I Used A TaylorMade Vis-Tech Ball In Practice And Competition. Here’s What I Learned

Golf ball technology is ever evolving as the golfers look for whatever marginal gains can be found. There are golf balls aimed at every skill level of golfer and some are especially designed to help with for specific needs. So some will boost distance, others will fly straighter, some are aimed at golfers with slower swings and some are designed to deliver tour level performance for the very best players.

TaylorMade covers all of those bases but the company has more recently started to focus on helping golfers with their alignment. The result of this research and development is Vis-Tech balls, a range of designs aimed at helping golfers lock onto their target and add more consistency to their game.

I have recently tested all of the vis-tech golf balls in practice and also used one of them extensively in competitive play for several rounds to see if it could benefit my game. I play an annual four ball with three friends and it’s kind of a big deal to us. We all take it very seriously due to the 12 months of bragging rights that come with it.

Knowing I had the choice of any of the best TaylorMade golf balls with vis-tech designs on offer, I decided to use the Tour Response Stripe ball because I have used the standard Tour Response ball in the past and it’s a good fit for my game. The stripe design intrigued me too, it's visually very powerful. So what better way to judge it than to put in play for my most important round of the year?

This is probably the part where you expect me to say that I romped to victory and the Tour Response Stripe golf ball was the reason why. Sadly I didn’t win, but I did play quite well and I enjoyed the performance of the ‘Stripe’. So much so that I’ve since switched to it full time and I’m hoping it’s going to really help me, especially on the putting greens. It's also easier to find in the rough, which comes in handy.

Vis-tech is all about alignment, which is more important to some golfers than others. While I will sometimes use the alignment lines to help with my drives, I have never used it when putting because I find it distracting. I’ve never been a fan of the thinner alignment line because any time I was standing over a putt I would start questioning whether I had lined the ball up correctly. Being out by a few millimetres on a longer putt could result in the ball going a foot off target. At least that’s what I’d be telling myself.

So I rarely - if ever - use an alignment aid on the greens, which may partially explain why putting is my biggest weakness. I do have friends who will never putt without carefully using the line on the ball to set their path to the hole. Most Tour Pros use this method too, so clearly it works, but it isn’t for everybody, least of all myself.

The thicker alignment line that TaylorMade has introduced with its ‘Stripe’ design can be a game changer for golfers like myself who are not comfortable with the thinner line. There are a few variations of the Stripe design, while there is also the Pix option (available on the TaylorMade TP5 and TP5x balls). You may be familiar with the Pix as Tommy Fleetwood and Rickie Fowler have been using it for several years.

The Pix has sixteen ClearPath Alignment diamonds positioned around the ball's surface which helps with aim and feedback on the roll. I’ve tried Pix before and while I think it looks cool and certainly makes your ball easier to find in the rough and track through the air, it doesn't have the same impact on the greens as the Stripe.

The stripe is essentially a digital band that wraps around the center of the ball, with a thin black line running inside of it to match the sight line on your putter. I did not use the thin line for reasons explained above, but the stripe itself certainly appealed to me. This is personal preference though and you should probably try using both the stripe and the center line to see which you prefer, while also giving the Pix a look too. After all, if it’s good enough for Tommy…

I also found that the Stripe design was very useful off the tee. I figured that being off by a few millimetres is not so catastrophic when you’re aiming at a forty yard fairway as opposed to a four inch hole! It's not something golfers consider but it made a real difference to my accuracy when I started using it. You can even orientate the stripe slightly differently, perhaps slightly out to the right, to encourage a certain swing path if a slice is something you struggle with.

There are different options with the Stripe. The TP5 and TP5x models have the clear stripe, whereas the Tour Response ball I used has three different solid stripe color options; orange, green and blue. The clear stripe on the TP5 and TP5x will appeal to those who prefer a more classic look. I don’t think there’s any performance benefit to clear over solid, but you could perhaps argue that the solid stripe is a little more effective in fading light or cloudy conditions.

All of the TaylorMade vis-tech golf balls are designed for use on the course rather than simply being useful training aids. That being said, they are excellent training aids, particularly when it comes to putting. The Stripe and Pix designs can really help you hone your skills on the greens as you get excellent feedback on how your putts are rolling. With a plain golf ball you can’t always tell if your putts are rolling true or whether they are wobbling all over the place. Pix and Stripe designs will show you that instantly, and this is also useful on the course.

It isn’t just on the greens where alignment counts though. As mentioned above, I found it helpful when driving the ball too. By lining your ball up at the part of the fairway you are aiming at, you can then set your club head, feet and shoulders on the same path as the ball. That sounds like basic stuff, but often we take these fundamentals for granted. By developing a routine where you use the ball to line up your drive and ensure everything else is in sync, you can avoid some of those costly wayward tee shots.

So can alignment aids on a golf ball help to lower your score? It depends entirely on the individual and their preferences, but if used correctly and if it suits your eye, then vis-tech balls will definitely make life easier and save you shots on the course.