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What’s new? How much does it cost? And how does it perform? Tom Irwin brings you the low down on the new Wilson Staff Model golf ball
Wilson products are sneaky good this year and the Wilson Staff Model ball is no exception, it is one of the best golf balls on test so don’t over look it.
Wilson say its 4 piece construction and urethane cover mean it is a tour level ball so how did it perform?
Look at the state of my wedges! Cleveland are you listening
The Wilson Staff Model ball is very white. This seems to be the way with some brands. They are a kind of brilliant white as opposed to the repressed look I am used to. The model R has a duller look. The branding is also very sure of itself, the Staff brand is bold in its modern, capitalised type face.
It does feel slightly clicky to chip with, only really noticeable when set alongside a premium ball and this passes over into putting.
My 50 yard pitches were spinning on the low side. I do not spin it much that said, so I am more likely to look for a ball helping me here. The numbers were really consistent as I messed around with trajectory on my pitches and found it stopping quickly.
I was getting punchy, and consistent distance from my 7 iron, consistent with the variable CHS I was producing
I loved it off my driver where I was getting some of my most impressive numbers of good strikes, and a very penetrating low spinning flight
PROS
CONS
It is so white! I know that sounds silly, it is a white golf ball stupid! There is a Staff Model R that is not painted and offers a slightly duller look. It does though look like a premium ball, I don’t want too much fuss when I look down on chip and the branding on the Wilson Staff Model is nicely understated without too many distractions.
I have to say that when I moved away from the putting green to hit some pitches that I found the Wilson very agreeable. As you can see apart from one obvious mishit my ball speeds and carry numbers were really consistent. I am not convinced in a blind pitching test that I would have been able to tell the difference between the Wilson and more premium models on test.
OverallThe 50-yard pitch data I collected was not too bad, although not as much spin as I’d like to go out on the golf course with. I am a really low spinner, I am working on it but even for me these numbers are a bit on the low side. This will be a problem for some players and not for others. I have found that by moving to a high spinning ball I can get as much as 500 more RPM which helps me on short and long shots.
With 7 iron I was finding some really pleasing numbers with the Wilson Staff model. Spin rates were up at nearly 7000 revs, and very consistent and that translated into some very good, and consistent carry numbers with a pleasing comparative total. 7 – 8 yards roll on a 7 iron feels playable and the Wilson Staff model was delivering this.
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I don’t mind admitting that I drove the ball very badly on ball testing day. There were a lot of lefts, but what I can say is that the Wilson Staff Model golf ball was not at fault and produced good numbers and surprisingly consistent spin data given I was striking it all over the face.
Overall, I would have no problem recommending the Wilson Staff Model ball to a mid handicap golfer, the only compromise I found was in feel around the greens.
Available: Now
Colours: White
RRP: £44.99 per dozen
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.
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.
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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.
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