Stymie

Best Golf Balls for Beginners

For a brand-new golfer the right ball is cheap, soft, and low-spin. Cheap because you will lose them. Soft because slow swings need it. Low-spin because slices are made worse by the extra urethane spin tour balls produce.

  1. 1
    Cut Golf·Value·$15

    Cut White

    $15 per dozen, 70 compression, low-spin distance build.

  2. 2
    Pinnacle·Soft feel·$15

    Soft

    $15 per dozen, 55 compression, low-spin distance build.

  3. 3
    Snell·Value·$16

    Get Sum

    $16 per dozen, 70 compression, low-spin distance build.

  4. 4
    Cut Golf·Distance·$18

    Cut Red

    $18 per dozen, 75 compression, low-spin distance build.

  5. 5
    Wilson·Soft feel·$20

    Soft TRK360

    $20 per dozen, 50 compression, low-spin distance build.

  6. 6
    Maxfli·Soft feel·$20

    SoftFli

    $20 per dozen, 45 compression, low-spin distance build.

Frequently asked

What golf ball should a beginner play?

Something cheap (under $25/dozen), soft (under 75 compression), and distance-focused (low driver spin). Tour balls (Pro V1, TP5) are wrong on all three counts: too expensive to lose, too firm for a slow swing, and too high-spin for a slice-prone swing.

Should beginners ever play tour balls?

Eventually, yes — once swing speed reaches 95+ mph and the slice is mostly gone. The wedge-spin gain becomes a real advantage at that point. Until then, a $20 distance ball is the better setup.

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