Upon Further Review: Technology can’t find my lost golf ball
The golf ball is an amazing piece of equipment. It’s round, usually white, and covered in dimples which affect the aerodynamics for more or less trajectory. It’s easy to hit, but very elusive after you hit it.
It rolls great distances, but sometimes not far enough. It’s engineered to withstand high impacts, except from the cart path, and comes in a variety of materials and construction. In short, it should be called the little white wonder.
The most common ball on any course is the two-piece. It is used by 50 percent of players because of its tough, durable cover and solid inner core, which usually means more distance.
The multi-layer ball is the next step up, and is made in either three or four pieces. It has a small solid or liquid core, creating more backspin and control.
The golf ball industry sells more than 540,000,000 million balls a year in the United States. Golfers shell out over $1 billion a year for new golf balls, while the used golf ball business generates almost $250 million a year.
Not bad for selling a few balls.
So what does this tell us? One, the average golfer is pretty bad or two, pretty lazy. Or three, a little of both.
Now I can speak for myself, and a few friends, when saying I’ve hit several balls in areas where you shouldn’t be hitting them. I’ve lost a few and found a few, and I usually try to find the ones I happen to spray in the woods.
I’ve played with some folks who never look for their ball as it’s nothing for them just to toss a new one out in the fairway. And I will admit on several occasions after playing so poorly, I too have given up the search or not searched at all.
The national average for number of balls lost during a 18 hole round is 5.2 balls. Now I don’t ever recall losing five balls in a day, but I have seen it done. In fact I played with a guy five or six years ago who went through a dozen balls on the front nine.
Now some of the new technologies over the past four or five years have made the ball go straighter and longer. But just how hard have the golf ball companies worked on creating a straight flying golf ball? I would venture to say, not very hard.
If the ball was made to go too straight, then less balls would be lost. In turn less sales for Titleist, Top Flite and every other ball company out there — whose products range in price from $10 per dozen up to $65 per dozen — would go down.
So do we need balls designed for better accuracy, or should we place a GPS chip inside each ball?
You may think I’m joking, but there is a company called Radar Golf, which has managed to place a small chip inside a golf ball. It’s called theball positioning system, or BPS for short. It can locate a ball within 100 feet by sending back a single to a handheld detector.
The balls have been qualified and approved by the USGA, and will sell for around $39 per dozen, the handheld detector will cost you $249.
When matched correctly to a golfer’s game, specific golf balls can increase your enjoyment as well as helping you keep it in the fairway.
But here’s a tip. if you’re an average or below average golfer, buy the cheaper balls. There will be more money in your pocket and you can use it to play another round — or even take a few lessons.