In order for most of the energy to be transferred from the clubhead to the ball, you do not want to waste energy compressing a very soft, low compression ball too much, as more energy is expended when a club hits a very soft ball. (More on this later when we describe average swing speed when hitting a high compression ball.) A slow swing will not compress the ball much. Generally women have lower speeds and generally use a softer compression golf ball as it is easier to compress and as a result the ball will go further than a high compression ball which of course is more difficult to compress.

How do I know what my speed is?

Most pro shops or golf retailers will measure your speed if you don’t know.

On the higher end, here is the average swing speed of the fastest clubhead speeds on the PGA Tour right now:

• Bubba Watson 124 mph

• Gary Woodland 123 mph

• Rory McIlroy 122 mph

The RE / Max long riding world champions have climbed around 145+ mph. The 2014 champion, Connor Powers, clocked at 152.8 mph.

Bubba uses Titleist, Gary uses Callaway and Rory uses Nike golf balls

Different golfers have different speeds generally related to their handicap.

Speeds vary based on handicaps. Average speed for an 18 handicap is approximately 90 mph, resulting in an average driving distance of approximately 230 yards. It is also well established that your speed will increase if you keep the club looser and if you are more relaxed. Trying to swing a stronger swing generally has the opposite effect on distance.

Increasing speed takes practice and is something that can be done on the driving range. Jack Nicklaus didn’t get too close to range unless he wanted to do something. Going to range can be tedious if you are not trying to work on something.

Golf Labs used a robot with a set speed of 90 mph using a 13.75 degree loft.

Here are the results:

• TaylorMade TP Black 259.1 yards

• TaylorMade Noodle + 259 yards

• TaylorMade Red 258 yards

• Titleist NXT Extreme 257.5

• Bridgestone Precept Laddie 256 yards

• Nike PD Soft 255.9 yards

• Bridgestone Tour B330-S 255.2 yards

• Top Flite Freak 254.5 yards

• Wilson Luxe 254.2 yards

• Titleist NXT Tour 254.2 yards

The difference in the robot’s driving distance at 90 mph for the above 10 balls is only 4.9 yards. Since this is not a significant distance, you may want to seriously consider which ball has the best feel for your short game (i.e. your score). There are no images on the scorecards and if you’re like most of us, someone else usually wins the longest drive and it’s better to enter with a lower score.

Also, for you heavy hitters, keep in mind that the robot’s speed was 90 mph and not the speed of the 20-year-old Tiger Wood when he could easily turn 130 mph in his youth. Remember what I explained at the beginning about high speed, low compression balls? Well, the robot tested Nike’s One Platinum, which is a high compression ball specially made for maximum transfer of kinetic energy from on high (like Tiger Woods). But when this Nike ball was hit with a speed of just 90 mph, the average distance came to just 239.1 yards. So before you buy high compression balls, be sure to find out what their speed is before you buy them. You’d better try one of the 10 lower compression balls shown above for 90 mph gears for max distance.

Want to measure the head speed of your own golf club?

Measure your own swing speed using sports swing speed radar. This device contains a Doppler radar sensor and measures golf (as well as baseball) changes up to 200 mph. Just set it about 8-10 inches from the tee (or suspend it from a cage or batting net). Meets all FCC safety requirements and runs on 3 AA batteries. See if your kids are old enough to beat the old man? It’s great fun for family competitions.