Golf has come a long way from the days of gutta-percha and feathery balls, and no doubt you want the best to ensure your game is top-notch. While glossy white golf balls have ruled supreme since the mid-1960s, the first matte golf ball was launched in 2016 in the name of enhanced visibility in the air and on the green. But is one better than the other?
Matte golf balls are identical to regular golf balls in terms of design and construction. Golf balls are coated with a matte finish to improve their visibility on and off the green. The technology of the core and mantle inside the cover is the same as that of golf balls with a regular glossy finish.
This article will cover the mechanics inside a golf ball and the factors that impact its performance. We’ll also cover what you should keep in mind when choosing a set of new golf balls.
Matte Golf Balls Were Designed for Distance Play
Volvik is a well-established golf ball manufacturer who introduced the world to the first matte finish golf ball. However, many bright yellow and multi-colored balls had already paved the way for further innovation.
Distance play means that your ability to track your shot can be challenging, especially on a bright sunny day, which is where matte golf balls come in. Unlike their high gloss counterparts, they don’t give off a lot of glare.
Pro golfers and amateurs alike showed their enthusiasm, and matte finish balls teed off with a bang.
Volvik Crystal Golf Balls are available on Amazon.com and have a soft outer layer and hard core. They’re bright, affordable, and excellent for distance play.
How All Golf Balls Are Constructed
Every golf ball has three parts: a core, a mantle, and a cover. And whether it is matte or glossy, it will behave exactly the same.
Check out this video by MrShortGame Golf to see how different golf balls look and play:
Let’s go over the three elements of a golf ball in more detail:
- The core is the most critical part of a golf ball and what gives it speed. A well-designed ball has a compression-molded rubber core capable of retaining as much as 80 percent of the energy it gained from the golf club upon impact.
- The mantle keeps the core dry, helps the ball retain energy and therefore speed, and controls its spin. The number of layers in the mantle of a golf ball indicates whether you are playing a one-, two-, three- or even four-piece ball.
- The cover around the core and the mantle can be glossy or matte. Your golf ball spins and stays in the air because of the design of its cover. Besides its finish, a golf ball requires a dimple pattern to keep it airborne and to improve your club’s grip on impact.
This video by Titleist demonstrates the importance of dimples:
Playing With a Matte Golf Ball
The rules of golf issued by The R&A and the United States Golf Association do not directly reference the finish of golf balls allowed in play. They do, however, govern the weight and size of your golf ball.
For example:
- Any ball you choose to play must be spherical and symmetrical in shape.
- It must not weigh more than 1.620 ounces or 45.93 grams.
- It must not have a diameter smaller than 1.680 inches, or 42.67 mm.
With that in mind, there are three other aspects to consider when choosing your new golf balls: compression, spin, and the dimple pattern.
All of these will influence how the golf ball feels to you:
- Compression determines how far your golf ball will fly. The higher the compression, the further your ball will go. High-compression golf balls generally feel harder on impact. Choose lower compression balls if you find the shock of impact uncomfortable.
- Compression and the material used in the cover influence the spin of your golf ball. A high-spin ball will provide a better grip between the grooves of your golf club and the cover of the ball. This grip also makes backspin possible, giving you more control over the ball at impact for a more precise short game.
- The R&A and USGA do require that the dimples on the cover of a golf ball be arranged in as symmetrical a pattern as possible. However, the dimples do not have to be all the same size or distributed uniformly over the golf ball’s cover.
I recommend the Volvik Long Distance Golf Balls, here are a few reasons why:
- It is a two-piece design for comfortable use and durability.
- It has a larger core for better energy retention.
- It is available in four bright colors: red, yellow, orange and green.
- It has a high compression ratio without sacrificing control.
Golf coach Rick Shiels provides an in-depth review of the three-piece range of Vivid matte golf balls in this informative video:
Matte Golf Balls Feel the Same As Regular Golf Balls
Appearances are deceiving, and despite what you might expect, golf balls with a matte finish feel exactly the same as glossy golf balls of similar construction. Although the matte finish gives the ball a smooth appearance, you can definitely feel the dimples’ indentations.
That said, when experienced golfers speak about the feel of a golf ball, they’re referring to the shock they experience when their golf club hits the ball off the tee.
Your strength, swing, club choice, and course conditions all impact the feel of a golf ball.
Matte golf balls were initially marketed for distance play, so they will feel the same as a regular distance gloss ball.
If you’re trying to decide between the two, keep this fact in mind when you test your first matte finish balls on the green, and be sure to play it the same way you would typically to evaluate its performance fairly.
In general, the gentler the impact feedback, the better. You want a ball that feels soft upon impact without sacrificing distance.
A well-designed matte finish golf ball will fly straight and true, landing far on the fairway.
Conclusion
There are no fundamental design differences between golf balls with a regular gloss finish and those with the newer matte surface coating.
However, matte finish golf balls will give you better visibility, especially in high light daytime conditions, both in the air and on the rough or green.
When you decide to take the plunge and add some matte finish golf balls to your arsenal, keep these three essential factors in mind:
- Compression
- Spin
- Dimple pattern
These will impact the speed and distance of your every shot and the ball’s ability to spin and retain its trajectory.