Many good brands out there to choose from, but I have a story to tell.
Talking to a guy I met, does commercial. He has a Cub ZTR (non comm.)he started out with, then got an X Mark. I asked him how they compare. He told me how he had both on the trailer, headed to a job. The trailer came loose at 55 ..dug into the asphalt, breaking the chains loose and all. Next thing he sees is the Cub flying over the cab of the truck, landing on the road 20 ft in front of him as he screeched to a halt.

After he re-welded part of the front axle, it was as good as new. He still uses both. He added the X Mark will run circles around the Cub ...speed and power just not the same, but after that display of toughness, he's not about to give up the Cub.

Interesting question. I just traded in my Simplicity Champion ZTR for a new Simplicity Broadmoor. No doubt you can cut more quickly with the ZTR but you can not compare the quality of the cut and the striping the Broadmoor provides. I cut about an acre and find the Broadmoor requires about an additional 20 minutes. One other point is the potential damage done to the turf with the ZTR. I also looked at the Deere in the same price range as the Broadmoor. IMHO the quality of the Broadmoor and the ease of deck removal easily exceeds that of the Deere. Good luck!