You wouldn’t walk onto the course with a hat that’s too small or a club that’s too long, but have you ever thought about how well your golf ball fits you? Savor the peace of mind and confidence that comes from playing with the right golf ball by learning about the four basic types, and finding the one that corresponds to your game qualities like handicap and swing speed.

Two-Piece

First up on the tee is the two-piece golf ball, engineered for a casual round for fun rather than competition. With a large inner core and cover, it has great durability and distance with every shot. Because of the soft feel of the club face, fast initial ball speed, and flight consistency, all manufacturers have a two-piece ball in their line. Two-piece golf balls are best for golfers with a handicap of 15-36 with a swing speed in the range of 70-85 mph, not for tour players because of their softness. A two-piece ball would also be suggested for junior golfers who are being introduced to the game of golf. If you would like to get a feel for a few on a hole or two before committing to one ball for the whole course, you can try a sample pack of the newest two-piece offerings from Titleist, Callaway, Srixon, and TaylorMade,and here.

Three-Piece
Three-piece golf ball with a Surlyn cover are crafted with a bit more engineering technology and higher-end materials to create better workability off the club face and overall game improvement. The trio of parts, an inner core, outer mantle, and cover, play off of each other to combine durability with feel and control. Meant for handicaps of 8-18, three-piece Surlyn golf balls desire a swing speed of 80-90 mph. The reason is that you need to generate enough swing speed to compress the ball in order to get all three layers really working for you.

The other three-piece golf ball in the market place is the Urethane Elastomer variety.  The Pro V1, Callaway SR2,TaylorMade Tour Preferred and other advertise shot consistency and performance, and spinning (although at the cost of durability) because of its soft urethane cover. With a solid inner core, outer casing, and thin urethane cover, this category of golf balls showcase greenside control, tour-grade performance and distance, flight consistency, steep angle of descent, short-iron control, and long-iron distance. Three-piece urethane golf balls have a swing speed of 90-105 mph for handicaps of 0-10. Want a piece of the three-piece urethane? Sample them here.

Four-Piece
The four-piece golf ball with a urethane cover is cut out for the golfer with an above-tour-level swing speed or someone that has an unusally high ball flight. With a dual core, casing, and the same type of cover as the three-piece urethane ball, its minimal dimples limit the amount of spin, improving distance and playability. You can have a ball with deep, down-range peak trajectory, exceptional distance, steep angle of descent, and flight consistency that comes with this quartet. Only for handicaps of 0-5, four-piece urethane golf balls typically require a swing speed of 105+ mph. Sample them here. 

Whether it’s a two, three, or four-piece, with a Surlyn or urethane cover, you should love your ball to pieces. Lost Golf Balls can help couple you with a ball that’s right on the money.