The Beta Ti's are indeed pretty darn good for the money. Sure beats that Nitro garbage. It's sad when an awful golfer like me can tell how bad they are...

I tried the other ones you mentioned, the Topflite D2 straight... nothing special. I still liked the XL5000 Super-straight the best out of all the balls I've tried.

Tried Nike Karma a while back, but at that point I was too new to be able to notice anything. I may try them again.

I definitely want to try the Mojo balls though.

I've played the Noodle + and I loved them. It might be a coincidence but I was actually drawing the ball when using this ball. I agree that it does take some time to get used to the higher compression but for those who are looking for more distance then this is your ball.

I played Callaway's HX Hot + during my last round and really did not care a whole lot for them. For one, they didn't seem to be as long as advertised. Plus I didn't like the fact that the cover was as soft as it was; as every time I hit the ball with an iron, the cover grew hair.

I just bought 2 dozen Precept U-Tri Tours from Wal-Mart for $15/ea and am expecting to see good things from this ball. The U-Tri's are supposed to be close in performance to Pro-V's but at less than half the regular price. Anybody ever use this ball?

Pinnacle CLR.

My wife and I have just begun learning the game (~5mos.) and The CLR are perfect for our style.
Very forgiving, straight and cheap at Lostgolfballs.com

I know that they sound impractical for consistent score but has anyone used the Top-Flite Freak?

Good to hear about the gamer, I have not tried them yet but have been wanting to. I am getting ready to try the XL 5000 soft on Friday. Will let you know what my small opinion is.

[quote="dreugan"]I know that they sound impractical for consistent score but has anyone used the Top-Flite Freak?

Good to hear about the gamer, I have not tried them yet but have been wanting to. I am getting ready to try the XL 5000 soft on Friday. Will let you know what my small opinion is.[/quote]


So I played today with the Top-Flite XL-5000 super soft balls. I will attest that they have great distance and they feel pretty good around the green.
However, I did find out today that I need to switch to steel shafted irons. The graphite ones on my current irons are stiff enough for me to hit them but my 6 iron the head just fell off and I looked at my 8 iron and found that the shafts are splintering. I know I swing pretty hard but I didn't think that I would break the shafts on the clubs.

If you liked the karma try WilsonStaff Zip, If you have a real easy swing try a sleeve of the 50/50 or 50 elites also... Also for any cold temp players the 50/50 is a fantastic winter ball.

John

Nike Power Distance Soft

Very much like the Titleist NXT Tour, but 2 Pc, and nice and long

Plus, soft around the greens

JamminJonah wrote:

I'm a new golfer. I've been around it all my life, and everyone in my family plays but me (until I played my first 18 last summer). Obviously I've got a lot to work on being so new to the game, so I'm wondering what are some good cheap balls? I've played the following: Top Flite Gamer - $35 for 2 dozen at Golf Galaxy (liked it best of all I've played so far) Nike Mojo - $20 for 12 @ Golf Galaxy - liked it Nike Karma - Gift - liked it Noodle - can't remember $$ (hated it) I just won a dozen of Srixon tri-speeds in a scramble. Please: 1. list your favorite cheap balls to play ($20 per dozen or less and 2. comment on the following if you have used them: Top Flite Gamer Precept Laddie X Srixon AD333

I have tried most of the "cheaper" brands and I have stuck w/ any of the Top Flite Spin/Feel balls and I currently play w/ either the Top Flite D2 Feel or Top Flite Gamer. Like others have said, they are good for distance and decent for spin and feel around the greens. They are also relatively very durable! I also really like the putting line that they put on the D2's and can find them for $15/15 balls.

Since my previous post, I have switched up again and was playing the Nike Mojo. It wasn't as long as the Noodle+ but I found it to be straighter. It also felt so much better on the green.
I recently won some of the new Tour B330 RX so I am looking forward to trying a ball that would usually be out of my price range. It will be interesting to see the difference between a 40c ball and a $4 ball.

I'll also recommend the Top Flight Gamer as a great value -- it's long enough off the tee and checks up enough so that I don't feel like I'm giving up too much to a more expensive ball. My irons do tend to cut up the 2009 version quite a bit, so I'm happy to hear the 2010 version has a more durable cover. They also don't seem to seek out the water like the $4 balls I've tried .

Oddly enough, I've been unable to lose any of the sleeve of Nike Vapor balls I bought. I've duck-hooked them left into the forest and sliced them right at the tall grass and when I go look for them, they're right there, just in bounds. It's like a Nike rep is secretly roaming the course just out of bounds and tossing lost Nike balls back in play.

Golf Digest does a decent job comparing balls. Checkout the Hot List here: http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/hot-list/2010-06/hotlist2010-golfballs


Also, the wedge spin comparison is very revealing. For example the TaylorMade TP LDP has great spin for the money. See here:

http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/hot-list/2010-06/hotlist2010_golfballs_spinchart

Have you tried buying balls from lostgolfballs.com? You can try premium balls for cheap. I bought some 5A grade TM reds and blacks 10 bucks a dozen, they were on sale at the time.

SingleDigits wrote:

Golf Digest does a decent job comparing balls. Checkout the Hot List here: http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/hot-list/2010-06/hotlist2010-golfballs Also, the wedge spin comparison is very revealing. For example the TaylorMade TP LDP has great spin for the money. See here: http://www.golfdigest.com/golf-equipment/hot-list/2010-06/hotlist2010_golfballs_spinchart

That chart is pretty awesome. From the looks of it, the Titleist ProV lives up to the hype while Bridgestone balls in general don't. Meanwhile, TaylorMade makes the best value.

Interestingly, at this point in my game, I actually prefer balls that roll forward. They limit my fade, and I'm not good enough with a backspin yet to make that a consistent part of my game anyway.

cool links.

thanks!

ANdrew
_________________
Kickntrue-
Duffing since 1993

I just finished off a couple of double dozen boxes of Precept Laddie X balls that I got on a great sale at WalMart a long time back. I think they were $11 for 24 balls. I liked them a lot. They're a pretty soft ball, which I like. I also like the Noodles. Most recently I've been trying out the new Maxfli Revolution Soft balls, which I got on sale at Golf Galaxy.

Recently, a buddy gave me a sleeve of Titlist Pro V1 balls that he'd gotten through work. I must say that I see why they're so expensive. I really like everything about that ball. I've got one of the balls left (nearly cried when I lost the last one) and will hang onto it for a special occasion

For the REAL newbie (as in, brand new to the game) I suggest picking up a bag of the refurbs from WalMart. They're cheap, and most of the balls will be halfway decent. New players lose a lot of balls (okay ... well, so do I, but that's beside the point) and there's no sense in spending any money on them until you get a little better.