Golfers with average swing speeds can add 10.6 yards to their drives just by switching to this golf ball

What's the best golf ball for those with a 100mph swing speed?

If you’re among the 60% of golfers with a mid-range swing speed, choosing the right golf ball could make a huge difference to your driving distance.

I recently brought you the news that golfers with slow swing speeds (85mph with a driver) can gain 8.6 yards on their drives just by switching golf ball.

If you’ve got a bit more speed in the tank, there’s great news: you stand to gain even more distance than that.

Research by Trackman found that 60% of male golfers have clubhead speeds between 91-105mph with a driver. The most common clubhead speed bracket of all was 96-100mph, with 23% of golfers falling into this zone.

If you are one of these golfers, buckle up, because the recent Today’s Golfer Robot Golf Ball Test found that you could gain as much as 10.6 yards of driver carry distance just by switching golf ball.

That means you’ll be hitting at least one club less for your approach shots, which data (and common sense) shows will mean you’ll hit more greens in regulation and shoot lower scores.

There’s also the fact that a better-performing ball will carry further on your approach shots as well as your drives. The results of the robot test showed the difference with a 7-iron can be as much as 8.7 yards. If you gain nearly 11 yards on your drives and close to nine yards on your iron shots, you’ve effectively just made every hole almost 20 yards shorter. That is BIG news.

How we tested the golf balls

The recent Today’s Golfer Robot Golf Ball Test measured and compared 24 leading golf balls across every conceivable performance metric. Among those was distance. The test included hitting balls with driver at 85mph, 100mph, and 115mph – to see how different golf balls performed at different swing speeds – and with a 7-iron and pitching wedge. It’s the 100mph speed we’ll focus on here to see which balls perform best for the majority of golfers who have mid-range swing speeds.

Gain driver distance by switching golf ball

At 100mph clubhead speeds, the Wilson Staff Model X generated the longest driver carry distance of all the balls on test, registering 245.1 yards. It was 10.6 yards longer than the TaylorMade SpeedSoft, which produced the shortest carry distance at this speed, clocking just 234.8 yards.

The Callaway Chrome Tour X (245.1 yards) and Callaway Chrome Tour (244.8 yards) came in second and third for carry distance at this swing speed. Its performance with driver was one of the reasons our Equipment Editor deemed the Callaway Chrome Tour X “arguably the best golf ball of 2024”.

Alongside the TaylorMade SpeedSoft, other balls that failed to deliver good driver distance at 100mph clubhead speeds were the Srixon AD333 and Srixon Distance, the Snell Prime 2.0, the Srixon Q-Star Tour, the Kirkland Signature V3, the Vice Pro Air, and, perhaps most surprisingly, the Titleist Pro V1. All of those models averaged under 240 yards of carry.

Gain iron distance by switching golf ball

The Srixon Q-Star Tour, Vice Pro Air, Wilson Staff Model, and Vice Tour were the longest golf balls when hit with a 7-iron. They were almost nine yards longer than the shortest ball.

There’s a lot more to iron performance than distance, but if you can gain distance off the tee and with approach shots – without giving up anything else – it will make the game easier.

Should you switch golf ball?

Even if the data doesn’t compel you to switch to the Wilson Staff Model X, it’s worth seeing how the golf ball you’re using performs and how much you could gain by switching to a different model.

If you’re happy that the performance you get from your current golf ball does what you want, great – you’re now using the same ball with the added reassurance that the numbers back up your decision. If, however, the data reveals that you could get improved performance by switching ball, it’s one of the quickest, easiest, and cheapest ways to get better results out on the course.

But… I’m not a robot

If we had $1 for every time someone said we should use real golfers instead of a robot for testing, we’d have enough money to buy a whole army of the $100,000 robots we use. A whole army of robots that can pelt golf balls at 200mph with unerring accuracy… quite a scary prospect, when you think of it.

Anyway, we’re not looking to take over the world with our robot army, but we do know from years of experience that a robot is the only way to guarantee the consistency of strike required to isolate the one variable we are trying to test: the performance of the golf ball. Even the world’s best golfers can’t hit a ball exactly the same way, time after time, which brings in other variables. That’s why every golf manufacturer uses a robot when developing golf balls and it’s why we use a robot to test those golf balls head-to-head.

Thanks to the robot’s adjustability it’s possible to control lie angle, swing path, face angle, attack angle, impact location, hip rotation, and wrist action at swing speeds from 5 – 130 MPH. There simply isn’t a better swinger out there – not even among the world’s best golfers.

When picking the best golf balls, we use human testing – both on a launch monitor and on the course – to measure intangibles like sound and feel, but for pure data, a robot is a must-have.

Not all 100mph golf swings are the same

There’s more to your golf swing than just swing speed. Two golfers with the same 100mph swing speed could have quite different impact conditions and therefore produce a different launch angle, spin rate, and carry distance. As a result, those two golfers might get the best results from slightly different golf balls. For instance, if you generate too much spin with your driver, one of the best low-spin golf balls may give you more distance.

That said, we’d be surprised if a ball that ranks near the bottom for distance in our test produces the most distance for you.

Get yourself the best golf ball for 100mph swing speeds

Wilson Staff Model X

Expert rating:

5.0

Price per ball $4.16 / 2.16c per yard

Price: $49.99

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Price: $49.99

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Alternative Retailers

Golf Galaxy

$49.99

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PGA TOUR Superstore

$49.99

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DICK'S Sporting Goods

$49.99

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Walmart

$49.99

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With a compression of 104, the Staff Model X offers golfers a firmer faster feel than the 95 compression standard Staff Model ball. This model is most like the original 2020 Staff Model, so if that used to be your favorite Wilson golf ball this is the most current model to replace it.
 
Expect a higher launch and ball flight than the standard Staff Model ball you’ll also get maximum shot shape potential from this offering. See the X as an alternative to the Titleist Pro V1x, TaylorMade TP5x, and Callaway Chrome Tour X and you’ll be thinking along exactly the right lines.

Read our full Wilson Staff Model X (2024) golf ball review.

Pros & Cons Specs

Pros

• A very fast golf ball option
• Faster and longer than a Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x
• An accurate and consistent golf ball choice

Cons

• It's a shame about the price hike for 2024

Construction	4-Piece
Cover	Urethane
Cost per ball	$4.16

• Check out our pick of the best golf balls

About the author

Rob McGarr – Contributing Editor

Rob has been a writer and editor for over 15 years, covering all manner of subjects for leading magazines and websites.

He has previously been Features Editor of Today’s Golfer magazine and Digital Editor of todays-golfer.com, and held roles at FHM, Men’s Running, Golf World, and MAN Magazine.

You can follow him on YouTube where – depending on what day of the week it is – he’ll either be trying his best to get his handicap down to scratch or shoving his clubs in a cupboard, never to be seen again.

Rob is a member at Royal North Devon, England’s oldest golf course, where he plays off a three-handicap.