Bridgestone Golf, the No. 1 ball-fitter in golf, announced this week that it is partnering with Michelob ULTRA for the “Golfer’s Ultimate 6-Pack” promotion. Just in time for Father’s Day, the Golfer’s Ultimate 6-Pack is a limited-edition package featuring five Michelob ULTRA Slimline cans and a three-ball sleeve of Bridgestone’s award-winning e6 golf balls (where legal).

“Working together with Michelob ULTRA, we have created a fun promotion that is sure to be a winner this Father’s Day season,” said Dan Murphy, Bridgestone Golf’s Vice President of Marketing.

The Golfer’s Ultimate 6-Pack will be released on May 23 and is the first retail package to combine Michelob ULTRA with Bridgestone e6 golf balls at the point of purchase. The promotion includes nearly 500,000 sleeves of e6 balls, making this one of the largest golf ball samplings in recent history.

About the Bridgestone e6
Bridgestone’s e6 golf ball is once again a gold medal winner in Golf Digest’s “2011 Hot List,” having earned the honor five of the last six years. The e6’s three-piece Surlyn cover construction provides the incredible ability to reduce sidespin for increased accuracy and longer distance. The new e6 remains the lowest compression multi-layer ball on the market – perfect for moderate swing speed players looking to limit slices and hooks – and features Bridgestone’s new Dual Dimple Technology for improved distance performance.

About Michelob Ultra Beer
With only 95 calories, 2.6g carbs per serving and one exceptionally smooth taste, Michelob ULTRA is the smart choice for adults who live active lifestyles. Michelob ULTRA supports multiple golf events in the U.S., and is the official beer sponsor of the PGA TOUR and the LPGA. For more information on how to “Live Life to the ULTRA,” visit www.Facebook.com/MichelobUltra.

For more information on the Golfer’s Ultimate 6-Pack and Bridgestone’s entire line up of balls, visit www.bridgestonegolf.com.

It may be cold outside and golf might be the last thing on your mind, but right now is great time to stock up and buy equipment. Here are our picks for golf clubs and golf balls for the golfer in your life.

Bridgestone Tour B330-RXS Golf Balls

The Bridgestone Tour B330-RX are a great golf ball for amateur golfers who want distance off the tee, but have slow swing speeds. The only problem with the RX is that it doesn’t produce as much spin as the softer B330 and 330-S series of golf balls. Problem solved with the RXS, which take everything we love about the RX and give it more spin and enhanced feel around the greens. www.bridgestonegolf.com $42 per dozen

Srixon Z-Star Tour Yellow Golf Balls

Losing your tee shot on a bright sunny day can be a time waster when your looking for your ball, especially if it didn’t land in the fairway. The solution-pick up a dozen of the Srixon Z-Star Tour Yellow golf balls and say goodbye to losing your ball in the sun or the rough. The Z-Star Tour Yellow, has all the same performance features of the Z-Star, but in an easy to see yellow color. This ball is no joke and Jim Furyk did score a hole-in-one during this years Masters in the par 3  tournament.  Srixon Z-STAR Tour Yellow $39.99 per dozen

Ping Tour-S Wedges

These amazing wedges from Ping have already won a Major this year, and we absolutely love them for the amount of spin and feel they produce. Plus if you get the Rustique finish, they’ll end up turning black to provide even more spin. You can’t go wrong buying these wedges. www.ping.com $119

TaylorMade Rossa Corza Ghost Putter

This putter brought several victories for Justin Rose on TOUR this season and was put in the bag in some of the best players in the world. Why? Because this mallet putter is so easy to line up your putts and roll them down the intended line with ease. Put the Rossa Corza Ghost putter in your favorite golfer’s bag and they’ll be thanking you every time they roll a putt in for birdie. Rossa Corza Ghost Putter $159

Oh, you shouldn’t have

Cobra ZL Driver Limited Edition White Driver

Only 500 of the Limited Edition ZL Drivers are available globally, and each is individually marked with a production serial number. The Limited Edition ZL Driver utilizes advanced multi-material construction and Adjustable Flight Technology and is paired with a high performance Fujikura Motore Speeder shaft. The lucky person who gets one this Holiday season will be the envy of all of his/her friends on the course! www.cobragolf.com $625

Nike SQ Machspeed Irons

You want Tour-level distance, but you don’t have the swing speed to produce it-what to do? You get yourself a set of Nike Golf’s SQ Machspeed Irons. The Machspeed Irons, are great set of game improvement irons that will add distance to your game and boost your confidence. Even if you can’t bomb it down the fairway like the guys and gals on TOUR, you’ll be glad to have these in your bag. www.nikegolf.com $839

Bridgeston e6 Orange

In a few short years, Bridgestone Golf’s e6 has become one of the most popular game improvement golf balls in the U.S. market. Widely
renowned for its ability to help curb slices and hooks, thanks to its maximum forgiveness on off-center hits, the ball has become a favorite for those golfers seeking greater distance and accuracy. This fall, Bridgestone Golf, the #1 ball-fitter in golf, is excited to unveil limited availability of two new bright yellow and bright orange colored e6 balls.

Bridgestone e6 Yellow

While the yellow and orange e6 balls are exciting new offerings in North America, colored golf balls are nothing new for Bridgestone, especially in Japan. Nearly 2 out of every 5 golf balls sold in Japan are colored, and Bridgestone currently is responsible for over 56% of all colored balls sold in that market, ranging in various color and performance choices. In fact, colored golf balls are even played by Bridgestone’s Japanese Tour players as illustrated by Katsumasa Miyamoto’s record-breaking back nine 29 with an orange ball at Firestone Country Club during the 2010 WGC Bridgestone Invitational.

“The e6 is the 4th best selling golf ball model at off-course retailers year-to-date, because it significantly reduces the excess sidespin that the majority of amateur golfers struggle with,” said Brandon Sowell, Director of Marketing – Bridgestone Golf, Inc. “As a result of its popularity, we have received a lot of consumer requests to offer it in color options too. Those requests along with our success with colored golf balls in Japan prompted us to do a survey through our social media platforms last spring, to gauge whether or not our customers would play a yellow or orange golf ball. The number that responded with strong interest was impressive so we are going to give them what they wanted.”

In the same survey, Bridgestone found an overwhelming amount of respondents (73%) cited better visibility as the key reason for wanting to play a colored ball. As a result, Bridgestone has introduced the concept of Super Visibility Coloring, making the new yellow and orange versions of the e6 the brightest premium golf balls on the market. The bright yellow and bright orange e6 limited edition golf balls will feature the same unique three-piece construction that the traditional white e6 has- maintaining its improved distance and accuracy performance. Proving this point, the e6 took home best-in-class awards for innovation, feel and performance in the $21-35 per dozen category of the 2010 Golf Digest Hot List. The e6 was the only golf ball in the entire 2010 Hot List to garner 3 best-in-class awards for
one category.

The new e6 balls will be available November 1st at golf specialty stores and green grass retailers nationwide and will feature a street price of $26.99 per dozen (MSRP – $38 per dozen).

Which color of the Bridgestone e6 will you buy? Orange or Yellow?

www.bridgestonegolf.com

PGA Tour professional Camilo Villegas, currently No. 25 in the World Golf Rankings, will join the TaylorMade-adidas Golf Tour Staff in 2011.

Villegas, 28, will play TaylorMade® clubs, a TaylorMade ball, wear TaylorMade headwear, wear a TaylorMade glove, use a TaylorMade staff bag and wear adidas Golf footwear. More details on the relationship between Villegas and TMaG will be revealed on September 9.

“Camilo is a winner, a gentleman, and a fan favorite,” said Mark King, president and CEO of TaylorMade-adidas Golf. “Cameras tend to find him because he has presence and magnetism that’s impressive and rare. Camilo also shares the same values with our brand and our people, including a burning desire to improve and reach his potential. We very much want to help him do that, which is why we believe this is a great fit.”

Villegas’ charisma and aggressive style of play made him an instant sensation on the PGA Tour. He is well known to golf fans for his efficient swing and seemingly effortless power, as well as his signature “Spiderman crouch” when he reads putts, which prompted fans from his home town to nickname him “Hombre Arana.” His popularity has also attracted plenty of attention off the golf course, where he has been featured in GQ Magazine and named one of People Magazine’s “hottest bachelors” in 2006.

A native of Medellin, Colombia who now resides in West Palm Beach, Fla., Villegas notched two runner-up finishes and a total of four top-tens in 2006, his rookie year. His breakthrough triumph came at the 2008 BMW Championship, where he became the first Colombian to win on the PGA Tour; he also captured the TOUR Championship later that year. His most recent victory was the 2010 Honda Classic. He has also won twice internationally: the 2001 Columbian Open and the 2007 Coca-Cola Tokai Classic.

Other members of the renowned TaylorMade Tour Staff include Justin Rose, Martin Kaymer, Dustin Johnson, Kenny Perry, Y.E. Yang, Jason Day, Retief Goosen, Sean O’Hair, Sergio Garcia, Edoardo Molinari, Darren Clarke, Mike Weir and Rory Sabbatini.

www.taylormadegolf.com

Let’s face it, our egos usually get in the way when we select our golf equipment, and this is especially true when it comes to selecting golf balls. We all want to play the tour ball that our favorite pro is playing, but we lack the swing speed to really take advantage of the technology in the golf ball to see a major difference in our game.

After conducting over 50,000 ball fittings and analyzing the data, Bridgestone Golf discovered that amateur golfers wanted a golf ball that provided tour-level performance around the greens and distance of the tee, but for moderate swing speeds (under 105 MPH)-the Bridgestone Tour B330-RX was introduced with overwhelming success. In 2010 Bridgestone Golf has introduced an improved version of the popular Tour B330-RX and launched the new Tour B330-RXS, creating the first Tour performance Series of golf balls for amateur swing speeds.

How do you improve the Tour B330-RX?

The improved version of the B330-RX features a 7% softer core with a reformulated mantle that reduces excess spin, resulting in straighter, more precise shots. With its Very SOFT gradational compression core, the ball is even more easily compressed for longer distance and great feel.
The new core combined with B330-RX’s new Ionomer Inner Cover provides an increase in velocity and reduction in sidespin with the driver and long irons. As was the case with its award winning predecessor, the new B330-RX not only offers unparalleled distance performance, but the 330 Seamless Dimple-design urethane cover also ensures Tour caliber greenside spin and control, with a consistent trajectory players can count on.

Performance of the Tour B330-RX
The area where you’ll be able to notice a big difference in the 2010 version of the Tour B330-RX is in distance category and accuracy. The previous version of RX performed well in the distance category, but the new RX travels even farther than the old version. In my tests, I would hit five drives with the new and old version of the RX, measure the distance of each shot with a GPS and average out totals. Overall, the new RX resulted in a 3 yard gain in distance of my drives.

The other area where the Tour B330-RX excels in is reduction in sidespin with your driver and long irons. At the PGA Merchandise show two years ago, I was fitted for the e6+, because of the amount of sidespin I was imparting on the ball and the e6+ did a better job of reducing sidespin. When I got fitted again this year, I was fit into the new RX, because of the reduction in sidespin, a result of the new Ionomer Inner Cover. In playing conditions on the course, my drives and shots with the long irons, were more accurate and longer. If you suffer from excessive sidespin with your long irons or driver, the RX would be a ball worth getting fitted for.

Tour B330-RX Greenside Performance
For shots within 100 yards of the green, the new RX performed comparable to the previous version of the RX. You can’t spin the ball as much as Tour B330-S or Tour B330 golf balls, but you do get a fair amount of spin and control around the greens. Putting and chip shots are also great with new the B330-RX, thanks to the Very SOFT gradational compression core and 330 Seamless Dimple urethane cover. The previous version of the RX was slightly firmer, but with the new version I found that you get just the right amount of feel you need when hitting those delicate chip shots or putting from long and short distances.

Overall, the new 2010 Bridgestone Tour B330-RX is a nice improvement over the previous version, with reduced sidespin, improved feel, and distance.

Tour B330-RXS

The one limiting characteristic of the Tour B330-RX, is you can’t spin the ball as much, like you can with the softer Tour B330-S or Tour B330. How do you solve this problem? Bridgestone solved this by creating the new 3-piece, urethane Tour B330-RXS golf ball for moderate swing speed players (less than 105 MPH), who want a slightly softer feel and more spin control.

Performance of the Tour B330-RXS
The RXS provides all the same great benefits that the new RX does in terms of accuracy and distance with your driver and long irons, but the biggest difference is in greenside performance.

The B330-RXS has a SOFT urethane cover that promotes higher spin on the ball for enhanced feel around the greens for those stop on a dime knock down wedge shots, that you’d normally only be able to get from the softer Tour B330S and B330. I found the soft cover of the RXS, was a huge improvement in the feel and spin department over the B330-RX. Any golfer with moderate swing speed who wants tour-performance feel and spin in and around the greens will want to opt for B330-RXS.

The softer feel and more spin are also helpful if you play irons or wedges that conform to the new USGA grooves rule. In my tests, I used irons that had conforming grooves and found the RXS performed very well at spinning the ball around the greens where you want that extra spin.

The new Bridgestone Tour B330-RXS are an excellent 3-piece golf ball for amateurs with slower swings speeds who want tour-performance spin and feel.

Whether you prefer a golf ball with a firmer feel and longer distance or a ball with softer feel and more spin, the new Bridgestone Tour RX Series of golf balls has moderate swing speed amateur golfers covered.

Bridgestone Tour B330-RX and B330-RXS $42.99 per dozen

www.bridgestonegolf.com

Cross sections of Nike Tour Golf Balls

Last month we interviewed Nike Golf’s Product Development Director for Golf Balls, Rock Ishii at the PGA Merchandise Show. Now you can find out from your favorite Nike Golf athletes (Stewar Cink, Justin Leonard, Paul Casey, Lucas Glover, Trevor Immelman, Michelle Wie, and Anthony Kim) their thoughts on the new Nike One Golf Balls.

www.nike.com/nikegolf

TaylorMade Golf Tour Staff Professional Dustin Johnson won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, by overcoming his worst round of the weekend with a birdie on No. 18 to clinch a one-shot victory and his second consecutive AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am Championship.

Dustin Johnson

“As long as I keep playing the way I’m playing, I don’t think there’s anything that I can’t do. It’s all up to me. You know, I’ve got to keep working hard and keep practicing hard, and, you know, good things will come…. I feel like right now I’m driving it very good.”

TaylorMade Golf has provided some videos of Dustin Johnson talking about some the equipment in his bag, like the TaylorMade Penta TP Golf Balls and TaylorMade R9 Irons.

Dustin Johnson on the TaylorMade Penta TP Golf Balls

Dustin Johnson on the TaylorMade R9 Irons

www.taylormadegolf.com

Rock Ishii Product Development Director, Golf Balls

At the 2010 PGA Merchandise Show Outdoor Demo Day, we got the opportunity to speak Nike Golf’s Rock Ishii. Rock is Nike Golf’s Product Development Director for Golf Balls and in this interview we talked about, the new Nike Crush golf ball, USGA Groove Rules changes and golf ball design,  golf ball fitting for consumers, the Nike One Tour line of golf balls, what golf ball Rock plays, and much more!

Special thanks to Rock Ishii and Nike Golf!

http://www.nikegolf.com

For the past 3 years, Bridgestone has successfully educated golfers on how to choose a ball based on their swing characteristics – demonstrating tangible results through their innovative ball-fitting program. Having conducted more than 50,000 amateur ball-fittings, Bridgestone Golf helped many golfers discover the importance of matching the right ball to each player’s game.

After collecting and analyzing swing data from a cross section of golf consumers, Bridgestone discovered a need for a ball that offered tour-level performance around the greens, yet was engineered to optimize distance off the tee for a moderate swing speed. Thus, the B330-RX was born and an entire new category was created – Tour Performance Balls for Amateur Swing Speeds. The B330-RX was one of the most successful golf ball introductions in the history of the game.

In 2010, Bridgestone will expand that offering with the new B330-RX and the B330-RXS creating the first TOUR performance SERIES designed for amateur swing speeds.

Watch the video to see Bridgestone Golf’s Ball Fitting Manager Corey Consuegra, talk about the new Tour B330-RX and Tour B330-RXS golf balls and the new Bridgestone Golf Ball Fitting Kiosks.

[View with PicLens]

Tour B330-RX

The new Tour B330-RX boasts a 7% softer core with a reformulated mantle that further reduces excess spin, resulting in straighter, more precise shots. With its Very SOFT gradational compression core, the ball is even more easily compressed for longer distance and great feel. The new core combined with B330-RX’s new Ionomer Inner Cover provides an increase in velocity and reduction in sidespin with the driver and long irons. As was the case with its award winning predecessor, the new B330-RX not only offers unparalleled distance performance, but the 330 Seamless Dimple-design urethane cover also ensures Tour caliber greenside spin and control, with a consistent trajectory players can count on.

“The original Tour B330-RX was the first ever golf ball to deliver tour-like performance for amateur swing speeds,” said Brandon Sowell, Golf Ball Marketing Manager – Bridgestone Golf, Inc. “Consumers loved it and we quickly realized this was a product that golfers had been waiting for. After 50,000 consumer ball-fittings, we discovered that there was still an opportunity for improving amateur swing speed players’ performance, so our scientists pushed technology even further, delivering the new B330-RX, with better distance and accuracy off the tee and remarkable feel on and around the greens. The new B330-RX promises to be a big hit with those consumers who’ve already come to trust Bridgestone to deliver a tour level ball designed for them.”

Tour B330-RXS

Rounding out the TOUR performance SERIES designed for amateur swing speeds is the new 3-piece, urethane Tour B330-RXS – giving Bridgestone the softest multi-layer urethane series on the market. The new B330-RXS fits moderate-swing speed players – less than 105 mph – who demand a slightly softer feel and more spin control. The B330-RXS features a SOFT urethane cover for higher spin control and enhanced feel on and around the greens. In addition, the slightly softer core and mantle formulation help to generate reduced spin off the tee for great distance performance.

“Just like our PGA Tour pros, amateur players with swing speeds less than 105 mph have different preferences when it comes to golf ball choice,” said Sowell. “Some prefer a ball with a slightly firmer feel, while others demand a softer feel and more spin. With the addition of the B330-RXS to our line, we now have the most complete series of ball choices for amateur golfers looking for tour performance.”

B330-RX and B330-RXS $42.99 per dozen, available March 1st, 2010.

The most common swing fault golfers face is either the dreaded slice or hook, which is caused by either having the club face too open or closed at impact. What if there was a golf ball that could help reduce the amount of spin imparted on the golf ball, resulting in a straighter and longer ball flight? That’s what the 2010 version of the Bridgestone e6 golf ball aims to accomplish with this updated version of its popular e6 ball.

Look and Feel

The three piece design of the 2010 e6 is comprised of a soft gradational compression core, Anti Side-Spin Inner Layer, and soft Suryln cover that has a 330 Seamless Dimple Design. Last year’s version of the e6 was the most popular model of the the e series, because of it’s forgiveness on off-center hits and the 2010 version is aimed at making it easier to hit the ball longer and straighter, and resulting in hopefully lower scores.

The 2010 Bridgestone e6 golf ball utilizes a newly enhanced Anti-Side Spin Inner Layer that is designed to eliminate excess spin for straighter and longer flight. The Anti-Side Spin Inner Layer is made up of a new Bridgestone formulation that provides a combination of high resilience and low compression. The multi-layer e6 is even softer than the previous version, by reducing its compression by 8% according to Bridgestone Golf. The reduction in compression gives the e6 a softer feel that is best appreciated in chips and pitches and on putts.

Performance

The biggest selling point of the 2010 e6 is its ability to reduce side spin, and promote long straight ball flight. The big question is does the e6 make good on what it claims? The answer to this question is not a simple yes or no, and let me explain. No golf ball on the market is going to correct a faulty swing path or swing flaw. If you have a tendency to push the ball right or have a slice, you need to correct the swing flaw for why the club face is open at impact. And the only way to get that corrected is to seek help from a PGA Professional who can work with you on your swing flaw. Enough about that!

What the 2010 Bridgestone e6 can do is help with reducing the amount of side spin imparted on the ball by utilizing the Anti-Side Spin Inner Layer and turn your miss into not such a big of a miss. In my case, I have a tendency to slice the ball, and it won’t be that bad of a slice, because of the reduced side spin. I can tell you from my experience as a golfer who suffers from hitting a slice or “power fade” like I call it, the e6 did a nice job of making my misses not as severe.

It’s important to note that I have been taking golf lessons to work on a swing flaw that causes me to keep my face open at impact, which has greatly improved my accuracy with my driver and irons. It’s nice to have a golf ball that can give you a little help, even when you slice or hook the ball. With all that said, the e6 performed very well on drives, I was able to hit the ball very straight throughout my round and get at least an extra 3 yards of carry on my drives.

Mid-Irons and Short Game

With my mid-irons and short irons, the e6 was very responsive off of them  and the ball carried very well. The one area that I was really surprised to the see the e6 do well in was in the short game shots, like chipping and pitch shots. The previous versions of the e6 were not as green friendly at producing the kind of spin you get from three and four piece golf balls, that are softer. The feel on the new e6 was definitely improved and much softer than before and had great touch when putting, something I didn’t expect. Will the e6 produce the spin and control in the short game like the Tour B330-S or Tour B330? No, but it does a good enough job, that most golfers will like the amount of control it can provide in this class of golf balls.

Overall, I was really impressed by the 2010 Bridgestone e6 golf balls. They are a great ball that can help you achieve longer and straighter ball flight with reduced spin, without giving up short game feel and performance at a great price.

Bridgestone e6 $26.99