Once one of the highest-profile ball brands competing head-to-head with the Titleist Pro V1 juggernaut, Maxfli was scooped up by TaylorMade in 2003. But TaylorMade soon changed Maxfli's direction into more of a value brand, and eventually decided to bring all its golf balls under the TaylorMade banner. Maxfli was subsequently sold to retailer Dick's Sporting Goods.
Now Dick's is making a new push with Maxfli, revitalizing the brand and even getting the brand back on the pro tours with the new U-Series golf balls.
The Maxfli U-Series includes the U/4, U/4x, U/3 and U/2 balls. All have urethane covers (hence the "U" monickers) and the number in the name refers to the layers each ball has (i.e., the U/2 is a 2-layer ball).
The focus of the U-Series line is control and spin gap ratio. "Spin gap" refers to the difference in spin when a golf ball is hit off a driver compared to when it is hit off a wedge. Less spin off the driver can produce more distance; more spin off the wedges results in better control and stopping power on the green.
The U/4 and U/4x balls highlight the Maxfli U-Series as the "tour level" balls in the lineup. Of the two, the U/4 has the lower compression and softer mantle. The balls also differ in number and design of dimples. The result is that the U/4 launches higher off the driver; the U/4x has a lower, more penetrating trajectory on drives. The U/4 generates more spin off off wedges.
The U/3 produces a high driver launch angle, has a low compression, and features a mantle layer designed to reduce sidespin on off-center strikes. The U/2 is the lower-priced distance ball, also with a lower compression and designed to launch high.
Maxfli U-Series balls are priced as follows: U/4 and U/4x, $39.99; U/3, $24.99; U/2, $19.99. The balls can be purchased at retail locations of Dick's Sportings and Golf Galaxy, on those retailers' websites, and on Maxfli.com.
