Bridgestone Tour B RX Vs. Titleist Tour Soft Golf Balls Comparison Overview
Today we are going to be taking a brief but in-depth look at two golf balls that have become known for toeing the line between distance and short-game performance. Both of these balls present great value to a surprisingly wide swath of players.
However, when you can only choose one, you need all the facts. We tested these balls side-by-side not so much to determine which was better; but to decipher the things that make them unique from each other.
Bridgestone Tour B RX Golf Balls Overview
The Bridgestone Tour B RX balls have become favorites among mid and low handicap players for their performance off the tee and the deck and their amazing feel around the green.
The Bridgestone Tour B RX and the Titleist Tour Soft actually have very similar compression ratings. The 66 compression rating of the Tour B RX balls gives them good resistance off the club face while still providing a good amount of yield.
They also feature a urethane cover that gives them excellent spin control around the green. The gradational construction makes it very easy to work the ball off the face of your short irons. Off the long irons, the Tour B RX’s produce excellent ball speed and distance.
Spin is kept moderately low off the driver face. However, we would like to have seen less side spin off the tee.
Titleist Tour Soft Golf Balls Overview
The Titleist Tour Soft balls sport a 2-piece construction which actually does a better job of limiting spin off the tee.
The Titleist Tour Soft balls have a compression rating of 65 but for all intents and purposes, they felt as firm with our drivers and long irons as the Tour B RX balls. Off the wedges and short irons was a different matter. The Titleist Tour Soft balls definitely yielded more on chips.
From the tee, most of our testers were getting better distance with these balls than the Tour B RX balls (about 8 yards more on average). Around the green was a bit of a different story. The Titleist Tour Soft balls feature an ionomer cover that loses feel and control around the green.
If you are looking for short-game performance, the Bridgestone Tour B RX balls would be a good choice. If you want a better drive distance, check out the Titleist Tour Soft balls.
Titleist Tour Soft Quick Facts
Compression: 65
Cover Material: Ionomer
How Many Pieces: 2-Piece
Spin: Mid/Low
Core Material: Unknown
Dimple Type: Spherically Tile (342)
Bridgestone Tour B RX Quick Facts
Compression: 66
Cover Material: Urethane
How Many Pieces: 3
Core Material: Gradient Type
Dimple Type: 338 Dimple within Dimple Pattern
Spin Level: Low long-game spin, low short-game spin
Best Suited for: Mid handicap players who are focusing more on distance from the tee
Performance Off the Tee
The Titleist Tour Soft actually played quite long off the tee.
The larger core made sure that no energy was lost even on faster swings and the spin rate off the tee was much lower than around the greens too.
Performance from the Rough
This is where we struggled a bit with these balls.
The ionomer cover tends to bury itself in particularly tall rough.
Performance from the Fairway
The Titleist Tour Soft balls played pretty well from the fairway and gave pretty good bounce on long approaches, reacting well on the 2nd or 3rd bounce.
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Performance Off the Tee
While our faster swing speed testers were getting better distance with the Srixon Z Stars, our slower swing speed testers were having a field day with the Bridgestone Tour B RX’s, yielding an average of 260 yards.
Performance from the Rough
The urethane cover of these balls makes it easier to grip them and swoop them out of the rough.
Performance from the Fairway
The Bridgestone Tour B RX balls keep a low spin rate pretty much across the board.
This was making it difficult for some of our better testers to work the ball the way they wanted to with their irons and hybrids.
Titleist Tour Soft Selling Points
- Large core
- Good for fast swing speeds
- Thin cover
- Plays longer
- Has a more premium feel
- Good flight
Titleist Tour Soft Cons
- More expensive
- 2-piece design
- Only available in 2 colors
- Loses its line
Bridgestone Tour B RX Selling Points
- Soft feel
- Low spin off the tee
- Low spin with long irons
- Urethane cover
- Great for mid handicappers
- Good rebound
Bridgestone Tour B RX Cons
- High bounce
- Not very workable
- Not great for lower handicap players
- More distance than tour-grade balls
Who Are The Titleist Tour Soft Balls For?
The Titleist Tour Soft balls are truly premium category balls and would work best with single digit handicaps.
More importantly, if you are swinging around 95+ MPH from the tee then you will absolutely love these balls.
Even though they have a 2-piece construction and lack a urethane cover, they yield excellent distance with fast swings.
How Are They With Short Irons?
The feedback and response of the Titleist Tour Soft balls with short irons was comparable to that of the Bridgestone E12 Soft balls.
The cover is a bit thinner than the Bridegstone balls so you get excellent feel so long as your short irons are decent.
Whether you need to work the ball on a tricky green or bite down on a fast one with some back spin, you will find that the Titleist Tour Soft can accommodate.
On The Green
You will have to get used to the Titleist Tour Soft balls a bit on the green.
They have sort of the opposite problem that the Bridgestone E12 Soft balls have in that they make you work for it if you need extended roll.
Still, the other performance factors more than make up for this shortcoming.
Overall Rating: 95/100
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Who are the Bridgestone Tour B RX Balls for?
The player in need of help with distance off the tee.
If you are looking to start more holes off on the right foot and not so much focused on the finer aspects of your short game yet, we would recommend the Bridgestone Tour B RX balls.
How are they with Short Irons?
A bit difficult to work overall. Not as much responsiveness with wedges.
On the Green
You get good feel on the green thanks to the urethane cover. They feel good off the face though they play a bit slow.
Overall Rating: 94/100
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