This Ball Is Different. Here’s Why.

Callaway introduces new Chrome Soft and Chrome Soft X golf ball with graphene in its core. 

Callaway Golf has made some major enhancements to its Chrome Soft and Chrome Soft X golf ball.

New materials have increasingly found their way into a number of products in golf, from the crowns of drivers, to the weighting in irons. That hasn’t always been the case with golf balls. Callaway says that trend is changing with its new Chrome Soft ball.

The secret ingredient in this instance is graphene, an atomic-scale honeycomb lattice made of carbon atoms, was first produced in a laboratory at the University of Manchester in 2004, and is 200 times stronger than steel and also stronger than diamond. Until recently graphene was too expensive to utilize in the golf industry, but as uses for it increased in industrial products, the price decreased, and Callaway’s engineers began experimenting with it in golf balls.

Callaway’s new Chrome Soft and Chrome Soft X golf ball features new graphene Dual Soft Fast Core.

“Every single part of Chrome Soft has been improved,” says Dr. Alan Hocknell, Senior Vice President of Research and Development.

Product keys:

  • Callaway incorporated a graphene powder into the core of Chrome Soft. The company’s engineers say graphene reinforces and strengthens the ball, allowing it to have a stronger outer core, while maintaining the soft inner core that defines Chrome Soft. The goal, Callaway’s engineers say, is to get the inner core larger when compared with the outer core of the ball.
  • Chrome Soft X—a firmer ball developed by Callaway’s engineers for some of its tour players, and is a significant difference for Chrome Soft. Chrome Soft X is longer off all clubs, Callaway says, and promotes a flatter ball flight.
  • Callaway says its Chrome Soft ball is the first seamless ball on the market. When golf balls are created, for manufacturing reasons the outer layer comes in two halves and the seam where those two areas come together is buffed off. For years golfers have talked of “seaming,” a concept that said golf balls travel best when the seam is aimed at the target. Callaway’s manufacturing process eliminates the seam, which the company says makes for a more consistent distance on all shots.

Callaway’s golf ball business improved, it has invested in innovation, especially at its Chicopee, Massachusetts golf ball facility.

“We are spending more on [golf ball development] than any of our competitors,”says Dr. Hocknell. “This segment allows us to grow and innovate, and the new [Chrome Soft] is the ball that we’ve always wanted to make.”

Which one is for you?

Chrome Soft: Softest feel, best forgiveness, straight flight

Chrome Soft X: Soft feel, high forgiveness, workable flight

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