Happy 20XI Day everybody! The Nike 20XI golf ball is available in retail stores nationwide starting today, and the era of the resin core golf ball has begun. This morning I headed over to my local PGA TOUR Superstore to pick up a dozen each of the 20XI–X and 20XI–S golf balls—I’m playing in my bi-weekly men’s group tomorrow and will be testing both balls in play. I’ve already tested the 20XI–X and 20XI–S balls on the putting green and in the short game practice area with my wedges. I’ll be posting a full review of the 20XI ball after I have a chance to test them in a full live round or two, so look out for that some time next week!

Earlier this week I traveled to Miami for the official release of Nike Golf’s new revolutionary 20XI golf ball that will become available at retail on April 29th. I headed to the Doral Golf Resort on Sunday afternoon, arriving late Sunday night. The event was Monday evening, so I had Monday morning and early afternoon to myself to tour the Blue Monster, as it was my first time at Doral and I wanted to check out the course in person. I did just that, and after heading back to my room to freshen up, I headed to the 10th tee of Doral’s Red Course for the event.

The event consisted of an on-course demo and a short presentation and Q&A session back at the hotel (I shot video of the entire demo and presentation/Q&A session, there are links to the video segments at the bottom of the post, along with a photo gallery). Soon after I got to the 10th tee, Francesco Molinari and Anthony Kim arrived to hit some of the new 20XIs. Nike Golf’s Mike Pai kicked off the demo, and after a few words from Nike Golf’s head of golf ball creation Rock Ishii and PGA Tour Field Representative Steve Stach, it was time for Francesco and AK to hit some balls.

Francesco was the first to hit the 20XI for us (he plays the 20XI-X model), and Nike had a Trackman unit set up to monitor various statistics for his shots (you can see these in the video). Francesco has already switched to the 20XI-X in competition because of the increase in distance (in spite of a higher launch angle) and the spin he gets around the green with the new ball. He mentioned one of the characteristics he is particularly impressed with is its ability to maintain spin after the apex of the shot, which helps keep his ball online especially in the wind (there was a pretty good breeze as he and AK were hitting their drives). Francesco hit several drives and the Trackman stats don’t lie, this ball is longer, spins less off the driver and holds its line in the wind.

Then it was Anthony’s turn, and he proceeded to bomb several drives far out into the 10th fairway with the 20XI-S, his distances getting progressively longer with each shot. Anthony mentioned he went with the 20XI-S ball because he had trouble keeping the ball in the air long enough with the 20XI-X — Rock pointed out this was because his driver spin was already low, so the 20XI-S fit his swing better. AK is able to get more distance with the 20XI-S because it stays in the air longer (more spin after the apex of the shot), helping him to get his distance off the tee back after his recent thumb injury.

After hitting drivers for a bit, AK and Francesco switched to hitting wedges to the nearby 18th green. As I mentioned above there was a pretty good breeze at the time, so this setup had AK and Francesco hitting their wedges in a pretty good left-to-right breeze. Francesco again mentioned one of the most valuable new features of the 20XI — its ability to hold its line in the wind. From the 10th tee we wandered over to the 18th green, where AK and Francesco hit some shorter wedge shots for us, including some high flop shots, showing us the great spin they get with the 20XI around the green. AK pointed out that the 20XI makes shots with the new grooves easier, because they can get more spin without having to swing as hard. We were also able to see the covers after a few of their shots, and there were no visible scuff marks on the balls from their wedges.

Then we headed inside for a short presentation where Rock showed us the groundbreaking material combination in the 20XI and explained how the spin slope (lower with driver, higher with wedges) and Moment of Inertia (MOI) are both higher with this game-changing new ball. Then Steve Stach, AK and Francesco talked about how the golf ball is the one piece of equipment players are most hesitant to change because it’s the one piece of equipment that is constant in every shot in a tournament round and it is difficult to test it with the wide variety of shots they play. It speaks volumes about the technology in this new ball that so many of the Nike athletes have already switched to the 20XI, and that AK and Francesco switched to it very shortly after they tested it live on the course (AK in Shanghai and Francesco in Maui).

Then Rock, Steve, AK and Francesco took questions from the audience on a variety of aspects of the 20XI, and in particular there were some really good technical questions from (new friends of NG Nation) Gary Esayian of GolfBallSelector.com and  Carlo Alavarez of GolfWRX.com. We also got a glimpse of what might be coming from Nike’s golf ball engineers, with their alluding to the use of the 20XI materials being used in other Nike golf balls in the future, and other variations of material combinations and specifications in future ball designs.

It was really fun to get a glimpse “behind the curtain” of Nike’s golf ball design department, and the thinking and testing that goes into a new ball design like the 20XI. I personally cannot wait to get my hands on the new 20XI ball to test it out for myself.

Features of the new 20XI ball include:

• Lighter, low-density resin (RZN) core results in faster ball speed and increased distance

• Lighter core and heavier outer layers moves weight to the outside of the ball (perimeter weighting) to increase MOI for longer and straighter ball flight

• Steeper spin slope – less spin (203 rpm less on avg.) off the driver and more spin (99 rpm more on avg.) around the green

• Maintains spin after apex of shot, adding distance and minimizing travel offline

• Soft, durable cover enhances spin with minimal scuffing — 20XI-S has softer cover than 20XI-X (20XI-X cover is 3pts firmer than 20XI-S cover)

Check out the videos of the entire demo, presentation and Q&A session:

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 1 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 2 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 3 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 4 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 5 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 6 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 7 OF 8 >>

20XI LAUNCH EVENT: VIDEO 8 OF 8 >>

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Editor’s note: Expenses for travel to and accommodations at this event for the author of this post were paid for by Nike Golf. The author was not paid for this post, and the opinions expressed in the post are strictly those of the author.

Nike Golf Introduces Ground-Breaking Technology Never Before Seen in Golf Balls with the Introduction of the Nike 20XI Franchise

Nike Golf is unveiling its new 20XI (pronounced: twenty-X-I) premium golf ball franchise, featuring innovative golf ball technology that will dramatically enhance the performance of golfers around the world and, at the same time, propel golf ball manufacturing into an entirely new level of innovation.

The new Nike 20XI ball features a combination of proprietary technology never before seen in the golf industry, and is the result of four years of collaborative research and development between Nike Golf’s golf ball engineers and a team of material and science experts at DuPont. The game-changing technology replaces conventional rubber cores with a radical new resin material. Resin is a highly neutralized polymer that’s faster and lighter material engineered to produce longer distance and more controlled shots.

“I have never been more excited about a new golf ball innovation than I am now,” said Rock Ishii, Nike Golf’s Product Development Director for golf balls.  “For many years, golf ball development has primarily been focused on the number of layers with a solid rubber core.  We believe that there wasn’t really anywhere else to go as far as technology advancement in these areas, and felt that the next window of opportunity was in the exploration of various materials for the core.”

Ishii and his team of engineers discovered that using resin core technology accomplishes three critical performance components that golfers dream to have in a golf ball: More distance off the tee; Straight ball flight; Increased control around the greens.

Faster Ball Speed Equals More Distance

·         Advancement in proprietary resin core chemistry delivers faster ball speed.

·         Internal tests with Nike Golf tour athletes have shown an average of 2-3 mph increase in ball speed.

·         Every 1 mph increase equates to 2-3 yards carry distance.

Highest Levels of MOI Provides Longer, Straighter Ball Flight

·         Lighter core and heavier outer layers result in perimeter weighting.

·         High MOI assists in reducing driver spin and maintains spin beyond apex to maintain carry and control.

·         After apex, the higher MOI assists in maintaining spin an average of 100-200 RPM.

·         20XI has the highest levels of MOI in a golf ball to date.

Steeper Spin Slope Equals More Distance Off the Tee; More Control Around the Green

·         Less spin off the driver, more off the wedge.

·         Overall design and MOI assist in reducing driver spin at impact on average of 100 – 200 RPM over prior Nike ball technology.

·         Softer cover materials allow for greater short iron spin and control.

To date, the following Nike athletes have made the switch to the new Nike 20XI: Stephen Ames, Stewart Cink, Richard Finch, Lucas Glover, Matt Haines, Anthony Kim, Kevin Kisner, Justin Leonard, Jamie Lovemark, Pablo Martin, Francesco Molinari, James Morrison and Carl Pettersson.

The Nike 20XI franchise will launch two versions of the ball, the 20XI-X (tour-level distance) and 20XI-S (tour-level spin).  While both balls deliver on faster speed, higher MOI and steeper spin slope, the 20XI-X is optimized to reduce excess driver spin to maximize distance.  The 20XI-S incorporates a softer cover for enhanced greenside spin and control.  Both 20XI balls will be available April 29, 2011 in North America.

“Rock and his team have nailed this,” said Nike athlete Stewart Cink.  “They’ve been able to increase the gap between driver spin and wedge/iron spin.  With this ball, I have 2mph more speed off of the driver and I’m hitting it 10 yards farther.  Nike has developed a ball that goes faster and has found materials that spin more with the wedges and less with the driver. So it’s longest off the tee and spinniest around the greens. What’s not to like?”

In addition to developing a first-of-its kind golf ball, Nike Golf’s new technology has led to a reduction in manufacturing steps and allows for a 54% improvement in production consistency for resin core vs. rubber core.

Availability: April 29, 2011

MSRP:  $58.00

Street Price:  $45.99

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*Editor’s Note: The post above is from a press release from Nike Golf.