You may have noticed a new ad over on the right hand side of the page for ColdFusion golf balls. They’re a new advertiser on the site and I wanted to take just a minute to give everybody an quick overview of what they’re all about.
ColdFusion is a company based locally here in Cary, NC. Curtis Colvin, who’s known as “The Club Guy“, was always looking for a good cold weather golf ball. Most golf balls turn into rocks when the temperature drops below 50 degrees. After trying everything on the market he realized that nobody was actually making a ball that was performance optimized for cold weather golf.
So Curtis and his business partner John Dubois worked to formulate a golf ball design for cold weather play. They tried different options until settling on a 2-piece ionomer covered ball that had a core composition designed to remain playable regardless of how low the thermostat dropped.
In fact, to demonstrate this, Curtis keeps ColdFusion balls in a freezer in his shop to let customers see how well the ball performs when cold compared to everything else on the market.
Curtis gave me a sleeve to try out a few weeks ago. I finally got a chance to put it to use earlier this week. It was about 45 degrees outside, which is on the upper end of the temperature spectrum that the ColdFusion ball is designed for (Curtis told me that it performs best at 50* and below). I pulled it out for the first time on a par 5 that I can reach in two in warm weather, but not usually when it’s cold. 10 minutes later, I was lining up a 6 foot putt for eagle.
They’re priced at $24 per dozen so if you lose one in the leaves, it’s not quite as painful as losing a $4+ tour ball. And for a limited time, they’re offering free shipping anywhere in the US. All I can say is that these things work as advertised. If you find that your regular golf ball turns into a rock when it gets cold, you need to give the ColdFusion ball a good hard look.
The only caveat I would add is that while they meet the USGA specs, they’re not yet on the conforming ball list. So don’t try to play them in a tournament setting until they get added.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Yes, they do work as advertised! My buddies and I have played the ColdFusion with the temperature at 40 degrees and we didn’t lose any distance. They also feel great off the putter.
I have also hit the ball straight outa of the freezer, it feels like you are hitting a normal golf ball at room temperature. You will not be disappointed during this cold winter.
At 42 degrees, I tried three balls. The first two are what I have been playing, Callaway Big Bertha Diablo and Bridgestone B330. Both felt hard at impact, especially with the irons. An off-center hit was painful. The Cold Fusion felt like the Bridgestone at 60 degrees or more. I am not sure that I gained any extra yards, but it definitely felt a lot better. Putting was significantly different. With the first two, “the greens were slow.” With Cold Fusion, the ball operated as if it was 60 degrees–so used normal stroke as opposed to the cold weather stroke.
In summary, Cold Fusion really works when temperature is lower. The difference probably narrows as temperature approaches 60 degrees.
Played Burning Ridge at Myrtle Beach 1/21/2011. At 0830 the temp was about 45 with 5/10 mph wind – definitely got my attention. After playing 2 holes and hitting the same shots a number of times w/the Penta, ProV1 and cold fusion, I finally just went w/the cold fusion. The extra yardage was good, but the way the cold fusion came off the clubface with less feel was the key.
I used the Cold Fusion back in November on a somewhat chilly day and it played great for me. I love the fact that it feels good to strike it in cold weather even on a missed hit that would hurt my hands with another ball. Curtis let me try a frozen one in his shop (took it right out of the freezer) and it felt really good when I hit it. I need to pick up a dozen of these puppies before going out this Sunday for the first time in weeks.