2026 Wilson Staff Model X vs. Titleist Pro V1x - A Comparative Golf Ball Review

Time for the big reveal! The Mystery Golf Ball X is the new 2026 Wilson Staff Model X golf ball. You can read all the tech specs on the ball here.

I was so impressed with how the new Wilson Staff Model X performed out on the course that I had to take it indoors to get performance numbers on TrackMan.  And when I compared it to a juggernaut ball in the industry, the Titleist Pro V1x - this new Wilson Staff Model X outperformed Pro V1x in areas and in ways that was pretty shocking.

I’m going to share all the comparative performance data and numbers I got on Trackman.  And I’m going back o brass tacks every performance category that matters in a golf ball.

We're going to cover and bottom line head-to-head performance in five areas: ball speed and distance, launch and height, spin and descent, consistency and dispersion, and feel.  In each of these areas I'll give you the numbers for driver, 6-iron, and pitching wedge performance.  Only the feel category (and conclusion) will be narrative as opposed to numbers driven.  And as a point of reference my 6-iron swing speed is about 85 mph, and my driver swing speed is about 98 mph.

BALL SPEED and DISTANCE 

Driver

2026 Wilson Staff Model X driver ball speed was 2.5 mph (average) faster than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X driver carry was 6.9 yards (average) longer than Pro V1x.

Iron

2026 Wilson Staff Model X 6-iron ball speed was 1.7 mph (average) faster than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X 6-iron carry was 3.5 yards (average) longer than Pro V1x.

Wedge

2026 Wilson Staff Model X wedge speed was 1.5 mph (average) faster than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X wedge carry was 3.7 yards (average) longer than Pro V1x. 

LAUNCH and HEIGHT

Driver 

2026 Wilson Staff Model X driver launch was 0.4 degrees (average) higher than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X driver peak height was 1.4 yards (average) higher than Pro V1x.

Iron

2026 Wilson Staff Model X 6-iron launch was 0.2 degrees (average) higher than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X 6-iron peak height was 0.5 yards (average) higher than Pro V1x.

Wedge

2026 Wilson Staff Model X wedge launch was 0.8 degrees (average) higher than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X wedge peak height was 0.4 yards (average) higher than Pro V1x.

SPIN and DESCENT

Driver

2026 Wilson Staff Model X driver spin was 65+ RPM (average) higher than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X driver descent was 0.7 degrees (average) steeper than Pro V1x.

Iron

2026 Wilson Staff Model X 6-iron spin was 275+ RPM (average) higher than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X 6-iron descent was 0.8 degrees (average) steeper than Pro V1x.

Wedge

2026 Wilson Staff Model X wedge spin was 50+ RPM (average) lower than Pro V1x.  Staff Model X wedge descent was 1.0 degrees (average) steeper than Pro V1x.

CONSISTENCY and DISPERSION 

2026 Wilson Staff Model X has better consistency in some areas (like ball speed and launch angle for example), while Pro V1x had better consistency in other areas (like spin rate for example).  Overall Staff Model X had better consistency in more of the data categories.

Driver

2026 Wilson Staff Model X driver dispersion was 7+ yards (average) tighter landing area than Pro V1x.

Iron

2026 Wilson Staff Model X 6-iron dispersion was 1.5+ yards (average) tighter landing area than Pro V1x.

Wedge

2026 Wilson Staff Model X wedge dispersion was 6.0+ feet (average) tighter landing area than Pro V1x.

FEEL

There was no obvious difference in feel with driver between 2026 Wilson Staff Model X and Pro V1x.  Firm, fast, strong spring with both balls.  I'd say pretty much identical feel.  If I had to obsess about a feel difference I'd say Staff Model X feels a little more active off the face with driver.

With both 6-iron and PW feel differences between 2026 Wilson Staff Model X and Pro V1x were a bit more obvious.  With both balls there's a firm, dense feeling and muted click at impact.  But Staff Model X gave me just a little softer dense feel with 6-iron and PW.  It's almost like Staff Model X makes a forged iron feel more forged.

And with my putter both 2026 Wilson Staff Model X and Pro V1x deliver a firm feeling with a crisp click at impact.  But Staff Model X has a tad softer feel and sound.  It's not significantly softer but it's noticeable.

CONCLUSION

As I mentioned a few days ago on X and Instagram the 2026 Wilson Staff Model X is shockingly good and now you know exactly why.  I experienced clear and definite advantages in greater driver ball speed and carry.  And while not as dramatic Staff Model X also delivered better launch and descent with both my 6-iron and PW.  And then of course there was that across the board tighter dispersion with Staff Model X with my driver, 6-iron, and wedge.

In many categories (from a statistically significant numerical perspective) it's nearly impossible to distinguish between 2026 Wilson Staff Model X and Pro V1x.  And as good a ball as Pro V1x is that speaks volumes to how good a ball Staff Model X is as well.  When we think of golf balls we probably go to Bridgestone, Callaway, Srixon, TaylorMade, and Titleist.  The Big 5 of golf balls.  The overall performance of this new Wilson Staff Model X however changes the landscape and really makes it now The Big 6 of golf balls.

Interestingly I told a friend of mine about how 2026 Wilson Staff Model X performed head-to-head against the Pro V1x.  And he told me he's definitely going to check it out... but that he will stick with his Bridgestone balls when he plays tournaments.  I asked him why?  And he said he's comfortable with Bridgestone and he knows what he's getting with that ball.

And I found his answer illuminating because that's probably going to be one of the things Staff Model X has to battle.  There are some players out there who are perfectly happy with their current golf balls, and in a sense don't care if there's a ball out there than can outperform the one they're playing.  It's like some of us who don't want to upgrade to new iOS systems or prefer not to replace that comfy office chair we've used for a long time.  They work for us.  And I get that.

However for players who aren't completely satisfied with their golf ball performance or those of you who like to tinker, 2026 Wilson Staff Model X performance is simply too good to overlook.  You can expect a lot of players and a lot of golf review sites to be telling you the exact same things this year I've shared with you in this review.  Staff Model X is going toe-to-toe with the best golf balls in the game.  And the leaderboard of best balls in the game just got more crowded.