Let’s get some of the most important stuff out of the way.
TaylorMade’s Tour Response is the company’s softest and lowest-spinning urethane-covered golf ball. It’s also their most affordable offering in the urethane space although I suppose there’s a case to be made that, at 43 bucks, we’re playing fast and loose with the concept of affordability.
Tour Response has carved a niche among golfers inclined towards alignment aids and I’d wager that when most golfers think Tour Response these days, they think Stripe.
The Stripe has become so synonymous with the ball itself that it’s practically a household name in its own right. It’s like when people say “Google it” even when they’re using Bing except in this case, they say “Stripe” when they mean Tour Response (ad nobody actually uses Bing).
The point is that Tour Response is perhaps the one ball where you could make a strong case that TaylorMade shouldn’t bother making it in white. Yet, they do.
Trickle-down tech
A good bit of the technology bundled into the new Tour Response has trickled down from the TP5 lineup. Sure, the signature Stripe pattern trickled up to TP5 (albeit without any of the fun colors), but the majority of Tour Responses enhancements are the fruit of TaylorMade’s efforts with TP5.
Case in point: Speed Wrapped Core technology which debuted in the 2024 TP5. Speed is, of course, always the thing in golf but more than anything else, Speed Wrap is a sound-dampening technology that works to decouple feel from speed or, more accurately, feel from compression. TaylorMade says Speed Wrapped Cores make for balls that feel softer than their compression value suggests.
As all of this relates to Tour Response? The new ball maintains the same compression (TaylorMade’s number is 70) but with the addition of a Speed Wrapped Core, it should feel softer than the previous model.
The new Tour Response also offers SpeedMantle tech, TaylorMade’s take on a high-flex modulus material. The idea is to keep the ball in contact with the face a bit longer to promote more distance and a bit more spin although, for the sake of full transparency, Tour Response is never going to spin like TP5 or TP5x.
Soft feel has consequences but you knew that.
TP5’s Tour Flight Dimple pattern is also part of the Tour Response Package. You can expect high flight i part to offset the lower spin rates.
It’s all about the Stripe
All of the above is nice but for many of you, Tour Response is all about the Stripe or, more technically, the Hi-Vis 360° ClearPath Alignment feature.
The stripe itself is 22 millimeters wide. TaylorMade describes it as encircling the ball’s center and while that’s mostly true, we have seen some instances where the Stripe was less than perfectly centered. Hopefully, those issues have been addressed with the new ball.
With that said, the most exciting part of the new TaylorMade Tour Response story might be the enhancements to the Stripe itself. TaylorMade worked with leaders in ink and print technologies to develop new more vibrant inks.
The result is what I’d describe as an even bolder Stripe. Seriously, guys, can we put this stuff on TP5?
The new Tour Response Stripe is available in Neon Orange, Neon Pink, Neon Yellow, Neon Blue and (non-Neon) Navy. Multipacks will also be available for those not ready to commit to a single color.
While I’m not sure why, Tour Response is also available in boring white and uninteresting yellow. Those adjectives may not be entirely TaylorMade-approved.
Availability and pricing
Online availability begins Feb. 7 with the rest of retail following Feb. 13. Retail price for white and yellow is $42.99. The Stripe versions you really want will sell for $45.99.
For more information, visit TaylorMadeGolf.com.
Kelly
2 weeks ago
That orange stripe makes the ball hard to see on the course. Never would’ve thought that!