The most common reason behind someone’s golf-ball choice is not what they tell you. If I ask 10 people what ball they play and why, the answer I’ll hear 8 times is “Because it is the best for my game” when in reality, the answer is REALLY “Because that’s what everyone else is playing…and they are expensive, so they are better.” When I’m plopping down my hard-earned money for a dozen eggs, I want more than marketing as my reason.

The Srixon Z-UR series balls are the ‘Premium’ line from Srixon. With a street price comparable to “B-Level’ balls, I felt that these were certainly worth a look…and boy am I glad I looked. So as the jagged-toothed golf ball told me, it’s time to get our “Sricks-On.”

The Z-UR series comes in three flavors. Z-UR, Z-URC, and Z-URS. All three have the same 330 dimple pattern and ultra-soft urethane cover. The difference lies in the core materials and the size of the boundary layer. I had to look closely to see that this was indeed a 3-piece ball. The fusion between the urethane cover and the boundary material is very good…and they are both white in color. It is quite amazing how different three balls can feel so different off of a putter face. Proof that there really IS science behind these products.

Z-UR

This is a 3-Piece ball that is built for high trajectory. This does NOT translate into the softest feeling ball on the green. When I laid out 6 of each to randomly putt 6-footers with, the Z-UR would always make its self known by sound. I don’t think that it PUTTED any differently, but it was always apparent what ball was just struck. If you buy a sleeve to try for yourself, I’m quite sure that you’ll come to the same conclusion.

Z-URS

The Z-URS is aimed at the “Pro-V1″ Player. The feel, and even sound, are very similar. I won’t speak to the Driver/Iron playability of the ball, but from a putting stance, I felt that this ball had a very similar feel. It was soft off the face, and the slippery cover got it rolling right away. Seeing that the cover is a little thicker than the other “Premium” balls on the market, I can’t imagine that it will be any less durable.

Z-URC

Marketed as a ‘lower spin’ ball, the Z-URC is aimed towards the player that’s looking for the feel of the Z-URS, without the high spin off the driver…but what does this have to do with putting? The Z-URC and Z-URS feel almost identical to me. I’ve even gone back and forth without being able to tell the difference with a pile of them in front of me. This is REAL good news to the player that likes a lower spin ball. Normally, we’re stuck with a ball that sounds like a piece of gravel on the green…or a $55-a-dozen price tag. This ball offers the whole package, with a respectable $35 street price.

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I’m no scratch golfer…not even close. But I DO like the option of playing a ‘Premium’ ball, without feeling it in the wallet every time one finds its way into the woods, or a water hazard. With all the technology of balls costing nearly 2X as much, and a street price that’s easy to justify, the Srixon Z-UR series ball really delivers.

Now if I can just figure out how to get that little jagged-toothed guy to talk smack to my playing partners on the course…

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The Pro V1, and it’s lower spin/less dimple brother, the Pro V1x are known the world over as the “Best” ball you can buy. Sometimes the world is right. According to Titleist, “The Titleist Pro V1 golf ball provides improved launch conditions for longer distance while maintaining superior Drop-and-Stop performance into and around the green.” But what about ON the green? That’s where we come in!

Pro V1

Pro V1x

The 3 and 4 piece constructions are pretty cool when you cut them open to look. I had NO idea that the cover was that thin, but after I halved one of each, I found the info readily available on Titleist’s web site. Who knew! What I thought was interesting was the difference in materials, how different they look on the inside, and how they feel nearly identical on the putter. The Pro V1x has a slightly higher ‘click’ than it’s brother, but with earmuffs on, they felt identical. (Yes, I actually tried it with earmuffs.)

The Urethane Elastomer cover is soft, and gives you very nice feedback whether it is a 3, or 30 foot putt. The putter seems to react quite nicely to this ball. We tested this ball with carbon steel, and stainless steel putters and both felt equally nice. I’m fairly certain that Titleist plans on releasing a newer “seamless” version of this ball in the very near future. I’ve seen pros that are testing this ball now, and think that it can only mean great things for an already fantastic ball.

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The Pro V1’s virtues off the green have been discussed to extremes. There isn’t anything left to say in that department. I’m saying here and now that this is one of the nicest putting balls on the market. The sonic feedback is fantastic, and the feel on the putter is superb. The price tag is the only issue for a lot of golfers. Is it worth it for the high handicapper? No. Go spend $15 on a dozen balls at your local golf store, and save the remainder for lessons. When you get to the point where you can play a round without loosing more than 2 balls, go get a set of $20 bills out of your wallet and pick up a dozen Pro V1s. You’ll immediately see what all the fuss is about.

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The Juice ball is a low compression, low spin ball that’s geared for more yardage off the tee. When I found myself rolling several putts with this ball, a few things stood out right away about its appearance. First, the 312 dimples are far less than many others that have been pushing almost 400 dimples. This makes for what appear to be 3 dimple sizes that look larger than other balls.

The alignment aide on the Juice balls is the word “GINORMOUS”, found on one side of the ball, making me fumble around a little to find it before each putt. I would have liked to see a variety of words on balls in the other sleeves in the box, perhaps something along the lines of “MASTODONIC” or “HERCULEAN”.

Putting with the Juice was a lot of fun. I rolled a dozen from varying distances with a Scotty Cameron Circa ‘62 # 3. I had no problems sinking putts at any distance, and felt that the ball rolled true. The feel of the ball seemed a little more firm than the Maxfli Noodle control ball, and sounded a bit crisper off the face. I also rolled a few, alternating with a Nike One Platinum and found the same higher pitched sound with the Juice. I think the sound had a lot of impact on my perception of the ball feeling firm, but perception is reality on the greens.

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Fun ball to putt with, staring at “GINORMOUS” all day on the green can only give you confidence. A dozen Juice 312’s are completely worth it if you can find them on sale. MSRP of $28 seems a little high, however, for a two piece ball with large dimples.

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I got 2 dozen of these for Christmas last week, so wether or not I like them, I’ll be using at least 23 of them next season. (I had to saw one in half for the pictures.) My Dad said “These are supposed to replace the Noodle next year.” I’m not sure where he got that info, but according to Maxfli, the Noodle isn’t going anywhere in the foreseeable future. On to the Fire ball.

The first 3 putts with this ball dropped in the hole like there was a magnet. I started thinking that this was the ball for me. It turned out to be dumb-luck, but I had a good feeling about this ball out of the gate. I’m a firm believer in practicing with the same ball you use on the course. If you are using a Pro-V1 in your office, and then a Nike Mojo on the links, you are going to putt it differently. Should it matter? No. Does it? Yes. It’s all about the sound the bal makes on YOUR putter, and how hard/soft you perceive it.

“Blazing Ball Speed” doesn’t help too much with putting, so I was real interested in how it feels when putting. The standard putter that I use for testing balls, is a Cabon-Steel Scotty Cameron 009 Prototype. It’s a solid putter, and makes a great sound on the control ball. I am immediately listening for the sound that the ball makes. Too ‘clacky’ and it’ll seem harder than it really is. Too soft, and you get the opposite effect.

The Fire has a sound that’s nearly identical to a Noodle. I imagine that this is because the same Surlyn cover is used on both balls.. The cover thickness is nearly identical on the Noodle and Fire. While the sound doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal in a review, when you putt with one, it really does matter.

Cutting these balls in half, I discovered that the Noodle is a 2-piece ball, while the Fire has 3-pieces. I also discovered that the core is NOT combustible as they claim. I had my lighter on the core for a good 15 seconds, and all I managed to do was melt it and make a bunch of smoke that set off the alarm in the kitchen. What I would have done HAD it combusted is another story…I guess I’m glad they were wrong about that part. Does this help us on the green? No. I just thought I’d throw it out there in case anyone cared.

3-foot, 6-foot and the break putts all dropped like usual. This ball was very easy to get used to when going back and for the between Fire and Noodle. There really want that much of a difference. I DID find the little “fire” logo to be distracting to line putts up with. The text on the rest of the ball is a little larger than I think it needs to be. There is something about a thick font on a ball that’s distracting to me.

“Skip to the end” recap.
For under $20 a dozen, there are a lot of balls that you can buy. How this ball performs off the green is someone else’s concern. I’m here to tell you about how it putts. The Maxfli Fire is a VERY nice ball to putt with. Is it a Pro-V1? No. For the money, is it a good deal? All day long. I’ve got 23 left to hose into the woods this spring. I hope a few of them make it to the green.

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