2 October 2026 · 8 min read
How many dimples does a golf ball have, and why? Number, physics and rule explained
Makers state between 302 and 388 dimples, the Rules prescribe no number, and according to NASA Glenn they lower the air drag. With the sources and the open questions.
Modern golf balls have between 302 and 388 dimples depending on the model, according to the product data of a Swiss shop (as of 2 October 2026). The dimples are not decoration: according to NASA Glenn the size and speed of a golf ball fall in a small range in which a rough sphere has less air drag than a smooth one. That is why the dimpled ball flies farther. A fixed number of dimples does not appear in the test points of the Rules. This post shows the numbers, the physics in plain words and the rule, each with its source.
How many dimples does a golf ball have?
The number depends on the model. The table shows nine models as the manufacturers state them on the product pages of the Swiss shop Golfers Paradise (as of 2 October 2026). These are manufacturer figures; I did not count any ball myself.
| Ball | Dimples according to the product page |
|---|---|
| Titleist Pro V1 (2025) | 388 |
| Titleist TruFeel | 376 |
| Wilson Staff Model | 362 |
| Titleist Velocity | 350 |
| Titleist Pro V1x Elongated Alignment (2025) | 348 |
| Srixon AD333 | 338 |
| Callaway Warbird (2021) | 332 |
| Volvik Captain America Vivid | 322 |
| Wilson DUO Soft | 302 |
There were also balls with more. The Wilson Ultra 500, introduced in 1995, had according to a NASA report 500 dimples in a pattern of 60 spherical triangles. More dimples do not mean more distance, though: Snell Golf writes that the number of dimples does not correlate directly with performance, and that pattern and depth also influence the flight. The table fits that: even a single brand has balls with 388, 376, 350 and 348 dimples. What a three-digit number on the ball can otherwise mean is in Numbers on the golf ball.
Why does a golf ball have dimples?
The answer from NASA Glenn is short. A rough sphere gets a turbulent flow around it at a lower Reynolds number than a smooth one; for the same ball, put simply, at a lower speed. There is a small range in which the rough sphere therefore has less drag, and the size and speed of a golf ball fall in that range. That is why a golf ball has dimples. The lower drag lets it fly farther than a smooth ball of the same speed, diameter and weight.
In pictures: behind a flying ball a wake remains. The pressure drops in it, and that slows the ball. With a smooth sphere the air separates early from the surface and the wake is large. The dimples create small vortices, the thin layer of air at the ball turns turbulent earlier, the separation point moves back, and the wake is smaller. For a sphere the pressure drag, which dominates here, depends mainly on the size of this wake, according to the explanation by COMSOL, a maker of simulation software.
| Smooth ball | Ball with dimples | |
|---|---|---|
| Layer of air at the ball | laminar, separates early | turbulent, separates later |
| Wake behind the ball | large | smaller |
| Drag coefficient at about 260 km/h | reference value | about half |
The sphere is a special case here. For most bodies the drag coefficient stays almost the same over a wide range, but for a sphere it changes strongly with the Reynolds number (NASA Glenn). Eiffel and Prandtl observed that the coefficient of a sphere drops suddenly and sharply within a short range; COMSOL calls it the drag crisis. The dimples shift this crisis to a lower speed, the drop is less deep than for the smooth sphere, and the advantage holds only in a limited range. When the ball slows down in flight, the drag rises again.
How much farther does a dimpled ball fly?
That depends on the calculation, and I found no measurement on a modern ball. COMSOL modelled the flight with and without dimples: at around 150 metres of carry the dimpled ball flies 25 % farther in the model, which is 30 metres. The smooth ball would therefore reach about 120 metres. COMSOL itself warns that the values should not be taken as true values for modern balls, because the drag and lift data do not come from modern balls but go back to a study by Bearman and Harvey from 1976. A buying guide by Golf Post gives only about 90 to 130 metres for a smooth ball with the driver, without naming a measurement. The sources agree only on the direction: without dimples the ball flies shorter.
Dimples, spin and the flight path
Air drag is only one half. When the ball spins, lift arises, which COMSOL describes through the Magnus effect and which depends on the spin rate. The model also shows that the flight is not a parabola: the ball climbs almost straight and drops abruptly after the highest point. Which values your launch monitor measures for this is in Understanding launch monitor numbers, how sidespin bends the ball is shown by the nine ball flights, and what a simulator measures and what it calculates is explained in Radar or camera: how a golf simulator measures the ball.
Is the number of dimples regulated?
Not as a number. The R&A and the USGA test the ball in six points, and among them there is no requirement on the number or pattern of dimples (R&A, Equipment Rules, Part 4). Symmetry is what matters: the ball must not behave differently from a symmetrical sphere. More on the overall distance test is in Which golf ball suits me.
| Test point | What the R&A requires |
|---|---|
| Weight | at most 45.93 grams |
| Size | diameter of at least 42.67 millimetres |
| Symmetry | no properties that differ from a symmetrical sphere |
| Initial velocity | must not exceed a limit set by a standard of the R&A and USGA |
| Overall distance | carry and roll must not exceed a limit set by a standard |
| General | not substantially different from the traditional form |
On the course a second rule concerns the surface. You may only change a ball if it was clearly cut or cracked during the hole being played, not if it is merely scratched, scraped or has damaged paint (Rule 4.2c, R&A). And you may not make a stroke with a ball whose properties have been deliberately altered, for example by scuffing or heating it, or you are disqualified (Rule 4.2a). Which rules apply to ball and club otherwise is in Conforming clubs and balls.
What this means for you
- Dimple count as a reason to buy: No. According to Snell Golf it says nothing directly about performance. Compare balls by ball speed, spin and carry.
- Scratched ball: It stays in play as long as it is not cut or cracked.
- Test in the bay: Two balls, ten shots per ball, note spin and carry. How is in Which golf ball suits me.
Measuring ball flight yourself
The directory lists 126 venues: 110 indoor venues and 16 ranges with ball-flight tracking, in 21 cantons (as of 2 October 2026). Of the 16 ranges, 11 have Toptracer and 5 have TrackMan Range. The map shows them by canton, golf simulator near me the nearest one, and if you are just starting, read golf simulator for beginners first.
Frequently asked questions
How many dimples does a golf ball have?
That depends on the model. The product data of a Swiss shop give between 302 (Wilson DUO Soft) and 388 dimples (Titleist Pro V1, 2025), as of 2 October 2026. A Wilson ball from 1995 had 500 according to a NASA report. No fixed number appears in the R&A's six test points.
Why does a golf ball have dimples?
According to NASA Glenn a rough sphere gets a turbulent flow around it at a lower Reynolds number than a smooth one. In the range of a golf ball's size and speed it therefore has less air drag, and the ball flies farther than a smooth ball of the same speed, diameter and weight.
How much farther does a golf ball with dimples fly?
A COMSOL model gives 25 % more distance at around 150 metres of carry, which is 30 metres. The data go back to a study by Bearman and Harvey from 1976, and COMSOL says the values are not valid for modern balls. I found no measurement on a modern ball.
Is there a prescribed number of dimples in golf?
Not under the Equipment Rules: the R&A and the USGA test weight, size, symmetry, initial velocity, overall distance and general form, and a dimple count is not among them. The ball may weigh at most 45.93 grams and measure not less than 42.67 millimetres.
Does a golf ball with more dimples fly farther?
Not directly. Snell Golf writes that the number of dimples does not correlate directly with performance, and that pattern and depth also influence the flight. In the product data Titleist alone lists balls with 388, 376, 350 and 348 dimples. What counts are your own numbers from the bay.
Sources
- NASA Glenn: Drag of a Sphere (warum der Golfball Dellen hat, raue Kugel, Reynolds-Zahl)
- COMSOL: Why Do Golf Balls Have Dimples? (Nachlauf, Widerstandsbeiwert, Modellrechnung 25 %, Warnung zu modernen Bällen)
- R&A: Regeln für Ausrüstung, Teil 4, Conformance of Balls (die sechs Prüfpunkte, Gewicht, Grösse, Symmetrie)
- R&A: Regel 4, Ausrüstung des Spielers (4.2a, 4.2c) (absichtlich veränderter Ball, Ball geschnitten oder gerissen)
- Golfers Paradise: Golfbälle, Produktdaten (Dellenzahl laut Produktseiten, Stand 2. Oktober 2026)
- Snell Golf: What Do the Numbers on Golf Balls Mean (Dellenzahl hängt nicht direkt mit der Leistung zusammen)
- NASA Technical Reports Server: Golf Aerodynamics (Wilson Ultra 500) (500 Dellen in 60 sphärischen Dreiecken, 1995)
- Golf Post: Golfball-Ratgeber (Angabe zum glatten Ball ohne genannte Messung)
- Swiss Golf Simulators: eigene Einträge (Anlagen und Ranges mit Ballflug-Tracking, Stand Oktober 2026)