I promised a fellow golfer I would put this "tech review" together on the Polara golf ball review. I had heard of the Polara golf ball from a television commercial I saw. Deemed the "anti-slicing and anti-hooking golf ball" that could keep your drives up to 75% straighter. Instantly just hearing that for any golfer makes something in the brain want to know more about the golf ball. Let's start with the basics.
First off, the Polara golf ball is NOT USGA conforming. The line of Polara golf balls is aerodynamically asymmetrically designed. There is a special dimple pattern to the golf ball that makes the flight of the ball so straight. The USGA banned such golf balls from tournament play and also made a revision in the rule in 1981.
I went out to a local sporting goods store and purchased two sleeves of the Polara golf balls. One was a red sleeve of the XDS line, and a green sleeve of the XD line. The red sleeve said it was to have more distance, speed, and spin. The green was for distance and speed.
As you can see from the picture, Polara makes sure their name and design stands out on the golf ball. As a golfer with about a 7 handicap, I chose to try to play the red sleeve of balls first. Before I begin, let me give you a little on where I was before hitting the red sleeve of balls. Off of the tee box with my driver, a TaylorMade R7, I usually play a soft draw from left to right (as I am a left handed golfer). If I find the fairway, usually with roll-out of the ball, my average drive is about 270 yards.
I played the red sleeve of balls first. There is only one thing you have to do to get the golf ball lined up correctly. Simply line up the arrow on the golf ball with your "target" and swing away. My results are as follows:
Hole 1 - Fairway 260 yards
Hole 2 - Fairway 263 yards
Hole 4 - Fairway 257 yards
Hole 5 - Fairway 259 yards
Hole 6 - Left rough 245 yards
Hole 8 - Fairway 253 yards
Hole 9 - Fairway 255 yards
I played the entire front 9 using the red line of XDS Polara golf balls on the tee box. Here is what I have discovered. The design of the golf ball does indeed straighten out your flight of shot. The ball flies almost dead straight! However, there was a significant loss of distance from my regular line of golf ball that I play. Am I ok with giving up distance for fairway play? Yes, but I also am a gambler and like to cut corners and shape shots for set-up shots into greens. I was pretty impressed by the XDS lineup.
Overall review: The Polara red XDS lineup worked well. They do indeed work. My grade B+
Starting with the back 9, I switched over the the XD Polara golf balls in the green sleeve. Playing the same setup on the golf ball, with the same driver in hand, are my results.
Hole 10 - Fairway 279 yards
Hole 11 - Fairway 282 yards
Hole 12 - Fairway 277 yards
Hole 14 - Fairway 266 yards
Hole 15 - Fairway 278 yards
Hole 16 - Right rough 288 yards
Hole 18 - Fairway 281 yards
I played the entire back 9 using the green sleeve of XD Polara golf balls. My conclusions....the ball again does what it is supposed to. It does fly straight. I actually noticed that this ball stayed up on distance with my current line of golf ball that I played. In fact, on 16, I drove thru the fairway to the right rough on the par 5. There seems to be an increase in forward spin that really makes the ball run-out on tee shots. I was very impressed with the XD lineup.
Overall review: The Polara green XD lineup worked great. They worked. My grade A
Overall, the Polara golf ball does as is shown. The design of the golf ball does indeed cut down on hooks and slices. The ball flight is indeed straighter than what you would expect. However, no matter what, the golf ball does NOT meet USGA rules and is illegal in tournament play. For your average every day "hacker" these golf balls would be an excellent buy. It's always easier to play from the fairway!
I gave the Polara golf balls a hack. Maybe you should too! I might even have to pull one out the next time I play my Dad just to make sure I beat him!
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