Which golf ball is right for you

I have heard from you with the question, ”which ball is best”? Have you found a ball you really like? Stay with it if you feel the results are to your liking.

What determines what you play with? The overwhelming reason some play a certain brand is cost. You perhaps go to the big box store and view all the balls and their price. They all look good, but is that ball right for you?

What is the difference between a $10 per dozen and a $45 per dozen? There is considerable difference. A less expensive ball is almost always a two piece variety. A surlyn cover and a hot core. These balls are OK for driving the ball but lend small value for you around the green as they spin very little. The expensive variety like the Pro V1 or Callaway Chrome are 3 or even 4 piece balls. It is a ball the pros play because it offers them an advantage.

The 3 or 4 piece has a soft urethane outer layer with a very hard inner layer and a very responsive core. On their drives off the tee, the driver is able by means of force pass through the outer layer and get into the hard mantle cover which produces little spin. A side note is that your driver face perhaps has no score lines on the sweet spot because spin becomes the enemy of the drive. Now your drive is out there, but you are faced with an iron shot into the green – a shot for which spin is wanted. What happens is the iron now hits with a glancing blow to the outside soft layer, which allows the ball to come into the green and stop.

But which ball is right for you? I will not recommend any particular brand. There are many good products. My recommendation is to check your swing speed. Your pro may have a device to measure the speed on your driver. Now let's say your swing speed is 90 mph or less. You will have an advantage if you go for a ball with less compression.

When you contact the ball with your driver, you want the ball to compress. It is at that micro second that the low compression ball springs back from oval to round which gives it extra boost. This ball will not have the best spin rate, but it will be better than that “hard rock” ball you can hardly wear out. Now if your swing speed is 95 mph plus, you may want to play a 3-piece ball as mentioned above. Your swing speed can compress that ball and give you the distance you desire.

How are balls tested by the USGA? If you look on the USGA website under ball testing you will find just what makes a ball conforming for USGA events. There is great detail, but in simple terms the ball can not go more than 320 yards at 120 mph swing speed. This test is done with an old 360 cc driver, though they admit the new 460 cc drivers will add yardage. Perhaps that explains the eye-popping yardage you see on the pro tour. In looking at the USGA website you will see just about every ball tested. For example Srixon has sent over 120 balls for testing. Bridgestone has more.