Golf Ball Facts
Modern balls usually consist of several layers of various synthetic materials like surlyn or urethane blends. They are usually classified as two-piece, three-piece, or four-piece ball according to the number of layers. They come in a great variety of playing characteristics to suit the needs of golfers of different abilities.
Regulations
The current regulations mandated by the R&A and the USGA state that diameter of the golf ball cannot be any smaller than 1.680 inches (42.67 mm). The maximum velocity of the ball may not exceed 250 feet per second (274 km/h) under test conditions and the weight of the ball may not exceed 1.620 ounces (45.93 g).
Dimples
Dimples on golf balls are key to launching them into the air. Dimples create the aerodynamic ability to hit golf balls for distance. Most golf balls on sale today have about 250 – 450 dimples, though there have been balls with more than 1000 dimples. The record holder was a ball with 1,070 dimples — 414 larger ones (in four different sizes) and 656 pinhead-sized ones. Dimples first became a feature of golf balls when English engineer and manufacturer William Taylor registered a patent for a dimple design in 1905.[10] Other types of patterned covers were in use at about the same time, including one called a "mesh" and another named the "bramble", but the dimple became the dominant design due to "the superiority of the dimpled cover in flight"
Speed
A ball hit off the tee usually goes at speeds roughly at 160 miles per hour. The backspin of a tee is nearly 3,000 revolutions-per-minutes, three times the speed of a car's wheel. A wedge shot can spin at 10,000 revolutions, per minute.
Source - Wikipedia - Golf Ball
Source - Golfsmith - Facts about Golf Balls