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Key Takeways

What makes the BirdieBall putting mat roll like a real green? Aerated polymers.BirdieBall putting mat is the only mat out there with grain, to simulate putting with or against the grain on a real green.Over half a million BirdieBall putting mats sold, with a less than one percent return rate.300 percent sales growth over the past year has BirdieBall looking for a new facility.

The secret that makes BirdieBall the king of putting mats is something you’ve probably never heard of: aerated polymers.

Yeah, I know. From the looks of it, you’d think it’s plain old foam, right? But according to John Breaker—BirdieBall’s owner, inventor and wannabe Elon Musk—you’d be wrong.

“We have this bias in our culture about foam being cheap and readily available,” says Breaker. “Our BirdieBall mat is quite the contrary. We go to great lengths to create a foam that functions like a real green. And there’s nothing cheap about it.”

In fact, “foam” is disdained as just another four-letter word at BirdieBall. The appropriate term is “aerated polymer.”

As you’ll discover, aerated polymers are at the root (pardon the pun) of BirdieBall’s putting mats.

MyGolfSpy Ball Lab is where we quantify the quality and consistency of the golf balls on the market to help you find the best ball for your money. Today, we’re taking a look at the Vice Pro. An overview of the equipment we use can be found here. To learn more about our test process, how we define “bad” balls and our True Price metric, check out our About MyGolfSpy Ball Lab page.

Given the nature of direct-to-consumer business, we can’t be absolutely sure but it stands to reason that Vice is among the most popular brands in its segment. It’s fair to say its balls have been among the most requested for Ball Lab.

You asked for this one.

As it turns out, we bought our samples of the original Vice Pro just before the new models came out. Rather than publish data on an out-of-date model, we decided to wait until we could get the new models for comparison. With COVID messing with the supply chain, it took us a while.

Kamaiu Johnson's hopes of making his first PGA Tour start this week at the Farmers Insurance Open ended with a positive COVID-19 result. Making matters worse, his mother has been hospitalized in Florida due to the virus.

USGA Announces 2021 U.S. Women’s Open Qualifying

2021 Event at Olympic Club

January 26, 2021

The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced qualifying dates and sites for the 76th U.S. Women’s Open Championship, which will be contested June 3-6, 2021, at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, Calif.

Conducted over 36 holes, qualifying will be held at 22 courses between April 26 and May 13. The championship is open to female professionals and amateurs with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 2.4. Online entry applications open on Wednesday, Feb. 17 and continues through April 14 at champs.usga.org.

The return to qualifying comes after an unprecedented year in which the signature play-in opportunities were canceled due to COVID-19 health and safety concerns. A determination on the feasibility of international qualifying given the ongoing effects of the pandemic will be made in coming weeks. Since debuting in 2014, U.S. Women’s Open international qualifying has typically been held in England, Japan, China and Korea.

“Last year was a difficult one in many respects and the decision to cancel qualifying did not come easily,” said John Bodenhamer, senior managing director, Championships. “We are thankful to be able to safely bring back qualifying and the openness that embodies all our championships in 2021.”

Callaway is releasing two balls in the Supersoft familyThe standard Supersoft is designed for golfers who place a premium on iron distanceThe Supersoft MAX is an oversized golf ball designed to be easier to hit in the airRetail price for both models is $22.99

Last week we introduced you to the Callaway ERC Soft, the company’s offering at the premium end of the ionomer category. This time around it’s the Callaway Supersoft and Callaway Supersoft MAX, both of which fall closer to the other end of the category.

Callaway Supersoft Golf Ball

Priced at just $22.99 per dozen, I don’t think anyone would describe the two-piece Callaway Supersoft as premium, but, nevertheless, it remains a needle-mover for the company. It’s a top-5 dollar generator and solid No. 3 in the market. You could also make a case that the success of Supersoft is what led Callaway down the path of soft throughout its ball lineup.

Your primary Supersoft selling points: it is soft and it is cheap.

Callaway Supersoft – Who It’s For

Callaway says the Supersoft is for the mature player segment. That could mean experienced or just old. Perhaps it’s a bit of both. In any case, we’re talking about a moderate swing speed player who places a premium on iron distance.

Davis Love III will be the captain of the U.S. Presidents Cup team for the event that was postponed until 2022, facing off against an International squad captained by Trevor Immelman of South Africa.

Rory McIlroy nearly got a win in Abu Dhabi. That he didn't shows there is still something missing. Plus, the Ryder Cup captaincy plan and Tony Finau's own search for that next win.

The PGA Championship is headed back to Southern Hills next year, as the Oklahoma course will host the major championship in place of Trump Bedminster, which was dropped by the PGA of America earlier this month.

Citi announced Monday that it will keep its sponsorship of Justin Thomas, condemning the anti-gay slur he muttered and requiring him to donate a "meaningful portion" of his deal as part of an active role in LGBTQ causes.

In a recent social media post, Callaway claimed its Chromesoft is more centered than a Titleist Pro-V1x. Do they have the data to back their claims?

1:45 – Most Wanted Putter Testing Commences3:19 – Callaway’s questionable golf ball claims23:34 – How is Titleist’s quality control so tough to compete with?30:27 – The new Pro-V1/Pro-V1x35:27 – The next gen of ERC-Soft with Triple Track37:14 – Can Mizuno ever hit #1 in Drivers?

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Bridgestone has launched the e12 Contact golf ball.A Contact Force Dimple offers more speed, and more spin around the green.The e12 Contact replaces both the e12 Soft and e12 Speed.Retail price is $29.99 a dozen.

A golf ball with the grip of a tire. It’s not a perfect analogy but it might help us understand the role of contact science in the design of the new Bridgestone e12 Contact golf ball.

On the tire side of the Bridgestone business, contact science is where the rubber literally meets the road. On the golf ball side, contact science is where the cover of the golf ball meets the clubface—also in the literal sense.

Bridgestone e12 Contact and Contact Science

The Bridgestone e12 Contact golf ball—more specifically, its cover—is the result of nearly five years of work in contact science. Before I jump too far ahead, I should probably mention that, in really basic terms, contact science applies to understanding and optimizing what happens when two things, like a tire and a road or a golf ball and a golf club, meet.

We wrote about Round 1 of Bridgestone’s foray into contact science about this time last year with the REACTIV cover on the Tour B Series. At the time, Bridgestone described REACTIV as an “Impact Modifier.” That means its properties vary based on the speed of impact. Firm for speed off the driver but soft for more spin when struck with a wedge. The lingo seems to have taken root industry-wide as Callaway used the same phrase to describe the PARALOID Hybrid cover on the new ERC Soft while Bridgestone is doubling down on “Impact Modifier” to describe the dimples on its new e12 Contact ball.

Key Takeaways

XXIO Prime is XXIO’s ultra-lightweight offering for sub-80 mph driver swing speed players.2021 XXI driver features Rebound Frame and a Super-TIX PLUS titanium face with a 200-percent larger sweet spot than the 2019 model.XXIO Prime irons feature the same titanium face and 110-percent larger sweet spot than 2019.XXIO Prime Royal Edition is a new offering: an ultra high-end luxury brand specifically for women.

Before we start discussing who should consider XXIO Prime, let’s first talk about who shouldn’t.

If your driver swing speed is above 100 mph, XXIO of any kind probably shouldn’t be on your radar. And if your driver swing speed is  80 to 95 mph, there may be a XXIO with your name on it. But it isn’t XXIO Prime.

And if the price of a 2021 TaylorMade, Callaway or PING makes you want to grab your torches and pitchforks and storm the castle, then XXIO Prime—and we can’t stress this enough—isn’t for you.

So, who is XXIO Prime for? Well, if you look in the mirror and see a sub-80 mph driver swing speed, you might just be a XXIO Prime golfer. And if you want clubs designed grip-to-tip specifically for a sub-80 mph driver swing speed, you might just be a XXIO Prime golfer.

And if you don’t mind paying the freight for either of the above, you might definitely be a XXIO Prime golfer.

Mizuno is launching two new ST-series drivers.The ST-X offers draw bias with some forgiveness.The ST-Z is a low- to mid-spin driver with higher MOI.Retail price is $400.

With the launch of the Mizuno ST-X and ST-Z drivers, the company hopes to build on the momentum from its previous ST releases while making its case that it belongs in the conversation with the top-selling driver brands in golf.

New Rules

In past Mizuno stories, we’ve discussed how and why the company’s drivers disappeared from the PGA TOUR. When its competitors began buying Tour counts, notoriously frugal Mizuno grew comfortable with its Tour ambassadors not playing its drivers. The approach was to give its staffers plenty of time to work their way into Mizuno driver. More often than not, they never did and the company never said much about it.

For more than a decade, the count of Mizuno drivers in play on the Tour held steady at zero.

Over the past couple of seasons, things have changed. The company has rolled out a fresh approach—a new rulebook of sorts. Like many of its competitors, Mizuno has become increasingly rigid about staffers bagging its drivers. Potential new Tour signings are advised to be absolutely sure the driver is going to work.

Si Woo Kim birdied two of the final three holes to finish a rock-solid, 8-under 64, coolly rallying past late-charging Patrick Cantlay by one shot to win The American Express on Sunday for his third PGA Tour victory.

Jessica Korda closed with a 5-under 66 and holed a 30-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole Sunday to beat Danielle Kang in the Diamond Resorts Tournament of Champions and start the LPGA Tour season on a good note.

Englishman Tyrrell Hatton shot a sparkling 6-under par in the final round on Sunday to win the season-opening Abu Dhabi Championship by 4 strokes after overnight leader Rory McIlroy faded with an uninspired even-par 72 to drop into third.

Darren Clarke won the Mitsubishi Electric Championship by two strokes on Saturday for his second straight PGA Tour Champions victory.

Danielle Kang still has the lead in the LPGA Tour season opener. Jessica Korda won the day. Korda blistered the back nine in 9-under 28.

Max Homa made nine birdies and shrugged off a double bogey on the way to a 7-under 65 in the third round Saturday, joining Tony Finau and Si Woo Kim atop the leaderboard at The American Express.

Rory McIlroy leapfrogged Tyrrell Hatton to reclaim a one-shot lead after the third round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.