pMany technological advances have occurred in the game of golf over
the years, but perhaps nothing has changed more than the golf ball.
Its no coincidence that the United States Golf Association USGA and
Royal and Ancient Golf Club RA keep a tight rein on just how far a
ball can go nowadays. If the associations didnt provide
regulations, almost every golf course on the planet would be
reduced to a pitch and putt. Wed all be putting through windmills
just to keep the scores up in the 50s.ppFor the record, here are
the specifications the USGA imposes on Titleist, Maxfli, and the
rest of the ball manufacturerspSize A golf ball may not be smaller
than 1.68 inches in diameter. The ball can be as big as you want,
however. Just dont expect a bigger ball to go farther it wont. Ive
never seen anyone use a ball bigger than 1.68 inches in diameter.
Weight The golf ball may not be heavier than 1.62 ounces. Velocity
The USGA has a machine for measuring how fast a ball comes off the
face of a club. Thats not easy, because impact lasts only 450
millionths of a second, and a good ball can zoom off at more than
170 miles an hour. br br No legal ball may exceed an initial
velocity of 250 feet per second at a temperature between 73 and 77
degrees. A tolerance of no more than 2 percent is allowed, which
means an absolute max of 255 feet per second. This rule ensures
that golf balls dont go too far. Distance Distance is the most
important factor. For years the standard was the USGAs Iron Byron
robot named for sweetswingin Byron Nelson. No ball struck by Iron
Byron could go farther than 280 yards. A tolerance of 6 percent was
allowed, making 296.8 yards the absolute farthest the ball could
go. Today the robot has some help from hightech ball launchers in
the USGA labs, and the upper limit has risen to 317 yards. br br
Yeah, right. Iron Byron, meet the PGA Tour! Guys like Tiger Woods,
Ernie Els, and their buddies just arent normal they regularly blast
drives way past 350 yards! Shape A golf ball must be round. An
antislice ball on the market a few years ago was weighted on one
side and failed this test. Nice try, though! pEven with these
regulations, take a look around any golf professionals shop and
youll see many different brands. And upon closer inspection, youll
find that every type of ball falls into one of two categories
Either the manufacturer is claiming that this ball goes farther and
straighter than any other ball in the cosmos, or its telling you
that this ball gives you more control.ppTry not to get overwhelmed.
Keep in mind that golf balls come in only three basic types
onepiece, twopiece, and threepiece. You can forget onepiece balls
they tend to be cheap and nasty and found only on driving ranges.
So that leaves twopiece and threepiece balls.ppDont worry deciding
on a type of ball is still easy. You dont even have to know what a
twopiece or threepiece ball contains or why it has that many
pieces. Leave all that to the scientists. And dont worry too much
about launch angle or spin rate, either. Todays balls are
technological marvels, designed to take off high and spin just
enough to go as straight as possible.ppGo with a twopiece ball. I
wouldnt recommend a threepiece ball to a beginning golfer. Tour
pros and expert players use such balls to maximize control. For
many years, the best players used balls with covers made of balata,
a soft, rubbery substance. Today, many highperformance threepiece
balls have covers of something even better highperformance urethane
elastomer, which is a fancy way of saying expensive superplastic.
But you dont need that stuff. As a beginner, you need a reliable,
durable ball. Unless you have very deep pockets and more cash than
Bill Gates, go the surlyn, twopiece route.Most amateurs with
doubledigit handicaps use this type of ball. A surlyncovered balls
harder cover and lower spin rate give you less feel which is why
better players tend not to use them but, assuming that you dont
whack them off the premises, they last longer. They just might roll
farther, too.ppGolf balls used to come in three compressions 80,
90, or 100. The 80 compression ball was the softest, and the 100
the hardest. When I was growing up, I thought that the harder the
ball 100 compression, the farther it would go. Not the case. All
balls go far when hit properly, but each one feels a little
different. How hard or soft you want the ball to feel has to do
with your personal preference. These days, you neednt worry about
compression. Its no longer such a big deal. Just determine whether
you like a harder or softer feel, and swing away.ppTake all the
commercial hype with a grain of salt. Make that a handful. The most
important things you need to know when buying golf balls are your
own game, your own tendencies, and your own needs. Your local PGA
professional can help you choose the golf ball best suited to
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