Bridgestone Golf has been around for quite a while, but its only in the last couple of years that I’ve seen their balls on the shelves of local pro shops and retailers. They are fast gaining a reputation for quality. I know a golfer who has converted in the last year to Bridgestone balls and swears that they are the best on the market.

The E5 and E6 models made Golf Digest’s 2006 Hot List for Value Performance balls.

The E5 is designed to produce higher trajectory for greater distance, while still offering soft feel around the green. The ball has a two-piece urethane cover with a seamless 432-dimple pattern. The Seamless Cover Technology is supposed to eliminate any vagries in ball flight that come from the intersection of seams and dimples.

Bridgestone’s E6 is aimed at players who need to hit the fairway more often.  The 330-dimple design and the seamless cover are designed to reduce sidespin, and thus, hooks and slices.

Interestingly, Golf Digest’s criticism of the two balls was that the editors were “not sure how to choose between the two.” Let me help them out: E5=Distance; E6=Accuracy.

BRIDGESTONE E5 Golf Ball

BRIDGESTONE E6 Golf Ball

I’ve speculated that The Masters would be the first tournament to go to a standardized ball, but it seems that the Ohio Golf Association will beat them to the punch.

GolfWeek is reporting that the Ohio Golf Association will use a standardized ball in the Ohio Champions Tournament this August. Golfweek reports that

Although OGA executive director Jim Popa is quick to point out that the tournament ball “is not a short ball, but rather a uniform ball,” it doesn’t take much imagination to understand what the OGA is doing.

Alan Fadel, a former PGA Tour player who has been a reinstated amateur for almost 20 years, is chairman of the OGA ball committee.

“We haven’t chosen the exact ball yet,” Fadel said, “but we are leaning to one that optimizes (distance efficiency off the tee) between 100 and 105 miles per hour (driver swing speed). The ball is not going to benefit somebody at 120 (mph) the way the current ball does. We are trying to achieve a little more equality, that’s all. The guy who swings 120 will still hit it farther than most of the other players, but not quite so far.

I have to say that I’m conflicted over this standardized ball thing. On the one hand, it does seem that the ability to fine tune the ball has given an oversized advantage to the big hitters. But on the other, I wonder if they should be penalized just because they’re good enough to take advantage of that technology.

It still seems to me that the thing to do is to narrow the fairways or let the rough grow deeper. I’ve read that four inch rough will just about force every player to try to get the ball in the fairway. The lie, otherwise, is too risky.

But this thing with the ball bears watching.

MaxFli’s Noodle isn’t so much a golf ball as it is a series. There are currently four versions, and all of them made Golf Digest’s 2006 Hot List in the Value Performance category.

The four Noodles are: Long and Soft, Softest, Longest, and Noodle Ice.

I like the Noodle and have gone through stretches where I’ve played it, but for some reason, I sometimes have a hard time finding it on the shelves. In the best case scenario for MaxFli, that could be a sign that it sells out quickly. I’ve had an easier time getting the MaxFli Revolution balls.

The Long and Soft version is just that: Long and Soft. For me, it goes just as far as the premium balls, and has a nice soft feel around the greens and with a putter. And you can’t beat the price.

Maxfli Noodle Lively Core Distance Golf Balls

Maxfli Noodle Golf Balls Logn and Soft - 15Pk

Maxfli Noodle Ice Golf Balls

I have liked all of the incarnations of the NXT ball over the last couple of years. And this year’s model is the Golf Digest 2006 Hot List Editor’s Choice for a value performance ball. They call it the “working man’s” Pro V1.

I’ve generally liked the NXT, and have played it during various stretches. But I typically prefer a softer feel, and when I play a Titleist, it usually the DT So/Lo. I probably am a little longer off the tee with the NXT, but I feel more comfortable with a softer ball around the greens.

For me, the best thing about all of the Titleist balls is their toughness. You can pop them off trees, skip them up cart paths, and richochet them off sprinkler heads and they stilll are playable. I have yet to see another ball that can survive as many rounds as a Titleist.

TITLEIST NXT Tour

Titleist’s Pro V-1 ball seems to have a permanent place on everyone’s list of best premium ball. This year, it’s one again Golf Digest’s Editors Choice for Tour Performance ball. It’s also the market leader, and the one played by most of the pros.

I’ve played these balls, but I have to say that, in spite of the hype, they just don’t seem to do enough for my game to justify $45 a dozen. I think that it probably has to do with my slower swing speed.

Titleist Pro V-1 New Longer Distance Golf Balls

I doubt that there’s a golfer out there who hasn’t played Top Flite balls at one time or another. They’ve always been a good value for the money—although they have suffered from their reputation as “Top Rocks.”

Top Flite balls were the first I played. And—like many, I suspect—I stopped playing them because I wanted a softer feeling ball.

The XL Extreme Distance is Top Flite’s latest offering. With two piece construction, it’s billed as a soft ball with distance. The new 332 seamless dimple pattern is supposed to present better aerodynamics for more consistent shots.

TOP FLITE XL Extreme Distance

NanoDynamics’ NDMX Golf ball has been approved for use by the USGA.

The ball features a hollow metal core and a cover that corrects its flight. How much apparently depends upon the golfer:

“It depends entirely on how good or bad the golfer is. If a recurring problem is either hooking or slicing the ball off the tee, the NDMX ball will make a significant difference according to many of our beta testers,” said Keith Blakely, CEO of NanoDynamics. “Similarly, the ball appears to offer an advantage on the putting green that just might make the difference between an ‘almost’ and an ‘in the cup’ putt.”

In flight ball correction doesn’t come cheap, though. A dozen is expect to cost $60.

I’d like to give them a try. They might help my hook.