Double/Triple Cover golf balls?

[Incawino]

Hello fellow Spies,

Just joined the community today and looking for info on a golf ball spec that I can't find anywhere else. Anybody know what it means when golf balls have double or triple "covers"? On the USGA approved golf ball listing, we can see within each ball's description, a notation for "1c" or "2c" or 3c". Wondering if this means layers of urethane on the outer cover, AND what difference does having multiple covers on a golf ball do?

Thanks for the help!

Incawino

[ChitownM2]

I think it refers to cores not covers. A 1 core ball is a 2 piece, 2 core is a 3 piece, etc.

Every ball only has 1 cover and it can be urethane, ionomer or other material.

Edited August 22, 2020 by ChitownM2

[cnosil]

2 hours ago, ChitownM2 said:

I think it refers to cores not covers. A 1 core ball is a 2 piece, 2 core is a 3 piece, etc.

Every ball only has 1 cover and it can be urethane, ionomer or other material.

Nope,  the USGA has different designations for covers and pieces

https://www.usga.org/ConformingGolfBall/gball_list.pdf

I looked at some cut balls and the designation on the list.  All I can think is a cover layer is based on its thickness. 

[aerospace_ray]

7 hours ago, Incawino said:

Hello fellow Spies,

Just joined the community today and looking for info on a golf ball spec that I can't find anywhere else. Anybody know what it means when golf balls have double or triple "covers"? On the USGA approved golf ball listing, we can see within each ball's description, a notation for "1c" or "2c" or 3c". Wondering if this means layers of urethane on the outer cover, AND what difference does having multiple covers on a golf ball do?

Thanks for the help!

Incawino

Two sources to get you started: 

1st: https://golf-info-guide.com/golf-tips/equipment-choices/golf-ball-covers-chart/

2nd: Information and link from USGA : 

" CONSTRUCTION
The following abbreviations are used in various combinations to describe the construction of the ball.
Two-Piece 2P
Three-Piece 3P
Four-Piece 4P
Five-Piece 5P
Solid Center SC
Single Cover 1c
Double Cover 2c
Other O
Examples:
"2P-SC-1c" describes a two-piece, solid core ball with a single cover.
"4P-2c" describes four-piece and a double cover. " Source: https://www.usga.org/ConformingGolfBall/gball_list.pdf 

[cnosil]

21 minutes ago, aerospace_ray said:

Two sources to get you started: 

1st: https://golf-info-guide.com/golf-tips/equipment-choices/golf-ball-covers-chart/

2nd: Information and link from USGA : 

" CONSTRUCTION
The following abbreviations are used in various combinations to describe the construction of the ball.
Two-Piece 2P
Three-Piece 3P
Four-Piece 4P
Five-Piece 5P
Solid Center SC
Single Cover 1c
Double Cover 2c
Other O
Examples:
"2P-SC-1c" describes a two-piece, solid core ball with a single cover.
"4P-2c" describes four-piece and a double cover. " Source: https://www.usga.org/ConformingGolfBall/gball_list.pdf 

Still doesn't answer what a 2 or 3 cover ball is.

 

[ChitownM2]

Now my interest is piqued as well. I'd like to see a ball with 2 covers....

Maybe I can just peel off the top one after I bounce it across the cart path and it will be as good as new ??  

[storm319]

At the beginning of the multilayer solid core era the industry considered mantle layers to be additional covers. The USGA has not updated the construction designations to differentiate mantles and since these are chosen by the submitter it makes cross company comparisons difficult (some OEMs count mantles as covers while others don’t).

[GaDawg]

21 hours ago, ChitownM2 said:

Now my interest is piqued as well. I'd like to see a ball with 2 covers....

Maybe I can just peel off the top one after I bounce it across the cart path and it will be as good as new ??  

Let me know where to buy some of those 2 covered balls. Sounds like they would last twice as long. Now all we need is some that we can call from the woods by saying: Kitty, Kitty, Kitty.

[Incawino]

All good info. One question now is : what is the difference between a "cover", and a "mantle"? Since the USGA makes a point to list "covers" as a separate item, there must be some physical difference to the balls with 2+ "covers". Anybody know anyone with the USGA that can talk about balls? golf balls, that is.

 

[storm319]

10 hours ago, Incawino said:

All good info. One question now is : what is the difference between a "cover", and a "mantle"? Since the USGA makes a point to list "covers" as a separate item, there must be some physical difference to the balls with 2+ "covers". Anybody know anyone with the USGA that can talk about balls? golf balls, that is.

 

As I mentioned earlier, multiple covers is an outdated reference from the early days of multilayer balls when most of the industry referred to mantles as additional covers. Basically it comes down to a matter of semantics.

Keep in mind that the USGA does not determine the designations for each entry on the list nor are these designations based on any testing or analysis, the entity submitting it to the USGA simply designates it on the application so it is up to their discretion (same with the spin designations). Some companies categorize mantles as covers (Bridgestone/Callaway) while others only consider the outer most layer to be a cover (TaylorMade/Titleist/Srixon).

I know it seems confusing as most would expect an official regulated list administered by a governing body to be consistent, but it sadly isn’t. Basically I would not recommend using this list for anything other than verifying conformance and maybe the number of dimples. Below are the USGA submission guidelines in case you are interested:

https://www.usga.org/content/dam/usga/pdf/2019/equipment-standards/2019-usga-golf-ball-submission-guidelines.pdf

[Middler]

9 hours ago, storm319 said:

As I mentioned earlier, multiple covers is an outdated reference from the early days of multilayer balls when most of the industry referred to mantles as additional covers. Basically it comes down to a matter of semantics.

Keep in mind that the USGA does not determine the designations for each entry on the list nor are these designations based on any testing or analysis, the entity submitting it to the USGA simply designates it on the application so it is up to their discretion (same with the spin designations). Some companies categorize mantles as covers (Bridgestone/Callaway) while others only consider the outer most layer to be a cover (TaylorMade/Titleist/Srixon).

I know it seems confusing as most would expect an official regulated list administered by a governing body to be consistent, but it sadly isn’t. Basically I would not recommend using this list for anything other than verifying conformance and maybe the number of dimples. Below are the USGA submission guidelines in case you are interested:

https://www.usga.org/content/dam/usga/pdf/2019/equipment-standards/2019-usga-golf-ball-submission-guidelines.pdf

Makes sense. I don’t know how anything but the outer layer could be called a cover. A cover is literally an outer layer by definition.

[Buffly]

On 8/22/2020 at 10:06 AM, Incawino said:

Hello fellow Spies,

Just joined the community today and looking for info on a golf ball spec that I can't find anywhere else. Anybody know what it means when golf balls have double or triple "covers"? On the USGA approved golf ball listing, we can see within each ball's description, a notation for "1c" or "2c" or 3c". Wondering if this means layers of urethane on the outer cover, AND what difference does having multiple covers on a golf ball do?

Thanks for the help!

Incawino

The marketing on extra covers is that it gives you different responses at different speeds of impact. 

The covers gives that feel of the ball off the putter and chip shots. 

The hard core ball can then be made to feel soft and still provide excellent long game performance too. 

The current tour ball market is focused mainly on at least a 2 piece cover. It is a thin Polyurethane cover, a thin mantle or mantles, and a one or two piece core. 

You really notice the difference on the 30-80 yard shots - those less than full swings. Tour balls with the mantle cover layer check up nicely from dry fairway shots. 

A cheap ball will roll out more but, a cheap ball might check up on full shots almost as good. 

 

[Buffly]

On 8/22/2020 at 5:28 PM, aerospace_ray said:

Two sources to get you started: 

1st: https://golf-info-guide.com/golf-tips/equipment-choices/golf-ball-covers-chart/

2nd: Information and link from USGA : 

" CONSTRUCTION
The following abbreviations are used in various combinations to describe the construction of the ball.
Two-Piece 2P
Three-Piece 3P
Four-Piece 4P
Five-Piece 5P
Solid Center SC
Single Cover 1c
Double Cover 2c
Other O
Examples:
"2P-SC-1c" describes a two-piece, solid core ball with a single cover.
"4P-2c" describes four-piece and a double cover. " Source: https://www.usga.org/ConformingGolfBall/gball_list.pdf 

Great response. Very informative and accurate.