Is Pro V1 Still King??

All golfers should be playing at least a 3pc ball in my opinion. So to help find good options at various price points, I put these 4 balls up against the mighty Pro V1. Hope you find it helpful!
Under Armor Hat in this episode
amzn.to/4ebz4HQ
Cut Grey
amzn.to/45k7nsu
Titleist Pro V1
amzn.to/4ekFmF9
Snell Prime 3.0
www.snellgolf.com/products/pr...
Maxfli Tour
www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/...
0:00 Intro
0:30 2pc Balls vs 3pc
2:16 The Contestants
4:11 Testing / Award Overview
4:45 Lob Wedge Results
5:40 7 Iron Results
6:58 Driver Results
9:09 Sound and Feel
10:22 And the winner is…
14:47 Outro

[@randomguy32150]

I’m interested to see you do a similar test with some 2 piece balls. Titleist TruFeel, Taylormade Distance+, Callaway Supersoft, etc. These balls are less expensive so potentially used by a larger amount of people. Then compare to the 3 piece balls.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Interesting idea. I’m thinking of performing a follow up and it’s either 2pc or 4pc.

[@randomguy32150]

@@TheGolfNerdUnderstandable. If you’re aiming for views, you may be better off going with 2 piece balls simply because a larger amount of people will be using those balls. Also be interesting to see a low compression vs medium compression vs high compression 2 piece balls regarding spin, distance, etc. Woukd be interesting to see if the swing speed and ball compression stuff is true. Is it obvious yet that I play a 2 piece ball? Haha Either way I enjoyed this video and appreciate you putting out this content.

[@TheGolfNerd]

@@randomguy32150 you’ve given me something to think about for sure. Glad you enjoyed it, and that’s what views means to me by the way, people like it. Thanks for reaching out.

[@MrJohnnyb74]

Just buy the 48 pack of Maxfli Tours with the $20 off coupon that Dick's offers a few times per year. You get 48 balls for $96 which is what you pay for the "cheaper" balls. Also, it's nowhere near as firm as the TP5-X. It's closer to a TP5 or ProV1. I can't play the TP5-X or ProV1X because they don't launch as high and spin too much for me.

[@craigseaver8062]

My plan is to convert my entire league into playing the Kirkland ball. I do that by losing them all over the course for others to find. At a buck a ball, I dont spend much time looking for it.

[@TheGolfNerd]

This is a fantastic and very thoughtful plan!

[@ronnieprater]

Great review. I have been playing the maxfli tour and love them, i find similar with the low spin off the driver

[@TheGolfNerd]

Thanks for the feedback! Glad to hear that you have had similar experiences with the Maxfli. It’s always a relief to have some validation with my data!

[@mylesrowe3900]

2024 VICE PRO PLUS is where it’s at!

[@TheGolfNerd]

I tested that last year. I was impressed!

[@hunterscrackdealer6650]

My favorite balls to find on the course… I had an all orange Pro Plus… losing that ball was a painful day… found it on the 1st hole and ended up losing it on 17 on a very good drive that must have caught a fescue mound… buying a dozen now

[@13vansman]

I've been trying out different balls over the past year. I was very pleased with the Cut Grey. The yellow Kirklands are great, but not that durable...at just over a dollar a ball I can't complain. The TP5's were really good, but pricier than the other two. I usually game the Callaway matte green Super Soft balls, but they don't have much checking around the green. I'm also kind of liking the Seed Country Mile balls. Finding the perfect ball (for me) is a never ending search. I still lose a ball or two every couple of rounds and I just can't see the value in the Pro V1's, again, for me, maybe as I get better. I'm currently about a 20 hcp. Some 25 years ago when played a few times per week, I was between 10 and 15. Thanks for the review!

[@TheGolfNerd]

Very cool write up! I agree the Kirkland‘s still don’t have the most durable cover. I saw the same thing during this trial.

[@bencovington1121]

The Cut and ProV1 are hard to tell apart. The big difference is the Cut doesn’t advertise, sponsor or endorse and sells factory direct. They cost $19.95/dozen. Seventy percent of the ProV1 goes to advertising, sponsorships and endorsements. ProV1 is marked up 50% at the pro shop. They cost $55/dozen. The balls are impossible for the average player to differentiate.

[@TheGolfNerd]

The Cut offers very good value but I have to stop short of saying I couldn’t see a difference with a Pro V1. It’s similar especially for the price point, but the Pro V1 does edge it out in my testing.

[@leftyduffer]

Thanks, great review. I'm a slow-swing speed 18-20 handicapper who's been playing those softer 2-piece balls, but I've decided to move up to a 3-piece. I've started out with the Maxfli Tour. Dick's multi-box discounts bring the price down to around $30 a box which is good value. I'm interested in Kirkland but I'm not a Cosco member.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Love it!! Good luck on your transition!!

[@IIISWILIII]

Wilson triad is my current favorite. Performs almost identical to the pro v1 and Staff. Just slightly softer around the green and $20 cheaper than the other 2

[@TheGolfNerd]

Sounds like an interesting option!

[@anthonybasile7636]

I do enjoy your videos, very concise and to the point. I'm a Maxfli Tour / Vice Pro fanboy. I always have a double dozen Kirklands for one of the courses I play that has water in play on 15 o 18 holes! LOL. Vice has updated the Pro and Tour balls for 2024 but I haven't played them yet as I still have 5 dozen from last year and 3-4 Maxfli Tour. Anymore ball purchases and I'll be sleeping on the couch with them. The Cut Grey sounds very interesting to me though. Better get the blankets ready. Got my first Hole In One last week with the Maxfli Tour! And yes, they do lack a bit on greenside spin

[@TheGolfNerd]

Great comment!! Seems like our results and experiences align pretty well as I found the Vice Pro very good last year. The Cut Grey comes up a little short as compared to the Vice Pro, at least in my testing.

[@flowerfella4775]

The lighting is insanely good in this video

[@TheGolfNerd]

Thanks man!!

[@mikebixby129]

Great video! Another Kirkland fan here!!

[@TheGolfNerd]

Long live the budget king!!

[@atxrich]

Appreciate the feedback…would have loved to see the numbers in a chart. I love the Maxfli Tour. Where it falls short is cover durability. Sure you save money at retail, but the balls get scuffed up after a couple rounds compared to the Pro V1. I experienced even worse cover durability issues w/ the Snell MTB X barely got thru a full round. The Snell and Maxfli for me have been relegated to casual rounds, and I’ll pull out the Pro V1x during competition.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Do you find switching balls for competitive rounds causes you any issues around the greens?

[@ScratchWhoShoots80s]

I've played all 3 Maxfli balls & the cover is literally one of the best in the game. In fact I just played 33 holes before I had to too a Maxfli TOUR S in the trash. I also hit them in my sim & it's the only brand that's never split.

[@TheGolfNerd]

@@ScratchWhoShoots80s thanks for sharing your experience!

[@renscience]

In independent test the Wilson staff beats the pro v1 in all categories as does the maxfli

[@TheGolfNerd]

I haven’t had a chance to try the Wilson, but the Maxfli was very impressive. Main down side of Maxfli I saw was greenside spin.

[@gordonllanos9467]

I switched to the Legato LTX3085 it’s low compression and 3 piece and good for under 100 mph swings, but performs and feels like a ProV1. $30 on EBAY. Knocked two strokes off my game but didn’t bust the wallet

[@TheGolfNerd]

Several other folks mentioned this ball. Sounds like a good performer, I’ll need to include it next year!

[@ajstclair]

I must admit, I tried every ball I could get my hands on to see if I could find a ball without the absurd Titleist price point that still played great. I have not tried the Maxfli...but, I did try the Oncore and found, for me anyway, it was easily the equal of Titleist at a reasonable price. If you haven't, give it a try.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Very cool. Thanks for the heads up! How long have you been playing it?

[@ryandaughrity9732]

The snell prime 4.0 is a great ball. I have tested it against all the premium balls for 2024 and it just performs.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Really wish I had included it instead. I didn’t love the performance of the 3.0.

[@richardjacobs7632]

Which ball was the most forgiving? Thanks for the review.

[@TheGolfNerd]

The only way I would say one ball is more forgiving than another would be in relation to the backspin it provides. The higher the back spin the more stable the flight, and vice versa. The two highest spinning balls were the Pro V1 and the Kirkland. Given this, I’d suggest these two would be good options. Hope this helps!!

[@jlnew10]

If I remember My Golf Spy did not like the Kirkland and has stated that every year it continues to get worse and shorter. I believe it also had consistency issues from ball to ball.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I think you’re right. I’ve never experienced anything that made me think the Kirkland quality was affecting my game, but I’m sure there are trade offs considering the price point. I do think this latest version is an improvement on their prior 3 pc versions though, so I may not agree with the idea that the ball is getting worse over time.

[@hunterscrackdealer6650]

Every round I find Vice Pro and Pro Plus balls are a very good day. I might even actually spend $$ on them. {I win all my ProV1’s during a couple annual golf tournaments for charity}

[@TheGolfNerd]

I reviewed the vice pro last year and I agree. It compares very favorably with the pro v1!

[@deancarey7482]

Great content, I play the Kirkland as well.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Thanks!! Long live the Kirkland! Lol

[@ashishgupte9819]

I have tried many different balls and one observation is that there are very few ones which are consistent in all aspects like ball flight, spin, greenside control etc and in this regard Prov1 is the best!

[@TheGolfNerd]

I agree but at that price point, doesn’t it have to be?

[@adddad9779]

Just got a box of Legato balls from Amazon... Can't wait to see how they do.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I’m excited to try them as well. I’d love to hear what you think!!

[@JretnuH]

It’s not the color of the ball that makes it perform less it’s the type of cover. The matte colors don’t fly anywhere near as good as the the “glossy” covers

[@TheGolfNerd]

I hadn’t heard this before. Appreciate the tip!

[@JretnuH]

@@TheGolfNerd I’ve tested the theory with a few balls and I believe it. The yellow kirklands are good balls, no difference in those or the whites. It’s when they change the cover from urethane to matte, they get less aerodynamic somehow

[@TheGolfNerd]

That’s really interesting. Thanks!!

[@jessestakes2217]

I think your point about not being a robot is spot on. For anyone who is over a 10 handicap, why would you not play the Kirkland?

[@TheGolfNerd]

Agree, 100%!

[@Ize7766]

Wilson Staff is best seriously I been testing it is legit

[@TheGolfNerd]

Several folks have suggested this in the comments, I’m going to definitely include Wilson in next year’s comparison!

[@jlnew10]

I just did a search on the My Golf Spy review. The newer Kirkland got a score of 45/100 (very poor) and they say had inconsistency issues in almost every category. Compression was all over the place, weight was off on many balls and several other issues. The only positive they had was that it was cheap. I think there were golf balls retrieved from the Titanic that had a higher score than a 45 out of 100.

[@TheGolfNerd]

This hasn’t been my experience and certainly didn’t show up in this way during my testing, this year or last but golfers should certainly choose what they are comfortable with!

[@onsidelegal1002]

@@TheGolfNerd whats your SS? im sure you can keep them in play if you dont swing hard. i agree w MGS testing; my experience w kirkland vs tour balls w mid iron-woods is they dont play nearly as well (particularly in consistency with slightly off centre strikes) as tour balls (im 105-110 SS). on the green for chipping theyre very comparable to prov1s. but if the balance tends to be significantly off (tour brands seem to have better quality control-esp prov1), a ball that normally would be on fairway might find itself unplayable.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I get it. I’m not trying to prescribe to anyone that they should play Kirklands over other options, just being transparent that I do. I don’t have any financial entanglements for this, I just think being honest is a good strategy!

[@vintageswiss9096]

My ball speed is 165, 18hc, and I play Kirkland balls. I'm good for losing one or two balls every 18 holes, and I'm not up for paying $15 in balls after paying $45 in green fees... I switched from MaxFli StraightFli to Kirkland last season, and Kirkland check up so well, I don't mind the loss of distance. ProV1x are $54/dozen in my area, and I'm just not swallowing that price until I'm losing less than 2 balls per round...

[@onsidelegal1002]

@@vintageswiss9096 your main priority is cost, and if thats the case, kirklands are a smart buy. i lose less balls w Prov1 or similar than kirkland (low dbl digit HC), and i care more about consistent playing/improvement than cost. bc i also dont want to pay $7/ball when i lose 1-2/round, i usually play tour balls i find (lots of prov1, bc many ppl who play cant swing well enough not to lose them) unless they are exotic like BXS or left dash which im happy to pay for when retail details pop up. my SS (like yours) is high enough to mean that even small deviations in quality can mean large results in dispersion, like how small bumps in road or small tweaks of steering wheel can have drastic effects on a car going more than 200km/h (when it wouldnt make much of a difference going 100)

[@michael2782]

Snell has just come out with the (I believe) the first 4 piece ball. My experience on the short game back spin is very positive and I jave to ask why that ball, as the premium Snell ball wasn't considered. Perhaps just a comment if you added your point of view on that ball. Thanks - good review .

[@TheGolfNerd]

I just wrote out a response and deleted it because I completely misunderstood the question the first time I wrote it. I wanted to compare all 3pc balls, and when I went to their website, of the 3pc options, they recommended the 3.0 for my swing speed. I think it might have performed better had I used the next level up, because the snell struggled with ball speed. Which is ironic because my golf spy said after their first large ball comparison that the hardest balls are the fastest, and this result kind of suggests the same thing. Thanks for the question! Please let me know if I didn’t answer what you were looking for.

[@brianforrester9670]

Snell's MTB-X was also a four-piece, which has since been replaced by the Prime 4.0.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I kind of wish I would have included it instead…. Maybe next year’s roundup.

[@michael2782]

@@TheGolfNerd Nailed it!

[@terryc2689]

would have been nice to include Vice in this, to see how it stacks up

[@TheGolfNerd]

I included the vice last year, you may want to check out those results. It performed very well, though I was very impressed.

[@terryc2689]

@@TheGolfNerd will do, thanks!

[@whenmullet2674]

Has Cut solved the cover falling off after 6 hits?

[@TheGolfNerd]

I’ve been extremely impressed with the Cut Grey’s durability. It lasted several hundred shots in my sim.

[@xltek1]

I play BIFs, balls I find.

[@TheGolfNerd]

😂😂😂

[@Carlos-yn2ob]

Unfortunately my best rounds are played using the most expensive golf ball there is, the Titleist pro v1x. Yea they are still king and worth the cost.

[@TheGolfNerd]

The amazing part is just how long they have maintained that dominance. In business these days it just doesn’t seem like brands can pull it off for as long as they have. All respect here for Titleist.

[@JayWalsh]

I know you did Vice last year. But how about Seed?

[@TheGolfNerd]

I haven’t had any experiences with them… yet.

[@brianforrester9670]

500 revs are quite a lot off driver. Considering the ideal spin rate is 2000-2500, 500 revs is 20-25%

[@TheGolfNerd]

I think a better way to think of this is +/- 250 revs. Then it’s like 2250 +/- 250 revs which most golfers cannot hit consistently. That’s why I mention that strike can overcome the difference. But as I say, if you want a ball that trends lower, pick the Maxfli.

[@clw22580]

Maxfli Tour Is LEGIT I’ve hit 100s of the X on a trackman and gc3 and it’s margin of error between it and the pro v 1 x for 1/2 the price

[@TheGolfNerd]

It’s always comforting to hear when other peoples testing aligns with mine!!

[@clw22580]

@@TheGolfNerd haven’t hit the Snell or Cut I would say for me the Kirkland is WAY too high spinning throughout the bag but that could be good for the right golfer that could use more spin - I have a suspicion that the txg and Kirkland are if not identical very close to the same ball

[@TheGolfNerd]

Interesting. Never tried the PXG. Would like to though.

[@jsutty7530]

it has been my ball for the last year and a half…unfortunate that they are bumping the price on them nwo

[@TheGolfNerd]

@@jsutty7530 didn’t know they were raising the price. That’s too bad, I thought $40 was already at the high end at least for the 3 pc.

[@raymondm4441]

I have no idea how you're getting the Snell with 9 and 11mph less ball speed in your tests. There is now way that is accurate. I just tested out the new Prime 4.0 alongside the new Wilson Staff Model X. I played the Chrome Soft X most of last year. The Snell Prime 4.0 is every bit as long as both other balls I listed. I find it unbelievable that Dean Snell would release a ball lagging that far behinds the others. Something is off with you test.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Human testing is what it is, but I do try to present data that accurately reflects the performance that I see. Having said that, all of the balls that you just mentioned are higher compression 4 piece balls. Everyone who has used the 4.0 Snell has said it performs great, I wish the 3.0 had as well because I really wanted to see it perform well.

[@IIISWILIII]

Why in the world would anyone think a yellow ball would play any different than a white one ? Urethane is urethane, is it not?

[@TheGolfNerd]

I never understood it, but that’s why I wanted data to see.

[@DrSlipperyFist]

Costco balls are just fine. Buy some fancy balls for special occasions.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Good strategy!

[@digger11000]

The Kirkland ball was rated 45/100 by testing. Plus,vthe quality of the ball and consistency ball to ball was equally poor compared to a Prov1 and other balls. I would never play nor recommend the Kirkland ball or anything Kirkland. I will stick to the Titleist ball. However if I had choose between the Kirkland and the Top Flight ball, I would take Top Flight.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Hey man, you do you!

[@scottsmith6871]

Callaway chrome tour is legit

[@TheGolfNerd]

I am assuming that is a four piece ball, I’ll probably do a four piece ball round up next year.

[@FernandoG_1981]

These balls are good, but you can’t beat the durability of the Pro V1.

[@TheGolfNerd]

It held up well in the review for sure.

[@flowerfella4775]

Golf gaming

[@TheGolfNerd]

Cracking me up

[@darthmagoo420]

what about sugar

[@TheGolfNerd]

I’ve had several good recommendations for balls that I should have included, I’ll try to include some of these the next time!

[@digger11000]

I would never play a Kirkland ball. They are inconsistent ball for ball which changes the playing characteristics and why they are so cheap vs other higher pricec balls. The reason why Titleist, Taylormade and other top brands are so popular with better players is the consistency ball for ball and why the price is higher. It the quality and control. Srixon Q star had issues of the cores being different and out of round. I would play a Top flight ball over the Kirkland any time.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Top Flite over Kirkland??? I mean, folks are free to make whatever decision they care to make, but I’ve never seen anything from a Kirkland that made me believe it was a vastly inferior product. Either way, please play whatever ball that you like!!

[@gante2024]

isn't a meh comparision cause each brand has a 4 piece ball?

[@TheGolfNerd]

I’m sorry I’m not following you.

[@usatrooper5045]

The only ball that comes close to the Pro v1 out of the ball's shown is the Snell in MY opinion 🤔🤪🇺🇲

[@TheGolfNerd]

Do you play the prime?

[@usatrooper5045]

@TheGolfNerd I believe it was MTDx, I found it on the course and finished 7 rounds with it, lost it a week later on a water hazard 🤪🇺🇲

[@1976axerhand]

Maxfli tour balls are good, but the outer covering is garbage.. that why they are 15 bucks cheaper than a pro V1...

[@TheGolfNerd]

I didn’t experience that, but my testing was fairly united in terms of number of shots.

[@xBlade173]

500rpm on driver is significant. Id stay away from Kirkland, as their QC is awful, and the V3 is the worst iteration to date.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I completely understand that Kirkland‘s aren’t for everybody!

[@MrWubzHD2]

No offense I would say good video if you showed the numbers from any swing radar. But you are saying all this without showing any data to us. Because like you said this is human testing and swing/club data can play a way bigger factor than just the final ball data.

[@TheGolfNerd]

No offense taken. When making videos it’s often a balance of what do you want to show versus how long will the video be. I decided not to get into numbers, show swings etc, because I can summarize the data in such a way that the viewer gets what they want in a relatively short video. As far as the data is concerned, I collected multiple shots across multiple sessions. I eliminated any shots that were statistical anomalies. This way I could share the results that I was most confident in. This kind of video takes a while to make given all the data, shots, analysis and finally comes making the video.

[@MrWubzHD2]

@@TheGolfNerd i get not wanting to make the video to long but almost the entire video is just a selfie of you talking. you can make the selfie video smaller or overlay the average of the shots you are talking about so people can look at it. less about seeing the swings more on validation of data. cant trust everything you see online if they don't show the testing to back it up. not saying you're lying.

[@TheGolfNerd]

It’s cool. I get your point, just a different way of approaching the same problem. I appreciate the honest feedback! Most folks can’t provide feedback without being jerks, and it’s nice to get feedback from someone who’s just sharing their viewpoint. Have a great season!!

[@JeffreySmith-hx9hb]

Will never change from Pro V1. I played professional back in the 90s. Now i tried Maxfli ball then and it was a good ball. But Pro V1 is the Alpha.

[@TheGolfNerd]

Hard to argue that! There’s a reason why so many players who can play anything choose pro v1!

[@randomguy32150]

Have you played the other versions of ProV1s? If so, what differences did you notice?

[@Aaron-mn2ro]

not a single graph thowing the data in the entire video, what a joke

[@TheGolfNerd]

Sorry you didn’t get any value from it. I’m sure you can find additional data elsewhere. Have a great season!

[@robertsandidge441]

Snell is the only one to come close. Kirklands are TOTAL Garbage. See there’s a REASON every single KZbin video on golf balls say ProV-1 killer? Because the STANDARD has been set. PERIOD. I know they are expensive. But there’s a reason.

[@TheGolfNerd]

That’s why it was my overall pick as well. Have a great season!

[@a1sauce559]

Man, ur so AI. I had to finish watching this vid to make sure this wasn’t AI generated.

[@TheGolfNerd]

You should watch my old stuff! Lol! Just trying to provide golfers useful info.🤷‍♂️

[@a1sauce559]

@@TheGolfNerd ur doing great bro. Keep it up. 👍

[@bigdogpete43]

No Callaway, no Vice, no Srixon, no Taylormade, no Bridgestone. This just some guys opinion. No serious golfer plays a Kirkland. They are range balls without the stripe. They are the ball of choice for the weekend hacker who doesn't count strokes.

[@TheGolfNerd]

I featured Vice in last year’s video. It faired well. I also featured TP5x in last year’s video. I wanted to focus on just 3 pc balls and preferably on budget options for those looking for a less expensive option. I’ve learned after a couple years that I can’t please everyone, but I also completely respect differing opinions. Hope you have a great season!

[@dustingariepy2056]

Only someone that calls themselves "Big Dog" would make a comment like this.

[@TheGolfNerd]

@@dustingariepy2056 😂😂

[@bigdogpete43]

@@dustingariepy2056 All you are is dust in the wind.

[@Maydoggie]

I like Kirkland golf balls. Signed, Not a serious golfer.

[@jamescarter8421]

My friend and I have been playing for over 20 years. He still to this day picks up any ball he finds and plays it. ✌️⛳🏌️

[@TheGolfNerd]

You can only lead a horse to water! Pretty cool you all have been playing for 20 years though!!