3 Up Golf Ball Review – The 3F12

The new 3F12 by 3 UP Golf has been receiving quite a bit of attention lately and to be honest we were skeptical off all the praise that seemed to be going there way.  That was however, until we got these little marvels in our hands.  Now good luck getting them back!

3 Up Golf Ball Review – The 3F12

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Before we dive into the performance we experienced with the 3F12 let’s first tell you more about the ball itself.

According to 3 Up Golf, the 3F12 is manufactured as a “three piece cast urethane” golf ball which is what provides it’s incredibly soft feel.  The ball conforms to all USGA rules and the company itself is fairly new, founded just last year in 2012.

Visit 3 Up Golf’s website for more information on how the 3F12 is made.

Distance

A ball that feels this soft, should not be travelling this long!  The 3F12 displayed excellent compression in a wide range of temperatures and most of our staff who tested the 3F12 gained anywhere from 10 – 15 yards in total driving distance.  On long shots you can really feel the action coming from the “performance core.”  Simply put, the 3F12 just seems to jump off the club face.

It’s also worth mentioning that the 3F12 sounds outstanding during sweet spot strikes with the driver.  The sturdy “ping” off the club provides the audio feedback you would expect from a ball with this kind of distance potential.

Spin

3 Up first sparked our interest with their claim that the 3F12 provided “massive spin characteristics” with high lofted irons and wedges.  After putting literally hundreds of 7, 8, 9 iron, and wedge shots down range, we’re almost ready to call that an understatement.  The 3F12 left us feeling like pros with how well they held the green.

Shots of 100 yards in and less were where we found the 3F12 really excelled.  The extreme soft feel provided by the 3F12 did wonders for confidence building and had us shooting for the pin every time.

Resiliency

Damage from a direct cart path strike with a driver from the tee.

Given the excellently soft, responsive feel of the 3 UP 3F12’s, we were, quite frankly, shocked at the overall resiliency of the ball (and trust us when we say we put these 3 Up golf balls through the paces).  The 3F12 stood up well to everything from “skulled” iron shots to direct contact with a cart path from a long drive off the tee.  Hours of testing by our entire team resulted in only one slightly damaged cover (pictured here to the right), and the ball was still generally playable at that.

Further proof of the 3F12’s resiliency is the fact that quite a few of us are still playing the same balls after over a half dozen rounds with nothing more than a few grass stains to show for it.

Customer Service

Make no mistake, 3 Up Golf is nowhere near the size of a company like Callaway, with its 2300 employees worldwide.  In fact, 3 Up couldn’t be more different (and that’s a good thing).  Place an order on their website or pick up the phone and chances are you’ll be speaking directly with Rob Zimmerman, the company’s owner.  Speaking with Rob we felt the true sense of pride and care he takes in developing and sharing his product.  Now that’s the way customer service should be!

Don’t believe us?  Try it for yourself.  Simply call the company’s Nashua, NH headquarters at (603) 521-5279 and ask for Rob.

Oh, and tell him we said hi while you’re at it.

Price

At $39.99 per dozen the 3F12 is not cheap, but given the aforementioned performance and resilience, we feel that it’s a solid value at that price.  Furthermore, no less than half of our staff have already traded in their $54 per dozen Titleist Pro v1’s for the 3F12, so if you’re like them you’ll actually be saving money with the 3F12.

Update: Golficity Premium Members Can Now Receive 15% Off All 3 Up Golf Products.

Overall

If it sounds like we’re raving about the 3F12 by 3 Up Golf, that’s because we are. Simply put, 3 Up seems to have found a magic combination that provides second to none distance and accuracy off the tee, outstanding spin with lofted irons, an unprecedented soft feel, and amazing overall resilience.

We’re all so used to giving up feel for distance or vise-versa that naturally you would think that something has to give, but hats off to the guys and gals over at 3 Up who broke that mold and were unwilling to compromise.

Let’s put it this way, these 3 Up golf balls have performed so well for us that playing partners have actually accused us of using an “illegal ball.”  We hate to burst their bubble, but this time they’ll have to blame loosing on something else.  The 3F12 has been approved as conforming to all USGA rules.

If all of that is not enough reason to give the 3 Up Golf a try, how about this…

Rob Zimmerman, the owner of 3 Up Golf, has pledged to donate $3 of every dozen golf balls sold to a golf charity.

PGA Show 2013: Learn about 3 Up Golf Balls

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A golf ball that outperforms everything we’ve tested, is second to none customer service, and comes from company that gives back to charity?  Consider us sold.

The 3F12 is currently only available for purchase through the 3 Up Golf website but we’re hoping to see them in pro shops and golf stores soon.

Update

Listen in to episode 19 of The Golf Podcast as we talk to 3 Up Golf owner and founder, Rob Zimmerman: