ROBOT TEST: Which Golf Ball Is Best For My Game? Our data reveals all about 28 leading models for 2023!

Whether you’re a hard-swinging low handicapper or a slow-swinging senior, this robot golf balls test will identify the best model for your game…

The Robot Golf Balls Test is brought to you in association with Ping

JUMP TO: Meet the robot | Meet the experts | How we did it | How do golf balls differ | Ball-by-ball analysis | The top performers | Data Analysis | What we learned

We all want to be playing the best golf balls for our game, whether an elite player, mid-handicapper, or just starting out, but how do you find out which is the right model with so much information out there? You turn to a robot.

Our first robot golf balls test was one of the most popular pieces of content we have ever produced – and we’ve been trying to do one again ever since.

Check out the 2024 robot golf ball test here.

The pandemic, plus the scarcity of golf robots (and most of those are owned by brands that make balls) has made it a huge challenge to pull off. But we’ve done it, thanks to Loughborough University, and Ping.

Loughborough has a world-renowned reputation for sports research. That’s the reason Ping established their state-of-the-art Performance Centre there, with the aim of advancing cutting-edge technology and innovation in the world of golf.

Ping have done masses of ball testing with their own robots at their Arizona HQ, and when they heard we were keen to set up our own test, they introduced us to Dr Jonathan Roberts, Senior Lecturer at Loughborough’s Sports Technology Institute.

Fast forward four months and it’s done; our second robot balls test is here and it is a super useful package of content for any golfer. So, whether you’re a hard-swinging low handicapper or a slow-swinging senior, this robot test will identify the best ball for your game.

Robot golf balls test: Meet the robot

We ran a robot golf ball test back in 2019, at PXG in Arizona, and it was one of the most popular equipment tests we’ve ever done, gaining millions of views across our website, YouTube and the magazine.

Since that success, we’ve been keen to do it again, but first Covid and then PXG’s own ball launch (we’ll only use a robot without any links to a ball manufacturer) meant we had to find another venue – and expensive golf robots don’t grow on trees!

There are just three in the UK; one at the R&A’s equipment test facility at Kingsbarns GC, and two at the Sports Technology Institute at Loughborough University, the leading sports science university in the world. Loughborough have a close relationship with Ping – it’s the home of the brand’s new Performance Research Centre, and Ping introduced us to the right people to ask: “Can we borrow your robot, please?”

Once they understood what we wanted to achieve, Loughborough said they could help. And thanks to their indoor test lab, we could create a controlled test environment without the interference of weather, which is a huge concern when hitting thousands of shots down a range over five days. It also meant we could easily retrieve any ball that presented abnormal flight behaviors and slice it open to see if there were any deficiencies in its construction.

No ordinary robot

Loughborough’s main research robot is the Miyamae Shot V (they also have an older ex-Dunlop Slazenger model that produces a repeatable, but much cruder swing). The Miyamae was made in Japan and cost $100,000 almost 20 years ago when the university bought it. Unlike the Golf Labs robot we used last time, which is pretty much standard in most major golf R&D labs, the Miyamae works on three axes so it can be set up to better replicate any swing.

Dr Jonathan Roberts, Senior Lecturer at the Sports Technology Institute, was keen to see whether a robot could better replicate golfers’ swings, rather than simply swinging a golf club consistently and repetitively like engineers usually need when comparing clubs. The Miyamae set-up, with some tinkering from his team, is a robot that has three independently controllable axes. It allows the tailoring of club delivery to match/mimic any golfer on the planet.

Robot V swings around a central hub, like the chest of a person, which allows cocking of the wrists and rotation around the shaft axis to replicate how your hands rotate and square the face coming into impact. All three axes can be controlled independently, and Dr Roberts is working with Ping to get the robot to replicate specific swings for a new analysis system.

Setting up the golf robot

With so much adjustability, it takes time to set the robot up to deliver the club in exactly the way you want, and additional time to check the machine is consistently hitting the defined parameters. Obviously for us, to best replicate how human golfers launch shots, we wanted balls to be hit with a neutral path, and neither up nor down onto the ball for driver shots.

For irons and wedges, a typical attack is down onto the back of the ball, all characteristics we dialed in through the robot’s set-up. Though the robot can hit a couple of shots per minute once set up, getting that set-up right can take an hour or more, particularly when switching from drivers to irons, or irons to wedges.

At Loughborough, Dr Roberts has worked on the biomechanical analysis of golfers, using motion capture, for the past four years. It’s next-generation stuff and it’s for a new analysis system Ping are creating to give a better understanding of how different swings are more suited to different types of equipment. This data was used to program the robot for our test, so real swing characteristics have influenced how every shot has been hit.

Dr Roberts told us: “The transition at the top of the backswing feels important, but most R&D robots start swinging from parallel to the ground (so not in the usual address position) and have a pause at the top of the backswing. Our robot can recreate how somebody loads the shaft in a certain way, we get a natural transition from backswing to downswing, and we can look at how the shaft deforms and so on.”

Robot golf balls test: Meet the experts

Dr Jonathan Roberts

Senior Lecturer, Loughborough University, Sports Technology Institute

Dr Roberts (above, left)has worked at Loughborough University for 25 years. He’s completed a Callaway-sponsored PHD on the feel of golf shots, as well as completing golf ball consultancy work for Nike and most recently collaborating with Ping.

His knowledge isn’t just limited to golf, either; he works as part of a research group designing World Cup footballs for adidas, and is currently studying how real grass playing surfaces compare to 3G Astroturf pitches.

Rory England

PHD Researcher

More casual than a competitive golfer today, Rory was a Today’s Golfer reader in his youth. Gifted at maths and physics at school, he went on to complete a four-year undergraduate program at Loughborough University.

He’s since spent time working with adidas in Germany and TaylorMade in Basingstoke and is just coming to the
end of a PHD where he’s focused on working with the ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) on head injury prevention.

Robot golf balls test: How we did it

Experience tells us the only true way to accurately reveal any difference between golf ball performance is via a repeatable swing and a consistently accurate impact location, something no human tester can ever reproduce. The likes of Rory McIlroy might get close, but we wanted to test 28 different balls across different swing speeds and with different clubs; so a robot was our only option.

When we did a similar test in 2019, we used the robot at PXG’s R&D facility in Arizona; this time, the robot was a bit closer to home at Loughborough University, one of the world’s leading sports research facilities.

Why different clubs and different speeds?

We’re all about the club golfer here at TG, so it was really important for us to test each golf ball at different swing speeds to reveal how each ball will perform for you. That means no matter what your swing speed, you’ll find plenty of useful information within this test tailored to your own game.

Our driver shots were hit at speeds of 85, 100, and 115mph (moderate, mid, and fast); for irons, we used a mid-80mph speed, with wedges coming in at 74mph.

To ensure our results are relevant to real-world golfers, we also used Ping clubs suited to these speeds; a 9° Ping G430 LST driver (with X flex Tour 2.0 Chrome shaft) at 115mph; a 10.5° Ping G430 Max driver (with S flex Tour 2.0 Chrome shaft) at 100mph; and a 10.5° Ping G430 Max (with R flex Alta CB Black) at 85mph – read our Ping G430 drivers review.

We took the same approach for irons and wedges using the Ping i230 7-iron and pitching wedge (with S flex Dynamic Gold 105 shafts).

Why we used Loughborough’s golf robot 

With the cost of buying an R&D golf robot running to $100,000-plus, there are not too many around. And the brands that have them also make balls, which obviously presents a conflict of interest should we use one to perform a golf ball test against competitor balls.

Loughborough University, though, is often referred to as the best sports science university in the world, and when Ping (who have also invested in an R&D lab on campus) mentioned the Uni has a robot on the site, we enquired about gaining access.

It’s taken months to set up, but with Senior Lecturer Jonathan Roberts being a golfer and understanding our cause, and Loughborough being an hour’s drive from our UK office, the partnership made perfect sense.

How we picked the golf balls 

Time on an R&D robot is costly. Every hour taken up hitting balls for our test means the machine can’t be used for other research. The robot also needs a qualified operator, to ensure the set-up is correct and test conditions don’t change, and people like that are not easy to find, either. With time on the robot being limited, we had to select the balls most relevant to most people, as testing every single ball on the market simply wasn’t an option. 

In order to test a good range of balls, from the most popular tour golf balls to lower-compression club golfer balls and the best budget balls, we drew up a shortlist of 28 models. We knew from our previous robot ball test (which featured 22 models) that this number could just about be tested within a single day from one of the five different situations (three driver speeds, one 7-iron speed, and one pitching wedge speed). That meant the whole test could be wrapped up in five days.

Our first big decision was to eliminate the direct-to-consumer golf balls that have sprung up over the last decade to get the list down to 28. There aren’t too many factories capable of producing golf balls that aren’t owned by the likes of Titleist, Srixon, Callaway or TaylorMade, so a lot of these DTC models are quite similar in terms of R&D, and most barely create a blip on the radar in terms of global ball sales. We will, however, be doing a thorough DTC balls test over the summer.

After that, we needed to include the leading tour balls from the game’s biggest brands (including PXG), along with the popular ‘club golfer’ balls (including Kirkland) and a number of value-for-money options (like Maxfli). Every decision we made was geared to giving you the best, most relevant information to help you establish which ball best suits your game, and pocket.

Why we tested indoors

It wasn’t too long ago the golf industry thought outdoor testing and fitting was the only way to go, as it gave the opportunity to see a shot’s entire flight. Since Foresight and their camera-based launch monitors have arrived on the scene, though, thinking has changed.

Foresight’s GCQuad is now recognized by players and brands as one of the best golf launch monitors, and it now features in many R&D test labs. And because it measures everything you need to know about a golf shot within 18 inches of the ball leaving the clubface, the Quad makes it possible to accurately test indoors.

The added benefit of testing indoors is that it’s possible to create a controlled lab environment, so weather conditions – temperatures, wind, or rain – have no effect on the data, which isn’t the case when testing outdoors. All the data came from a Foresight GCQuad for our last robot test in 2019, so it made sense to use the same system.

Each ball was hit only once

We wanted to create the cleanest, most accurate data possible, so we only hit each golf ball once.

Our thinking means that if there’s ever a ‘rogue’ ball among our samples, it only affects one of the five situations we test from, not all of them. It also means if any ball is damaged during the hitting process, it doesn’t get reused, so it can’t skew our data on subsequent shots.

We asked brands to send us five dozen of each ball selected for testing, which allowed 12 shots to be hit from each of the three driver swing speeds, as well as a dozen of each ball with the 7-iron and pitching wedge.

In total, that’s 1,680 robot shots during the week. Each of the five individual test orders was randomized and split into sets of three balls at a time. That ensured there wasn’t a four to five-hour gap between testing the first dozen and the final dozen, just in case there were any temperature swings inside the lab.

Thousands of pieces of data

By tracking head and ball data through the launch monitor, we created thousands of data points (looking just at basic ball and club data, there are 19 different metrics for every shot!), which gave us a mountain of data to analyze.

It took the best part of two weeks to sift through it, checking, double checking, and coming up with averages for the longest, fastest, and spinniest balls, and deciding on our recommendations within each product category.

Read more about how we test golf equipment.

Robot golf balls test: How do golf balls differ?

Two-piece golf balls

Two-piece balls are the least expensive. Typically they have a big core under a thick ionomer or surlyn cover. For many club golfers two-piece models represent an excellent blend of reasonable performance and value, particularly if they’re prone to losing a few.

Even though these are the least expensive balls on the market, it’s not uncommon to find a choice of a softer feel, longer distance, or a blend of both in a single ball. We’ll highlight the difference between this category and others so you can weigh up if it’s really worth paying for tour-level performance or urethane-cover club golfer balls.

Three-piece golf balls

More than half the balls in this test are three-piece, which means this is a very popular construction method for tour and club golfer balls. The core size is shrunk to allow a mantle layer to sit between the core and outer cover, which allows engineers to dial in different characteristics based on the wants of the target player.

Tour-level three-piece balls have urethane covers to maximize wedge spin and greenside control. Gone are the days when three-piece tour balls were just softer, higher spinning versions of firmer four-piece ‘X’ style balls; today, Srixon and Bridgestone only make three-piece tour balls. So, each model is dialed up or down to a swing speed the ball is aimed at, and/or the feel, distance, and wedge spin that particular golfer is likely to desire.

Four-piece golf balls

Traditionally, four-piece golf balls were firmer ‘X’ style, lower spin, higher flying models; but things have changed.

The most recent Pro V1x (four-piece) is said to have higher long-game spin than the Pro V1 (three-piece) and a higher ball flight. Callaway’s Chrome Soft X and X LS are both four-piece, with the X being more workable, and the X LS generating lower long-game spin.

Common thinking is firmer balls are faster and longer, irrespective of swing speed. We’ve also seen they don’t always spin lower with a wedge than their softer siblings. Use our test data to identify the models that are fast and long with the driver/iron and spin with a wedge.

Five-piece golf balls

TaylorMade are the only major brand to make five-piece balls, and the TP5 and TP5x are played by Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Brooke Henderson, Tommy Fleetwood, and Rickie Fowler.

With three layers between the core and cover, the brand have more knobs and levers to tweak to dial down driver spin, up launch or maximize wedge spin. The firmer feeling TP5x is faster, longer and launches higher, whereas the TP5 offers a little extra wedge spin and shot-shaping potential.

Robot golf ball test: The results

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf balls test: Bridgestone

1

Bridgestone Tour B X golf ball

For high-speed golfers who want more accuracy over distance

£3.75 per ball / 0.19p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $34.99

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Rrp: $49.99

Price: $34.99

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$39.99

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DICK'S Sporting Goods

$39.99

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PGA TOUR Superstore

$39.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

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Bridgestone, more than most brands, insist a ball fitting should be part of any golfer’s bag. They were also making balls optimized for different swing speeds before three-piece urethane balls appeared on the scene.
The Tour B X is designed for golfers swinging a driver over 105mph and who are more focused on upping distance than adding wedge spin or shot shape potential. Jason Day and Matt Kuchar both play this golf ball on tour.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Compression	94
Dimples	338
Feel	Soft
Flight	Lowest
Colors	<meta charset

• REACTIV iQ urethane cover
• Gradational compression core
• Dual dimple technology
• Seamless cover technology

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Bridgestone Tour B X

Robot golf balls test verdict: With the Tour B X being designed for swing speeds above 105mph it’s unfair to analyse performance at 85mph and 100mph with the driver. We’ve seen from our research into Ping’s Ballnamic golf ball database how the Tour B X comes highly recommended, but our test data shows the ball floating around average for lots of metrics.

At 115mph with the driver, it tied for sixth longest (three yards back from the Maxfli Tour X) with a shot area 26% greater than our test average. 7-iron backspin was above average (260rpm), carry was a fraction short, but shot area was 34% tighter than average.

With decent wedge spin (504rpm less than our highest spinning ball), and a shot area half that of our test average, it feels like the Tour B X is a good bet for high-speed golfers who are happy to dial in additional accuracy rather than going all out after more power.   

Read our full Bridgestone Tour B X review.

2

Bridgestone Tour B XS

Tiger's ball of choice is higher spinning than Tour B X

Price per ball £3.75 / 0.19p per yard

Price: $44.95

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Price: $44.95

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$49.98

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$39.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$39.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

View offer

The Bridgestone ball that Tiger Woods uses. Like the Tour B X, the XS is designed for 105+mph swing speeds, but rather than focusing on adding distance this model helps increase spin.
Bridgestone say the smart Reactiv iQ cover reacts to the force of impact, so on long tee shots it rebounds quickly for explosive velocity. Whereas for approach shots, the ball stays on the face for longer, providing more spin and feel.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	84
Feel	Softer
Flight	Low
Colors	White; Yellow

• REACTIV iQ urethane cover
• Gradational compression core
• Dual dimple technology
• Seamless cover technology

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Bridgestone Tour B XS

Robot golf balls test verdict: Bridgestone say the Tour B XS ups spin over the Tour B X. Our data supports their thinking, but we’re talking very small amounts. An additional 39rpm backspin compared to the Tour B X with driver (at 115mph) means giving up 2.7 yards of carry.

With a 7-iron the backspin difference drops to 11rpm (with just 0.1 yards carry distance between the two), and 111rpm with a PW, so club golfers are likely to struggle to see any real difference between the pair. Interestingly, both balls were inside our test average for shot area, with the higher spinning Tour B XS, which racked up the smallest area at our 115mph driver speed, boasting 26.2yds sq compared to the Tour B X at 30.4.     

Read our full Bridgestone Tour B XS review.

3

Bridgestone Tour B RX golf ball

Struggled to keep pace with Callaway's ERC Soft

£3.75 per ball / 0.19p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $39.99

View Offer

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $39.99

View Offer

Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$39.99

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$39.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$39.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

View offer

Designed to perform at speeds less than 105mph, the Tour B RX focuses on max distance while providing tour-level performance. Like all the current Tour B balls it comes with a smart Reactiv iQ cover.

Bridgestone don’t give out any compression numbers for their balls, but you can expect the RX and RXs to feel softer than the Tour B X and XS. Expect the RX to feel softer than the X.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Compression	79
Dimples	338
Flight	Low-mid
Feel	Soft
Colors	<meta charset

• REACTIV iQ urethane cover
• Gradational compression core
• Dual dimple technology
• Seamless cover technology

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Bridgestone Tour B RX

Robot golf balls test verdict: We applaud Bridgestone for making tour-optimized balls for golfers swinging driver at less than 105mph, but there’s absolutely no covering up our data doesn’t show either the RX or the RXS ripping up any trees.

Compared to Callaway’s ERC Soft (which has a hybrid cover, not a pure urethane cover) which targets a similar golfer, the RX is eight yards back when averaged across the two driver speeds (85 and 100mph) it was designed for, and a 7-iron.

Throw in wedge backspin performance that’s 911rpm down on the ERC Soft and a shot area that’s 16.5% bigger than its rival and you can see where we’d spend our cash.  

Read our full Bridgestone Tour B RX review.

4

Bridgestone Tour B RXS golf ball

Surprisingly low wedge spin

£3.75 per ball / 0.19p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $32.99

View Offer

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $32.99

View Offer

Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$49.98

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$39.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$39.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

View offer

Fred Couples' ball of choice is ideal if you don’t swing driver faster than 105mph. It's a ball for those who put a premium on scoring by hitting lots of wedges into greens and like to play delicate chips and pitches around the dancefloor, where you need maximum control.
Interestingly, like Srixon, Bridgestone get all the traits they desire from three-piece balls, which makes us wonder if multi-piece ball constructions are really necessary nowadays.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	65
Feel	Softer
Flight	Mid
Colors	White; Yellow

• REACTIV iQ urethane cover
• Gradational compression core
• Dual dimple technology
• Seamless cover technology

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Bridgestone Tour B RXS

Robot golf balls test verdict: It’s really tough analyzing data from 28 different balls, hence why we break things down and look at different constructions, accuracy, and cost per yard. In each category, we highlight the three top performers, so when we come to analyze our findings we can easily spot models that excel in different areas. Balls highlighted as top performers within two or three of our categories then get serious attention, so understand where their strengths really lie.

The RXS didn’t appear among any of our top-performing models in any situation, but it bubbled around the test averages throughout all sessions and, for a higher spin ball, produced surprisingly low levels of wedge spin. For this cost, we reckon there are better-performing models out there, even if you are after a slightly higher-spinning golf ball.    

Read our full Bridgestone Tour B RXS golf ball review.

5

Bridgestone E6 golf ball

Produced the longest carry with a 7-iron

£2.08 per ball / 0.10p per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $41.53

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Price: $41.53

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$24.99

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$24.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$24.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$24.99

View offer

Bridgestone’s catch-all two-piece sub £30-per-dozen ball. You don’t get a smart Reactive iQ urethane cover, and there’s no suggestion as to which swing speeds it’s best suited to, but if you’re an 18 handicapper who’s prone to losing a few on a Saturday morning, you’re much more likely to appreciate the recognized brand name and the keen price. See the E6 as a competitor to the Srixon AD333, Wilson Duo Soft, Callaway Supersoft, and possibly the Pinnacle Rush

Specs Features

Construction	Two-piece
Cover	Surlyn
Dimples	326
Compression	50
Feel	Soft
Flight	High
Colors	White; Yellow

• Seamless cover technology
• Gradational compression core

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Bridgestone E6

Robot golf balls test verdict: Battles rage annually over controlling the two-piece golf ball market as millions of boxes are sold within the category.

Five two-piece models took part in this test and if we said the Bridgestone E6 ranks fourth for combined driver and iron distance (averaged over the 85mph and 100mph speeds), fifth for wedge spin, and third for overall accuracy, you, like us, will probably be thinking that there are slightly better-performing options out there, even at this end of the market.

Battles rage annually over controlling the two-piece golf ball market as millions of boxes are sold within the category. Five two-piece models took part in this test and if we said the Bridgestone E6 ranks fourth for combined driver and iron distance (averaged over the 85mph and 100mph speeds), fifth for wedge spin, and third for overall accuracy, you’ll realize there are slightly better-performing options out there, even at this end of the market.

Read our full Bridgestone E6 golf ball review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot Golf Ball Test: Callaway

6

Callaway Chrome Soft golf ball

Among the longest balls for 85mph driver swings

£4.17 per ball / 0.21p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $44.99

Price: $37.00

View Offer

Rrp: $44.99

Price: $37.00

View Offer

Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$32.99

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$44.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$44.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$44.99

View offer

When the Chrome Soft first launched in 2014 the ball was made from four pieces. Today it has switched to a three-piece construction.
Low driver and iron spin, along with high launch, mean the Chrome Soft is a very straight and accurate ball, but full wedge shot spin and greenside control are lower than the tour preferred Chrome Soft X.
Callaway typically say this ball most suits golfers swinging driver at less than 100mph.     

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	332
Compression	75
Feel	Soft
Flight	Highest
Colors	White; Yellow
Alternative models	360º Triple Track; Triple Track; Tru Track; Truvis

• Precision technology
• Construction optimization
• Hyper elastic softfast core
• New tour aero

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Callaway Chrome Soft

The Chrome Soft has become a very interesting ball in the Callaway line-up as it’s full of the brand’s tour tech but pitched at club golfers, which isn’t too dissimilar to the more affordable ERC Soft.

Comparing the two, the Chrome Soft averages at 5.2 yards shorter across the three driver speeds and 7-iron, and spins a fraction more with the iron (218rpm, but is still 478rpm less than our test average), whereas the ERC Soft boasts 678rpm more wedge spin and a 34.9% tighter shot area. But with £6 per dozen difference in cost, we can see why so many golfers opt for the ERC Soft.

Read our full Callaway Chrome Soft golf ball review.

7

Callaway Chrome Soft X golf ball

Among the three fastest for all driver speeds and 7-iron

£4.17 per ball / 0.21p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $44.99

View Offer

Rrp: $49.99

Price: $44.99

View Offer

Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$39.99

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$44.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$44.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$44.99

View offer

In the hands of Jon Rahm the Chrome Soft X has been a belter of a ball, helping the Spaniard rise to World No.1 since he signed for Callaway in 2021.
Expect a slightly lower, more penetrating flight than the standard Chrome Soft, along with a more workable/shapeable nature.
Callaway’s highest tour-level wedge spin ball whether you’re hitting full shots or from the greenside. X gives a firmer feel than the standard Chrome Soft.

Specs Features

Construction	Four-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	332
Compression	100
Feel	Medium
Flight	High
Colors	White; Yellow
Alternative Models	360º Triple Track; Triple Track; Tru Track; Truvis

• Precision technology
• Construction optimization
• Hyper elastic softfast core
• New tour aero

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Callaway Chrome Soft X

Robot golf balls test verdict: The X fills massive shoes as Callaway’s most-played tour ball. And we’ve seen from Ping’s Ballnamic software how the model stacks up admirably across the board. Our results support Ping’s findings.

The ball ranked among our three fastest across all three driver speeds. It produced 465rpm more 7-iron spin and 390rpm more wedge spin than our test averages. And when we throw in a 10.3% tighter shot area than the test average, you quickly see you have a top-performing tour-level ball on your hands if you opt for the X.

If you’re stuck between the X and X LS, the lower spinning LS cut driver spin at 115mph by 77rpm, which rose to 571rpm with a 7-iron and 559rpm with a wedge, so make sure you have enough speed to stop it quickly on the dancefloor.

Read our full Callaway Chrome Soft X golf ball review.

8

Callaway Chrome Soft X LS golf ball

Among the top three for 115mph driver swing carry distance

£4.17 per ball / 0.21p per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $44.99

View Offer

Price: $44.99

View Offer

Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$44.99

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$44.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$44.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$44.99

View offer

The best modern players have a tendency to hit shots pretty straight, with them falling out of the air on one side of the target line or the other. It means the days of aggressively shaping shots are numbered. If your swing speed is fast, and you love hitting high, straight bombs off the tee, the Chrome Soft X LS has your name stamped all over it.
For the extra speed and distance, you’ll need to accept a slightly firmer feel and trade off a little wedges spin on both full shots and greenside.

Specs

Construction	Four-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	332
<meta charset	"utf-8">Compression
Feel	Medium
Flight	Higher
Colors	White; Yellow
Alternative models	360º Triple Track; Triple Track; Tru Track; Truvis

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Callaway Chrome Soft X LS

Robot golf balls test verdict: Callaway reckon the X LS is brilliant for hitting long, straight bombs, and our data at least half supports that claim. At 115mph it was the third longest driver ball, and just 132rpm away from being our lowest spinning model.

However, when we look at accuracy, it was above average for shot area from the situations it was designed to be used within (so, not the 85mph and 100mph speeds).

If cutting spin is your priority, of the four four-piece tour balls on the test, the X LS span least with driver at 100 and 115mph, and with the 7-iron and wedge.

Read our full Callaway Chrome Soft X LS golf ball review.

9

Callaway ERC Soft golf ball

Longest driver carry at 100mph swing; 2nd longest with 7-iron

£3.67 per ball/ 0.18p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $39.99

Price: $31.75

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Rrp: $39.99

Price: $31.75

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$39.97

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DICK'S Sporting Goods

$39.99

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PGA TOUR Superstore

$39.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

View offer

Callaway’s club golfer-optimized ball isn’t quite those made by their rivals. With the premium-priced Chrome Soft filling their ‘urethane club golfer ball’ space, the ERC Soft fits into the family by offering different alignment technologies in Callaway’s lowest spinning and straightest ball.
You don’t get a urethane cover, so expect less wedge spin than in the Chrome Softs, but, as the name suggests, it is soft. And the new 360° Fade alignment pattern works well. 

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Hybrid
Dimples	332
Compression	70
Feel	Soft
Flight	High
Colors	White; Yellow
Alternative Models	Triple Track

• New GRIP urethane coating
• New HyperElastic SoftFast core
• Hybrid cover
• High speed mantle
• ERC Soft 360º Fade

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Callaway ERC Soft

Robot golf balls test verdict: This is a cheeky offering that irks some brands, as they believe its hybrid cover is different from the models it’s most often put up against. However, the ERC is a three-piece golf ball and it’s aimed at club golfers like you.

A fourth, first, and second longest performance at 85mph/100mph driver speeds and 7-iron respectively says everything you need to know about the ball’s distance credentials.

Just be aware the model is low spin, which means giving up around 200rpm at 85-100mph with a driver, and 696rpm/326rpm with a 7-iron and wedge, versus our test averages.

The model was our lowest iron spin ball within the three-piece club golfer category, but it wasn’t our lowest spinning wedge ball, but if offers a decent blend of both distance and wedge control.

Impressively the ERC was our most accurate 7-iron ball with an impossibly tiny 2.7yds sq, which helped it beat our test average from all five situations by 9%. But, if accuracy is your number one requirement the Wilson Triad (which targets a similar golfer) gave a tighter dispersion by 11.2yds sq.           

Read our full Callaway ERC Soft golf ball review.

10

Callaway Supersoft golf ball

Longest driver carry at 85mph; third-longest with 7-iron

£2.42 per ball / 0.12p per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $24.97

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Price: $24.97

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$24.97

View offer

DICK'S Sporting Goods

$24.99

View offer

PGA TOUR Superstore

$24.99

View offer

Golf Galaxy

$24.99

View offer

We’ve seen sales figures which suggest the Supersoft was the biggest-selling ball in the USA last year, which highlights just where the average club golfer spends their cash when it comes to balls. Expect a blend of distance and durability with reasonable levels of feel and spin.
We tested the standard size model in white, but it is available in six vivid colors and an oversized Max version, which is good for players looking for a confidence boost.

Specs Features

Construction	Two-piece
Cover	Hybrid
Dimples	332
Compression	38
Feel	Super soft
Flight	High
Colors	White; Yellow; Matte green; Matte red; Matte orange; Matte pink
Alternative models	Supersoft Shamrock; Supersoft Taco

• Hyperelastic softfast core
• Hybrid cover
• Hex aerodynamics

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Callaway Supersoft

Robot golf balls test verdict: Based on this performance and the price we can see why the Supersoft has proved such a big hit. Our lowest spin ball at the 85mph and 115mph driver speeds, and it just missed out on the same crown in the 100mph category. Just remember this is a low-spin ball, which isn’t always the best option if you have issues flighting shots high enough to maximize carry distance at lesser speeds.

With the 7-iron it was the third longest, but it produced 650rpm and 448rpm less backspin with the iron and wedge than average, so bear in mind it might not stop quite as quickly as a Wilson Duo Soft or Srixon AD333.

Read our full Callaway Supersoft golf ball review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf balls test: Kirkland

11

Kirkland Signature Performance+ golf ball

More accurate and higher spin than budget rivals

£1.37 per ball / 0.7p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $38.72

Price: $29.99

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Rrp: $38.72

Price: $29.99

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With a couple of Asian factories churning out urethane golf balls at prices that allow brands to sell tour-style balls for less than half the cost of big names, it’s easy to see why so many DTC ball brands have sprung up over the last decade.
Major retailers like Costco (who own Kirkland Signature) have jumped on board, too. The three-piece urethane Kirkland is tagged as a high-performance ball for recreational or competitive play and is the cheapest ball in the robot balls test.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	95
Feel	Soft
Flight	High
Colors	White

• Increased core size
• Mantle with new proprietary core
• New proprietary TPU with improved scuff resistance and impact endurance
• Modified dimple depth for optimized flight height

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Kirkland Signature Performance+

Robot golf balls test verdict: So much has been said about Kirkland Signature balls since Costco entered the market, but this test highlights how the model performs against the very best. Make no mistake, the Kirkland is a very high-spin golf ball, which means the model is either shortest or joint shortest at 85mph/100mph with a driver, and 7-iron, so this model is likely to be less useful for higher-speed players.

However, that same high spin DNA means the model is also our second-highest spinning ball with a 7-iron and fourth-highest spinning with a wedge, traits that could prove useful possibly as an alternative to golfers who play two-piece golf balls. Incredibly with an average of just 21yds sq the Kirkland is also our third most accurate golf ball. These are results we couldn’t have predicted prior to testing.

So, if you’ve tried two-piece balls and found them to be too hard or too low spin, so long as you’re willing to put 7.9 yards of carry distance on the line (averaged across the 85mph and 100mph driver speeds and with a 7-iron) versus the Srixon AD333 (11p per yard), or 12.5 yards versus the Wilson Duo Soft (10p per yard) you can completely out spin them with an iron and wedge, whilst also being more accurate.

Hopefully, that should be food for thought for golfers who usually buy predominantly on budget, and those whose number one focus isn’t just speed and distance.

Read our full Kirkland Signature Perfomance + golf ball review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf balls test: Maxfli

12

Maxfli Tour golf ball

A seriously impressive performer and great value

$3.33 / 0.13¢ per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $43.77

Price: $39.99

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Rrp: $43.77

Price: $39.99

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Maxfli have been kicking around for years, but US retailer Dick’s Sporting Goods have owned the brand since 2008. The Tour ball is a direct attack on delivering Pro V1-style performance to the budget-conscious for almost half the price. Expect the Tour to be a little softer than the Tour X, with a slightly lower ball flight and less spin.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	318
Compression	85
Feel	Softer
Flight	Mid
Colors	White; Yellow

• Center of gravity balanced
• Soft cast urethane
• Tetrahedron dimple pattern
• Fast core
• High-speed mantle

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Maxfli Tour

Robot golf balls test verdict: Balls such as the Maxfli Tour have upset the apple cart for the big brands over the past half-decade. And we can see why. The Tour ranked fifth, second and joint sixth longest across the 85/100/115mph speeds while being bang on average for spin and distance with the 7-iron.

OK, with a wedge it fell 339rpm against our test average, and overall there was a 4.2sq yd bigger shot area. But for significantly less money than a Pro V1, for many players, they won’t be deal breakers. If you can get your hands on some, the Maxflis are well worth trying.

Read our full Maxfli Tour golf balls review.

13

Maxfli Tour X golf ball

Superb performance from the fastest and longest ball on test

$3.33 per ball / 0.13¢ per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $39.99

Dick's Sporting Goods

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Price: $39.99

Dick's Sporting Goods

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Alternative Retailers

Golf Galaxy

$39.99

View offer

Maxfli Tour balls are made in the same Taiwanese factory that makes urethane balls for Vice, Wilson and OnCore, and the brand go an extra step to print the side stamp along the axis where the ball is perfectly balanced. Tour X is a little firmer, higher launch, and higher spin than a standard Tour.

Specs Features

Construction	Four-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	318
Compression	100
Feel	Soft
Flight	Mid-High
Colors	White; Yellow

• Center of gravity balanced
• Soft cast urethane
• Tetrahedron dimple pattern
• Fast core
• High-speed mantle

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Maxfli Tour

Robot golf balls test verdict: We included the Maxflis in this test as we’d seen how often they cropped up while trawling Ping’s Ballnamic golf ball selector. And based on this evidence we’re glad they didn’t miss out.

At 115mph with the driver, the Tour X produced both our fastest ball speed and longest carries on test (it was also second longest at 100mph and second fastest at 85mph), which is seriously impressive for the price.

Apart from spinning 284rpm more with the 7-iron, and 210rpm with a wedge, the model was bang on our test averages, too.

Compared to the Pro V1x the Tour X is 6.5 yards longer (averaged over 100/115mph driver speed, and 7-iron), but it does though give up a smidge 3.7% of spin with a 7-iron, and 1.6% with a wedge. Our data also has the model down as producing a 12.8yds sq tighter shot area, which is seriously impressive.   

Read our full Maxfli Tour X golf balls review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf balls test: Pinnacle

14

Pinnacle Rush golf ball

Consistent performer is among the best budget balls

£1.40 per ball / 0.7p per yard (based on RRP)

Pinnacle have always been a name associated with budget balls that didn’t feel great. Today, though, you’ll find the brand offer a choice between all-out distance and soft feel within the same franchise. The Rush is an amateur-focused model, designed to deliver power and distance.
Incredibly this two-piece, ionomer-covered ball is more expensive than the urethane Kirkland Signature, as golfers would expect the two construction types to be light years apart in terms of feel, performance, and price.

Specs Features

Construction	Two-piece
Cover	Ionomer
Dimples	332
Compression	Low
Feel	Soft
Flight	High
Colors	White; Yellow

• High-energy core
• Icosahedral dimple design

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Pinnacle Rush

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Pinnacle Rush

Robot golf balls test verdict: Pinnacle fans could easily make a case for the model to be crowned the best two-piece ball tested. Within that category, it produced the third longest distance (averaged over 85/100mph drivers and 7-iron), second highest iron spin, highest wedge spin (which was seventh highest among all the balls tested) and second tightest overall shot area, which is all highly impressive.

Just bear in mind its spin numbers are a fraction low, so if your swing speed is average or below, it won’t make it any easier to launch the Rush high, or get it to stop.

Read our full Pinnacle Rush golf balls review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf ball test: PXG

15

PXG Xtreme golf balls

Impressive spin performance makes up for distance drop-off

£3.33 per ball / 0.17p per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $39.99

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Price: $39.99

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PXG’s first foray into the ball market has been specifically designed to offer a high, but penetrating ball flight and sit right in and among the Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x. PXG proudly display independent comparative test results from Golf Labs on their website. Suffice to say within 10mph either side of 100mph you’re likely to see some solid distance and spin results with the Xtreme, and compared to tour models it leaves a few quid in your pocket, too.   

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	97
Feel	Soft
Flight	Mid-High
Colors	White

• High C.O.R. polybutadiene core created for high-speed performance
• Firm ionomer mantle layer engineered to increase speed and distance off the tee
• Soft urethane bright white outer cover
• 338 dimple pattern engineered to deliver aerodynamic characteristics

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – PXG Xtreme

Robot golf balls test verdict: The PXG Xtreme launched with plenty of noise, as the brand’s first entry into the ball market. PXG wanted to simplify the ball buying process, so one ball fits all, and they wanted it to sit somewhere between the Pro V1 and Pro V1x. Our numbers don’t quite support their thinking, but being our highest spinning ball with a wedge, 7-iron and at 100mph driver speed says this model will apply the brakes right alongside the best of them. It might struggle to maximize your full distance potential, though.

Compared to a Pro V1 at three driver speeds and with a 7-iron the Xtreme gave up 6.6 yards, but generated 514rpm more iron spin and 558rpm more wedge stopping power. Throw in a 10-square-yard tighter shot area, and the model goes down as a spinny and accurate ball, that’s not quite the fastest or longest.

The story is pretty similar versus the Pro V1x. Where the Xtreme gives up 3.7 yards of carry distance (with driver at three speeds and a 7-iron) but out-spins the Titleist with a 7-iron and wedge to the tune of 297rpm and 271rpm. Our data also has it being 5.3 sq yards more accurate too.   

Read our full PXG Xtreme golf balls review.

Jump to a brand: Bridgestone | Callaway | Kirkland | Maxfli | Pinnacle | PXG | Srixon | TaylorMade | Titleist | Wilson

Robot golf balls test: Srixon

16

Srixon Z-Star golf ball

Top two for accuracy with a wedge

£4 per ball / 0.20p per yard (based on RRP)

Price: $44.97

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Price: $44.97

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Alternative Retailers

Walmart

$44.97

View offer

Srixon’s tour-level ball for 90+mph swing speeds, Z-Star offers a softer feel than the XV and Diamond, but it’s the one that delivers the highest level of greenside spin. Expect a lower mid-flight, where the XV and Diamond are both mid-high flight models. Its 92 compression is also 9.8% softer.

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	92
Feel	Softer
Flight	Mid
Colors	White; Yellow
Alternative models	Z-Star Divide

• Speed dimple pattern
• Thin premium cover
• Spin skin+ coating
• Fastlayer DG core

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Srixon Z-Star

Robot golf balls test verdict: It’s interesting that Srixon now only make three-piece tour balls, which demonstrates the changes in thinking around balls over the last few years. And a test like this helps you understand the differences between the Z-Star and its siblings.

The Z-Star was pretty much bang on our test averages at 100mph driver, and with a 7-iron (bar spinning 356rpm more with the iron). Generally, its shot area was slightly bigger than average, except with a wedge, where it was our second most accurate ball.

If you’re attracted to the model we’d seriously advise considering the Z-Star Diamond too. The Diamond is fractionally longer with the driver, slightly shorter with the irons, but it spins more with a 7-iron and wedge, and is more accurate – traits lots of reasonable speed club golfers will appreciate.       

Read our full Srixon Z-Star golf balls review and compare the brand’s models in our guide to the best Srixon golf balls.

17

Srixon Z-Star XV golf ball

Straight distance but less rounded than Z-Star Diamond

£4 per ball / 0.20p per yard (based on RRP)

Rrp: $44.95

Price: $40.95

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Rrp: $44.95

Price: $40.95

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The firmer XV is for 100+mph swing speeds and played on tour by Hideki Matsuyama, Shane Lowry and Keegan Bradley.
The 2023 model has a new three-piece construction, and it’s designed to fly higher and further than the standard Z-Star. Srixon like to say if your birdies start with a big tee shot then this is probably the ball for you.
Compared to the Z-Star Diamond the XV generates a little less mid-iron and wedge spin, but is also a little longer from the tee.      

Specs Features

Construction	Three-piece
Cover	Urethane
Dimples	338
Compression	102
Feel	Soft
Flight	Mid-high
Colors	White; Yellow

• Speed dimple pattern
• Thin premium cover
• Spin skin+ coating
• Fastlayer DG core

Robot golf balls test data and verdict – Srixon Z-Star XV

Robot golf balls test verdict: The XV is Srixon’s most played tour ball, but based on our data we’d seriously recommend looking at the Z-Star Diamond as a slightly more rounded choice.

At 100mph and 115mph driver speeds our numbers show a tiny 2.2 yards of driver carry distance difference between the Z-Star, Z-Star XV and Z-Star Diamond.

With so litt