We all wish we could play golf in peak summer conditions. But for golfers that live in colder climates that want to extend their season as long as possible, sometimes you have to play when it’s cold outside.
If you’ve ever played golf in cold weather, you’ve probably noticed at some point that the ball felt harder than normal. Sometimes your hands sting a little bit after hitting an iron and other times the ball just feels a bit hard of the tee. You also may notice that your ball doesn’t seem to travel as far as it does in the middle of the summer. Neither of these are favorable conditions for any golfer, but the golf ball you choose can help mitigate these factors when you’re playing in the cold.
Overall we recommend the Callaway Golf Supersoft golf ball for colder weather, but keep reading for why.
What Happens to Golf Balls in Colder Weather
To pick the best golf balls for colder weather, you first need to understand what happens to the ball as a result of the cold. When the temperature drops, the air often becomes more dense, resulting in increased air friction for your shots. Some experts claim that the difference is about two yards of distance for every 10 degrees change in temperature. This means if you’re normally hitting a shot 150 yards in when it’s 90 degrees in the summertime, that same shot might only go 140 yards if it’s 40 degrees out in the fall. That’s a whole club length difference!
The cold temperature also causes less compression from your golf ball at impact, resulting in less yardage. Because of this, you’re going to want to pick a golf ball that isn’t as impacted by the cold temperature and has a lower compression rating. The lower a golf balls compression rating, the more the ball will compress at impact, helping with length and often resulting in softness. Generally speaking, the higher the compression rating is, the faster your swing speed needs to be to compress the ball properly. If you see a compression rating of 90, it is advised that you have a swing speed of at least 90MPH in ideal conditions, but even faster in the cold. The cold weather only makes it harder to compress a ball.
When picking a golf ball for the colder weather, there are a few other things you probably want to consider to have the most success. More often then not, if you’re playing when it’s cold out, there likely are a lot of leaves on the ground and finding a ball in the rough can be a bit trickier than normal. Most grounds crews aren’t cutting the grass as consistently as they normally would in the summer too. Because of this, you might want to pick a ball that is bright and easy to find. If you’re not into colored golf balls, then you’ll likely want to pick a ball that is affordable to play with because no one wants to be spending their time in cold weather searching for a lost ball in a pile of leaves. Just grab another ball out of your bag, and keep moving to stay warm!
Best Overall Golf Ball for Colder Weather
Callaway Golf Supersoft
The Callaway Supersoft is our pick for the best cold weather golf ball. This ball checks off all the boxes that we want to see when playing in Winter conditions. The compression is incredibly low, with an official compression rating of 38 (very low). What stands out for the Supersoft ball is exactly what it says in the name; it is super soft. When you’re playing in cold weather and want to avoid that stinging feeling in the hands while also not losing yardage off of the tee, this is your ball. We also think the Callaway Supersoft is the best ball because it’s a tremendous value. Unlike the balls that cost $50 or $60 per dozen, you won’t feel guilty If you can’t find one of these in a pile of leaves. Coming in anywhere from $20-$25 a dozen, your wallet will thank you for choosing these. Additionally, they are available in Yellow if you like playing with a brighter ball to avoid losing them. You will be hard-pressed to find a ball that checks off all of the boxes of a great colder weather golf ball.
Runner Up Golf Balls for the Winter
Callaway Golf ERC Soft Triple Track
Released in 2019, these balls were designed to have a soft feel. They aren’t as soft as the Supersofts, sporting a compression rating of 60, but golfers have shared that the feel of these is still very soft. The ERC Soft allows for length off the tee due to its low compression rating, and golfers say that it has an incredibly great feel around the greens (where a lot of softer balls lose some points). The ball is finished with 3 lines for putt alignment on the greens.
Wilson Staff Duo Soft Optix Golf Balls
Arguably the best value play of the bunch, Wilson Staff Duo Soft Optix Golf Balls are the best budget golf balls for colder weather. They are incredibly soft, with a compression rating of 29, which is one of the lowest you’ll find on the market. For only $15-$20 a dozen, you can’t get much better for the price and your hands won’t hurt when extending play into the colder months.
The Srixon Q-Star Tour 2
One of our favorite all-season golf balls. While they aren’t as soft in cold weather as some of the others on this list, the Srixon Q-Star Tour 2 manages to maintain a soft feel when the temperature dips. Srixon proudly touts its 338 Speed Dimple Pattern which helps increase distance by reducing drag. The Q Star Tour 2’s are available in white or yellow to help with visibility. This is one of our favorite balls to play with year-round and because it retains its performance in colder weather, it deserves a spot on this list.
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