SRIXON Z-Star Review

Normally I post my equipment reviews on http://www.epinions.com/ long before I say anything about the products anywhere else. Sadly, I've been trying to get a product link for this golf ball for well over 3 months, and I've just decided to go ahead and bite the bullet, and write this ball's first review here. If the ball continues to live up to expectations---I believe I will not be the only one writing such a review. For now--suffice it to say--this is the only Tour Level Ball Worth The Money at this time.
Let's face it--TaylorMade and Bridgestone both changed the formulations on their balls--guess they just couldn't stand success. The new Callaway IX is pretty much just an updated Strata Tour Ace. --Not a bad idea really, but once again--Joe Six Pack needs to pack "An average driver swing speed of 100+ MPH" in order to make a 4-piece Urethane covered ball reach it's fullest potential. That basically eliminates the new Bridgestone B330 and B330-S Models for the vast majority of golfers. TaylorMade and Titleist kind of blew it with their new formulations as well. The Pro V1 is now firmer than ever, and quite a bit shy of the legendary spin available on the earlier models. The TaylorMades are actually quite an improvement over the old TP Red and Black--but that really isn't saying much. ---The jury is still out on the new Nikes. I've gone back and forth with them, but still haven't made up my mind yet. Considering the prices they want, however, such indecision on my part is practically an indictment in and of itself as to whether or not I think they are truly worth it.

New Spin On Some Old Spin

Thanks to the 85 compression rating (I'm impressed--as Srixon has historically stuck w/a 90 compression rating--even on their supossedly "Soft-Feel" balls) these balls feel vaguely familiar. Could it be the reincarnation of the original Pro V1??!! You remember the one! It too sported an 85 compression rating, and it could spin itself backwards up the wrong side of Mount Rainier. That's what made the Pro V1 such a great ball when it first came out. Not only could it spin as well as the old wound balata balls it was replacing--but it flew further too! As golf continued to evolve into it's newer "Bomb and Gouge" format--the Pro V1 begin to lose a little spin in favour of gaining even more distance. Eventually, after the 3/4th tweaking-- it did become at least 10+ yards longer than the original. Sadly, thanks to the newer emphasis on distance, and the latest reformulation as mandated by an old Callaway lawsuit---the Pro V1 no longer feels as soft, nor spins as well as it once did. --I simply can't see paying big bucks for a dozen glorified distance rocks.

BUT WHAT IF...... you could get back all of that old spin? Better yet, what if you could regain that softer, slightly clingier feel? Here's the real deal... What if you could have all that spin and feel of the old model, with all the distance of the newer model? Would you be willing to play a ball that sported "The SRIXON Moniker?" I mean, I know they have the lamest commercials in the business. The entire URX 333/HRX 333, Z-UR, ZUR-C, ZURS, etc.. history always offered a ball that charged you full price just to play an also ran. I'm afraid that if you don't try these however--you may never realize what a great ball you are passing up.

One needs to remember that back in the day--when Dunlop of all companies, owned the Maxfli name, it was this very same Sumitomo Rubber Company (SRIXON) that developed --The Black Max. Yes--That Black Max. One of the very few balls that actually ran neck and neck w/the Pro V1 for the first few iterations of that ball. I won't bore you with all the corporate machinations as to how Sumitomo lost the Maxfli contract after their factory burnt to the ground--the Adidas TaylorMAde debacle, or any of the rest of that. They had to make a name for themselveds on their own--but after having developed The Black Max--albeit many moons ago, and for another company-there was no doubt that they could eventually come up with another winning formula.

DRIVER

This ball feels very familiar off the driver. It is long, soft, and informative. It spins pretty quickly too--(sidespin as well--just like the original Pro V1 and the old Precept U-Tri- Tour.) If you're still sporting major swing flaws of the over-the top variety--this may not be the ball for you. You'll probably start serving up more slices than Toni's Pizza Parlour. If, however, you sport a technically sound, and semi-repeatable swing---man are you in for a trip down memory lane. Would you like to work it left to right off the tee box?---Hey--just go for it--This ball will work it like a full time job--24/7. (Works similar to the old Black Max and Precept U Tri Tour--only easier.) Want a long and straight monster right down the pike?---Remember when that soft feeling Pro V1 was actually called a distance ball? ---This one will remind you of why that was.

METALS/LONG IRONS/HYBRIDS

Distance is definitely a good thing, but trajectory has a lot to do with it in more ways than one. This ball has a tendency to play just to the high side of the spectrum. It still flies low enough for a 2 iron stinger when necessary, but if you need to manipulate your 5-Wood to play a high cut similar to a 7 wood--and don't trust your hybrid swing well enough to avoid --"The Dreaded Balloon Shot" then this could be your ball. By the way--the trajectory of this ball is so true--climb--gradual rise--apex--flat line--equally gradual descent, that you can use your hybrids as the multi purpose utilitarians they were meant to be. Whether acting as a Long Iron, Distance Recovery Shot, or even an odd ball Hybrid/Chip---this ball is ammenable to the task.

MID-IRONS

So you want to go pin seeking from long distance, but the latest models of golf balls just don't seem to have that good old-fashioned backspin anymore?......Let's not even mention the fact that golf courses are using less water during this recession, and it was already a fairly rare occasion for the muni and daily fee greens to provide a soft enough landing for the ball to do The Magic Backwards Dance from wedge shots--much less long distance. Fear not oh beleaguered one. This ball will bring back the one hop stops and backward dances that used to only be achieved w/wound Balata Balls and 34* 5 Irons. If you've got the swing and accuracy--having to aim for the middle of the green, and hope for a lucky break is no longer the rule of the day. This ball will go that distance. This ball will provide that spin. This ball will check up. The only other time I've seen a ball mimic the old Balata types this well was the old Wilson I-Wound. This time, however, you won't have to give up the distance like you did with The I-Wound.

SHORT IRONS/WEDGES

This ball is a lazer. It flies high w/out getting stratospheric--unless of course--that's what you want. You can now hit a succesful flop w/out having to invoke Lefty's name in vane, after watching yet another unsuccesful rendition of the shot he's made famous go dancing across the green. Want to stick a low flying spinner from a bad lie in a greenside bunker?---Just go for it. This is the first ball I've felt comfortable just trusting in roughly 7 years. How about that dreaded 1/2 wedge from the rough?---Not a problem. Let the USGA re-regulate the grooves on wedges. Srixon may have the answer to the lost spin by providing a ball that generates such spin from a different source--the ball itself!

FLATSTICK

This ball does two of my favourite things that I've come to expect from supposedly tour level balls in this price range. The audible cue is a soft--yet distinct "MUTED CLICK." It lets you know it's there, but it doesn't anounce itself in such a verbose fashion that you begin to over-associate the ball's sound with it's feel. (We do this w/drivers all the time--and that's one of the major reasons why the composite drivers flopped so badly.) The tactile cue is an ever so slight clingy feel off of the putter's face. The really good balls--like this one--tend to time the audible sound with the actual tactile feel almost simultaneously. This is a true tour level ball that takes all the best from both the old school and the new school. SRIXON's Best ball since the original Black Max! Quite possibly--at least for my swing-the best ball of the year.

Trust, Relax, and Crush It vs. Analysis Paralysis

No doubt that the inverted "K" is where it's at for me, but a certain caveat remains.."Relax you ninny--and don't over-analyze!" Here's the results of the test run, and it speaks multitudes as to why one needs to practice something to the point that it becomes instinct, and trust is no longer an issue. Let me just say, that as someone who sports a 15---the initial results of the front nine lead me to encourage any and all mid-cappers who are in need of easier distance, and a less strenuous stroke to consider this one. I have fought switching to an around the body swing vs. "The Reverse C" for a long time. I'm glad to say that common sense and my lower back are about to win the argument. The time has come to surrender and trust--and here's why.

--Nothing Breeds Confidence Like Success--

Hole number one is a nasty booger of a 405 yard par4. The false angles off this highly elevated tee box do not suffer slicers gladly. A miscue leads to the woods on the right, and your ball is lost forever to the squirrels. I stepped up, "Set The K", and gave her a firm yet relaxed rip. I landed her 260 down the fairway, with a slightly strong baby draw. 145yards in from the left w/a back center pin is a lot easier than 165 in from the right. Especially since this fairway tends to have a little less hardpan on the left hand side. I was so confident that I stepped up to my second shot w/a short iron and still blew it past the green. I quickly chipped up and two putted for bogey. --Didn't mind bogey after seeing the distance potential of the new driver stance.

Hole 2 is another par 4 but plays out to 377 yards. Once again, the false angles from the tee-box come into play, and literally aim you to the right, where a slice sends you off the grounds and out of bounds. Once again I crushed one 260 + with a baby draw leaving me a 1/2 wedge to the green. I remembered over shooting the approach on the last hole, relaxed a bit, and bagged a par.--This built up my confidence for numero 3 which is 160 yard par 3 w/nothing but water between the tee box and the green. I took out my 150 stick, thanks the the tail wind, and popped her right next to the pin which was set front left. A quick 1 putt, and I had just bagged my first birdie of the season.

Number 4 represents a driver opportunity for those who are certain of their ability to work the ball left. At roughly 235 yards, dead center in front of the geen, there is a gigantic "hazardous waste" bunker so full of gourse that a Scotsman would be proud. It is as deep as they get. None the less there is a narrow strip of fairway that runs left of this hazard and up towards the left hand side of the green. Miss this narrow strip and you land in the water on the left. --This "K" stance had me running it up the narrow strip for one of only 1/2 dozen times I've ever pulled that shot off in my life. The ball went left of green and a simple chip seemed to be the order of the day. I went up--got a little too excited, and fluffed the chip to the fringe. One Texas wedge and a one putt later I was marking another par on my card. "This is unfreakin' beleieveable." I'm telling myself as I stride to the longest par 4 on the course.

Number 5 is 467 yards of pure meanness for those lacking a baby draw in the arsenal. On the right runs a nice long body of water--hidden behind a tree line--for the entire length of the hole. On the left is a line of bunkers and trees that warn you that--"A draw is welcome--but a hook ensures a bogey at best." Worse yet--for the first 180 yards on the left hand side runs the same water hazard that was on your right on the previous hole.---"OUCH!" The drive went my way. Baby draw to the left--in the fairway, and well ahead of the first two "sucker bunkers." Too much excitement eventually led to a bogey but it was obvious that this was the new way for me to swing. Hole 6 was a par as were 7 and 8, but all that excitement led to a bogey on number 9. Still--I bagged my best nine ever----37 on a nine w/a par of 35. I was so excited going into the turn that I almost had to go change my underwear.

--And Then--The Meltdown--

With the absolute gut cinch promise of the best round of my life now in front of me--I wanted to make sure I repeated everything about that driver swing that I had on the front nine. Talk about your rookie mistakes! Thus began the meltdown from hell. While I was busy making sure that I had enough back tilt in my right shoulder, and "just enough" forward knee bend, in my right knee--I neglected to recall the fact that trusting all my previous practice rounds and letting the new swing go on auto-pilot is what got me there in the first place.

It started innocently enough w/a strong fade (hidden slice) off the 10th tee box. "Well," says I after a two putt for bogey, "I started the front nine with a bogey, and look how it turned out. "

The next hole was a par 3 which I managed to somehow manage a miracle chip in for par after a lousy tee shot long, and a fluffed first chip. --Sadly,--that was to be the last par of the day.

The next hole was a short par 4 where my mental micro-management led to a blocked shot and a bogey. "Too much knee bend," says Captain Idiot while torpedoing his own game. Next up--a 560 yard par 5. "Oh I better get that knee bend just so, and watch that shoulder tilt. I'm going to need a little more boring trajectory to get that type of yardage." Please don't even remind me of the drive into the woods, the mediocre recovery, yet another fluffed chip, and the resultant triple bogey. Eventually I limped back to the club house from the 18th w/a 45. That gave me an"82" for the round which the unobservant might not think too badly of for a guy who usually cards 85-91. The fact of the matter is that the front nine tells us differently.

Not even the eternal optimist inside of me believes that I could have bagged another 37 on the back nine, yet I am absolutely positive that bagging a 42 was more than within my reach that day. That would have allowed me to card a 77 and resulted in me beating my currently very best round of 78 by a stroke. Once I got back out to the range it was easy to see that the micro-management led to a very exaggerated and unnatural "Inverted K"--which made starting the club head back square or inside, a shaky possibility at best. Lesson learned---once the swing has been grooved--you have to trust it. I had to learn to trust my line on putts to overcome a bad case of the yips--and this is a similar mental process. Trust--it ain't easy--but that's golf.

Till Later,

Bernie

"The Inverted K"

Tomorrow marks the first solid test run on a rebuilt stance. Due to age concerns, Arthritis, Bursitis, and all the other "Itis Brothers", I am in the process of relinquishing my much beloved "Reverse C" finish and follow through, and switching to the much easier on the middle-aged joints "Inverted K" adress w/around the body follow through. I have been working on this conversion for several months now, and I am just beginning the process of trying it at full speed. During the experimental stages I had to revert to soft -medium feel 2-piece balls, and give up on my stash of the old 3-piece Bridgestone B330-S balls, in order to keep a respectable distance off the tee w/a slower swing. I have currently regained most of my old swing speed and look forward to what looks like a lot of added distance, a straighter ball flight, and some relief for ye olde Lumbar.

In the meantime, with the recession in full bloom, I realize that there are a bunch of folks out there like me--mid-cappers on a budget, that would do well with good 2 piece balls, at least until we find our real grooves in mid-season. Please no groans or tomatoes from "The Peanut Gallery." Long before there were respectable 3 piece budget balls flooding the market--there were high performance 2-piece balls. Many of the makers are bringing back some old favourites rather than risk building new products and ad campaigns from scratch. I've currently reviewed 2 of the ones I've found to my liking while rebuilding my swing. You'll find full length in depth reviews on the "Nike Power Distance Power Soft", and the newly resurrected Precept EV Extra Spin at http://www.epinions.com/ Simply punch in the names-- and when the reviews come up feel free to read them. Better yet--you may even join.---We can always use good writers there--and who knows. Like me--you could find it to be great fun, and another outlet for your personal Trials, Tribulations, and Victories on the golf course.

Till Later,

Bernie

----WELCOME!!!-----

If you are reading this, there's a good chance you read a lot of my reviews on www.epinions.com That is where I post a lot of golf equipment reviews on a fairly regular basis. I feel it is in many a golfer's better interest to get honest opinions from a disinterested 3rd party. Especially if that disinterested 3rd party is like them.

I am your average mid-capper who has a semi-repeatable swing, shoots to a 15, and works constantly to shave a couple of strokes a year off the old score card. This year the dream goal is to break 80 on a semi-regular basis before the season is over. Now that my flexibility is back after a long Winter's Hiatus, it actually looks like it could happen. I'll be happy however, if I get down to 82's on a regular basis for now.

Please feel free to hit the link to epinions and scour my reviews where I post under the monniker Berniez40 . In the meantime I'll be organizing the "Links To The Links" to try and make it easier for you to access opinions on equipment via club type, ball, etc. I'd love for you to come by, leave a friendly post, if so inspired, and wax philosophically in your own right.

All The Best,

Bernie