50 Words or Less
The Wilson DUO Soft+ is the latest version of Wilson’s trend-setting super soft golf ball. Softest ball in golf. Strong ball speed for the recreational player. Lower spin throughout the bag.
Introduction
If you’re looking back at the biggest trend in golf balls in the last five years, it wasn’t started by Titleist or Bridgestone or Callaway, it came from Wilson. Wilson’s original DUO set off a race to see who could create a ball that felt incredibly soft but still performed well in all facets of the game. With the DUO Soft+, Wilson continues to push the envelope for both feel and performance.
Feel
Nothing is softer than the Wilson DUO Soft+ golf ball. With a compression rating of just 35, the DUO Soft+ feels like a marshmallow on the club face – if you can feel it at all. There were times when I hit wedge shots and genuinely wasn’t sure if I had made contact. With the driver, it’s soft and incredibly quiet.
On the green, where many players love the DUO the most, I found the DUO Soft+ maintains the uber soft feel it’s known for. With a milled putter, it creates a barely-audible “thud”. I imagine that with a soft insert, the DUO Soft+ might not make a sound at all.
Short Game
Wedge spin is the one area where the DUO Soft+, a two-piece ball without a urethane cover, tends to come up short. I found that on a variety of wedge shots, it spun 10-15% less than a tour ball. The extent to which that will affect your game depends on your short game style and the courses you play. On slower greens, that spin gap may be meaningless. On glassy putting surfaces, you’ll probably want every RPM to maintain control of your ball.
It’s also worth stating again that I’m a fairly low spin player, and your results may vary.
Long Game
Oftentimes it’s hard to know what an OEM is trying to emphasize with a given product. That’s not the case with the DUO Soft+: the words “softest and longest” are everywhere. Wilson claims that their Velociticor technology makes the DUO Soft+ longer. Specifically, their testing with a 90 MPH driver swing showed “initial velocity of the ball increased by two miles per hour.”
With my swing speed typically between 100 and 105 MPH, I found the DUO Soft+ to be decent in terms of ball speed but not exceptional. I didn’t feel that I was losing anything with this ball, but I didn’t see anything to indicate ball speed gains either. If your swing speed is closer to 90 MPH and you’ve tested the DUO Soft+, please post a comment letting us know if you gained any ball speed.
Another element of long distance is low spin, and the DUO Soft+ delivers there. The low spin that the DUO Soft+ produces off the driver was helpful in creating a strong, straight ball flight with plenty of roll out. With my irons, the DUO Soft+ spun several hundred RPM less than a tour ball, which added a little distance and some roll out. As a low spin player, that’s not ideal for me, but higher spin players may welcome the stronger ball flight.
Conclusion
At only $19.99 per dozen, the Wilson DUO Soft+ golf ball provides a unique feel and a solid value. For the player who can admit that their driver swing speed is in that 90 MPH range, the DUO Soft+ may also help them add some pop to their tee shots.
He founded Plugged In Golf in 2013 with the goal of helping all golfers play better and enjoy the game more.
Matt lives in the northwest suburbs of Chicago with his wife and two daughters.
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32 Comments
proven – soft is slow
Proven? By whom?
“Proven” by another site. They push this narrative constantly. BUT for low and moderate swing speed players, that finding doesn’t seem to bear out because the Wilson Soft line has many avid fans As did the original Noodle and the original Precept Lady.
I use the wilson zip ball and I luv it..it is a soft ball
“PROVEN” by “WHO”? That ‘other’ site, which compares balls hit at a 105 MPH driver speed? If that’s you, congrats (& I’m envious!). If not, test balls yourself. I’m an 85 MPH driver swing speed player who has lost NOTHING (& possibly gained a little) playing the Chrome Soft (yup, another ball that ‘other’ site completely panned).
Mike,
I don’t know that I’ve ever done this before, but I’m replying simply to applaud this comment. Congratulations on ignoring the click bait and making your own decisions about what works for your game.
-Matt
I bought a dozen..At first I didn’t notice much of a difference..the 2nd round was the telling story..My drives were almost 10. Yards longer and my putts were truer
The “study” really panned the Chrome Soft and also basically said slow is soft and soft is slow which, initially I thought seemed odd but not being a math guy I decided to do my own experiment last year and played alternate soft ( super soft, Wilson Fifty, Wilson Duo etc ) and hard ( Pro V, Srixon Z Star and TP5 ) same course, same gear same me and guess what? For me soft flew just as far while the premiums did work better on short game – likely due to cover – so for me the whole slow is soft was nonsense.
I’ve played the Wilson Duo for the past few years as my cold weather ball. 2 thumbs up. My warm weather driver swing speed is 105 +, but in cold weather I am bundled up and swinging slower.
Lol, you know what he’s referring to. Everybody in the industry knows without a doubt. It was a very elaborate test the shook alot of people up and is hard to dispute honestly.
I was hoping the reference was to something more meaningful than that other site.
I don’t agree with their conclusions or the idea that their work is “hard to dispute”.
I’m going to leave it at that as I don’t wish to get caught up in bickering with other sites. Let’s keep the comments to this review, your experience with this ball, etc. Comments about other sites won’t be published any more purely to avoid tribal BS.
Have a great weekend, everyone.
-Matt
Yes, an “elaborate” test that looked pretty conclusive…if you’re swinging at >100 MPH.
I think even that’s a little too generous.
Again, what’s with the “soft is slow BS?” FOR WHO? For Tiger, probably yeah. For sub-90 swing speed it’s a whole different game.
(golf clap)
I’m age 78 but still shoot around the mid 80s. I love this ball and get good distance and control
thanks for the input, I’m in the same boat
Cuts and scratches easily
I played the Duo Soft not the plus and I cracked 2 balls in the same dozen. I sent Wilson an e-mail explaining the issue, and another one when I didn’t receive an answer. I still have not received any answer and offered to even send them the cracked ball. Certainly CS is not their strong point. To that I will add, I still use their Professional ball and really like it.
i live in ct & play thru the entire winter. im 66 yrs old & in that 90-100 mph category. for years now i’ve been huge fan & committed to the maxfli softfli balls with their 35 compression. they are long, like butter off driver, fairway woods, irons, putter and around the greens. bought some wilson duo softs online clearance that had 29 compression & prior to these new softs & saw little no difference vs maxfli’s.
but the home run was & per the post above about wilson zips & lovin them i tried those & would play them over the 2 balls i mentioned. they are long, soft, all you could want. the grand slam is i found them in a walmart store here in ct, 2 dozen cellophane wrapped package for $19.99 or $10.00 per dozen. i’m a 10 handicap & not a hacker so i know what i’m looking for.
Played the low compression Wilson ball 3 ball pack. I’m 78 yrs. old, with a 90 swing speed. I was very pleased with my distance. The ball did every well except float.
Crazy reason, I know, but the graphics on this ball cheapen the look. I just can’t overlook that.
I used to play Srixon Q-Star but then switched to the Wilson duo 29-compression ball as temps dropped. It’s buttery soft and I got addicted to the ultra soft feel. As temps warmed, I pulled out a higher compression ball and did not like the clicky feel. Wilson duo 29-compression is my go-to now. And I have a slower swing speed just below 90. I hit it far for my 65-year-old body and find that I can control it better. As for spin, I don’t need spin since I, like most amateurs, am usually short of the pin anyway.
I’m a big fan of doing my own testing and using anyone else’s opinion as just a data point. My driver swing speed is 82-90 depending on back. I love any soft ball over the harder clicker balls. Last year played Callaway supersoft as my bad back ball and pro1x and Bridgestone b rx as my good back ball. The harder balls had minor distance or dispersion advantage. I don’t lose many so they get a lot of play. Harder balls looked a little better after play. This year but the wilson duo soft and Srixon soft feel in and dropped the harder balls. So far I’m liking the duo the best, very straight, longer and better spin then the other two.
I migrated from Chromesoft to Duo a couple years ago. At 60 i have a borderline 100 mph swing. In the real world i keep up with younger guys that play better balls. When i do use a titleist it will back up with a wedge, the Duo won’t, but i don’t need it to. I only need it to be consistent. A+
I’m 70 years old, 6’3″, 230 lbs and still have a very fast swing which requires a stiff shaft. I started using the Duo about 5 years ago. I can’t speak to the details of the ball but when I started using it my AVG score dropped into the low to mid 80’s 5 to 7 strokes a round. That all happened because I’m in the fairway a lot more often because with this ball I’m straighter off the tee. My iron game was always decent and still is. My only struggle was keeping the ball on the fairway off the tee. That was the biggest change and I’d keep using this ball, now the Duo Soft+, even if they cost $100.00 dollars a dozen. Consistency gives me the confidence and I get that with this ball.
I have played the Duo compression 29 for the past 4 years in lower temperature in the mornings here in Az and like the ball a lot, but having a hard time finding this ball. Will try the new version, hope it works.
I like two things about this ball, first it is reliable. With a good swing it does what I expect it to do. Second I do like it off the putter real well. For me I like the feel of it when putting. Off the tee like most balls out there if I put the right swing on it it goes just fine and I usually don’t miss many fairways nor do I with a ProV1. Sure more spin close in would be great but if struck right it behaves reasonably. Being I putt on every hole it’s advantage to me is the confidence I get from it.
OK, I’ve played this ball and consider it a great value yet my ss is around 110 mph. My Drives are around the 300 yards. Based on this information what ball would you recommend playing? Thank you!
William,
Swing speed is only one factor to consider in ball fitting. I would suggest going through a ball fitting with Bridgestone or buying a sleeve of a few different types to see what you like for feel and all around performance.
-Matt
I am a 71 year old recreational player who can break 90 from the senior tees on most average length par 72 courses. I do know my swing speed ,but it is probably under 90 mph. The longest club in my bag is a 3 hybrid which I will hit on average 175 to 190 yards ,but I can hit every fairway playing a slight fade off the tee.
When I resumed playing in 2010 the first ball I played was the elite 50 compression, then later on the 40 compression.
Both are good balls. I have tried other balls in the years since ,but the Duo and now the soft + is the only ball I hit that doesn’t feel like I am hitting a brick.
Tried this ball, currently a 4 handicap, 65 years old with a 94mph swing speed, I absolutely love this ball its an inexpensive option to the pro V model. This ball reacts with superior spin and distance, exceptional control will definitely purchase more.