Do higher compression balls go farther?

A little, and the gap grows with swing speed.

MyGolfSpy’s 2026 robot test compared every ball to a Pro V1 control. At 85 mph driver speed, the softest balls gave up about 1 to 1.4 mph of ball speed (Callaway Supersoft was 1.38 mph slower). At 115 mph, that same gap opened to 4 to 5 mph, while firm balls like Callaway Chrome Tour X ran about 1 mph faster than the control.

TrackMan’s rule of thumb is that 10 mph of ball speed is worth roughly 20 yards. So a soft ball costs an 85 mph swinger two or three yards, and a 115 mph swinger closer to ten.

For most golfers that is a small price for a feel they like. For fast swingers chasing every yard, firm wins.