124 - Do Not Adjust Your Set...

When I was a kid yellow golf balls were everywhere – by everywhere I mean in the woods and wild rough littering the local municipals I would visit when my golf ball collection would need restocking – but you don’t see them as much anymore. All that could change thanks to Srixon.

The Japanese ball manufacturer recently unveiled the new Srixon Z-Star Yellow ball (below) at the WGC Accenture Matchplay tournament when South African Tim Clark used it. Interestingly Clark claimed the colour had stress-reducing properties that helped him to victories over Vijay Singh and Martin Kaymer.

This stress relief has been confirmed in psychological studies where is was shown that the yellow/green colouring used in the new Z-Star had a calming effect at address compared to traditional balls as it is more comforting to the eye which helps the player focus on the next shot. Clever stuff.

According to the boffins at Srixon the ball is easier to see as it moves through the air too. In tests at distances of 275 yards, the Tour Yellow was spotted over 60% of the time, compared to 21% with the white ball.

What this means in the real world is that the colour should help reduce the number of balls that go missing in light rough due to being lost in flight.

The Srixon Z-Star is one of the best balls on the market at the moment and is used by the likes of Jim Furyk and Miguel Angel Jimenez. It is a real alternative to the all conquering Titleist Pro V1 and in it’s new ‘mellow yellow’ guise could shift a few units when it goes on sale in May priced at £44 per dozen.