The Titleist Tour Soft has just been reintroduced to the market after a few changes to the core and cover. I took the Tour Soft to the golf course, and we also tested some on a TrackMan to get some data and information about whether the upgrades have worked and who should be playing with this golf ball.
I tested the Tour Speed, Tour Soft, and TruFeel all at the same time, and the Tour Soft is by far my least favorite. This doesn’t mean it is a poor golf ball, but it does highlight how much having the right golf ball for your golf game can help. Here we’ll show you how the Tour Soft golf ball performs and who we think it will work for.
Titleist Tour Soft At A Glance
Here are some basic stats about the Titleist Tour Soft golf balls:
- Number of pieces: 2
- Compression: around 70
- Cover material: Ionomer 4CE Grafted
- Dimple Pattern: 346 quadrilateral dipyramid (different pattern than Tour Speed)
- Color options: White and Yellow
- Pricing: Average- less than Tour Speed, more than TruFeel
- Golf ball category: soft feel, lower trajectory
Distance
The Tour Soft was tested with a driver on the TrackMan in an indoor hitting booth. The carry distance was, on average, the same as Pro V1.
However, when it came to total distance, the Tour Soft off the tee was the lowest of all the Titleist golf balls we tested. It seems to spin a lot, causing it to reach a higher peak and not roll as far.
I felt this on the golf course as well. The Tour Soft golf balls just didn’t fly the way I expected them to off the tee, and it seems to be the spin rate was a little high.
One of the things I found interesting about the Tour Soft is that Titleist even mentioned the ball flight may be a little more penetrating, but when tested, it had the highest peak height of the Titleist golf balls we tried.
To clarify, I’m actually okay with giving up a few yards off the tee to play with certain golf balls. I don’t hit the Pro V1 as far as I hit the TruFeel, but when it comes to greenside performance, I’m happy to keep the Pro V1 in play.
So the fact that I couldn’t hit the Tour Soft quite as far as other golf balls in the lineup didn’t bother me at first. However, in the end, it started to just be another mark against this golf ball when we looked at all other performances.
Spin
To properly understand spin on these Titleist Tour Soft golf balls; we have to look at full swing shots with the driver, full swing with a wedge, and then the wedge shots within 50 yards.
Full Swing Driver
The spin rates on the Tour Soft were, on average, 300 to 500 rpm higher than they were with the other golf balls we tested. This got a little high for me, and I was curious to see what would happen on the golf course.
With the Tour Soft, when the golf ball hits the fairway, it stops. I like some roll out on my drives when I can get it. Of course, there is some performance here based on the driver I’m using and my angle of attack, but overall the ball stopped and sometimes even backed up a few feet with the Tour Soft.
Overall feel coming off the driver was pretty soft, but certainly not too soft that I found it to be rubbery.
Wedge Spin (full swings)
With my full-swing wedge, I was working on about a 125-yard shot. The Tour Soft had a carry distance very similar to a Pro V1, and it has spin rates higher than the other Pro V1 golf balls we tested.
On the course, I was impressed with this as well.
When you compress the Tour Soft, it spins quite well. My approach shots to the green were holding where I wanted them to, something I certainly appreciate on my iron shots.
The Titleist Tour Soft is a two piece golf ball. So the fact that spin rates were high from the tee, it didn’t surprise me that they were also high on the approach shots. I often think of it like this, when a golf ball has 3 or more pieces, it can offer us varying performance throughout the course. When you go down to two pieces, performance and features are a bit more limited across different golf shots and impact dynamics.
Again, Titleist talks about this ball having a bit of a penetrating ball flight, but we actually noticed a pretty high descent angle and nothing that would make me think this is a lower-flight golf ball.
Wedge shots (inside 70 yards)
I think it’s important for amateur golfers to understand that greenside spin and soft feel don’t always go hand in hand. The fact that the Tour Soft is a two-piece golf ball with an ionomer cover means you really get a very poor greenside spin on this ball on shots where you rely on the performance of the cover and outer layers.
One of the first shots I like to test is a 30 yard pitch from a tight lie to see how a golf ball responds. The overall feel of this shot with the Tour Soft was nice, but as soon as it hit the green, there was just no spin.
It would take me some time to learn how to control this ball in the short game. At one point, I short-sided myself (my fault, not the Tour Soft), and I just knew I had no way to stop the ball near the pin with this golf ball in play.
From a short-game perspective, this is not my favorite ball. I think the lack of the urethane cover has a lot to do with it, and it’s why the Tour Speed was better around the greens than the Tour Soft.
Feel
The Titleist TruFeel is actually the softest in the Titleist lineup. I assumed the Tour Soft was, but it’s not, and you can really feel the difference on long game shots. Tour Soft feels softer than the new Tour Speed or the Titleist Pro V1, but it’s noticeably harder than the TruFeel.
Overall I like the feel of the Tour Soft from the tee and on approach shots to the green; it’s fine. Around the green for short-game control, I didn’t find the soft feel to help all that much.
Finding the right golf ball for your game can take a little trial and error. I’m fully aware that feel can be a personal thing, but as I’ve gone through these Titleist golf ball reviews, I’ve had a harder time finding exactly what Titleist was trying to do with the Tour Soft and how it really shines in the lineup.
Longevity
The longevity of the Tour Soft golf ball was a definite concern for me. The core of this Tour Soft is huge; it’s 1.600″. A large core can help with distance and penetration, but it also leaves very little room for the cover.
The ionomer cover on the Tour Soft is very thin; I worried it would scuff up easily and expose the core.
I can’t tell you I notice the same durability and premium feel that I do with a urethane cover Titleist golf ball, you can keep the Titleist Tour speed in play for a few rounds and still get good performance.
I think one of the benefits of choosing a Titleist golf ball overall is that its longevity is quite good. Titleist would not be where they are if the quality of the product was not quite there. Even as much as I didn’t enjoy the Titleist Tour Soft, it’s still a well-made golf ball, just not a fit for my game.
Value
The Tour Soft is priced where it should be. The price is higher than you will pay for TruFeel but also less than the Titleist TourSpeed. The only thing I will say is that for a two-piece golf ball, the price may be a little high.
If I was a huge fan of the feel or the spin, I may be more likely to say this is a great value golf ball, but I think instead, we can call it fairly priced, not a great deal.
Additional Features
An alignment aid on the side of the Tour Soft golf ball looks like a T. It is shaped to allow you to use the thick or thin line when setting up. Overall I liked the look of the alignment line logo and found there was plenty of room on the other side of the ball if you don’t want to use this line.
Golf Insider Verdict
The Titleist Tour Soft is a soft, two-piece golf ball that achieves high spin rates on approach shots and offers a soft feel around the greens. When it comes to greenside performance, the Tour Soft struggles.
You won’t get much spin inside 50 yards, even though it’s soft. The ionomer cover does not offer the same feel as a urethane cover. For average swing-speed players looking for a lower-priced Titleist, the Tour Soft can work, but I think other options could be a better fit (we discuss these below).
Alternatives
This golf ball review for the Titleist Tour Soft was not the most positive. Launch monitor and on-course data were not as great as we expected, so it’s only fair to give you a few alternatives.
Titleist TruFeel
The TruFeel is cheaper and softer than other Titleist golf balls. I expected this to feel like an old Pinnacle golf ball with not all that much performance. Instead, I found that I actually had good spin on full wedge shots and decent spin on shorter shots right around the green, it’s no Pro V1, but a great ball for the price.
In testing, I hit the TruFeel further than the Pro V1, my current ball of choice. I just couldn’t control the TruFeel around the greens the same way I can control a Pro V1.
Titleist Tour Speed
Tour Speed and Tour Soft are marketed to be partners in crime. If you want high speed, go with the Tour Speed. I like the new Tour Speed for the slightly faster swing speed golfer; it has similar characteristics to the Pro V1 regarding distance. Around the greens, the control is not as good as the Pro V1, but the ball performed quite well.
TaylorMade Tour Response
TaylorMade Tour Response is a golf ball that has performed very well in various golf ball tests, including ours. The Tour Response is a three-piece version of the five-piece TP5 golf ball. Expect a good feel, decent spin rates, and a fair price for the Tour Response golf ball.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about the Titleist Tour Soft and its performance on the golf course.
What is the compression rating of the Titleist Tour Soft?
Titleist does not publish the compression rating of the Tour Soft directly, but in independent testing, it has been around a 70 compression. The 70 compression golf ball is a good choice for mid-swing speed players looking for distance and control.
What is the difference between Titleist Tour Speed and Tour Soft?
The Titleist Tour Speed is a three-piece golf ball, and the Tour Soft is a two-piece. Expect the Tour Speed to have high ball speeds from the tee box and a slightly firmer feel. The Tour Soft is a softer ball with a higher spin rate off the tee and when approaching the green. Tour Soft is just a two-piece golf ball which makes the pricing a little lower.
Is Titleist Tour Soft the Softest Golf Ball?
The Tour Soft is not the softest in the Titleist lineup, the TruFeel is the softest Titleist golf ball, and it’s quite noticeable when you put it into play.
Happy golfing.
