Construction of Golf Balls

Three primary materials dominate the market:

- Surlyn is the most widely found ball cover material on the market and is considered the best for durability, cut-resistance, distance and affordability.

- Balata is a softer, more expensive cover that is valued for spin, feel, and control, but it is susceptible to nicks and cuts and is not as long lasting.

- Elastomer balls are good for low-handicap players who want more spin without giving up too much in durability.

Wound golf balls 

Wound balls are balls whose core (liquid or solid) has been wound around with a rubber thread. The winding is coated either by a Balata, a Surlyn or another cover whereas Balata covers are seldomly made nowadays. The characteristics of these balls is greatly influenced by the combination of the core and cover material. Generally speaking wound balls are excellent when it comes to spin effect but perform poorly when it comes to covering distances. Furthermore, due to the soft cover materials used to increase the effect of the winding around the core, the balls lack durability. Wound balls are very sensitive to temperature and their distance and overall performance will thus drastically deteriorate with ambient temperatures below 20 °C.


the 2-piece ball 

While the core is made of a resin type material the cover is an extremely durable surlyn coat. Manufacturers keep putting an enormous amount of money into the development of new materials that could be used for core and cover such as titanium for example. A harder ball will not be compressed as much when hit by the clubface - which is usually the case with a 2-piece ball - and will slide further up the face resulting in an higher take-off angle. Thereby, the ball will not be deformed as much and less energy is produced when the ball reshapes which leads to a lower rotation rate. As a result, the trajectory will be lower with less carry and more roll.


The 3-piece ball 

3-piece balls (aka Multi-Layer Balls) are usually made of a large synthetic core, a thin mantel and a coat. For optimized weight centering some manufacturers use Tungsten-weights in the centre of the synthetic core. A ball which is compressed more on the clubface like most wound balls will not slide up the face as much. Because of the ball's greater deformation the reshaping process is more dynamic and the ball has a flatter take-off angle, a higher rotation rate, more lift and therefore a higher trajectory. A 3-piece ball is more inclined to spin sideways than a 2-piece ball.


The 4-piece ball 

4-piece balls (multi-Layer) have a small inner core surrounded by the actual core which we already know from the 3-piece balls. This inner core is surrounded by a thin inner mantel which transmits the relevant distance characteristics from the coat to the core and is thus responsible for that special Balata-feeling.