Equipment
Bridgestone announces new e9 Long Drive ball, now the official ball of World Long Drive
Bridgestone’s new e9 Long Drive will be the Official Ball of World Long Drive. The longest ball in the Bridgestone lineup, the e9 Long Drive was designed in collaboration with WLD professionals.
The e9 Long Drive is a 330-dimple two-piece ball with an injection molded seamless Surlyn cover. It features a gradational core that is softer in the center and firmer toward the exterior. Not surprisingly, the ball is designed to be high launching and low spinning with maximum carry.
“It was great to work with the athletes from World Long Drive to develop the new e9,” said David Vogrin, Bridgestone’s Director of Marketing. “Innovation that leads to advanced performance is always our focus, and with over 900 Polymer engineers on staff and pioneering technologies like our gradational core and seamless cover, we’re confident this new golf ball will provide exceptional distance for professional long drivers but more importantly for recreational golfers. This is the ball you will take out for the long drive hole in a scramble and end up using for the entire round.”
Bridgestone believes non-long drivers who are looking for higher launch and carry distance will be drawn to the e9 Long Drive.
“Long drive competitors and recreational golfers alike play in a variety of turf conditions, some of which don’t allow for much roll,” said Elliot Mellow, Golf Ball Marketing Manager for Bridgestone Golf. “Through our work with WLD contestants we determined that the e9 Long Drive would need to promote maximum carry for optimum performance, as well as less driver spin. Our engineers combined Bridgestone’s gradational core design with our aerodynamically superior 330-dimple pattern to develop an impressive package.”
At retail: March 2023
MSRP: $29.99/dozen
Neal Shipley was the first to admit that he enjoyed his food while in college. But since his days at Ohio State, he’s slimmed down and earned a PGA Tour Card.
That hasn’t stopped him from having fun with his wedge stampings, though it’s led to some misunderstandings.
On the 54 (degree), we have ‘Big Fudge,'” Shipley told GolfWRX. “It was supposed to be ‘Big Fridge,’ so this happened a little while ago. ‘Big Fridge’ was a nickname between my college teammates and I, with ‘fridge’ meaning stomach, a big stomach.
“We told the Ping guys to put … ‘Big Fridge’ on it, and I think maybe some bad cell service or something, and they thought I said ‘fudge,’ so they put fudge on it.”
On Shipley’s 50-degree he also continues the food theme, this time with his go-to order at the “Golden Arches,” and his stamping “DONS 7.”
“The number 7 meal, the two cheeseburger meal, that was my McDonald’s order, back when I would have McDonald’s frequently,” Shipley shared.
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @raw10628 has a L.A.B. DF3 putter and Masters putter cover up for grabs.
From the listing: “Some great items here today, time to thin out and make room for next set of gear. All prices include shipping.
LAB DF3 Purple 33.5” 68° lie with TPT – $725. LAB Masters release DF3 cover – $150.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 5-M4
3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
5-wood: Ping G440 Max (19 degrees @18)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
Hybrid: Ping G440 (23 degrees)
Shaft: Oban Isawa Red Hybrid Shaft 04 Flex 70 Gms
Irons: Srixon ZXi7 (5-P)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i80
Wedges: Cleveland RTZ (50-MID, 54-FULL, 58-MID)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i105
Putter: L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i
Shaft: ACCRA Putter Shaft
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
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Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D (10.5 degrees) Shaft: Project X Titan Yellow 60 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D Tour (15 degrees) Shaft: Project...
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