The 8 Best Golf Balls for Beginners of 2025

Finding the best golf ball can be overwhelming, especially for beginning golfers. Playing the same ball Tour players use sounds exciting, but until you improve your skills, those balls will hurt you more than they’ll help. 

There are several features that make some golf balls better for beginners than others, like optimizing distance for moderate and slower swing speeds, and fighting side spin rather than promoting it, which helps you hit straighter shots. 

With so many expenses that come along with being a beginner in golf, value is an emphasis too. With all that in mind, we think the eight golf balls listed below are the best golf balls for beginners.

Pros:

• Better greenside control than most 2-piece balls
• Fits a wide demographic of golfers with slower swing speeds

Cons:

• High swing speed players will over-compress the Soft Feel

The Srixon Soft Feel is a low-compression, medium-greenside spin ball with a mid-high trajectory. This combination gives it great distance for players with slower swing speeds, nice short-game feel, and easy launch, which many beginners appreciate.

The dimple pattern allows the Soft Feel to cut through wind, and with its high launch off the tee and low spin, you can expect straighter drives. Its feel and performance make it seem like a premium ball, but at just $25 a dozen.

Unlike the Pinnacle Soft, which we’ll touch on shortly, the Srixon Soft Feel launches higher yet still fights side spin to help shots stay straighter. For players who want straighter shots but can’t afford to play a ball that flies lower (after all, more beginners hit the ball too low than too high), this Srixon Soft Feel can be an excellent choice.

The Soft Feel is a great all-around ball, with its low-spin characteristics making it one of our top choice golf balls for slicers, while the low compression makes it a great ball for seniors.

Pros:

• Soft feel that many players enjoy
• Excellent value
• No need to switch balls when rollback hits

Cons:

• Not optimal for players with faster (100-105+) swing speeds

Here’s a fun tidbit about the Pinnacle Soft golf ball: it already meets the impending USGA Rollback with little to no modification.

Take that information however you’d like, but the Pinnacle Soft has a lot to offer. It’s a lower-spin ball which means less side spin and straighter shots. If you’re tired of watching your ball curve helplessly into trouble, this one might fly a little straighter for you.

The Pinnacle Soft's lower spin comes with lower launch, less hang time, and more roll out, so consider how that might impact your typical shot type. If you hit the ball too high and with too much spin, you can expect a more penetrating flight from Pinnacle Soft.

When you consider the value, $20 for 15 balls, and the fact that it’s produced by the same company (Acushnet) that makes Titleist balls, Pinnacle Soft is an enticing ball for beginning golfers.

Pros:

• Great value plus discount when buying in bulk
• Nice alignment line
• Very durable

Cons:

• 6 dozen for $90 is a great value, but still a considerable commitment for beginners to get the lowest price

The Vice Drive gives golfers serious bang for their buck. With pricing as low as $15 a dozen when you buy in bulk (six dozen or more) the Drive is one of the best values in the game. If you just want one box, the Drive still only costs $20 a dozen. 

The low price is great for beginners, but how about performance? With a surlyn cover, the Drive is one of the most durable balls on the market. As a ball targeted to beginner and occasional golfers, the Drive’s performance features emphasize distance for moderate to higher swing speeds.

On the outside, you’ll appreciate Vice’s simple yet effective KIL alignment line on the greens. Not to mention, it’s available in four different colors, so if a white ball isn’t your thing, you’ve got some vibrant choices to consider as well.

Pros:

• Top end distance
• Excellent value
• Desirable soft feel

Cons:

• Alignment aid is underwhelming

The Noodle Long and Soft, now made by TaylorMade, is a classic golf ball for all the right reasons. Let’s start with the obvious – given the name – but this ball is long for players with moderate swing speeds. With an overall compression rating of 60 and a core compression of 34, you’ll get satisfying distance and that popular soft feel that so many golfers love.

The cover and dimple pattern reduces drag, resulting in even more carry. Adding to the appeal of the Noodle Long and Soft is the value. Yes, it still comes in a double-dozen, which checks in at just $28, or a dimple over a buck a ball. 

Pros:

• One of the softest golf balls available
• Low spin increases accuracy and distance
• New TRK 360 alignment option available
• Higher launch, steeper descent increases stopping power

Cons:

• Players with faster swing speeds (95+ MPH) will compress too much with driver and hinder distance

If you swing your driver 90 MPH or slower and want the absolute longest, lowest spinning, softest feeling golf ball available, try the Wilson Tour Duo Soft. With a super low 37 compression, the Duo Soft is as soft as they come. It also generates very low spin, meaning added distance and improved accuracy in the long game.

While holding greens is typically a problem for low-spin, 2-piece distance balls, the Duo Soft tackles the stopping power issue head-on with a higher launch profile, which creates a steeper descent and helps the ball stop on the green.

Players who swing driver in the mid-90s and above will over-compress the Duo Soft, but those with moderate to slower swing speeds will enjoy the total package.

Pros:

• Fits the majority of beginner swing speeds
• Effective alignment aid
• Better greenside control than many 2-piece balls

Cons:

• Still too soft for fast swing speeds

The TaylorMade Distance+ is, as the name suggests, primarily a distance ball. The medium compression rating of 77 means the Distance+ stands up to moderate swing speeds, appealing to the majority of beginner golfers. 

Its low spin helps you squeeze every yard out of your swing. Meanwhile, the soft cover gives you some of the greenside feel that many balls in this category lack. The Distance+ is one of the better-performing balls around the green on this list, providing more short game control than most 2-piece balls.

Once you’re on the green, you’ll appreciate the unique, but still understated plus-shaped alignment aid. The aid helps you line up properly then gives immediate feedback on your roll.

Pros:

• Best short game control of any ball on this list
• High quality and ball-to-ball consistency that Titleist is famous for
• Excellent distance

Cons:

• At $25 a dozen, you have to pay a little more to get a little more

You’ve probably noticed that it’s much easier to find a ball that pairs distance with value than one that blends distance, short game performance, and a reasonable price. If that’s the combination you want, the Titleist TruFeel is our top recommendation for you.

From a performance perspective, you get Titleist’s unique TruFlex cover, which is what gives you better short game control with the TruFeel than any other ball we recommend for beginners. That cover, paired with Titleist’s TruTouch Core, helps TruFeel deliver excellent distance as well.

Even though it’s not as budget-friendly as some other balls on this list, at $25 a dozen, the TruFeel still won’t break the bank, especially considering the performance you get for that price.

Pros:

• Unique dimple pattern designed for 20% straighter ball flight
• Maximum distance
• Great alignment aid

Cons:

• Sacrifices greenside performance

The Maxfli Straightfli gets our nod as the best golf ball for beginners because it can really help you all the way until you’ve improved into sub-20 handicap range. Plus, it’s a great ball for distance, accuracy, and value, a vital trifecta for beginners.

I’ve put thoroughly tested the Straightfli on the course, admittedly skeptical of the straighter-flying claims. I must say, I was very impressed with how noticeable the accuracy improvement is. Shots that I would typically expect to curve into trouble seemed to hold their line and fall relatively harmlessly into the rough, where I could find it and hit it again.

The Straightfli’s unique dimple design stacks large and small dimples to make the ball fly straighter – 20% straighter than previous models, according to Maxfli – while matching the distance of other 2-piece balls in the category. We’ve put it to test, and absolutely co-sign that claim.

While the Straightfli isn’t the most responsive ball around the green, it really doesn’t have much competition from a distance-accuracy-value standpoint, making it a great golf ball for beginners.