In the last few years, Wilson Golf has made a name for itself with lower and lower compression golf balls, designed to give slower-swinging golfers the feel they want -- even if it might cost them a yard or two, here and there.
However, with their latest golf ball release, the company is diving back into the Tour-caliber ball market with a design that, by its nature, has to run counter to their bread-and-butter.
The Wilson Staff Model is a four-piece golf ball that's significantly firmer than their low-compression models because that's the kind of ball a faster-swinging, more-accomplished player wants and needs.
The ball has the high-quality urethane cover that allows a better player to put more spin on the ball with those scoring shots, particularly those partial shots inside 100 yards. The cover is softer and thinner (albeit five-thousandths of an inch, which is a big deal in golf terms) than what Wilson has used in the past in this category with the FG Tour. With a thinner cover, the ball can still perform well with greenside spin while not forcing a player to choose between spin and distance off the tee.
As has become more standard issue for tour-caliber balls, the core, made from neodymium-catalyzed polybutadiene rubber, is dramatically larger than the FG Tour, making up nearly 60 percent of the ball's construction. Two mantle layers firm up the outer layers of the ball to build speed and spin characteristics. The outer-most mantle layer, made from ionomer, helps pinch the cover between the rest of the ball and the clubface to generate spin on shorter shots.
The Wilson Staff Model golf balls will retail for $50 per dozen. However, Wilson will sell the balls on their website and offer a trial program with free personalization of numbers or sidestamps. If you order more balls, you'll get a per-dozen discount based on volume.
A subscription program is forthcoming as well with more benefits, including free shipping.
