Titleist AVX Golf Ball Review
The AVX is a new premium golf ball from Titleist. It’s a sibling to the tried and true Titleist Pro V1 and Titleist Pro V1x. While the Pro V1 and Pro V1x are middle and high trajectory golf balls designed for elevated levels of spin, the Titleist AVX is a lower trajectory golf ball designed for less spin than either the Pro V1 or Pro V1x. With this golf ball, Titleist seems to have either replaced the renowned Titleist NXT Tour or simply plugged a hole between the Pro V1 and Pro V1x lineup. If you’re a golfer that likes a softer feeling golf ball, lower trajectory, and a little zip around the greens, this may be the best golf ball for you. Let’s get into the details.
Who is this golf ball for?
The Titleist Pro AVX golf ball is really built for any player. While some golfers may find that the Pro V1 and Pro V1x balloon up into the air and spin too much for reliable control with the driver, long and mid-irons, the Titleist AVX is built to fly lower and spin less. This makes it a more playable golf ball for more golfers. Although we typically steer high-handicap weekend golfers away from premium golf balls, the Titleist AVX seems to thread the needle between less sophisticated two-layer golf balls and multi-layer premium golf balls. Like any of the best golf balls, the only way to figure out if the Titleist AVX is the best golf ball for your game is to try it out.
Soft Feel
Soft feel golf balls are tremendously popular these days. Everyone loves the responsiveness and the feel of compression that you get when you strike a soft golf ball just right. Harder golf balls sometimes feel “clicky” or “tacky,” and to some players, feel like they rocket off of wedges and the putter face during delicate shots around the green. Although there is a theory floating out there that soft golf balls don’t fly as far as harder golf balls, this hasn’t seemed to drive down market demand for a soft feel. Accordingly, Titleist has given the AVX a soft feel to satisfy the demands of the golfing community without sacrificing distance.
More Distance, Less Spin
Other than the soft feel, the Titleist AVX has been designed for less spin. Lower spin rates off of the driver face lead to distance gains and players report picking up a few yards with the Titleist AVX. However, the best golf balls are so long these days, there’s not much difference between this golf ball and the distance you’ll get with the Pro V1 or the Pro V1x. The reason to play this ball is really all about spin, trajectory, and feel.
Thin Urethane Cover and Large Core
Titleist has re-engineered the design of the new AVX. It features a thinner urethane cover for bite with the wedges and three-layer design to reduce spin off of the tee and to keep the trajectory of the ball from ballooning up into the air. The new AVX also features a larger and softer core. This gives it its soft feel, easy-to-compress characteristic. The casing layer of this golf ball, in addition to the thinner urethane core, give the ball zip around the greens.
Around the Greens
The three-piece design of the Titleist AVX affords it a respectable spin profile on wedges and chip shots. Although the ball spins less than the Pro V1 and Pro V1x, it still checks on the green on properly struck approach and pitch shots. The soft feel profile of this golf ball is also satisfying around the greens. You really get a sense of confidence and control when you have a short iron or putter in your hand and the golf ball feels responsive without that “rocket” feel you can get with two-layer surlyn cover golf balls.
Is this the best golf ball for you?
The Titleist AVX is no doubt one of the best golf balls of 2020. It will reward properly struck shots off of the tee with great distance and roll due to its lower trajectory and spin profile. However, Titleist’s improvements on the AVX golf ball also make it more playable for golfers who like responsiveness and spin around the greens. These days, you really can have the best of both worlds. While Titleist probably didn’t need to improve the AVX, they’ve somehow managed to do so. If you’re looking for a lower trajectory, soft feel golf ball that spins a bit with wedges, then this is the best golf ball for you.
