There are many different varieties of zoysias with different textures which influences playability. Also, like Don mentioned, how it is cultivated will influence playability. Labeling them all the same way isn't telling the story accurately. Overall, it's an excellent grass for the transition zone in terms of playability and survivabilty. Tends to be more expensive at installation, but the investment will save on fertilizer, chemicals, water (compared to cool season grasses), winter kill (compared to Bermuda), and mowing depending on circumstances.
Personally I like the playability of ryegrass even in a non-overseeded situation. It's versatile in terms of being able to mow it tight for fairways or tall for rough. Unlike zoysia, the different varieties don't vary much in their playability, so it's okay to lump them all together, that's perennial ryegrass and not annual ryegrass. In a non overseed situation it's best suited for dry cool climates where disease stress is low, it likes water, so more drought tolerant grasses like fine fescue are considered. It's wear tolerance is very good. How it is cultivated will influence its playability as well.
Overall, labeling grasses one way or another in relation to playability and architecture depends on a lot of things. I encourage non turf nerds to be careful in assessing their value and try to understand the variables as much as possible.