MyGolfSpy Ball Lab is where we quantify the quality and consistency of golf balls. Today, we’re reviewing the 2022 Callaway Chrome Soft. To learn more about our test process, click here.
About the Callaway Chrome Soft
Like the previous two balls tested in Ball Lab (Srixon Q-Star Tour and Bridgestone TOUR B RXS), the Callaway Chrome Soft falls in what we call the non-Tour urethane category. It’s a category that exists largely for slow to moderate swing speed players looking for soft-ish feel without giving away greenside spin entirely.
Like the other balls in the Chrome Soft family, this standard Chrome Soft features what Callaway has branded Precision Technology. We suspect what that actually encompasses will evolve overtime, but with the current generation of Chrome Soft Precision Technology helps to ensure layer concentrity throughout the golf ball.
Callaway Chrome Soft Construction
The Callaway Chrome Soft is a 332-dimple ball with a urethane cover. It’s a 3-piece design which is notable if only for that fact that the prior Chrome Soft was a 4-piece design, which is unusual, though not entirely unheard of, in the low compression space.
The Callaway Chrome Soft is manufactured in Callaway’s Chicopee, MA ball plant.
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Compression
On our gauge, the Callaway Chrome Soft has an average compression of 72 (4-points softer than the 2020 model). It’s soft by urethane covered standards, and, real talk, people, the only ball in the Chrome Soft lineup that’s soft by any standard. As many 2-piece balls are softer still, relative to the market as a whole, it qualifies as medium firmness.
Diameter and Weight
Of note, the Callaway Chrome soft is a small ball. That is to say that our data suggests that Callaway is intentionally pushing the design to edge of the USGA limit. That’s not entirely surprising given some of the history here, and it certainly makes sense if you’re trying to squeeze every last bit of distance out of the ball.
It’s an approach that isn’t without risk as it doesn’t leave much room for error. In the case of our sample, a single ball failed our diameter test (frankly, it wasn’t close). Consequently, it was flagged as bad.
With respect to weight, 100% of the balls in the Chrome Soft sample conformed to the USGA rules.
Inspection
Centeredness and Concentricity
For Callaway, and the Chrome Soft line in particular, concentricity is where the (synthetic) rubber meets the road. It has been the primary point of emphasis for the current generation of Chrome Soft, and I’m happy to report that we found no notable issues within the sample.
Core Consistency
Core color and mixture were generally consistent with no issues of consequence.
Cover
No notable cover defects were noted.
Callaway Chrome Soft – Consistency
In this section, we detail the consistency of the 2022 Callaway Chrome Soft. Our consistency metrics provide a measure of how similar the balls in our sample were to one another relative to all of the models we’ve tested to date.
Weight Consistency
- At the time of testing, Weight consistency for the Callaway Chrome Soft fell with average range
- It’s worth mentioning that the Chrome Soft falls within the high end of the range, just short of “Good”
Diameter Consistency
- Diameter consistency for the 2022 Callaway Chrome Soft falls within the Average range.
- As with Weight consistency, it was in the high end of the range.
- As you can see, the average diameter flirts with the minimum (1.680) and to an extent takes advantage of the USGA’s methodology.
Compression Consistency
- Compression consistency falls within the Average range.
- As the chart shows, Box 1 was the softest, Box 2 the firmest, and Box 3 the least consistent
- While average is never a bad result, compression consistency is arguably Callaway’s remaining weak spot.
True Price
True Price is how we quantify the quality of a golf ball. It’s a projection of what you’d have to spend to ensure you get 12 good balls.
The True Price will always be equal to or greater than the retail price. The greater the difference between the retail price and the True Price, the more you should be concerned about the quality of the ball.
Summary
To learn more about our test process, how we define “bad” balls and our True Price metric, check out our About MyGolfSpy Ball Lab page.
While the score suggests a ball that is average (and average isn’t bad), the larger trends within the data provide further evidence of significant quality improvements within the Callaway Chrome Soft golf ball franchise.
The Good
- Average to average + across the board for all of our metrics
- No concentricity defects
The Bad
- A single ball under the USGA minimum size requirement
- The compression line in the chart above isn’t nearly as flat as the industry leaders
At the time of review, the 2022 Callaway Chrome Soft receives a Ball Lab score of 76. That’s a few ticks better than the database average (73) at the time of testing.
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