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Never was there a sport as precise about numbers as golf. With profound emphasis on quantifying a player’s level of performance through careful collection and computation of data. Golf is proof that winning the game isn’t the only thing that makes you a good player. In fact, of the 23.83 million golfers in the United States, almost half of the players care more about mapping out their performance numbers than taking on a tournament.
But what exactly is at the core of all the tedious computation? Aside from giving you bragging rights, these numbers tell you more about your performance, and thus the kind of gear you should buy. One of the most prominent measures in golf is swing speed, which doesn’t only lead to proper club selection, but also proper golf ball choices. Designed for lightning fast hitters, the best golf balls for high swing speed are intended to adapt to your stroke to max out distance.
As one of the statistics that most golfers are obsessed with, swing speed typically pertains to the speed of a player’s swing during the coveted drive. For many golfers, driving comes out as the most important shot throughout the game, bringing you as close to the pin as possible. Perhaps even defining your fate on a hole, a powerful drive fueled by a lightning fast swing might just earn you a legendary hole in one.
There are a load of factors that impact swing speed and these can be divided into four categories, namely equipment, technical, mobility, and physical power.
Equipment will obviously have something to do with your choice of gear. This can include your golf driver, your grips, gloves, and even your shoes.
This is defined by the skill behind your swing and how well you know the right technique. Your level of experience on the course and your handicap might shed more light on the specifics of your golf swing technique.
Mobility is the amount of movement you generate and the proper body mechanics involved in the swing. A wider range of motion that’s not hindered by any sort of obstacle or impediment gives you more leg room. Meaning to fine-tune your body mechanics and generate more speed.
And of course, physical power pertains to the sheer strength of your upper body and the stability of your foundation. Your build, weight, height, gender, and age all have something to do with the amount of strength you have to offer.
According to statistics, the average, non-professional, male golfer will produce a swing speed of about 93.4 miles per hour, with a carry of about 214 yards from the tee. Keep in mind that that’s the average swing speed for a healthy, averaged sized, adult male player.
So, what qualifies as a high swing speed? According to experts, speeds of about 100 mph (give or take 5 mph) can be considered high speed, since most professionals will hit their ball with speeds of about 110 to 125 mph.
There are certain characteristics to a high speed swinger that tell you more about the prerequisites for this type of driving performance. According to studies, males are more likely to produce faster speeds compared to lady golfers. This is often attributed to greater muscle mass and thus greater strength. In the same way, adult males from 29 to 50 years old perform better than seniors for the same supposed reason.
Some experts have also suggested a direct relationship between swing speed and handicap. Higher handicap players are less likely to produce high swing speed even if they’re 29 to 50 year old men. The reason for this would mostly have to do with the amount of skill that the player has. More seasoned golfers with more experience are at a better position to execute the ideal swing. They also would highly likely optimize each aspect to max out speed.
Do note that the specifics for high swing speed are not set in stone. We’ve seen petite women whip their drivers with professional level speed, and seniors who produced hundreds of yards of carry with their high speed shots. Then of course there are absolute beginners who have stunned seasoned veterans with tournament-worthy drives.
While we can always predict what makes a fast swing, there will always be exceptions to the rule. That’s on top of the fact that you can always buy gear and practice in order to augment your weaknesses and amplify your strengths.
On the topic of gear, buying the wrong golf balls can dampen the speed of your launch. You could be swinging with PGA Tour worthy speeds and still get subpar carry simply because you’ve been using the wrong golf balls. That said, it’s imperative that you buy a set of golf balls that are intended for your speed. And what exactly is the right golf ball for high swing speeds?
Let’s start at the surface, shall we? Covering pertains to the outermost material that wraps around the golf ball. There are various names for covers, but they can mainly be divided into either surlyn or urethane. Surlyn in general produces more spin and feels a lot harder during collision. They can generate marginally faster speeds compared to urethane and balata covered balls, but at the price of short-game accuracy.
Urethane covers have better feel, and stop more reliably as they hit the ground. This makes them ideal for short-game enthusiasts who don’t want their ball rolling too far away when it reaches the green. Despite being relatively softer than surlyn, urethane covers are known to preserve more power. For you, that means minimal energy and speed loss during impact.
Pertaining to how tight a ball is wound, compression can change the feel of the ball against your club. But there’s more to it than just feedback. The importance of compression lies in the fact that it also produces that spring-like, rubber effect during collision. Faster, more powerful swingers can compress a ball more significantly than slower swingers. And when a golf ball compresses, it creates a ‘spring’ effect against the club face which then launches the ball forward.
As high swing speed will typically result to more power, a high compression golf ball would be ideal for these types of players. Because it’s already tightly compressed, the added strength of the shot would further intensify the pressure inside the ball, working to max out the distance it travels. That’s not something a golfer with slower speeds would be able to reproduce. This is also why the low compression ball is often preferred by these types of players.
You’d think that those little divots on the surface of a golf ball were nothing but cosmetic, but they play a pivotal role in the aerodynamics of a ball. Back in the day, golf balls were made smooth, but golfers would find that as the balls were knocked around, they would launch much farther. They attributed this to the development of little dimples on the ball surface after extended use.
Today, golf ball’s are designed to have dimples right off the bat to help with aerodynamics. There is no standard practice when it comes to dimples, the size and depth. Even the shape of the dimples are unregulated as of writing. So manufacturers are at liberty to use dimple patterns they find most conducive for long distance performance.
According to research, shallower, larger dimples have a tendency to launch a ball over a longer carry. They do this by reducing the size of the air pocket that forms behind the ball during flight. Thus limiting the effect of drag that vacuums the ball backwards as it flies through the air.
You’ll find that one of the latest trends in the golf ball market is layering. It’s not hard to find multi-layer golf balls these days touting complicated construction that promises to launch your ball farther without sacrificing control. But how true are those claims?
The standard two-piece golf ball used to be the only one you could buy, and for the most part, it did it’s job. Designed with a blended cover and an acrylate interior, these balls were developed with a single object in mind - distance. That said, you can expect that they won’t be too easy to control. They tend to roll far after landing, and may be tough to direct on the green.
And that’s why multi-layer balls have been introduced into the picture. These balls use a combination of internal layers made from various types of material. Most often, the core of these balls uses a dense rubber material, surrounded by multiple mantle layers of softer rubber in varying densities. They’ll also typically have ultra-thin coverings that allow force to travel through the inner layers.
Multi-layer golf balls can come in three, four, or five piece designs. They all offer different benefits depending on the materials they use. For high swing speeds, multi-layer balls might be beneficial mainly because they offer faster speeds without sacrificing control. So you can still accurately bring your ball nearer to the pin without losing carry distance.
This pertains to the speed of the ball’s spin during launch, measured in revolutions per minute. While it doesn’t really rely on your swing speed per se. However understanding how spin rate contributes to overall carry distance can help you max out the result of your swing. A higher spin rate brings your ball higher into the air, which may be important depending on the angle of your launch.
According to experts, golfers who launch their ball high at around 13 degrees and over should have a spin rate of 2,000 to 2,100 RPMs. On the other hand, players who have a launch angle of about 8, 9, or 10 degrees should aim for a spin rate of 2,400 to 2,600 RPMs. This helps augment the lack of height and thus gives the ball more space to travel farther before it hits the ground.
If you launch your ball high enough, then a low spin design might be a good choice to help you achieve the greatest distance with your high speed swing. Then again, if you’re not confident that you can get your ball airborne high enough, those that produce more spin off the tee should help you achieve the ideal lift. Giving your shot more vertical height to travel farther before it hits the ground.
Encapsulating the ideal marriage between distance and control. The Titleist Pro V1 Golf Balls have become the golden standard for high compression balls, providing consistent, straight flight that launches your ball towards the green in professional fashion. Its drop-and-stop performance also means that it won’t roll around the green during short game, permitting reliable control in all sorts of approach conditions.
With very low long game spin and high ball trajectory, the Titleist Pro V1 Golf Balls do the three-piece ball uses a combination of materials including a high density fast core, a larger casing layer, and an ultra thin cover that takes up just 17% of the ball’s overall mass. Doing most of the leg work, relieving you of the need to calculate launch angles to get your ball in the air.
The vivid markings on the TaylorMade TP5 Pix Golf Balls make them especially visible in all sorts of golfing conditions, but that’s not all they’re good for. Often called the best golf ball for 100 mph swing speed, these balls use a complex 5-layer construction that’s engineered to respond optimally to every club you might bring along. For the driver, the low spin performance and aerodynamic dimple patterns permit high speed flight and long carry.
Using a proprietary HFM material. The TaylorMade TP5 Pix Golf Balls are highly compressed, preserving energy with far more reliability so you don’t lose any power as you make the hit. This is achieved through the ball’s intuitive internal layers that increase in firmness and density towards the core, transferring energy without losing intensity for explosive rebound.
The three-piece Bridgestone Golf E12 Speed Golf Balls uses a soft rubber core layered with the brand’s Active Acceleration Mantle that work together to produce high levels of thrust and speed right off the tee. The softer innermost material augments the surlyn cover’s accuracy on short game. So there’s no such thing as sacrificing approach and putt shots with this high speed ball.
The ball touts a compression rating of 70 which brings it towards the softer end of the spectrum. Nonetheless its surlyn cover gives it a firm feel during impact and helps improve the spring response once hit. As the best golf ball for 95 mph swing speed or higher, the E12 works best for ultra fast swingers by minimizing drag through its carefully engineered Delta Wing Dimple Pattern.
Using Callaway’s signature HEX dimple design, the Warbird Golf Balls aim to minimize drag by reducing the size of the air vacuum that forms behind during flight. The result is faster driver speeds that launch over longer carry, permitting straighter flight and hang-time. Inside, an extra-large high-energy core compresses readily against your swing, preserving power as it’s jolted forward by your shot.
The simple two-piece design uses a high-grade ionomer outer covering that allows premium feel anywhere on the course. The high resonance and soft slam against your club’s face can provide amplified feedback that you can use to further improve your skill.
The Pinnacle Rush Golf Ball combines a soft ionomer cover and a dense, high-energy core to translate the power of your swing and bring your ball farther with each hit. Being a mid-compression ball, the Pinnacle Rush Golf Balls make the best golf ball for 90-100 swing speed, offering versatile performance both off the tee and around the green.
Flying straight and long, the Pinnacle Rush balls use the brands advanced icosahedral dimple pattern to help minimize the vacuum that forms behind the ball during flight. This simple yet intuitive design addition works to reduce drag and improve forward propulsion so your ball can travel farther and faster with each hit.
As one of the most important contributors to low handicap performance, the drive earns its rightful place as an essential skill that needs careful, thoughtful consideration. Hitting that first shot as fast as you can should help you reap the benefits of long distance carry. Thus giving you a shot at scoring under par.
If you’ve already got the swing speed down, then the best golf balls for high swing speed can further improve the results you get on the course. Designed to maximize the energy of your high speed swing, the Titleist Pro V1 Golf Balls make a smart investment for any fast-hitter hoping to reap the potential of their shots. Combining distance and control, these balls can launch your ball straight and far while giving you excellent precision on the green.
