Why It’s Worth Going Through A Ball Fitting Once Per Year: A Look Into Bridgestone’s Process

It’s something of a head-scratcher that more than 80 percent of golfers admit that getting fit into the proper ball would benefit their game—but only about 30 percent actually go through the process.

Consider the “whatever golf ball I play, it doesn’t matter” fallacy as one of golf’s most impenetrable myths. There is ample research showing how valuable it is to play the proper ball—even for high-handicappers—and yet most golfers trudge forward thinking that they are not skilled enough for their ball choice to make an impact.

It makes a monumental impact, so much so that golfers should consistently check in to make sure they are still using the right ball for their game.

Bridgestone’s Ball Fitting History

Some might be surprised to learn of a few historic ball fitting moments that revolved around Bridgestone technology.

Nick Price, the three-time major champ, used Science Eye technology and the help of Precept engineers (this was prior to Bridgestone Golf branching out into its own brand) to be fit into the first two-piece solid-core Surlyn golf ball played on the PGA Tour. It’s believed to be the first time a player of that stature had been formally fit for a ball, and the move paid off with Price, competing against players using wound balata balls, rising to No. 1 in the world in the early 90s.

In 2000, an even bigger moment happened when Tiger Woods played the first solid-core urethane ball en route to the Tiger Slam. Bridgestone made balls for NIKE at the time, producing the NIKE Tour Accuracy that gave Tiger a significant advantage over many of his peers.

And then Bridgestone, which has made golf balls since 1935, developed the first consumer-focused system to use science-based launch monitor data to educate golfers on how different golf balls affect their games, encouraging them to choose golf balls based on data rather than the emotional appeal of what Tour players are playing.

Launched in 2006, “The Bridgestone Challenge” quickly discovered that seven out of 10 players tested benefitted from being fit for a golf ball, gaining distance and/or accuracy off the tee. They enlisted the guidance of strokes gained originator Mark Broadie to get a better sense for where ball fitting could be most helpful.

“We learned that the way we could be the most impactful to the consumer game was to optimize performance off the tee,” said David Vogrin, director of marketing at Bridgestone. “There are 14 holes on a golf course where you’re probably going to be hitting your driver. We decided not to do it the other way around because so few consumers at the recreational level hit the ball first with their irons and chipping, so optimizing that was going to be a challenge.”

The consumer ball fitting started with a competitive test. Players brought their ball of choice, got shot data based on that ball, and then received a recommendation from Bridgestone. Then, the player hit the new Bridgestone ball and saw the comparison. That same challenge system is still used today, albeit with changes in technology and data.

The fitting process started in the Atlanta area near Bridgestone’s headquarters before expanding nationally over the ensuing years. Nearly 75,000 golfers went through the ball fitting process in the first four years, which led to B-Fit, the first online fitting tool where consumers could chat directly with fitting technicians.

Through data collected early in the process, Bridgestone noticed a hole in the market: the lack of a low-compression, tour-performing golf ball. The average golfer who wasn’t swinging at 105 mph or above didn’t have an optimized ball for them. That was when the TOUR B330-RX was introduced, coming to market in 2008.

Bridgestone’s ball fitting process evolved from there, including video fitting and a ball selector guide on the company’s website. There is also Otto, a ball-fitting kiosk-style machine that is basically a robot on wheels.

How Does Ball Fitting Work?

Now in 2024, the ball fitting process has been streamlined using computers, touchscreens and the Flightscope Mevo Plus launch monitor.

Bridgestone has conducted more than four million ball fittings since 2006, so it has a large data set at its disposal. That helps it make more efficient recommendations.

However, the challenge portion is still similar. A golfer brings their golf ball and sees how it compares to a Bridgestone ball that matches their spin rate and overall shot preferences. The player very much has a say in what ball they end up with—they have to like what they are seeing in terms of distance, spin and shot shape.

“It’s the only piece of equipment they’re using on every shot,” Vogrin said. “And a lot of them aren’t playing the right ball for their game.”

In 2019, in addition to the trusted driver performance analysis, Bridgestone began measuring approach shot performance using an 8-iron as its testing control. They look at spin rates, launch angle, ball speed, dispersion and other key measurements to help determine changes in accuracy, consistency and distance on approach shots from ball-to-ball. 

Players hit three shots with their current ball and then three shots with their recommended ball, comparing the data.

Once a player is fit into a category of ball based on the driver and approach shot testing, Bridgestone provides the player with two-ball sample sleeves to conduct their own greenside testing before making a final determination as to which ball they make their gamer. The feel component is subjective but vital.

About 75 percent of the time, the Bridgestone ball is recommended. But in about 25 percent of the cases, the current ball wins.

It may sound simple, but ball fitting is straightforward. Are you getting the most out of your game? A lot of golfers are high-spin players who absent-mindedly take a high-spinning ball out of the bag—one that is designed for higher swing speeds—and will complain about lack of distance or accuracy.

The Bridgestone TOUR B RX and RXS models are developed for swing speeds under 105 mph, while the TOUR B X and XS are for swing speeds over 105 mph. While the RX and X models have less spin than the RXS and XS models, they still offer a lot of spin. The TOUR B X, for example, has more spin than the brand’s highest-spinning ball in 2016, which was the 330 S.

Tiger has been able to move from the XS to the X because it has been optimized—it’s longer with increased spin compared to previous iterations. Most PGA Tour players using Bridgestone balls have transitioned into the X for the same reason.

This is an important note, because a lot of golfers consider their ball fitting journey over once they have been fit once—but like the pros, variables change. You should come back for ball fitting once per year to make sure your baseline shot data still matches the ball recommendation.

“Things change in your swing, the equipment you’re using changes,” Vogrin said. “Drivers have obviously gotten a lot lower spinning over the years. So if you got fitted with a super-high-spinning driver 15 years ago, or 10 years ago, or five years ago, and now you’re in a far lower-spinning driver, you might have a different fit. If you’ve aged, if you’ve had an injury—any of these things can impact your fitting, so it’s not something that you should do once, and you’re done. You should check in on your fit once a year honestly.”

It’s not something to take lightly if you want to shoot lower scores. And yes, all players can benefit greatly regardless of skill level.

A New Innovation Chapter With Mindset

Available in the ball fitting process this year is the new Bridgestone Mindset option. For those who aren’t aware of the technology, I wrote about Mindset earlier this year.

Mindset revolves around a pattern printed on Bridgestone balls. Rather than the traditional alignment aid, Mindset balls have a green dot enclosed by thin yellow and red circles, providing a focal point for where contact should be made in both full-swing shots and putts. 

The idea is for the pattern to serve as a visual, process-oriented aid. The red circle, the outermost print, is said to be for identifying your target, the yellow circle for repeating the process and validating the original line and the green circle for executing the shot. Golfers are encouraged to use the aid off the tee as well as on the putting green. 

Available in all four models of Bridgestone balls, Mindset was developed with the help of Jason Day and his performance coach, Jason Goldsmith. 

Similar to previous Bridgestone “firsts”—Price playing a two-piece solid-core ball, Tiger playing a solid-core urethane ball, the RX filling a market gap and ball fitting being available for the masses to change how people bought golf balls—Mindset is another instance where Bridgestone developed new technology never seen before.

Vogrin and the Bridgestone team recognize it might take time for people to fully embrace something like Mindset, but they believe it will make golfers better. They can get fit into the proper ball and perhaps implement Mindset at the same time, getting the most out of their process.

“When you create a new category, that’s the definition of innovation.”

This post was written in partnership with Bridgestone.

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