GD Hotlist for Balls is out.

[307golf]

Just got the Hotlist today for balls. It was OK. Only gold for premium balls was for Titleist. Srixon was silver due to low demand but had perfect scores in other categories.

 

Mostly what I took away from this test is that the premium balls are all pretty close to the same...

[Harry Longshanks]

Can someone please explain to me how "demand" has anything to do with the quality/performance of a ball and whether I should be using it???

 

"Demand" is a ridiculous factor for judging a ball. :nono:

[sandman31774]

Can someone please explain to me how "demand" has anything to do with the quality/performance of a ball and whether I should be using it???

 

"Demand" is a ridiculous factor for judging a ball. :nono:

 

i agree. that is ignorant.

[dougcankles]

Can someone please explain to me how "demand" has anything to do with the quality/performance of a ball and whether I should be using it???

 

"Demand" is a ridiculous factor for judging a ball. :nono:

 

i agree. that is ignorant.

 

It's not ignorant. It's called revenue and profitability.

 

Demand determines EVERYTHING. "Quality" is just a word. The ball that's labeled "quality"? Guess what. The ball doesn't give a sh*t what it's labeled.

[learing]

Where can I find this?

[steverum]

If all of these balls are new for this season, can they really put a value on demand yet?

 

Most people are just getting the clubs out after a long winter

 

Maybe that category should be called hype or buzz or something like that

[Harry Longshanks]

It's not ignorant. It's called revenue and profitability.

 

Demand determines EVERYTHING. "Quality" is just a word. The ball that's labeled "quality"? Guess what. The ball doesn't give a sh*t what it's labeled.

 

Huh?

 

Demand does not determine whether a ball flies straight and stops on a dime. It doesn't measure how soft it feels or how much it spins. Demand doesn't effect whether a ball is durable or whether it shreds like confetti after one wedge shot.

 

Maybe "demand" is relevant to the retailers and manufacturers, but this is supposed to be a consumer focused list. Quality isn't just a word, it's (supposed to be) a determination of how well the product (in this case, a golf ball) performs.

 

Golf Digest is supposed to be telling me what is good, not what is popular. If I want to know what is popular, I can just look for sales figures. In particular, to leave a ball off of the "Gold" list only because it isn't in demand as much as another ball is absurd.

[harold baines]

Demand matters

 

if demand is too low, you won't see those balls at your local golf shop

 

shops don't like to carry things they can't sell.......

 

a ball may be great, but if you can't get them easily you won't play them

[78blades]

It's not ignorant. It's called revenue and profitability.

 

Demand determines EVERYTHING. "Quality" is just a word. The ball that's labeled "quality"? Guess what. The ball doesn't give a sh*t what it's labeled.

 

Huh?

 

Demand does not determine whether a ball flies straight and stops on a dime. It doesn't measure how soft it feels or how much it spins. Demand doesn't effect whether a ball is durable or whether it shreds like confetti after one wedge shot.

 

Maybe "demand" is relevant to the retailers and manufacturers, but this is supposed to be a consumer focused list. Quality isn't just a word, it's (supposed to be) a determination of how well the product (in this case, a golf ball) performs.

 

Golf Digest is supposed to be telling me what is good, not what is popular. If I want to know what is popular, I can just look for sales figures. In particular, to leave a ball off of the "Gold" list only because it isn't in demand as much as another ball is absurd.

 

 

I agree, but if its anything like the club "hot list" its all directly proportional to how much advertizing they do with GD.

[pucci]

LOL - so basically the srixon balls are better, but due to titleist ruling the tours/having an already greater market share its seen as superior?

As stated above I don't care about demand - I want to know which ball feels better, how much it spins and distance. Also - the internet does not suffer from 'demand' pretty sure I could find whatever balls online (see tourstage balls.)

[billybaroo]

Demand matters

 

if demand is too low, you won't see those balls at your local golf shop

 

shops don't like to carry things they can't sell.......

 

a ball may be great, but if you can't get them easily you won't play them

 

 

These balls were just released at the beginning of the current golf season, how they can predict demand is a joke. Perhaps they should add a category for how well integrated their SCM and CRM systems are along with the eco-friendly nature of the manufacturing process and throw in their contributions to the local community as relevant categories.

 

This should be about performance, business issues are secondary in this context.

[Terpman]

So this is how I approach analyzing the GD lists: If I see a product in the gold category with a low "demand" score, I know that this product was either the best or second best overall performer in the test sample regardless of which product got the star for best. And if I see a product with a low "demand" score in the silver category, I pretty much figure this was a Gold-level product. If the product has a very high "demand" score, it lowers that products overall standing in their category IMO - -for example, in essence, it seriously devalues all the Callaway equipment -- and i look only at the performance rating at that point.

 

I'm also none too thrilled with "innovation" as an equal partner in the evaluation process. While I appreciate what innovation does for the inductry as well as the game and the equipment, when I'm thinking about buying a club, I frankly don't care how innovative a club is--I care how it performs.

[harold baines]

Demand matters

 

if demand is too low, you won't see those balls at your local golf shop

 

shops don't like to carry things they can't sell.......

 

a ball may be great, but if you can't get them easily you won't play them

 

 

These balls were just released at the beginning of the current golf season, how they can predict demand is a joke. Perhaps they should add a category for how well integrated their SCM and CRM systems are along with the eco-friendly nature of the manufacturing process and throw in their contributions to the local community as relevant categories.

 

This should be about performance, business issues are secondary in this context.

 

while I agree the tests should just tell us which ball performs the best,

 

I think all of us maniacs are above and beyond the level of golf crazy that golf digest is targeting, on some level they're putting the demand factor in to help the less enthusiastic golfer get a ball that will impress his playing partners AND be a good product

 

I would think it's a safe bet that half of all golfers don't even know how to pronounce "Srixon" much less understand that they may make a quality tour level ball.

 

us golfWRXers are on the edge of the bell curve of golf enthusiasm, and GD is targeting people who are much less aware than we are.

[WishICouldPlayMoreOften]

I just read the GD list for additional information and ratings of new products. I don't view the list as comprehensive or as THE best resource, rather I see it as just one resource. That said, the GD list always seems to be biased towards manufacturers and premium products from the top manufacturers. It often leaves off far too many worthy products that most golfers would use.

 

I'd like to see GD ball list be more comprehensive. I'd like to see much more emphasis on balls in the $15-$25 range. That would reflect balls more suited to average in high handicappers. And though balls in that category may not carry the price premium of tour-caliber balls, most normal golfers would benefit from and purchase more high-value, could do better than average performing balls because $40+ premium balls aren't going to have a significant impact on their score and enjoyment of the game. There is a market for used and reconditioned premium balls because the there aren't enough nonpremium balls getting shelf space. Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x may call themselves the number one ball in golf, but that's only because there is no manufacturer taking the lead on being the best ball for Average Joe.

 

I can't wait to try a few of the recommended balls from the GD list, but I don't think GD's recommendation alone has ever attempted me to go out and buy a dozen.

[minimal45]

so what balls were on the hotlist and which ones were gold and which ones silver?

[sigmapete1]

"Demand" can be informative to someone who doesn't read forums like this every day so they can see what other people are using. In other words, if a lot of people use it, then it must have some value. To the casual golfer, this is a very easy way to determine a ball to use. In a free market, the product most in demand has to have something going for it or else no one would buy it.

 

Now for the serious golfer, I would suspect that they would want more info. But don't forget that GD has a much larger audience than us obsessive and/or competitive golfers.

[cubfanbob]

> Only gold for premium balls was for Titleist.

 

What a shock... GD has been in their pocket for years. Best laugh was last year when they listed balls alphabetically and therefore "Acushnet/Titleist" was first. Yep, we all talk about the new Acushnet balls... or when looking for a ball you'll often hear "You playing an Acushnet?"

 

> Srixon was silver due to low demand but had perfect scores in other categories.

 

+1 on "What the H*LL does demand have to do with performance?"

[Lefty4par2]

I think demand is a joke of a scoring mechanism as well. Report it... fine, but good grief, just because a company pays more people than anyone else to play and pays more for commercials than anyone else doesn't, by design, make it a better ball!

 

Just looked myself (just a quick look) and as asked by others, where is the Ball hot list??

[arkstorm]

Can someone please explain to me how "demand" has anything to do with the quality/performance of a ball and whether I should be using it???

 

"Demand" is a ridiculous factor for judging a ball. :nono:

 

+1. It is absurd that 'demand' should play any role in the criteria for judging performance. Is 'demand' going to increase driver distance or spin around the greens?

 

This serves to demonstrate how corrupt these 'hotlists' are and is exactly why I don't subscribe to any golf magazines anymore.

[DavePelz4]

Think there's any correlation between the ad revenue from the Titleist/FJ franchise as compared to the Cleveland/Srixon brands as compared to the "Hot List?"

[bloodredsun]

If they rated the Srixon's as better it's just sad that GD had the chance to be ahead of the curve and say 'the new Srixon balls are the best out there'. 'Blew the chance' would be the polite term.

 

I think that it's a little harsh to say that they are swayed by advertising revenues but they do seem to have skewed the marking system so that it guarantees a winner in advance.

[RChang42]

Where can I see a copy of this HOT LIST?

[hack]

Does this hot list present any performance data (similar to the Golf Magazine's assessment) or is it just the red/orange boxes with +/-???

[Joey.Shmoey]

It was a blind test...If the people actually testing the balls had no idea which ball they were hitting then why should demand allow GD to deny the Z-Star balls from being Gold...especially considering they earned a trio of 5-Stars in a blind test. Which not even the Pro-V1 pulled-off...Maybe the Srixon deserves a Platinum medal for the Z-Star balls, that way Titleist could still get the only Gold. I'm all for the under-dog...been there most of my life!

[Harry Longshanks]

You know, the more I think about it, the more it seems the Srixon should have had the highest "demand" factor too. I mean, look around at all the golf message boards and on the courses - people are talking about the Z-Star being the new "it" ball. Has anyone heard similar buzz about the new Pro V1?

 

Hmmm . . . maybe by "Demand", GD also included Callaway's demands to get the Pro V1s off the shelves because of alleged patent infringement . . .

 

 

 

 

(for the record, I don't play Titleist or Srixon.)

[finalist]

The demand rating should be retitled: Marketing dollars spent.

[minimal45]

so titleist and srixon were the only balls that they reviewed?

[Lefty4par2]

Is it even real? April fools joke? If we can't find it on the internet, I question.....

[billybaroo]

I think all of us maniacs are above and beyond the level of golf crazy that golf digest is targeting, on some level they're putting the demand factor in to help the less enthusiastic golfer get a ball that will impress his playing partners AND be a good product

 

 

If GD is promoting a product solely based on how much it will impress the rest of your foursome, they truly have sunk beneath the Weekly World News in terms of credibility... :lol:

[307golf]

They reviewed most major Mfg's premium balls. Cally, TM, Nike, Srixon, Titleist, etc. It's in the GD magazine. Why would they give away their info at the same time that they're trying to sell it in the magazine???