How Much Do Golf Balls Weigh?

According to the Rules of Golf, a golf ball should weigh no more than 1.62 ounces (45.93 g). Golf balls weighing more than this are not allowed for use in competitions played under the Rules of Golf. They would not pass the tests run by The R&A and the USGA and so would not feature on the list of conforming golf balls.

You could use such a ball in a friendly game if you agree with your partners but would there be any point if you can’t use it at any other time?

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The Rules On Golf Balls

In the earliest days of golf, balls may have been made from wood although these were quickly replaced by feathery balls. These were all handmade and would have been very difficult to manufacture to any sort of set standard even if the governing bodies of golf had set one back then.

Eventually, golf balls started to be manufactured on a production line and the rule-makers laid down parameters for the size and weight of a golf ball.

Surprisingly up until as recently as 1990, the two governing bodies had different rules for the size of golf balls. The R&A still allowed the use of balls with a diameter of 1.62 inches while the USGA set their minimum as 1.68 inches.

However, the two rules bodies finally unified their stance on the golf ball settling on 1.62 ounces as the maximum weight and 1.68 inches as the minimum diameter.

When testing golf balls the USGA look at a sample of 24 and if more than 4 of those exceed the weight limit then the ball would fail the test.

Do All Golf Balls Weigh The Same?

You may be surprised to know that golf balls don’t all weigh the same. Different manufacturers have different tolerances in their manufacturing process. Because the rules of golf lay down a maximum weight they must make sure that they don’t exceed this and therefore tend to err on the side of caution usually coming in a few tenths of a gram below the maximum.

Having spent a bit of time recently researching this topic and doing my own testing I was surprised to find just how big a difference there can be between balls of the same make and model. I’ve added the results of my testing below.

Why Does Golf Ball Weight Matter?

The reason why a maximum weight is specified by the games governing bodies is that a heavier golf ball will travel further than a lighter one. 

This would give manufacturers who produced heavier golf balls an advantage as people would flock to their models to gain extra distance.

Srixon Golf Ball Weights

Using some accurate electronic scales I’ve taken the weights of a number of different golf balls and here are the results.

Ball	Average Weight (grams)	Max Weight (grams)	Min Weight (grams)	Variation Max to Avg	Variation Min to Avg
Z-Star	45.81	45.89	45.71	0.0825	0.0975
Z-Star XV	45.75	45.83	45.66	0.08	0.09
Z-Star Diamond	45.77	45.80	45.69	0.03	0.08
Q-Star Tour	45.44	45.55	45.34	0.114	0.096
Soft Feel	45.43	45.54	45.22	0.113	0.207

Admittedly this is a small sample size but it would appear that the more expensive ball works to tighter tolerances both within the maximum and minimum weights you might expect and how close it gets to the maximum allowable weight. This is not really surprising and is probably just one of the reasons why tour balls cost more.

How Much Does The Kirkland Signature Golf Ball Weigh?

The Kirkland Signature golf ball is a very popular golf ball because it is a urethane ball that offers excellent spin for a fraction of the price of other urethane golf balls. You should be able to pick up two dozen Kirkland Signature V2.0 for around $35 which seems pretty good value when you consider that a dozen urethane balls by Titleist, TaylorMade or Callaway will cost you more for just one dozen.

Ball	Average Weight (grams)	Max Weight (grams)	Min Weight (grams)	Variation Max to Avg	Variation Min to Avg
Kirkland Signature V2.0	45.77	45.91	45.65	0.14	0.12

The Kirkland Signature pushes the envelope in terms of the maximum weight allowed with its highest example only 0.02 g from the limit. You can also see variation between minimum and maximum than the equivalent Srixon ball (Z-Star).

How Much Does The Wilson Duo Soft Golf Ball Weigh?

The Wilson duo soft is one of the lowest compression balls available on the market. It’s a relatively cheap ball at least from one of the major manufacturers. Interestingly one of the samples exceeded the maximum allowable weight and a further example was right on the limit. The variation in weights was similar to the Kirkland.

Ball	Average Weight (grams)	Max Weight (grams)	Min Weight (grams)	Variation Max to Avg	Variation Min to Avg
Duo Soft	45.80	45.94	45.64	0.14	0.16
Staff Model Raw	45.77	45.87	45.62	0.10	0.15

How Much Do Titleist Golf Balls Weigh?

Titleist are the number 1 ball in golf so lets see how their balls fare.

Ball	Average Weight (grams)	Max Weight (grams)	Min Weight (grams)	Variation Max to Avg	Variation Min to Avg
Pro V1	45.74	45.81	45.63	0.07	0.11
Pro V1x	45.79	45.83	45.71	0.04	0.12
TruFeel	45.76	45.83	45.66	0.07	0.10

How Much Do Callaway Golf Balls Weigh?

How does Callaway compare with the other big brands?

Ball	Average Weight (grams)	Max Weight (grams)	Min Weight (grams)	Variation Max to Avg	Variation Min to Avg
Chrome Soft	45.70	45.79	45.64	0.09	0.06
Chrome Soft X	45.74	45.81	45.68	0.07	0.06

Golf Ball Weight Results

The heaviest ball among those I tested was the Kirkland Signature at 45.91g (1.619 oz). The lightest ball was a Srixon Soft Feel at 45.22g (1.595 oz). The Srixon Z-Star had the largest average weight of 45.81g (1.616 oz).

Here is a graph showing the relative average weights of each ball model.

How Much Do Golf Balls Weigh: Conclusion

It is probably slightly dangerous to draw any significant conclusions from such a small sample but based on these figures it would appear that ball manufacturers use much tighter tolerances on more expensive balls than they do on their cheaper products.

I suppose this is just another reason why you should try to play the best quality ball that you can afford. It is more likely that the balls will react the same.