A new feature
In a new weekly feature we will answer some of the most common questions we get asked in the pro-shop, a question that comes up time and again is 'should I play with a different golf ball in the winter?' And our answer is that for the majority of you - you can probably play the same ball that you do in the winter, the distance and height a golf ball travels will drop off in the winter as the air is colder increasing the drag. The optimum temperature for a golf ball is 23 degrees, for every 10 degrees temperatures drop you lose up to 2 yards, so even if the temperature is around freezing you only lose about 4 yards in distance which isn't a huge drop off. What we would encourage you to do is to keep your golf balls warm (so a spare one in your pocket) and play a low compression ball such as a Titleist TruFeel or Callaway Supersoft as they travel better in cold air. A harder distance ball could be a good option as they tend to launch a bit higher (such as the Titleist Velocity) so when the fairways are soft you could get a few more yards through the air with a distance ball, you will lose a bit of feel compared to a softer ball around the greens but if your hands are cold anyway you won't notice the difference as much as you think. A distance ball won't spin as much coming into the green but if the greens are soft anyway a harder ball will stop fairly quickly. In summary if you usually play a low compression ball anyway you probably already have the best ball for the winter, if you play a premium urethane ball in the winter then consider trying a ball such as the Titleist Velocity as you will probably see a bit higher launch and more carry distance whilst the drop off in feel and control won't be as much as you think. You can then save your expensive ProV1 balls for the summer when you will really appreciate their stopping power on hard greens! If you're still not sure about golf balls just ask one of the team next time you are in the Pro shop.
|