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Bridgestone’s new B330 golf balls

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At GolfWRX and in the golf industry as a collective, we talk a lot about club fitting, encouraging golfers to put the right tools in their hand. But if they’re not using the correct golf ball, then is performance really optimized?

In the development of its new B300 golf balls, Bridgestone used feedback, statistics and information from its golf ball fittings — more than 300,000 to date according to the company — to develop golf balls better suited to its target audience.

As such, Bridgestone has developed four new golf balls: the B330 and B330S for those who swing faster than 105 mph, and the B330 RX and B330 RXS for those who swing slower than 105 mph.

The urethane covers of all the B330 golf balls are made with new processes and different polymers, a technology the company calls SlipRes. By reducing slippage between the cover and inner layers of the golf ball, SlipRes covers increase friction, and thereby spin, on wedge shots around the green. On driver shots, the technology actually decreases spin for more distance. Bridgestone also says the new covers are softer and more durable than past models.

Learn which B330 golf ball is best for your game below.

Bridgestone B330 and B330S

BridgestoneGolfBalls

Bridgestone’s B330 golf balls have a dual-dimple design for a better flight.

According to Bridgestone, only 25 percent of golfers swing more than 105 mph with their drivers. If you’re one of them, Bridgestone says its upgraded B330 and B330S golf balls are best for you.

Like previous models, both balls use a four-piece design. They use 28 percent larger cores (Bridgestone calls them TourCores) than their predecessors, however, which will create increased ball speeds. Combined with the SlipRes cover, the new golf balls are said to provide better control, distance and durability.

The B330S balls have a slightly softer feel and will produce more spin than the B330 balls, which are designed for maximum distance.

Bridgestone’s B330 and B330S will in stores on March 4 and sell at retail for $45 per dozen.

Bridgestone B330 RX and B330 RXS

BridgestoneGolfBalls3

With a softer compression than the B330 and B330S, these golf balls are designed for the 75 percent of golfers who swing less than 105 mph with their driver. They have what Bridgestone calls an AmateurCore, which has lower compression than the TourCore, producing a higher trajectory with more spin for most golfers.

Both balls with help golfers with slower swing speeds produce maximum height and distance with their drives and longer shots, while still offering tour-caliber feel around the greens with its SlipRes cover and three-piece urethane construction.

Bridgestone’s B330RX and B330RXS will sell for $40 per dozen and are available on Jan. 26.
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He played on the Hawaii Pacific University Men's Golf team and earned a Masters degree in Communications. He also played college golf at Rutgers University, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism.

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. Chip

    Jun 28, 2016 at 11:19 pm

    I can’t speak to the B330S, but you are wrong about the B330…it is a 3 piece ball, not a 4 piece ball.

  2. Eddy

    Jan 28, 2016 at 3:46 am

    I very much likes the durability of the old Bridgestones. In my opinion much better than the Titleists (much more abrasion on those).

  3. john

    Jan 26, 2016 at 11:08 pm

    the old 330 felt … heavy, went the same distance as every other tour ball with the same greenside spin, just felt.. i don’t know how to describe it other than ‘heavy’. I will give the new ones a go if the price point is fair, i’ve found with “Tour” balls (prov1 included) that they are perform pretty much the same – just the one who’s branding you like and price point is the ball for you

  4. nick

    Jan 26, 2016 at 1:50 pm

    durability on the 330’s (s/and regular) is lacking. last years anyways. compared to the 2015 pro v, its not even close. cheers to bridgestone if they correct this. i do buy them when they go on sale.

  5. RHJazz

    Jan 25, 2016 at 9:12 pm

    Do they still add water to the core? I’m amused by their campaign that you need to compress the ball to “boom” the ball… Water doesn’t compress.

  6. Mat

    Jan 25, 2016 at 3:29 pm

    Durability? B330s I have used have zero problems related to their durability. What are you doing to them?

  7. Nihonsei75

    Jan 25, 2016 at 11:10 am

    Will somebody please post from the merch show if Bridgestone has really improved durability? I like Snell over the previous 330 and RX for durability alone, nvmd price. Thanks if you do!

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Whats in the Bag

Kevin Tway WITB 2024 (May)

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Driver: Ping G430 LST (10.5 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X

3-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 80 TX

5-wood: TaylorMade Stealth 2 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 90 TX

Irons: Wilson Staff Utility (2), Titleist T100 (4-9)
Shafts: Mitsubishi MMT 100 TX (2), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (4-9)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F @51, 56-14F), SM7 (60-10S)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (48-56), True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (60)

Putter: Scotty Cameron T-5 Proto
Grip: Scotty Cameron Black Baby T

Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Plus4

More photos of Kevin Tway’s WITB in the forums.

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Did Rory McIlroy inspire Shane Lowry’s putter switch?

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Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.

The timing of Lowry’s putter changeup was curious: Was he just using a Spider putter because he was paired with McIlroy, who’s been using a Spider Tour X head throughout 2024? Was Lowry just being festive because it’s the Zurich Classic, and he wanted to match his teammate? Did McIlroy let Lowry try his putter, and he liked it so much he actually switched into it?

Well, as it turns out, McIlroy’s only influence was inspiring Lowry to make more putts.

When asked if McIlroy had an influence on the putter switch, Lowry had this to say: “No, it’s actually a different putter than what he uses. Maybe there was more pressure there because I needed to hole some more putts if we wanted to win,” he said with a laugh.

To Lowry’s point, McIlroy plays the Tour X model, whereas Lowry switched into the Tour Z model, which has a sleeker shape in comparison, and the two sole weights of the club are more towards the face.

Lowry’s Spider Tour Z has a white True Path Alignment channel on the crown of his putter, which is reminiscent of Lowry’s former 2-ball designs, thus helping to provide a comfort factor despite the departure from his norm. Instead of a double-bend hosel, which Lowry used in his 2-ball putters, his new Spider Tour Z is designed with a short slant neck.

“I’ve been struggling on the greens, and I just needed something with a fresh look,” Lowry told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. “It has a different neck on it, as well, so it moves a bit differently, but it’s similar. It has a white line on the back of it [like my 2-ball], and it’s a mallet style. So it’s not too drastic of a change.

“I just picked it up on the putting green and I liked the look of it, so I was like, ‘Let’s give it a go.’”

Read the rest of the piece over at PGATour.com.

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Webb Simpson equipment Q&A: Titleist’s new 2-wood, 680 blade irons, and switching to a broomstick Jailbird

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With seven career wins on the PGA Tour, including a U.S. Open victory, Webb Simpson is a certified veteran on the course. But he’s also a certified veteran in the equipment world, too. He’s a gearhead who truly knows his stuff, and he’s even worked closely with Titleist on making his own custom 682.WS irons.

On Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship, I caught up with Simpson to hear about his experience with Titleist’s new prototype 2-wood, how Titleist’s 680 Forged irons from 2003 ended up back in his bag, and why he’s switching into an Odyssey Ai-One Jailbird Cruiser broomstick putter this week for the first time.

Click here to read our full story about Simpson’s putter switch on PGATOUR.com’s Equipment Report, or continue reading below for my full Q&A with Simpson at Quail Hollow Club on Wednesday.

See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here

GolfWRX: It seems like you’ve been a little all over the place with your irons in the past six months or so, and now going back to the 680’s. Is that just a comfort thing? What’s been going on with the irons?

Webb Simpson: Titleist has been so great at working with me, and R&D, on trying to get an iron that kind of modernizes the 680. And so the 682.WS took the T100 grooves, but kinda took the look and the bulk and the build of the 680’s into one club. They’re beautiful, and awesome looking. I just never hit them that well for a consistent period of time. It was probably me, but then I went to T100’s and loved them. I loved the spin, the trajectory, the yardage, but again, I never went on good runs. Going through the ground, I couldn’t feel the club as well as with the blade. So last week, I’m like, ‘Alright. I’m gonna go back more for…comfort, and see if I can get on a nice little run of ball striking.’

So that’s why I went back.

 

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OK, that makes sense. I know you had done some 2-wood testing recently. Is that in the bag right now?

It’s like day-by-day. I used it at Hilton Head every day. Valero, I used it one round. And this week, me and my caddie will do the book every morning, and if it’s a day where we think we need it, we’ll just put it in and take the 3-wood out. I love it because it’s a super simple swap. Like, it doesn’t really change much.

Yeah, can you tell me about that club? I mean, we don’t really know anything about it yet. You know? I haven’t hit it or anything, obviously.

It has grooves like a 3-wood. Spin is perfect. And it’s honestly, like, everything is in the middle of a 3-wood and driver number. Trajectory, spin, carry, all of it. So, a Hilton Head golf course is almost too easy to talk about because, you know, there, so many holes are driver 3-wood.

Valero, our thinking was we had two par-5’s into the wind, and we knew that it would take two great shots to get there in two. So instead of hitting driver-driver, we just put it in. And I used it on those holes.

Hilton was a little easier because it was off-the-tee kind of questions. But Colonial will be a golf course where, you know, there’s a lot of driver or 3-woods. It’s kind of like a backup putter or driver for me now. I’ll bring it to every tournament.

So it’s, like, in your locker right now, probably?

Well, it would be. It’s in my house [because Webb lives near by Quail Hollow Club, and is a member at the course.] It’s in the garage.

Oh, yeah, that’s right. Do you know what holes you might use it out here if it goes in play? 

Potentially 15, depending on the wind. Second shot on 10. Could be 14 off the tee. The chances here are pretty low (that he’ll use the 2-wood). But, like, Greensboro would be an awesome club all day. I’m trying to think of any other golf courses.

There’s plenty that it’ll be a nice weapon to have.

It’s interesting, the wave of 2-woods and mini drivers. Like, it’s just really taken off on Tour, and all the companies have seemed to embrace it.

Yeah. The thing I had to learn, it took me, like, at least a week to learn about it is you gotta tee it up lower than you think. I kept teeing it up too high. You need it low, like barely higher than a 3-wood. And that was where I got optimal spin and carry. If you tee it up too high, you just don’t get as much spin and lose distance, I don’t know if that’s just a mini driver thing.

And you obviously have a Jailbird putter this week. What spurred that on?

Inconsistent putting. I’m stubborn in a lot of ways when it comes to my equipment, but I have to be open minded – I just hadn’t putted consistently well in a while. And I’m like, ‘Man, I feel my ball-striking coming along. Like I feel better; for real, better.’

If I can just get something in my hands that I’m consistent with. Being on Tour, you see it every year, guys get on little runs. I can put together four to five tournaments where I’m all the sudden back in the majors, or in the FedExCup Playoffs. You can turn things around quick out here. I’m like, ‘Man, whatever’s going to get me there, great.’

My caddie, David Cook, caddied for Akshay at the Houston Open and he putted beautifully. Then, I watched Akshay on TV at Valero, and he putted beautifully. And, I’m like, ‘I’m just going to try it.’

I’ve never tried it for more than a putt or two, and I just ordered what Akshay uses. It was pretty awkward at first, but the more I used it, the more I’m like, ‘Man, it’s pretty easy.’ And a buddy of mine who’s a rep out here, John Tyler Griffin, he helped me with some setup stuff. And he said at Hilton Head, he wasn’t putting well, then tried it, and now he makes everything. He was very confident. So I’m like, ‘Alright, I’ll try it.’”

And you’re going with it this week?

Hundred percent.

Alright, I love it. Thank you, I always love talking gear with you. Play well this week. 

Thanks, man.

See Webb Simpson’s full WITB from the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship here

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