Cardinal Takeaways

  • Relatively minor updates for Srixon'due south Tour-level balls
  • Z-STAR gets a slightly thicker cover for better approach and greenside spin.
  • Z-STAR Xv gets reformulated inner and middle cores for enhanced ball speed.
  • Slight price increase for 2021 to $42.99 a dozen

The new Srixon Z-STAR and Z-STAR XV golf balls represent a golf industry truism: When your 2-year life cycle is up, y'all amend accept a proficient story to tell. Srixon freely admits the 2021 edition of its flagship Z-STAR golf balls is strictly an evolutionary upgrade. That, however, doesn't mean there'southward no story.

"These aren't a major departure from where we've been or what these golf balls are designed to do," says Srixon R&D VP Jeff Brunski. "We want to make incremental improvements but we won't do information technology at the expense of the overall performance that we already had."

Translation: Don't f*** it upward!

The updates to the Srixon Z-STAR and Z-STAR XV balls are minor compared to their concluding ii iterations. The line is definitely not cleaved so it's really a affair of a pinch hither and a skosh at that place. Given the renewal of ball war hostilities between Callaway and Titleist, Srixon appears to be flight under the radar this yr.

Maybe that'due south non a bad thing.

Srixon Z-Star

Srixon Z-STAR: Through Thick and Thin

The large story with the 2019 Z-STARs was a new urethane cover. At 0.5 millimeters, information technology was amongst the thinnest in golf. For a reason.

"A sparse cover means y'all can accept a larger core," says Brunski. "It's the engine of the ball and you lot can really get some nice brawl speeds and distance with a thin encompass and large core."

And then the 2019 Z-STAR was all nigh altitude. Well, at least every bit much altitude as the USGA will allow. For 2021, Srixon is going back to the future and making the Z-STAR cover just a wee bit thicker.

Srixon Z-Star

And by wee, we mean 1/10th of a millimeter worth of wee.

"We're taking a very small step with a little bit thicker embrace in combination with our SpinSkin coating," says Brunski. "We're trying to turn upwardly the approach and greenside spin a footling bit."

But isn't going back to a thicker skin going to punch downwardly ball speed and distance? That is, afterward all, the reason the 2019 Z-STARs went with the thinner skin in the first place.

Yes. And no.

Srixon Z-Star

Cores and Compression

To compensate for the thicker cover (and its natural consequence, a smaller core), Srixon is tweaking both the mantle and core layers.

"The overall compression is the same (90 for the Z-STAR) and that's a clue," says Brunski. "If you have a thicker embrace—and that'south the soft function of the ball—the fact we're all the same at 90 compression means nosotros've firmed up the mid-layer and the cadre. That'south going to touch on feel and information technology's going to touch ball speed."

Brunski says ball speeds for the Z-STAR are very like to the 2019 models but with more spin on approach shots and around the green. And if you lot're thinking a thicker cover might improve durability, y'all'd be right. In theory.

"Durability is complicated," says Brunski. "A thicker cover tin be more durable just durability more often than not has to practice with cover hardness. With our SpinSkin coating, nosotros already have best-in-class immovability only this is only going to help it."

Then what'southward the bottom line on the Srixon Z-STAR? Equally Brunski says, some minor iterative changes to tweak performance, specifically more spin without sacrificing brawl speed.

Z-STAR Xv – Long to the Core

The Srixon Z-STAR is the softer-feeling, college-spinning version of Srixon's Bout-level balls. The Z-STAR XV is the bomber. It's college compression and lower spinning and gamed by long hitters Cameron Champ, Grayson Murray and Ryan Brehm.

The 2021 Srixon Z-STAR Fifteen updates are too iterative and a wee bit different from the Z-STAR'south. Starting time off, Srixon isn't changing the cover thickness on the Xv. It remains at 0.5 millimeters. Instead, Srixon is updating the inner cadre composition for, y'all guessed it, better brawl speed.

"The inner cadre fabric is more than resilient," says Brunski. "It'due south a college COR-blazon material and is helping to drive an incremental increase in brawl speed and distance."

For the tape Brunski did, in fact, emphasize incremental.

Specifically, the new FastLayer inner core is soft in the center but firms up towards the exterior. The mid-layer has also been firmed up just a tad but the overall compression for the 2021 Z-STAR Xv is unchanged at 102.

Dimple Practice-Overs

Both Srixon Z-STAR assurance are getting an updated dimple pattern. Information technology'due south still 338 dimples—the same as previous editions—but the dimples are a little deeper.

"That's to fine-melody ball flight," says Brunksi. "It'll produce a little bit lower ball flight. That'south based on Tour feedback and will produce a bit more consistency in windy conditions."

Srixon balls practice have a reputation for performing well in the current of air.

"I'll get a text whenever a Srixon player is at the top of the leader board," says Brunski. "Someone will text me and say 'hey, it's windy our there. Our players are doing well.'  That happens pretty much every yr."

While the Z-STAR, which scored well in MyGolfSpy's Ball Lab last autumn, is being made in Japan, Brunksi says the Xv'southward are being fabricated in both Japan and Indonesia (Srixon's Q-STAR Tour which scored poorly in our Ball Lab is also fabricated in the Indonesia plant). He also affirmed what's mostly known in the ball biz: making a four-piece ball is significantly more difficult than making a three-piece ball.

"I can't put a number on it only it's definitely more than difficult," he says. "We were equally shocked as anybody seeing some of the results you guys (MyGolfSpy) had in your recent studies. Just from an X-ray standpoint, a destructive testing standpoint, we are committed to best-in-form quality. And we accept the same mechanism and same quality practices in both factories."

Both Srixon Z-STARs are getting updated SpinSkin coating as well. It's an ultra-thin extra layer of urethane with a cantankerous-linked molecular construction calls Slide-Ring Fabric or SeRM. The coating adds immovability to both balls and helps increase friction and spin on chips and pitches.

Srixon Z-STAR and Z-STAR XV: Specs, Cost and Availability

As mentioned, the iii-piece Srixon Z-STAR is the softer model, coming in at 90 compression. Srixon categorizes the Z-STAR every bit a mid-launch ball with the highest greenside spin and low driver spin.

The four-piece Srixon Z-STAR XV is the firmer of the two (102 compression). Srixon says it's mid-high launch and not quite as spinny around the light-green as the Z-STAR just nevertheless low spinning off the driver.

One other update for 2021, which matters neither a jot nor a tittle when information technology comes to functioning, is Srixon's new packaging. The new boxes are much cleaner looking which should help shelf appeal at retail.

Speaking of retail, the new Srixon Z-STAR balls are getting a bit of a cost hike. For years, Srixon had been selling the Z-STARS for a relative deal (for Tour-level balls) at $39.99 a dozen. This year, the toll is bumping up to $42.99. Scream encarmine murder if you like only information technology's notwithstanding less than what Bridgestone, TaylorMade, Callaway and Titleist accuse for their Tour assurance.

Both balls volition be bachelor Pure White and Bout Xanthous. They'll hit retail Feb. 26.

For more data, visit Srixon.com.