On Tuesday, Callaway Golf announced their new Chrome Soft golf ball which promises golfers increased distance gains without compromising the "soft" feel many players prefer in a golf ball.

Chrome Soft is the only ball that has the proprietary SoftFast Core with low compression and a Tour Urethane cover. This leads to low spin off the tee for incredible ball speed and exceptional distance. It also lets players compress the ball on iron shots for incredibly soft feel, and provides excellent control and consistency so you can get aggressive on shots into the green.

No other ball combines all of these things in one package, and our optimized aerodynamics makes it fly even better in all conditions. With Chrome Soft, you don’t have to choose between feel and hitting it farther anymore. This is the ball that changed the ball.

That last line is pretty catchy, which I suppose was the point.

I know I criticize the golf equipment industry a lot on this blog -- with all good intentions, mind you -- but this is a product that actually really appeals to me. I've long held the belief that the golf ball is the most important piece of equipment in your bag, and what Callaway is offering in their Chrome Soft line sounds like something right up my alley.

One of the biggest frustrations I've had with the golf industry was the decision to eliminate the balata golf ball. Not only was it my favorite type of ball, but it offered a perfect combination of distance and feel for golfers with similar swing speeds to my own (around 100 MPH with my driver). Golf ball compression higher than a balata always felt too "hard" while lower compression felt like a wet sponge. There was no happy medium.

I look forward to trying the new Callaway Chrome Soft golf ball soon. The ball will hit the market on January 15, 2015 and will retail for $37.99.