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Nike Balls

• JasCooper 528 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 6:02 AM

  I posted this on my club forum, but would like to get opinions from the community  

  There are lots of Nike balls available. And it seems as many threads about them as there are different models. More added at almost every level. I notice when I play top players they typically are using a Nike (conversely, poorer players seem to go for Max Meter or vapor balls). 

  So, what is it that makes these balls the top choice? And what differentiates them, aside from the obvious spec differences? Why would I spend 200 credits more on an RZN Red vs. a cheaper one? Is there a reason to choose the highest level ball available to me? Is there a go to standard (kind of like the Cally L33 seems to be)? 

  Remember I play on an iPad, the ding is usually elusive, and I don't spend time trying and mapping balls and clubs. I depend a lot on forgiveness and luck. But I suppose if I'm going to move up in tiers, I'll need to pay a little more attention to these things; or settle to being 5-6 strokes behind the better players. At the moment I'm leaning toward trying the level 61 ball  

  Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks. 

• lonniescott711 4,207 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 9:41 AM

  JasCooper:

  I posted this on my club forum, but would like to get opinions from the community  

  There are lots of Nike balls available. And it seems as many threads about them as there are different models. More added at almost every level. I notice when I play top players they typically are using a Nike (conversely, poorer players seem to go for Max Meter or vapor balls). 

  So, what is it that makes these balls the top choice? And what differentiates them, aside from the obvious spec differences? Why would I spend 200 credits more on an RZN Red vs. a cheaper one? Is there a reason to choose the highest level ball available to me? Is there a go to standard (kind of like the Cally L33 seems to be)? 

  Remember I play on an iPad, the ding is usually elusive, and I don't spend time trying and mapping balls and clubs. I depend a lot on forgiveness and luck. But I suppose if I'm going to move up in tiers, I'll need to pay a little more attention to these things; or settle to being 5-6 strokes behind the better players. At the moment I'm leaning toward trying the level 61 ball  

  Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks. 

  Dont waste your credits . If you arent willing to put the time in to learn what you need to know then it wont matter what you do . If you want to play better then you need to practice and put your time in  by learning your clubs and what ball works best for you .

  For most if not all it comes down to meter control distance and then spin . The better control you have of your meter the better shots you can hit . Some players feel that hitting the ding is of the utmost importance so meter control is essential in doing that . So the slower the meter the better control of the meter .

  Distance when applied to good course management will allow you to reach those key spots from fairways to green for better scoring opportunities . You need spin to hold the greens . As you move up in tiers the greens will get faster and faster so spin keeps the ball on the greens . When you start playing on courses like Oakmont Congressional or Merio  with champ greens spin will keep you on those sloped greens .

  So there you go hope this helps . I also hope that you take time and practice and learn how to use your clubs and whatever ball you decide to use . But as I stated if you dont practice then it wont matter what you do or ball you use . Good luck with your game .

   

• Robert1893 7,722 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 10:00 AM

  JasCooper:

  At the moment I'm leaning toward trying the level 61 ball  

  Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks. 

  I've played a few of the Nike balls, including the Level 61 version. Here's my take on a couple of them. As an aside, I play on an iPad as well. 
  
  Both the Level 71 and Level 81 Nike balls perform extremely well on an iPad. The meter is very smooth and the the effect of backspin is consistent and predictable. The big advantage that the Level 81 ball, which I"m currently using, has over the Level 71 is a slower meter.
  
  I had difficulties with the Level 61 Nike. The meter seemed inconsistent as did the backspin for that ball. That was especially true for pitch shots. Now, it could have been me, but I can hit my pitch shots with much more precision with either the Level 71 or 81 Nike balls.
  
  So, at this point, here' my preference list:
  
  1. Nike Level 81
  2. Nike Level 71
  3. Callaway Level 33
  
  I've looked at some other balls between the Callway and Nike Level 71 (in terms of cost), and I just never saw anything in between that was better than the Callaway. In other words, if I weren't going to play either the 71 or 81 Nike balls, I would go back to the Callways. They are still the best overall value in the pro shop.
  
  I hope that helps.  

   

• alosso 21,072 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 10:07 AM

  My two Pfennig, in short:

  You need top balls and top equipment and top attitude to get top results. Either you cherish to receive top spots on the leaderboards, or you like to receive top "payment" for your success.

  If this applies, buy expensive balls, or get them payed by game purses.

  If not, select the balls you want to afford to buy and to lose. My choice in this category is the L33 Callaway.

  Concerning Nikes, I foresee them to disappear when Nike disappears from the golf market, as announced.

• Robert1893 7,722 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 10:48 AM

  alosso:

  Concerning Nikes, I foresee them to disappear when Nike disappears from the golf market, as announced.

  I'm thinking the same thing, even though others tend to disagree. 

• garygun 80 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 12:39 PM

  I used the Cally L33 for quite awhile (until the "soft" upgrade fiasco) as they were the best price/performance for my budget. When they went wonky I tried the Nike 20XI-X Balls (L71+) and they save me maybe 3 or 4 shots a round and due to the abundance of surveys and small winnings I have been able to continue with them. I would love to try the RZN Tour or Black balls but not in the budget. I use a desktop so can`t help with iPad advice.

  If you are playing for entertainment and not concerned about winning Cally L33 are fine.

• borntobesting 9,709 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 12:48 PM

  Robert1893:

  alosso:

  Concerning Nikes, I foresee them to disappear when Nike disappears from the golf market, as announced.

  I'm thinking the same thing, even though others tend to disagree. 

  in my opinion the clubs we have already bought and any balls left in our inventory will be all that is left of Nike on here when Nike completes their exit form the golf market. What WGT replaces Nike clubs and balls with remains to be seen.

• YankeeJim 25,827 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 12:53 PM

  borntobesting:

  What WGT replaces Nike clubs and balls with remains to be seen

  Yes it does but as for the existing Nike equipment, I point to the Satins as an example of what happens to obsolete equipment-you can't get it but if you have it, it hasn't changed.  :-)

• alosso 21,072 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 2:34 PM

  Just to be clear, I was talking about Nike balls and them disappearing from the Pro Shop.

  I concur that the inventories will stay untouched.

• sodakknight 703 Posts

  Sun, Sep 4 2016 3:04 PM

  JasCooper:

  I notice when I play top players they typically are using a Nike (conversely, poorer players seem to go for Max Meter or vapor balls).

  Poorer? As in less money?  Because Max Meter Pro+ balls are actually some pretty good balls.  I use them all the time.

  I happen to do pretty well with them!