Srixon Z-Star golf ball review
What’s new? How much does it cost? And how does it perform? Jack Backhouse brings you the low down on the new Srixon Z-Star golf ball
The new Srixon Z-Star golf ball is a popular favourite for tour golf ball users, and the 2023 version is supposed to feel softer and spin more than ever before.
So why’s this ball so popular? Find out in our Srixon Z-Star golf ball review.
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Srixon Z-Star golf ball review: NCG Summary
NCG SUMMARY
The Srixon Z-Star golf ball is a golf club member’s favourite when looking for tour-like responsiveness around the greens. Off the wedge, it feels great and has serious stopping power.
With a yellow option available and being very durable, the Srixon Z-Star golf ball will suit a lot of players.
PROS
- Feels great around the greens
- Yellow colour option
- More durable than other urethane golf balls
CONS
- Not the longest with 7 iron and driver
First Impressions
I’ve always been a fan of the Z Star balls, and when I heard that they were getting a major upgrade, I was excited to get my hands on some. I love and need higher spin pretty much with all my shots, so Srixon’s new spin skin coating, which is supposed to dig into your grooves more, definitely has me interested.
This is not the only upgrade the Z-Star has had, however, it also features a new fastlayer core which is soft in the middle and gradually firmer towards the edges, and new 338 speed dimple pattern is supposed to make it less affected by the wind, which would be amazing if true!
NCG Review
Out of the box and onto the green, I love how these balls feel from the putter face and wedge on short chips. They have a similar softer feel to the tour ball I usually play, and I’m able to generate quite a lot of greenside spin and get the ball checking from reasonable lies.
I really like how the ball performed out of bunkers, with the ball stopping on the second bounce quite regularly. The balls didn’t scuff badly on poor strikes either, which is a real bonus, as there’s nothing worse than knifing a bunker shot and it becoming unusable.
The 50-yard pitch data I collected was not too bad, although not as much spin as I’d like to achieve consistently. On this shot, I ideally want to be up closer to 10,000 rpm than below 5000, as this gets the ball stopping really quickly. This could be in part down to the quality of the strike from the tester… I did like the soft feel it produced, though.
The 7 iron shots I hit had incredibly consistent spin data ignoring one poor strike. This is great as it means the strikes were good, and the ball is going to stop when landing on the green. I was a little bit concerned that I had lost some distance, but with carries being fairly consistent, it’s not the end of the world. It’s how close you hit it, not how far you hit it with your irons.
Driver testing went well for the Srixon Z-Star. The ball speed numbers are pretty solid, the launch angle is right in my optimal window and distances not too bad either. I did see a dramatic jump up in spin with a particularly bottomy strike, but a 294 yard average total distance is not to be sniffed at.
Premium golf ball users should absolutely consider putting this in play as it’s a great all-round performer, especially if you like a soft-feeling ball. Srixon’s new technology is the real deal.
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Srixon Z-Star golf ball review: The Details
Available: Now
Colours: White, Yellow, Divide
RRP: £39.99 per dozen
More info: Srixon website
How do we test golf balls?
At National Club Golfer, we are passionate about producing accurate and thorough reviews and make sure our testing process is rigorous so we get a good understanding of how each club performs.
We headed to Woodhall Spa Golf Club to allow us to collect launch monitor data with our in-house TrackMan and Flightscope. We tested each golf ball on the putting surface and around the greens before collecting data on 50-yard pitch shots, with a 7-iron and with a driver.
What to consider when buying a new golf ball?
Feel
Golf ball feel is a personal preference. Different balls on the market will feel softer or firmer depending on their compression and structure. It is crucial to test balls when putting, chipping and hitting long game shots to check you like the performance across all areas.
Distance
How far you want to hit the golf ball is a crucial consideration when picking a brand and model. Getting the right compression relative to your swing speed and strike will help you get the maximum distance out of a golf ball. You also need to consider if getting maximum distance is important to you or if you would rather give up some yardage to gain in other areas.
Spin
Generally, lower handicappers are looking for a ball that spins more so they can get more control around the greens. In this case, getting a ball with a urethane cover is really important as it will give you the most spin and control.
Price
Not everyone wants to spend £50 a dozen on golf balls. When picking the right golf ball for you, you should consider how much you want to spend relative to what performance you want.
You’ve probably spent a small fortune to get the set up that’s right for your game, so don’t forget to get specialist insurance from Golf Care to protect your clubs from theft, loss, and accidental damage. Plus, they even cover GPS watches, trolleys, and other golf equipment. With 30% off annual insurance starting from just £26.59, and a free golf gift bundle worth up to £365 including 12 free Srixon balls, it’s a no brainer. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP.
Jack Backhouse
Jack is a PGA Golf Professional who specialises in coaching, teaching golf to beginners and top-level amateurs for 10+ years. He also loves his golf equipment and analysing the data of the latest clubs on the market using launch monitors, specialising in blade irons and low-spinning drivers despite having a chronically low ball flight.
Although Jack has no formal journalism training, He has been reading What's In The Bag articles since he started playing at 12 and studying golf swings since his dad first filmed his swing to reveal one of the worst over-the-top slice swings he reckons has ever been recorded, which set him off on the path to be a coach. His favourite club ever owned was a Ping G10 driver bought from a local top amateur with the hope that some of the quality golf shots would come with it (they didn't), and worst was a Nike SQ driver he only bought because Tiger was using it.
Jack is a member of Sand Moor Golf Club and regularly gets out on the golf course to prepare for tournaments. Jack uses a TaylorMade BRNR Mini driver, a half set of TaylorMade P7MB irons, MG4 wedges and a TaylorMade TP Reserve putter.
