I agree with your friend on the Champions Tour. The Balls are getting straighter. But why? Will the Ball makers tell us? If they do, then what do you think they'd say?
A wild guess from me:
They manipulate the weight distribution inside the ball so that its MOI increases: That would be a lighter core and more weight towards the surface. For a given spin rate this will give the ball more spin energy when it lands on the green. So that it can handle more turf friction before it stops spinning.
With this increased spin endurance in place the ball doesn't need to land as steep as before to have drop and stop performance on the green.
And when the ball needs less of a spin towards the sky - drop dead air flight they can reduce the air drag when the ball is in the air. And when they reduce the air drag the ball goes straighter and it doesn't spin towards heaven when you play into the wind.
Threaded Mode
