Best Illegal Golf Balls 2023

Illegal golf balls can be a lot of fun

Illegal golf balls. Sounds so illicit, doesn’t it? When really all it refers to are golf balls that aren’t allowed in tournaments. And illegal golf balls can be a lot of fun. Golf can become a stuffy game pretty quickly.

But it’s important not to take the game so seriously. Otherwise you risk burning yourself out on it and giving it up altogether.

And we understand the phenomenon completely. We know, sometimes you just want to let loose on the course and see your drives soar – regulations be damned.

So in today’s review we are going to be taking a look at the best illegal golf balls currently on the market and also answering some commonly asked questions about these types of balls.

A Brief Into To Illegal Golf Balls

First and foremost; what is an illegal golf ball anyway? Most golf balls are made with strict adherence to PGA rules and standards. For official tournament play, the PGA does their best to make the playing field as equal as possible.

This means no gear whatsoever that can give a player an unfair advantage. And illegal balls are just that – an unfair advantage. Of course, it’s only unfair if you are competing in an official amateur or professional tournament.

Outside of these official settings, “unfair” translates to a lot of fun. The reason these kinds of balls are typically banned is that they are manufactured to give you more distance. Some balls also help correct hooks and slices on their own.

In fact, some illegal balls can add as much as 15 yards to your shots. Of course, there are a couple of hitches with illegal balls.

While they are a blast for casual play, they won’t do anything to improve your game. In fact, if you use them too often, they could actually hinder your game.

Secondly, the added distance and slice correction usually coincides with a lack of playability on the green.

Most people use them for distance and to get straighter shots in the long game. So if you are in fact in the market for a ball of this nature, take a look at our list.

The Best of the Best

For those of you who just want to get to the cream of the crop, here is a truncated rundown of our top 3 choices:

Volvik 2020 Magma Golf Balls

“The dual core of these balls make them very hot off the tee and they correct spin for both drivers and wedges.”

  • 3 layer design

  • Great for 70-90mph swing speeds

  • Larger design

Overall Score: 93/100

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Polara Self Correcting 2-Piece Golf Balls

“You get low ball flight for piercing ball speed off the tee. Plus the alignment marks makes it easy to hit your target.”

  • Limited lift

  • Corrects slices off the tee

  • 2 piece design

Overall Score: 90/100

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MG Golf Balls Senior

“For players with slower swing speeds and drives under 250 yards, these balls play longer than the club your using is capable of”

  • Distance balls

  • Built for slower swing speeds

  • Great sound

Overall Score: 90/100

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Volvik 2020 Magma Golf Balls

Magma 12-Ball Pack – Best Choice

 
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Polara Self Correcting 2-Piece Golf Balls

Polara Pack of 12 – Best Premium

 
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MG Golf Balls Senior (Best Value)

MG Golf Balls Best Budget Option

 
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1. Volvik 2020 Magma Golf Balls – Best Choice

Selling Points

  • 90 compression rating

  • 3-piece construction

  • Ionomer cover

These Volvik’s are our top choice because they offer all-around performance.

Not only we were able to get an average of 10 extra yards on our drives, but these balls were very easy to hit. Whether from the tee or a tough lie, we were able to get these balls far and high.

And that’s partly thanks to the larger design of these balls. The larger surface area which carries 432 wide-face dimples gives you lift when you need it. These balls launch high while imparting a soft feel.

Pros:

  • Comes in 2 colors
  • Resilient cover
  • For all swing speeds

Cons:

  • Low feel on the green
  • Not the longest balls

Overall Rating: 93/100

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2. Polara Self Correcting 2-Piece Golf Balls(Best Premium)

Selling Points

  • 2-piece construction

  • High compression

  • Thin cover

If hooking and slicing seem to be your main problems, these balls will be a blast for you to play.

The dual core allows for exceptional balance while the ball is in flight and at the point of impact.

And the alignment markers will help you get closer to your target.

These balls reduce slice angle by about 75% which is pretty impressive. It’s also why they are #2 on our list…and it’s also why they are illegal.

One of the reasons these Polara balls reduce hooking and slicing so much is that they inhibit spin.

They were designed for less overall aerodynamic lift so that are much better at holding their lines.

We liked how these balls played off the tee and on the fairway.

We could have used a bit more spin with our wedges and the lower apex height was also a bit of a problem on approaches.

Pros:

  • They fly very straight
  • Easy alignment markers
  • They minimize side spin

Cons:

  • Not great on approaches
  • They are a bit pricey

Overall Rating: 90/100

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3. MG Golf Balls

Selling Points

  • Low compression rating

  • Durable cover

  • 2-piece construction

Now these balls were designed specifically for senior players who have lost some of their swing speed.

But seniors aren’t the only players who could benefit from playing a round with these balls.

They launch very hot off the club face and provide a soft feel.

While they don’t do much to correct slices or hooks, the main selling point of these balls is that they play longer, which is also why they are illegal.

We noticed that they pick up more ball speed at the point of impact even when we were using stiff flex drivers and woods.

The dimple pattern also works to reduce side spin – albeit not as well as number two on our list.

And you get a decent amount of feel on the green which is definitely a bonus for a non-conforming ball built for distance.

Pros:

  • Great for senior players
  • Affordable
  • Comes in an easy to spot neon yellow color

Cons:

  • Pretty much useless for faster swing speeds
  • Can’t monogram them

Overall Rating: 90/100

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4.Bandit Maximum Distance Golf Balls

Selling Points

  • Lithium Surlyn Cover material
  • 2-piece construction
  • Medium compression

If you are looking for a ball that strikes a good balance between distance and shot correction, these balls will suit you to a tee (no pun intended).

The core of these Bandit balls are really where it’s at. They feature a synthetic rubber, progressive core with a metal mantle.

The result is a ball that carries almost all of the energy from the club face to ball flight. And they are very stable.

You pretty much just have to point in the direction you want to go and they hold their line surprisingly well even on high arcing shots.

The aerodynamic dimples also allow for a good amount of control and workability. And we were able to get good spin control with our wedges and shorter irons which was very impressive.

Pros:

  • Surprisingly workable
  • Good distance/performance balance
  • Synthetic cover

Cons:

  • They sound odd
  • Only one color

Overall Rating: 89/100

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5. Kaede Fly Distance Golf Balls (Half Dozen) 2 Tone Colored 6 Balls

Selling Points

  • 2-piece construction
  • Elongated dimple cover
  • Low compression

These may be the most unique illegal golf balls we have ever come across. For starters, there are only 270 dimples.

And they are all bear an elongated oval shape. So what does that do to ball flight? It reduces drag by a significant amount.

And as you can imagine, reduced drag equals slightly more ball speed. And that’s precisely what we got out of these balls.

They launch low off the tee which maximizes distance. They also come in eccentric colors for all you “out there” golfers.

The inner core of these balls is pretty much as large as it can be so it enhances rebound upon impact to maintain as much inertia as possible.

Pros:

  • Unique colors
  • They reduce drag
  • Low flight

Cons:

  • Expensive for 6 balls
  • Spin control is next to zero

Overall Rating: 87/100

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6. SAINTNINE X Golf Balls (One Dozen)

Selling Points

  • 3-piece construction
  • 90 compression rating
  • Ionomer cover

The first thing you will notice about these balls is that they are smaller and heavier than your average golf balls.

And that’s why they are illegal. The super-concentrated core allows for maximum energy transfer and piercing ball speeds.

So as you can imagine, these balls were built for distance so they would be good for any player looking to add 10-20 yards to their drives.

The extra weight and smaller size also provide a surprising amount of spin control in the shorter irons and wedges.

Pros:

  • They sound great
  • They hold their line well
  • You get unmatched flight stability

Cons:

  • Better for faster swing speeds
  • The cover isn’t very durable

Overall Rating: 86/100

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7. Bandit SB (Small Ball Technology) Golf Balls – Dozen

Selling Points

  • High compression
  • Synthetic cover
  • 2-piece construction

These Bandit balls felt and played a bit like Saintnine balls that came in #6 on our list.

They are smaller than average and very firm. In fact, they only have a 1.65” diameter. There are 338 aerodynamic dimples on the cover as well.

As you imagine with a smaller, heavier ball, these fly pretty straight and get low apex heights.

They also produce a bit less drag than your average balls on pretty much every shot which is one of the reasons why they are illegal.

But most of all, these balls were designed to increase distance. And they do a decent job of that as we were averaging 8-10 extra yards from the tee and the fairway.

That being said, they performed considerably well with our longer irons.

Pros:

  • Expanded core
  • Good energy transfer
  • Low drag

Cons:

  • A bit pricey
  • They offer very little in the way of spin control

Overall rating: 85/100

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8. Polara XDS 3-Piece Golf Balls (12 pack)

Selling Points

  • 3-piece construction
  • Ionomer cover
  • 80 compression rating


We end our list with another Polara offering that provides a bit less hook and slice correction but a bit more distance and loft.

So right off the bat, we would say that these balls are more for players who are concerned with distance.

The cool thing about these balls is that they have alternating dimple depths.

Some are deeper and some are more shallow which results in better mass distribution. These balls pull off the tee with the heavier pole of the ball as the guide and the lighter pole holding the line.

This asymmetrical dimple design/distribution on the ball allow for a low lift and low drag effect which makes them surprisingly workable.

And like the first Polara balls on our list, they feature the easy alignment arrows.

Pros:

  • Better spin control
  • Better for approaches
  • Comes with a 30-day money back guarantee

Cons:

  • They provide less slice and hook correction
  • A bit pricey

Overall rating: 86/100

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Some Final Words

Our final thoughts are: if you are going to play with illegal balls, you might as well use the best illegal balls. In our list, we tried to cover the needs of a wide cross-section of casual golfers.

Whether you need more slice/hook correction or you are struggling with distance, you will find the perfect ball for your game on our list.

And one of the common attributes of all the balls we listed today is that they take time off your round.

It’s never fun to hold up a party behind you and all the balls on our list helped us play at a faster pace. So pick them up for your casual games.