TaylorMade Introduces Tour Preferred Golf Balls

TaylorMade is making waves in the golf equipment market with their “Loft Up” message that relates to the popular SLDR driver. They also recently announced the new line of Tour Preferred irons, which should be very popular. Next up are the new Tour Preferred golf balls! The last two performance golf balls TaylorMade had to offer were good, but not really my cup of tea. The Penta TP5 spun too much and launched too high for my tastes, and the Lethal didn’t really register on the “must try” scale. The new Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X golf balls however will be on my test list. Below is the official press announcement from TaylorMade:

Softer and more durable cover makes new line-up the best performing
golf balls in company history

CARLSBAD, Calif. (January 30, 2014) – TaylorMade Golf Company, the No. 2 golf ball brand on the PGA TOUR, is proud to announce the release of Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X: two tour-caliber golf balls that provide complete tee-to-green performance.

After a decade of prototyping and testing with the world’s best players, the company believes the new Tour Preferred franchise is the best performing ball the company has released to date.

“Golf ball innovation doesn’t just happen overnight. Rather, it is a series of ongoing conversation with our Tour players,” said Dean Snell, vice president of golf ball R&D. “These conversations have led to the introduction of breakthrough technologies including low drag aerodynamics for ultimate wind resistance, a five-layer construction for superior control throughout the club set and now our softest and most durable cover.”

Key to the performance of the Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X golf ball line is TaylorMade’s patented and proven technologies, including:

• REACT™ Core for greater ball speed on all shots for increased distance.
• Spin Mantle™ designed to deliver precise and consistent spin rates on given shots throughout the bag.
• Low-Drag Performance Aerodynamics (LDP™) A 322-dimple pattern designed to minimize distance loss on low spin shots and also maintain a penetrating ball flight into the wind.

A new technology featured in the golf balls is Soft Tech™, TaylorMade’s softest and most durable cover to date. Made of a cast urethane, the new cover provides an even softer feel around the greens than previous TaylorMade offerings.  The Soft Tech cover will also provide higher resistance to shearing and will last longer.

Click image to see Sergio test the new Tour Preferred X around the green

What separates Tour Preferred and the Tour Preferred X from each other is spin. The Tour Preferred is designed for players who desire more spin in the mid-to-long iron shots. The additional spin will also promote a higher trajectory on approach shots.

Tour Preferred X maintains the same spin and trajectory into the green as its predecessor Lethal. Unlike Lethal, Tour Preferred X promotes better green side control because of its new Soft Tech cover.

TaylorMade anticipates that more than 80% of its tour players will gravitate to this model as they are seeking controlled iron spin, for a more penetrating ball flight.

Click image to watch Dustin test Tour Preferred X from 150 yards

Since their introduction on Tour earlier this year, tour players have quickly made the switch to both models including Sergio Garcia who has already won twice with the Tour Preferred X (Thailand Golf Championship in December and Qatar Masters in January). Emerging LPGA star Jessica Korda also played the Tour Preferred X in her season-opening win at the Pure Silk Classic.

Tour Preferred and Tour Preferred X will be available at retail on March 1st at $45.99 per dozen. For more information, please visit www.taylormadegolf.com