Golf Equipment Shortcuts That Can Mislead Your Game
MyGolfSpy’s 2026 testing challenges common ideas about balls, wedges, irons and drivers.
Golfers often use swing speed, spin, loft or distance as quick answers when choosing equipment. MyGolfSpy’s 2026 robot testing suggests those shortcuts can miss important parts of performance. At 85 mph with a driver, none of 11 golf balls below 75 compression produced more ball speed than the Pro V1 control. Softer balls showed limited promise with slower iron swings, but the data did not create a reliable speed-to-compression formula.
A faster ball is not automatically the longest if its launch, spin, carry and rollout are less suitable. Wedge testing found moisture could greatly change spin results: the gap between 15 models grew from under 500 rpm when dry to more than 3,700 rpm when wet. Iron fittings also deserve a wider look than one 7-iron. Rankings shifted across 5-iron, 7-iron and pitching-wedge tests, while loft alone could not predict flight because head design and delivery at impact also matter. Driver forgiveness included retaining speed and carry, plus shot-pattern consistency—not only staying straight after a miss.
- None of 11 low-compression balls exceeded the Pro V1 for driver ball speed at 85 mph.
- Wet conditions widened the wedge-spin gap beyond 3,700 rpm.
- Iron rankings changed across 5-iron, 7-iron and pitching-wedge testing.
- Driver mishits created distance gaps of 17 to 20 yards.
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