My last 10 rounds or so I’ve been testing out the new Tour Yellow Srixon ZStar. I’ve gotten some interesting comments from other golfers about playing a yellow ball. Some think it is cheesy and ask me why I’m playing a range ball on the course and some say it looks cool. The ball itself is very highly visible and bright, and especially easy to see on the course. The one guy who made fun of it two days ago was thinking otherwise when I shot a 73 with the thing for my first round of the year at his club.
Is there something to the color?
This ball isn’t just yellow. It is green, yellow and looks to have some sort of metallic looking flakes or crystal in there. The ball is highly reflective. It is much easier to spot this ball from 200 out than a white ball and Srixon actually has factual data to back that up. According to them, yellow is the most visible color in the visual spectrum. I’m sure they didn’t realize how redundant that statement is, because I’m sure there isn’t a “most visible color not in the visible spectrum.” Ahem.
The greenish portion of the ball’s color has a psychological affect on the player too according to Srixon. Green is a calming and soothing color. Yeah no kidding. It is the color of grass, where golfers want to be. And it is also the color of cold hard American cash, what you collect from your opponents at the end of your round on the green grass.
Z-Star Tour Yellow Construction
The Z-Star Tour Yellow is a three layer ball. The three layers are the core, mid-layer and cover.
The cover is .02 inches and made of urethane. The thin cover helps the player control shots and gives the player great control in the short game.
The mid-layer is an ionemer plastic. This layer helps control spin on the longer shots, keeping it low off the driver for accuracy and distance.
The core is an “energetic gradient growth core.” Uh, that’s what I was going to say. What does that mean? The ball has a lower compression and gives great distance but doesn’t feel hard. All things I really like in a golf ball.
Is the Tour Yellow different that a standard ZStar?
I’ve played many dozens of rounds with the white Srixon ZStar and my review of that ball is here. The regular ZStar is an excellent ball with great durability, spin and distance. Is the yellow different? I think so.
Aside from the visibility and “relaxing and zen like properties” the ball has, I think it is possible there is more short game spin in this ball. Now perhaps my medication is wearing off and they’re exactly the same, but I seem to notice a difference. It could also just be a coincidence. Perhaps my short game is just “on” now but perhaps the ball is making a difference?
The first time I noticed the great short game control was on a trip south with some golf buddies. I had about a 40 yard shot over a hump in the green. This was my 3rd shot on the tough par-4 9th at Coral Canyon in St. George, Utah. I had to land the ball on the down slope of the hump and hope I could get the ball to stay on the green. I used my lob wedge and hit a crisp, mid trajectory shot. The ball landed on the down slope, bounced twice past the flag and actually spun back a foot. The shot ended up about four feet. I saved par. I thought at that time I’d just hit the perfect shot and it wasn’t the ball, but since then I’ve noticed awesome spin on short shots like that, where I’m hitting half lob or sand wedges. The ball spins great in the short game department.
D
istance
I’m still getting rid of winter rust and getting my swing speed back up after several months from the game. So my distance isn’t up to where it normally is with the driver, but it is getting there. My irons are crisp now, and my yardages with the Tour Yellow are all right on, even with every other high performance ball I’ve tested.
I do notice something with the Tour Yellow which I also noticed with the regular Z-Stars. I find if I hit a draw the spin can happen quite late in the air. So I’ll have a shot which looks like it is going to find the right rough, then it draws late in the flight and finds the fairway. This is not necessarily good or bad, just an interesting property.
Durability
Since the Tour Yellow is yellowish-green, it seems like it doesn’t show wear like a white ball. I know for a fact that I can chew it up with square grooves like any other high performance ball, but it doesn’t show. The green grass and dirt which can get into the areas on the ball’s surface which are compromised don’t show much. I’ve now played 63 consecutive holes with one Tour Yellow and it looks great. I’m sure it has many holes left in it.
Conclusion
Before you make fun of a yellow golf ball, I’d try the Srixon Z-Star Tour Yellow. It is as good or better than any white golf ball I’ve used.
Related Links
Srixon web site.
Srixon Z-Star review.
Srixon Z-StarX review.
Srixon image gallery.
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