Persimmon is very interesting wood... It is the only native ebony in the US. The sapwood is extremely wide and white while the heartwood turns coal black. Almost got enough to do a 2,000 square foot hardwood floor throughout the house. The charcoal heartwood streaks in white are very neat looking. I saw a golf clubhouse with a persimmon floor and it was spectacular! the connection to golf is the fact woods are usually made with persimmon because it wears like iron, weighs plenty, and works very well.
I tend to shy away from super-dense woods for smoking because virtually all are full of extractives, many with tendencies to irritate. The real reason is not that they have so much more oil, but rather the there is so much more "wood" in the wood that it leaves little room for extractives to hide, especially when the water leaves and the wood shrinks.
Of course mesquite is the exception...