‘It’s Incredibly Underrated’ - The New Golf Ball Everyone Should Play But Probably Won’t

While the Srixon Z-Star has now run into its ninth generation, this is actually only the second iteration of the Z-Star Diamond, a ball that was created to serve the needs of Brooks Koepka when he first signed with the brand back in 2021.

It has always been a premium golf ball designed to sit somewhere in between the Z-Star and Z-Star XV in terms of its feel and spin profile, something I was keen to put to the test for myself out on the course and on the launch monitor.

In terms of the tech, head over to my Srixon Z-Star ball review for a full rundown of the new biomass urethane cover, Spin Skin+ coating and the Fast Layer DG Core 2.0. Where the Z-Star Diamond differs in design is with its slightly firmer core and reduced compression, which ‘minimizes driver spin for distance off the tee while maintaining greenside spin’. I’ll be the judge of that.

The data I gathered on the Foresight Sports GCQuad launch monitor at Peterborough Milton golf club certainly caught my attention. Srixon claims the Z-Star XV is the longest ball in the range but for me, the Z-Star Diamond kept up in terms of ball speed and distance and with a lower trajectory and less spin - ideal for those that want to see a more penetrating ball flight.

But it was with the irons and wedges where the Z-Star Diamond really stood head and shoulders above its siblings. Distance with a 7-iron was comparable with the other models while offering a touch more spin. On a full sand wedge shot, the Z-Star Diamond was spinning over 1000rpm more than the Z-Star and 700rpm more than the Z-Star XV. This pattern continued on a partial wedge shot where the Z-Star Diamond generated around 800rpm more spin than both the other balls. I was really not expecting this sort of difference, especially when Srixon actually claim it’s the Z-Star that offers the most greenside spin ( you'll see from the data below that the Z-Star actually spun the least for me of all three balls with wedges).

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Clip a few chips away and it becomes clear this might be the best feeling ball in the Srixon premium range too. Not as dead or spongy as the Z-Star, but a little more gentle than the firm-feeling Z-Star XV - it really does strike the perfect middle ground.

This is undoubtedly a ball I could play and have done for the last few rounds - I couldn't fault the experience, the durability stacked up too although the gold numbering doesn't quite do it for me, it cheapens the overall look slightly.

That said, it’s one of the best golf balls on the market so it's no wonder a few tour players choose the Z-Star Diamond over the XV. It was as long off the tee for me while providing an extremely high level spin control into greens on iron shots but especially wedge shots. For high speed or spin players with the driver, this is a compelling alternative that really doesn’t get the recognition it deserves - it's incredibly underrated.