Is there an advantage for someone with a slower swing speed to use a lower compression golf ball?
Woody,
Again, I am not a golf ball expert, but the lower compression, the more the ball deforms at impact and the more energy that is lost. I did some more research and the only thing I really have no data on is how much hitting a lower compression ball affects spin at the varying clubhead speeds. Still, I do not believe that part of the equation over comes the energy loss of the increased compression at impact. The whole concept of “spring face” (which is a bad term to describe what happens) is that if you make a driver face that compresses or deforms more at impact, the ball compresses less (loosing less energy) and THAT is why driver faces are designed to give a little at impact. They do not “spring” the ball forward, as the term suggests. Less energy loss from the ball produces more distance. In every case of our testing when we did it for the ball software I mentioned, the “distance” ball with the hardest cover and highest compression was the longest ball. A lot of technology has changed in golf balls since we did those tests, so I guess it’s possible to devise a low compression ball that flies farther than a hard compression ball, but I have not seen any independent testing data of any kind that would show it.
Britt Lindsey