Nobody likes spending a fortune on balls, especially average players like us who lose 1-2 (or more) per round. To solve this, there have been a number of direct-to-consumer brands that have come out, their goal being to provide good products for a cheaper price.
One of the most popular brands has been Vice. The Pro Air model has replaced the previous Pro Soft, and is their lowest compression “premium” ball.
I’ve been a fan of the previous Vice balls, so I was excited to try the Pro Air. I used it for 13 rounds of golf to fully test it out and see who it might be good for. We’ll get into everything I noticed and whether or not it’s going into my bag.
You can also see our favorite balls for average golfers HERE.
The Tech
The Pro series has three models: the Vice Pro, Pro Plus, and Pro Air. All of them are considered “premium” balls in that they spin less off the tee and more around the greens.
The Pro Air is the softest model (75 compression) and is built for people with slower swing speeds (under 95 MPH, ideally). You could also game it if you really like softer balls.
It’s a 3 piece ball with a Urethane cover, which is what most low-mid handicaps would be looking for. These two things give a softer feel while increasing spin around the greens.
Check out the other Vice balls HERE.
The Feel
Since the Pro Air has a Urethane cover and a mid compression rating, it’ll have a softer feel off the tee and around the green. For me, it’s right in the sweet spot, not too firm and not too soft.
Off the putter, the Pro Air feels slow and soft. It gives a somewhat muted sound, which I prefer. Some people have other preferences though.
The feel pretty much translates to the wedges too. You don’t get the “clicky” sound that you’d get from a firmer ball. If you have a low-mid swing speed (under 95 MPH), I think you’d like how the Pro Air feels (unless you like a firmer feel).
If I had to compare the feel to a different ball, I’d say it’s very similar to the Titleist AVX.
The Quality
The main knock I’ve had with Vice (and other DTC balls) is the quality of the cover. When Vice first came out, it was a big problem. They’ve gotten better over the years, but they still aren’t the best.
Most of the DTC balls I’ve tried have performed very well. They’re also cheaper, which is a bonus. That said, the cover will likely get scratced up faster than one of the major brands.
The picture above is what the Pro Air looked like after hitting the cart path. You could probably still use it, but I don’t think the performance would be 100%.
If you took out hitting the path, you wouldn’t get this much damage from normal use. It did wear down faster than other balls, but considering the price, I still think it’s pretty solid.
The Long Game
With a ball like this, we’re looking at how it performs for slow to average swing speeds. Vice says the Pro Air is the lowest spinning ball in the Pro series, and is built for more height and distance.
In my experience, spin rates off the tee were pretty average for this type of ball. The ball flight was also pretty high, especially with irons and wedges.
This could be beneficial if you need a bit more height. If you’re like me and already hit the ball pretty high, you’ll likely lose some distance.
Overall, I liked how the Pro Air felt off the tee. I liked the ball flight off the fairway, especially with the longer clubs. I liked how many fairways and greens I hit.
The main problem I had was with distance. It was noticeably shorter than the ball I usually play. I hit a lot of shots that were a club too short, even with solid contact.
My swing speed is somewhere around 100 MPH, which is on the higher end of what’s recommended for the Pro Air. You might get different results if your swing speed is on the lower end, but for me, it was very clear that distance was an issue.
The Short Game
With a tour-value ball, the main thing to look at is how responsive it is around the green. How much bite does it have once it hits the green? Does it drop and stop or does it run out?
Compared to the other Pro series balls, the Pro Air is the lowest spinning. That said, it spins a lot more than the Vice Drive and Tour balls.
With the slightly lower compression, I really liked how the Pro Air felt around the green. I also liked how it performed in general.
I wasn’t able to get as much spin as I’d get with a premium Titleist ball, but it was pretty good, especially with full shots.
Since the ball flies high, it’s going to land soft, which somewhat makes up for the lower spin. I rarely got the ball to land and spin back, but it consistently landed and stopped within 5 yards.
As for shorter chip shots, the lower spin rates were more noticeable. Part of the reason is my ability, but it did run out more than the premium options you’ve probably used.
Should You Use The Pro Air?
After using the Pro Air for 13+ rounds of golf, I feel like I have a pretty good feel for what it offers and who should consider using it.
What I like the most about it is the price and how it feels. Compared to similar balls from Titleist, Taylormade, and Callaway, you can pick these up for way less.
In saying that, it’s not a ball I’d play myself. I liked how the ball performed around (and on) the green, but when it comes to distance, it was too short.
I don’t know if it’ll be the same for you, but if your swing speed is between 95-105 MPH, you’ll likely get a lot more distance with something else.
For example, if I wanted more distance, I could use the Vice Tour. If I wanted more distance and spin, I could use the Vice Pro.
However, I still think it’s worth trying the Pro Air if:
- You have a swing speed below 90 MPH
- You like a softer feeling golf ball
- You don’t need max spin around the green
Let’s hear from you. Have you used the Pro Air, and if so, did you get similar results to me? Let me know in the comments section below.
Cheapest Place We Could Find: On Amazon
Other Balls To Consider
In my experience, the Pro Air is a ball that’s for a very specific type of golfer. There are a lot of options to pick from, some of which could be a lot better for you. If you want to see some of our favorites, check out one of the articles below:
Vice Pro Air Specs
| Handicap | Low-Mid |
| Layers | 3 |
| Feel | Soft |
| Swing Speed | Under 95 MPH |
| Compression | 75 |
| Spin | Driver: Low Wedge: High |
| Cover | Urethane |
| Company Website | Vice |
