The "bad" ones will all have them in the same basic location.

[@dacox1433]

I like your setup for consistency but a thought on why no effects are apparent: when rolling down your ramp balls accelerate slowly giving time for rotational inertia to build as alignment is preserved. Possibly the balls are even slightly reorienting axis while still rolling down guided track. A putt relies on a much more abrubt acceleration and gets no more guiding influence. I'd think off center, unbalanced balls would be most affected right off face as uneven weight distribution could impart slight side spin, skid or overspin with effects increasing with putt length and force.

[@EFGMC]

Looks like I am going to need to build a putter pendulum is what you're saying or see if Ben Crenshaw is available for a couple hours.

[@Durwin-ny4zf]

@@EFGMC If a circumferential line was drawn using radially, it would visually reveal if the ball were "righting" itself.

[@peterszutu555]

Would an off center CG be more erratic when driven into the air with a few thousand rpm?

[@EFGMC]

That is a good question. Still working on a way to test that without access to golf robot.

[@davidpuhl2904]

🤠 Could weight of the balls affect the roll?

[@markslinger4599]

Great and useful video 👍🏻

[@EFGMC]

Thanks for watching.

[@koncaswatch8726]

A good experiment for balls at putting rotation speed. As one with extensive experience in dynamic balancing (aircraft propellers/rotors), I know that as an imbalance object rotates at higher speed the deflection / intensity of the vibration increases. So, I'm wondering about the effect of an out of balance ball at 2000 - 4000 RPM. Will out of balance balls alter the flight characteristics?

[@AsadKhan-lm6yr]

Nice video. Shows human error likely makes a bigger difference. Be interested to see how it affects drives though.

[@charlesjames9783]

I think the ball checker actually serves another purpose. If you hit the put straight the line will track to the break in the green. If you slice across the ball or the putter is not square the line will wobble. Either way it is good practice though not as advertised.

[@Labgorilla]

Thanks AJ! Been waiting for this video. So it doesn’t affect low spin as when putting but what about situations when spin is imparted? Presumably high spin rates with unbalanced balls could have much more pronounced results? What do you think?

[@EFGMC]

This is where I need that golfing robot to do this sort of test. Few hundred thousand more subscribers and I can maybe rent one!

[@nerd9992]

interesting everytime!

[@Durwin-ny4zf]

I think positioning the heavy side perfectly axially or radially will not cause much issue. However, If the heavy side is positioned 45 degrees between axially and radially, then you might see some differences. The heavy side, axially, would just rotate around itself (like an axle hub) and radially would revolve around the center (like a nail stuck in the center of the tread of a tire), neither causing much wobble. If it were positioned 45 degrees from both the axis of rotation and the radius, it would be at its most unstable position. Just supposing here.

[@alanduncan9204]

I guess ? it might make a difference with a Driver or long iron. I remember playing with Balata balls and they would go way out of shape, sometimes only after 3 or 4 holes and my slices or hook, could look so vicious the ball could have gone right around and hit you from behind.

[@EFGMC]

Yeah I need more subscribers so I can afford that golf robot to do these tests.

[@a.t.9513]

Good video but I think there are a few things we need to highlight: 1. Putting from a marginal distance were only show very small disparities, and I think it's important to know that the waiting affects compression of a golf ball more than it does putting in certain instances. 2. The next logical test will be full swings. I believe balls that are not properly centered will have way worse affects on a full swing than the putter. It's been tested on sooo many levels (mygolfspy has done it the best scientifically) but it makes a difference. Balls that are out of balance have different compression points, affecting ball flight and speed.

[@mateobarraza99]

This much weight difference in a ball wouldn't hurt my game in the least! Total honesty. If anyone is watching golf self help videos I think you all are in the same position I am in.

[@jerrysmiley1084]

Good down to earth test! A longer put might have shown a greater difference....but for my game it probably wouldn't make much difference.

[@EFGMC]

I did some 20 footers also on a different green going more downhill and got the same results, so I didn't include that footage in the video.

[@waynepadley1337]

Hi AJ I tested 10 new prov1 balls and 3 failed. I conldnt see any difference between so called good and bad on the putting green so I feel a bit better after watching your first video. Maybe on full shots it will but I’m not good enough to tell 😂

[@paulmilsom1346]

AJ, I recently regripped my Ping G410 driver, which has a counter balanced shaft, I thought I would extend it by 3/4 of an inch, but the counter weight sits in the butt end of the shaft, so a shaft extender won't fit in. Is there a way of successfully removing the counter weight without damage for reuse if I decide to go back to standard?

[@EFGMC]

Yes, you can pull those out. Just a little heat right at the end of the shaft with heat gun or extra carefully with torch. Then remove with pliers.

[@paulmilsom1346]

@@EFGMC Thanks AJ, very helpful 👍

[@JGrizzel]

Wouldn't force to the ball play a bigger part into if this matters or not? Due to compression , spin, and force applied I feel like an off balance ball would contribute more to a slice or hook bias.

[@EFGMC]

Spin, force, compression, and distance may all contribute more. Been thinking about circling back to this video now that I have a launch monitor to test with.

[@JGrizzel]

I'd really like to see that one!

[@MrUlfdub]

Move the ramp to the left a hair!

[@stephenfowler4115]

Out of balance balls should produce similar deviation as out of balance tires. Factors that affect the accuracy of the roll would include center of gravity,center of mass and roundness and smoothness. Deviation would change with velocity and distance traveled for each of these factors. Momentum would also affect the route the ball takes. Obviously the greater the deviation between center of gravity and the geometric center of the ball the larger the deviation would become.

[@Carlos-yn2ob]

How about the same test with the check-go pro golf ball balancer.

[@coreymoore01]

As others have mentioned. Early in the video balls were finding the hole, you created a path in the grass allowing for more velocity on the ball early in the “putt” which is causing the rest to miss to the right just barely. If you reduced the height at which you were releasing the ball as the video went on, I have to think more would have found the cup. Especially the ones with the center of gravity pointed to the left.

[@peterrandall3369]

Be interesting to see if tour golf balls are more consistent as they are made with closer tolerances

[@theimpaler5034]

Dam i was hoping to blame my missed putts on an unbalanced ball 🤣🤣🤣

[@Kraigmike]

How about high spinning shots.

[@mikemyers7317]

So for putting no difference, wonder what driving machine results would be at 2K plus rpms, any thoughts?

[@EFGMC]

Yeah, I need to get access to a golf robot or maybe hit up some of my plus handicap friends to do a test.

[@mikemyers7317]

@@EFGMC All I know for sure about spin is less helps my driver distance significantly. Be interesting to know if an out of whack ball makes a big difference as well. Thanks for videos. Grip size video was a game changer for me.

[@adriancox-thesantjordigolf3646]

Compare with the old soft centre balls

[@AussieBob999]

I think the biggest affect would be with the driver - where there is a far greater spin rate than a putt. It makes sense that a ball hit at 100+ mph with a weight towards one side will be affected more when in flight than a ball rolling. Maybe do it with a robot?

[@bigpardner]

Srixon website-"That’s why our new FastLayer DG Cores are soft at the center and get firmer from the inside out. The contrasting compression helps them rebound quicker off the face for incredible distance while still providing exceptional feel." So, it appears they are trying to make the core not one consistency of goop, but varying consistency from center out, or vice versa. Maybe this can cause an out of balance core even though it may be a perfect sphere and the outer layers are perfect ?

[@EFGMC]

I haven't tested any Srixon ball yet. Might need to follow up this video.

[@kentbrown3736]

With such an accurate and repeatable release you definitely wore a path in the green. Not visible to your human eye, but still there, none the less.

[@RichyRefurbish-xj4hf]

a level in three areas from pin to the slide.then a chalk line from pin to the slide.who knows!

[@onsidelegal1002]

that green doesnt seem like an ideal testing environment. any chance you could try same on a smooth well maintained one?

[@7mksuper]

While the exercise of checking the CG of the ball is interesting, the amount of offset would be what matters to a putt. The REAL test would be on potential impact on the very high spin rate off of the club face. That said, with modern manufacturing what it is, my guess is that EVERY premium ball is spin tested at the factory, and ones that don't pass would be rejected, and sold a range balls or something. So, what we end up buying, will not make any significant difference at all. (Still fun though!)

[@jteddy11]

I liked your video, better than MyGolfSpy. I can not sit thru an hour of one of their boring videos. I believe that last year, Calaway was very unbalanced, looks like they have gotten better with quality control.

[@EFGMC]

They seem to have righted the ship. Still will probably come back to the topic again.

[@windyknot2094]

EXCELLENT. NOW I can get some sleep! Yesterday a club fitter at Dicks told me I needed a ball spinner and that it made an enormous difference in controlling His ball flight. Oddly, moments earlier He told He had not been playing AT ALL. 😏 Bottom line.....it's called golf.

[@robertbaldwin177]

Great video. Folk getting hung up about ball balance seems crazy. Human eyes and feet wont always give perfect green reads, human muscles will never consistently deliver a putter face to the ball at 90 degrees and distance control is the biggest killer for poor putters. Whether the ball is a gram heavier to one side or another should be the least of peoples concerns, as you've proven. That said, if balancing your balls gives you extra confidence when putting (even if purely psychological) then go for it.

[@aaronlane4346]

I would expect to see a difference with irons / high spin shots? Putting is probably not enough to see a rotational torque created by the COG being off. Higher the spin / speed, higher the torque will be acting on the ball.

[@EFGMC]

Getting enough comments on this that I think I will need to revisit again.

[@stratovani]

The bottom line is that in the end it doesn't matter. Modern golf balls are manufactured so well and so consistently that the ball will always roll true enough for us amateurs and more than a few pros. We've come a long ways from feathery and gutta percha balls!

[@jonchadwick1171]

The thick side is the heaviest side, that means the dots are opposite on the up side, not on the thick side!

[@ThinkingMan482]

There is another channel that has tested this with a robot. He found you would miss a 24 foot putt by putting the heavy side to one side or the other. So it matters, but not a great deal. I want to know how it affects a driver ball flight. Seems like it could make a big difference there.

[@randymahony8157]

Callaway has invested alot of money to improve their ball quality. How about in the air off of a wood or iron?

[@EricVonZipper-b1l]

The problem with your roll test is that you do not take into account the force impact of the putter face on the ball. Physics will show you that an unbalanced ball with the heavier weight to the side when hit will definitely deviate. The same result will occur with hitting an unbalanced ball with the driver (or iron, for that matter).

[@butchcase6351]

C Go back and look closley at your videoand you will see a small "trough" that every golf ball followed just to the right of the cup. The t"trough" didn't seem to be there on the first test with the Callaway balls.

[@EFGMC]

I promise there was no alterations done to the surface from when I started testing to the end. Always made sure not to step in the line and be as careful as possible to not accidentally knock the ball release rig. I think the slight changes had to be from small patches of grass getting bent down in some way that caused a directional change. Other possibility was the ball did have probably a 1/8 inch drop from the ramp to the green. I wonder if after the first 2 Callaway balls if that drop caused a slight depression in the green that then altered the role of all putts after.

[@johnbrodnik839]

Back in the day using wound balls it made a difference. But $56 a dozen. Come on man!

[@leeholden13]

Seems to me that if all the balls miss in almost the exact same spot to the right, the alignment was off. Since the first Galloway balls went in, I'd guess you bumped the ramp a tiny bit off line. Don't think it changed the results. If you corrected the alignment, it looks like they would all have gone in.

[@kenlearman4791]

This mattered back in the days of wound balata balls that may not come out of the box as perfect spheres. In today's world of tight manufacturing tolerances, it is likely meaningless

[@ten8d1]

Great video...I was actually curious about this when I first heard about it. But you have confirmed my suspicions, truly no effect in reality. I would like to see a test on the Maxfli Tour and Tour X, since Maxfli claims that they spin the balls to locate the CG prior to stamping them...hmmm.

[@robertadams8971]

Well, One less thing to blame my missed putts on. Very discouraging!

[@bigpardner]

At 1:44 there looks like a lot of dots in one small area.

[@cwmcclintock5757]

Technically, I only actually make 18 putts per round. So, now I can't blame the rest on the ball either? It can't be me or the $3MM putter. BUT, now I know why I have been missing the ball to the right side of the hole. ;) Because you have proven all premium balls, (balanced or not) actually always roll slightly to the right, not straight where I aim. I'll aim all putts left tomorrow. Yep, that'll do it. ;)

[@EFGMC]

This sounds like a good theory. Believe it or not, I actually wanted the perfect roll to miss the cup so that I could see the total distance the balls rolled and the final location. Some still went in though! But now I've gotten some feedback so I may need to redo this test using a different ball release method.

[@cwmcclintock5757]

@@EFGMC I'll probably never need to know what to bring to a Mensa picnic, but I do understand that you were trying to see if there is an identifiable variance in roll. I realize making the line right or left was your choice and irrelevant for the test. I was joshing, and would still be on the first green, if I aimed everything to the left. ;) Since the '90s there have been gizmos called Check-go or Go-Pro (whatever) that spin the ball to find the balance line. You can redo the trial with a Stimpmeter, and a PGA-grade manicured green. But for all practical purposes, your trial was bias confirmation for me. IMHO, doing the math of impact, green resistance, speed and mass, the centerline is irrelevant. But if it makes Bryson et al more confident in their head, then they should have at it.

[@rodrich1644]

Although not perfect, tolerences as better than ever before.

[@theimpaler5034]

If I cut a golf ball in half how do I play with that ball lol

[@glennrudolph]

I just went and tested 3 dozen random balls. My conclusion…it doesn’t matter how fancy the ball is, every manufacturer has bad balls. Percentage wise, I found prov1x balls to be the least consistent. But that’s only cause 4/8 of them weren’t close to center COG. Womp womp

[@johnbarber2175]

tx

[@kevinhothan7328]

it seems to me just putt the damn ball into the hole problem solved

[@mishellgagnon5771]

I'd much rather take care of my putting technique than all those meaningless tests. Thanks anyway A.J. Very non conclusive.

[@billwatson7412]

Still comes down to who's doing the putting! You just took away an excuse!!!

[@nealwatts9602]

Your test is flawed. By dropping the balls the way you do, the lopsided weight over to the side has much less effect than if the ball was hit with a putter. In a lopsided ball, with the weight to the side, when the putter impacts the back of the ball with the weight to the side, sidespin is imparted. You need to do a test with a putter and a repeatable pendulum position and then hit the lopsided balls with the swinging putter.

[@paulbull3431]

No idea why you used a poor green. Use a better green and see if it shows up more

[@highlanderthegreat]

seems there is NO difference

[@justice4all32]

You lost me at your homemade meter. Why not just use a real one?

[@Davidjohnson-zd3bk]

Heres a secret!!! Its NOT the ball!!!! Look in the mirror!!

[@johnbrodnik839]

We don’t use mirrors here!