On 2005-07-06, DLA rated this Bridgestone Precept U-Tri-Tour a 4...(5813)
Purchase: Got these from Golfsmith for $29.99 (not including tax)
Pros: The distance(both driver and irons) is awesome, 8-10 yrds more on average with irons and 15 yrds with the driver over the Hogan Hawk(this was the reason why i switched from that ball).
Also the U-Tri-Tour seems to loose less distance if you don't catch all of it compared to the Hawk and some other balls that i have used/tried (Rule 35 Blue, Srixon Hi-Brid Tour, Maxfli M3 Tour, Maxfli Revolution Tour, Pro V1, Wilson Tour Distance) the exceptions to this being the B330 and Callaway HX Tour.
The spin into the greens is GREAT and i actually got the ball to bounce back a foot or two on more than one occasion which is a first for me. On one hole I slighty thinned a gap wedge (medium tragectory) and the ball checked up and only rolled about 4 ft. If that had been my Hogan Hawk it would have been off of the green! The only balls that have this type of spin that i have tried would be the Pro V1, and Srixon Hi-Brid Tour (they don't make the Hi-Brid Tour anymore by the way).
Putting was better with this ball since it was easier to judge speed for me than my Hogan Hawks.
HOWEVER, even though the short iron spin, better putting speed and overall distance are everything that i was looking for i have made a switch and will not be using this ball. Why? FEEL! Softness of my golf balls with iron shots (especially 4-8 irons) is my biggest requirement.
With this ball anything but an "A" quality strike with my 5-7 irons was typically just too hard! I expect a ball to feel soft with all of my iron play on "B" quality swings and up and decent on a "C+" quality swing. With my 5-7 irons this ball feels harsh on a "B" quality swing even though it doesn't loose distance or trajectory.
It's quite interesting because with my driver, 5 wood and 8 iron through sand wedge the ball feels awesome. On my 3 & 4 irons it feels pretty good with a dull "crack" to it (which i don't neccessarily like but as long as the ball compresses then it's ok).
NOTE: I just bought some Wilson Staff Tx4's yesterday and practiced with one this morning and while they have a high pitched "crack" at impact they feel noticably softer on the 3 and 5 iron and they consistently went 3-5 yrds further on the 3, 5 and 8 irons in direct comparison with the U-Tri-Tour and were substantially longer then the last of my Hogan Hawk's. I will know more about the Px4's spin, putting and green holding after a round or two are played.
Cons: Harsh feel on "B-C+" quality swings with the 5-7 irons and a dull "crack" (although soft compressing feel) on the 3 & 4 iron. Since softness is my biggest requirement then i won't be using these (i thought these would be my standard ball) even though it is a great ball in every other way. It's just not quite for me. I would say that a Pro V1 is softer on the middle irons than this ball but feels similar on the 8-gap wedge and long irons/driver as a reference point (but the U-Tri-Tour is longer).
Quality: Quality is good although i did get some chipping and noticed that after a round the finish would dull. I would say that you can get 1-2 rounds with a ball before you would want to put a new one into play.
Review Summary: Good ball, great distance, excellent stopping power on the greens, good putting speed (for me at least) BUT too harsh on the middle irons or this would be my new ball!
Interestingly i have also tried a sample sleeve of the B330's and while they had a "cracking" sound to them at impact they were actually softer in their compression feel regarding iron play compared to the U-Tri-Tour. If i had to play a Bridgestone product the B330 would be my choice although the spin and green holding isn't as good as the U-Tri-Tour.
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