(Image credit: Golf Monthly)

Golf Monthly Verdict

This is a great value golf ball for players with a slow to moderate swing speed. It's available in white, as well as two colored options that definitely stand out from the crowd. Its soft compression helps players to launch the ball high for straight and consistent distance on drives and fairway shots, while it also provides control around the greens. Overall this ball has the potential to be a real game improver, especially for beginners.

Reasons to buy

+
Performs well on all shots
+
Confidence boosting
+
Good value

Reasons to avoid

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Limited ability to shape shots
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Not for players with a fast swing speed
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Colored options take some getting used to

By Alison Root

published 29 May 22

TaylorMade Kalea Golf Ball Review

The TaylorMade Kalea golf ball is part of the complete Kalea range of hardware and is essentially designed to give a helping hand to women with a slow to moderate swing speed, generating higher launch and greater distance. We tested this ball over multiple rounds, so read this review to see how it compares with the best women’s golf balls on the market.

The slower you swing a club, the more compression you need and the Kalea ball has a soft 60 compression, like the Srixon Soft Feel Lady and Callaway ERC Soft ball. The secret of Kalea is TaylorMade’s REACT technology that is incorporated in the centre of the core, engineered to allow the ball to compress off the clubface faster and higher to maximise distance.

As someone with a moderate swing speed, off the tee there was distinct energy off the clubface with a pleasant sound and the result was and a high-launching and penetrating ball flight. Distance was good, although there were no significant yardage gains.

The color of this ball is a talking point, as aside from traditional white, it’s also available in matte peach or purple. If you are a creature of habit and generally use a white ball, it will take a while to feel comfortable looking down at these unique colours, plus excluding the white option, the feel of a matte finish won’t be to everyone’s taste.

Off the tee and fairway, when using the peach or purple colored ball, it was really noticeable how easy it was to trace the ball flight against bright sky. However, the downside is that if you miss the fairway, these colours make it tricky to spot the ball in the rough, especially amongst fallen leaves.

The soft ionomer cover does allow you to feel in control of short game shots, it caught the ball nicely on the greens, and it had a satisfying sound and roll off the putter head. It’s fair to say that beginners through to more experienced players with a slow to moderate swing speed will benefit from using what is one of the best value golf balls around as it performs well on all shots and at the same time builds confidence.

Alison Root

Alison Root has over 25 years experience working in media and events, predominantly dedicated to golf, in particular the women’s game. Until 2020, for over a decade Alison edited Women & Golf magazine and website, and in addition to writing, overseeing all content and developing industry relationships, she was the go-to voice for TV and radio to comment on breaking women’s golf stories. Alison is also the Editorial Director of Glorious, the new digital platform devoted to elevating women’s sport and that includes golf! She is a 14-handicap golfer (should be better) and despite having had the fantastic opportunity to play some of the best golf courses around the world, Kingsbarns in Scotland is her favourite.