Golf Tutorials

What Golf Ball Does Tiger Play?

By Spencer Lanoue
July 24, 2025

Chances are, if you're a golfer, you've asked the question: What golf ball does Tiger Woods actually play? It’s a natural curiosity. We see him execute shots with surgical precision and wonder what piece of equipment helps him do it. This article will give you the direct answer, but more importantly, we’ll dive into *why* he uses that specific ball and how you can apply Tiger's deliberate selection process to find the perfect golf ball for your own game.

What Golf Ball Does Tiger Woods Play? The Direct Answer

Tiger Woods currently plays the Bridgestone Tour B X golf ball. This has been his ball of choice since he signed with Bridgestone Golf in late 2016. He isn’t just playing a stock version with his name on it, he was an integral part of the research and development process for this ball, providing meticulous feedback to design a ball that meets the incredibly high demands of his game.

He trusts this ball for every shot, from a 320-yard powerfully driven "stinger" to the most delicate touch shots around the greens. His decision to play a Bridgestone ball wasn't just a sponsorship deal, it came after Nike stopped making golf equipment, leaving him as a free agent. He conducted blind, data-driven a ball-fitting and testing session using a launch monitor and identified that Bridgestone provided the optimal performance a golf player could ask for. For Tiger, performance is everything, and the Tour B X is the ball that won out. He’s since re-signed with them for a ball contract extension and continues to partner to develop new Bridgestone technologies and innovate within the game we all love. His golf glove of choice, if you're curious as well, has been a Nike Dri-Fit, and he wears FootJoy golf shoes on Tour today!

Why This Specific Ball? A Look Inside the Bridgestone Tour B X

Playing the same ball as Tiger won't magically give you his skill, but a good quality ball fit will better your play on the course. What is important to note is seeing how specific performance characteristics of this model gives you a behind-the-scenes look at what the world’s best players require from their equipment. The Tour B X is designed for golfers with very high swing speeds - typically over 105 mph - who demand a combination of explosive distance off the tee and pinpoint control around the green.

Let's break down its components like a golf coach would:

  • The Core (The Engine): The Tour B X features a "Gradational Compression Core." Think of it as a power plant. It’s softer in the center and gets progressively firmer towards its outer layers. When Tiger compresses the ball with his driver at over 120 mph, this design helps transfer that energy into incredible ball speed while reducing spin. Less spin with the driver means a more penetrating, less curve-prone trajectory, maximizing distance and accuracy.
  • The Cover (The Tires and Brakes): The ball has a proprietary "REACTIV iQ" urethane cover. Urethane is the gold standard material for premium golf professionals performance because it’s soft and "grippy." This is what gives Tiger that legendary short game control. When playing approach shots or pitches around the putting green, the soft cover allows the grooves on his wedges to grab the ball, generating the high spin rates needed to make it stop on a dime. This cover is what is also credited with it’s high launch. The REACTIV iQ chemistry allows the ball to rebound quickly on high-impact shots (like drives) which increases distance, but stays on the face longer for greenside touch shots to enhance spin on your swings and create exceptional feel at impact on wedges and your putter - a best-of-both-worlds approach.

Essentially, Tiger needs a ball that's a specialist in two very different situations: a low-spinning distance machine off the tee and a high-spinning control artist on approach shots. The Tour B X is engineered to deliver exactly that without compromise.

A Quick History of Tiger's Golf Balls

Tiger's choice of golf ball has evolved right alongside golf ball technology itself. His progression tells a story of the modern game, with the ball number he requests always a #1 with “TIGER" stamping for player identification.

The Wound Balata Days (Titleist)

In his amateur days and during his historic 1997 Masters win as a young professional golfer, Tiger used the Titleist Professional 90, a classic "wound" balata ball. These older balls had a liquid or solid rubber core wound tightly with rubber thread under a soft balata cover from a Titleist factory that were known for their buttery feel and extremely high spin rates a high launch, and were a product of the excellent golf equipment Titleist released. Tour players loved them for their workability and control around the greens, but they had the average player had faults with their durability (a single mis-hit wedge could scuff the cover) and they spun far more off the driver, making them less forgiving. Playing Bridgestone wasn’t always his ball of choice, he also frequently used brands like the Precept Tour Premium during an early win in his youth days at his very fist World golf Championship.

The Shift to Solid-Core (Nike Golf)

Tiger famously worked with NIKE GOLF to disrupt the industry when he switched to a solid-core prototype, the Nike Tour Accuracy, in 2000. This move was revolutionary in the golf industry. People were skeptical, but he went on to win the "Tiger Slam" (four consecutive major championships) with it, silencing any doubt that it was the ball of the future as major title winners followed with this ball for years. Over his years with Nike Inc, Tiger moved along a development process for this technology, his equipment lineup from the Nike Onze family that was known as the best performance enhancing from his team through the Nike ONE Platinum and Nike ONE Tour D models he played for the long term of his professional career for it’s feel for a golf prodigy of the sport we cherish.

The Move to Bridgestone

When Nike exited the hard goods space in 2016, Tiger was free to choose any major brands golf merchandise. He took a purely scientific research process. He tested balls from all the major brands on a launch monitor without knowing which ball was which - a blind test. The numbers a Titleist Pro or Callaway couldn’t provide: The Bridgestone ball consistently gave him the best performance data: the ball speed, spin characteristics, wind stability, and optimal playability he was looking for on a golf course. His transition to Bridgestone was driven by performance and innovation, a commitment that stands to this day through to his most recent comeback.

How to Choose Your Golf Ball Like Tiger (Without His Swing Speed)

Here’s the part every golfer should focus on. While you probably shouldn’t play the Tour B X yourself, you can and should adopt Tiger’s analytical process to finding a good golf ball. This coach's corner take will make your practice sessions and on course performance all the much more impactful.

Step 1: Be Brutally Honest About Your Game

Tiger knows exactly what he needs to compete. You need to know what you need to shoot lower golf scores playing our cherished game. Forget about brand names and what the players on the PGA TOUR use. Ask yourself:

  • What is my typical driver distance? This is the easiest way to estimate your swing speed. If you hit it under 240 yards, a high-compression tour golf ball like Tiger Woods’ will likely rob you of distance and feel like a rock. If you're over 270 yards, then you're truly getting to a level that can properly compress a tour ball.
  • What’s my most common miss? If you fight a slice, a lower-spinning, 2-piece distance ball might a perfect new companion to help straighten your ball flight in the air on the practice green. A low spinning ball means on all your shots, there’s inherently less spin - so for any shots offline there will be less lateral spinning as well. If you have a solid flight but struggle to get an elevated touch get your chips to stop, a softer ball with a urethane cover is for your game.

Step 2: Understand the "Menu" of Golf Balls

Think of golf balls in three main categories:

  1. 2-Piece / Distance Balls: These have a large core and a firm cover (often Surlyn or ionomer). They are designed to spin less and fly farther, appealing to beginners or golfers who put up big scores that prioritize distance and durability. Examples are the Titleist Velocity or Srixon Soft Feel.
  2. 3-Piece / All-Around Balls: They add a mantle layer between the core and cover. This gives them a softer feel and more spin on approach shots compared to 2-piece balls, offering a balanced performance. Examples include the Titleist Tour Soft or Callaway ERC Soft that golf. balls Bridgestone doens t compete against.
  3. Multi-Layer / Tour Performance Balls: These are the 4 or 5-piece balls (or advanced 3-piece models with urethane covers) like Tiger Woods Bridgestone, the regular Titleist Pro v1 or Callaway Chrome Soft golf ball. They offer the most greenside spin and control due to their very similar in technology, featuring soft urethane covers for your game but absolutely require higher switch-pro swing speeds to deliver their full potential every time it comes off the tee.

Step 3: Test on The Course - from the Green Back to the Tee

The single best piece of advice a golf coach will always say after any golf lessons or game analysis: Don't just try a new golf ball on the driving range. Test it where all great players are made which matter, on the course. Here’s a simple method to get the ball you test in the air correctly:

  1. Get three different sleeves of balls that realistically match your profile from Step 1-2.
  2. Start at the chipping green. See how they feel. Notice which one checks up with some spin and which runs out low from your swing? Is that high launch to get in the air quickly, great distance, and have a good spin balance?
  3. Hit some putts from different distances on the practice putting green. Go with the other golf players and get some real practice in. Sound and feel matters here and can inspire a more confident feel with your putter.
  4. Then hit some real golf shots. Take them to the course for some real play. Hit some short irons and take note which one of these great balls on Bridgestone's catalog seem to hold the green better for your touch. Is your shot apex higher than normal, or a bit lower? Compare each shot for several rounds. Tiger himself took many practice months to pick a ball that was best.
  5. Finally, hit them off the tee. Is one longer? Does one feel better? Is one dramatically straighter on your mishits?

After this process, a clear winner usually emerges. Once you find it, commit to it. Playing a single, consistent model of ball is one of the easiest ways to build consistency in your good golf game for your next round on tour in a World Gold Championship one day, you never know! There is much more than what Woods does just playing golf these days however, like hosting "Tiger Jam Presented by DraftKings" out on the PGA Tour to continue driving for excellence and innovation within the community we all care about and raising money to make it better.

Final Thoughts

What golf ball does Tiger Woods play? What do all his fellow former Masters Champions say? Now you can feel well informed in saying, the world gets to benefit from the amazing quality a Bridgestone TOUR B golf ball can create more of their own "golf memories" on the golf that Woods cherishes along with all of the other professionals a part of team Bridgestone such as Jason Day. Choosing this ball is the result of thousands of hours of swing in the gym, on the course, on and an obsessive drive to optimize absolutely every variable in their career. The biggest takeaway for your amateur golf career from this whole research process, is not that we should run to to buy the same gear as what Woods plays every round just to play golf, but the takeaway for us amateur golfers is to approach selecting golf balls is something we want to do for the long term for optimal results in game improvement. What does it for us? For me, what matters is the ball the gives me the optimal launch and spin control on for better game play. We should want to know our game a little better from this so you too have a golf career that is full of fond memories on the course.

Matching your style to your tools a major step toward playing smarter golf. With our Caddie AI, you can gain confidence in these adjustments. We'll assist you in breaking down hole strategies, selecting the best clubs, and even help you when you’re facing a tough lie that demands a very specific shot - just snap a photo to learn how to hit a shot that works for the ball you play. We get you what you need to play like a professional.

Spencer has been playing golf since he was a kid and has spent a lifetime chasing improvement. With over a decade of experience building successful tech products, he combined his love for golf and startups to create Caddie AI - the world's best AI golf app. Giving everyone an expert level coach in your pocket, available 24/7. His mission is simple: make world-class golf advice accessible to everyone, anytime.

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