Do Golf Balls Make A Difference? Does It Matter For Your Game?

The golf ball is one of the most talked-about pieces of equipment in golf. In a sport where literally everything possible seemingly changes from one shot to the next, the ball is the one constant. It is also the place where perhaps the most has evolved and the most advances have been made from previous eras. So this begs the question, do golf balls make a difference, and does it matter which one you play?

There is a reason that there has been an ongoing conversation in golf circles about monitoring golf ball technology.

 Let’s take a look at how it matters, why and when it matters less, and what you can expect to change between different quality and styles of golf balls on the market today.

How Are Golf Balls Different?

A golf ball by definition has to be round and of a uniform, symmetrical shape and a specific size and weight. It also has to perform within certain measurable limits. But within these rules, manufacturers have found many ways to try to tweak, customize, and tailor all kinds of variations to fit various needs.

Dimples

One thing that manufacturers play around with are the dimples on a golf ball. The only rule is that the dimples have to be symmetrically distributed. Most golf balls will have 300-to-500 dimples on them (a ProV1 has 388). The dimples can also mostly be round or something similar but with a slight geometric edge to it.

Dimples help create spin and drag and lift - all of which are important, but amongst modern golf balls there are other factors that change the performance of the ball far more than the dimple pattern.

Cover

By far the most important aspect and dividing line in the modern golf ball is the cover material. As a golfer you basically have a choice, and that is to play or not to play a urethane-covered golf ball. The video above explains the two major cover materials used in golf balls.

Urethane-covered golf balls are also referred to sometimes as soft-covered golf balls (not to be confused with soft-core or low-compression golf balls). They cost more and wear out faster. So why are they considered premium balls and played by virtually every competitive player? For one reason: spin. There’s just nothing that can perform into and around the greens like a soft-covered, urethane golf ball when it comes to needing as many options as possible around the greens, and getting iron shots to stop on the green.

There are many other options of materials for golf ball covers, but the most common alternative is the “surlyn” covered distance ball. This material is harder and more durable, but the ball will have a tendency to roll out a lot on approach shots and chip shots.

Compression

After the cover, the compression is the next most noticeable thing for a player when changing between golf balls.

Most golfers have experienced the feeling of hitting “range rocks” as opposed to a premium ball like a Callaway Chrome Soft or ProV1. Compression, however, can be a little bit misleading - as these balls are noticeably softer than, say, most range balls, but are still considered high compression golf balls.

Most of the tour-level golf balls used by high swing speed players are high compression balls. Meaning the ball is “harder” so it does not compress as easily when struck. Most manufacturers have an “X” ball in their tour lineup (such as a Chrome Soft X, TP5 X or ProV1 X) and this premium ball is a slightly higher compression golf ball than the other namesake.

Low compression or soft distance balls are GENERALLY marketed to lower swing speed players. The reality is that a ball will compress with any good strike, even as low as 60 mph, but players want a certain feel (which is also subjective and has to do with the club, temperature, and other factors as well). 

All this said, it’s not impossible for an elite player to match up well with a softer golf ball, despite the fact that they are generally favored by low swing speed players. Generally speaking, a softer ball will spin less than a harder premium golf ball or its X counterpart. With a slower swing speed, a soft ball might produce a percentage or two more MPH in ball speed, whereas the firmer ball is going to allow the player to control spin more, generally.

Layers

Most premium golf balls are going to be 3, 4, or in the case of the TaylorMade TP5/x series, 5 layers. These layers help give the golf ball a different reactivity at different swing speeds, making them useful not only for a range of players but getting the right feel and reaction all throughout the bag.

Color

Traditionally golf balls are called white, although most manufacturers make their balls in a SLIGHTLY off-white hue. In modern times, however, there has been an explosion of options on the marketplace.

Most of these options revolve around trying to make the ball high visibility either while in the air, against the grass after it lands, or both. Neon yellow is the most popular alternative color but you can also see bright red and orange, and some manufacturers go through an entire rainbow of colors in an attempt to cater to players who either want to be unique or find it easier to see a different colored golf ball.

Driver Spin

RELATED: Driver Swing vs Iron Swing: What's The Difference

The difference between a driver and an iron is that you want more spin with an iron and less spin with a driver.

The one difficulty with the tour level urethane cover golf balls is that they not only spin more around the greens, but they spin more on long shots as well.

For a professional player, this is either something that is easily mitigated OR actually used to their advantage to control ball flights, as most players on tour want to keep a minimum amount of spin on their drives in order for it to have a predictable shot shape. 

For an amateur, recreational, or beginner player many try to opt for a golf ball that reduces spin off of the tee if they feel like they lose more strokes off the tee than they do around the greens or going into greens. Oftentimes, higher handicap players will struggle with a shot that curves too much one way or the other (hook or slice). A tour level golf ball may make it harder to control these!

Wedge Spin

One of the first rules if you want to hit wedges that spin and bite on the greens, after making sure you have a good lie and a clean club face with good grooves, is you need to be playing with a premium golf ball. 

Most players see more of a difference in the feel of their chip and pitch shots than full wedges when it comes to spin and the golf ball they use. We believe that this is one of the most important areas of the game, as a good short game can make up for all kinds of other weaknesses.

Price

The tradeoff for the best golf balls is that they do cost more, with the leading manufacturers having long since broken the $4/ball barrier for their “tour” lines (ProV1x, TP5x, etc.). 

There are some great options for the player who is serious about developing their golf game or the casual player who still wants to get that tour feeling, play a nice ball, and be able to generate spin when they need to.

There are several manufacturers offering tour type urethane golf balls that are reputed to be very