Golf Ball Memories

[Mattyboy]

I used to take a bunker rake out as a kid and hunt for balls and flogged them on the side. Lucrative busines getting 40p for a new Topflite XL.

Now one has mentioned the Lynx Jumbo. A football sized ball (1.80 inches in diameter).

But I liked the black dunlop 65 UK Pro (which oddly was the American size).

 

[the hammer]

I remember when my dad started playing playing, probably late 70's early 80's, he used to get "penfold tee mee" free with his tiger tokens at esso petrol stations.

 

[Iaing]

A great ball from the eighties was the Maxfli DDH 500 Tour Balata. This was the ball used by Sandy Lyle to win the Open.

 

[richart]

My favourite balls back in the day were Slazenger B51's. They came in an individual box, and were wrapped in tissue paper. Before that it was Dunlop 65s and Penfold Aces. Commandos were as soft as putty, and Topflights were rock hard. Balls were smaller in those days as well !!

 

[viscount17]

So who else goes far enough back to remember the delights of peeling the cover off an old hacked ball from his Dad , unwinding all the elastic and bursting the wee capsule of white stuff in the middle?

I started finding balls as a very small youth, the golf course was part of our 'play ground' - forever being chased off by bank manager types - they all seemed to play in suits! (we 'found' lots of their balls, the good guys would pay us to get theirs out of the, mostly, gorse bushes). since we didn't play, we spent loads of time trying to unwind the elastic and rarely, if ever, getting it all off in one piece - and when you did it was useless for making catapults

 

[JustOne]

I started finding balls as a very small youth,....

Golf was around then?

;-)

 

[thecraw]

Ultra TC. Quality ball.

 

[OldMate]

Like a few others I spent much of my childhood on the course up the road finding/selling balls. One day I was bold enough to set up outside the pro shop selling balls until the pro came out and gave me an earfull... he must have forgotten about it because I ended up working for him a few years later! Lots of good memories. Remember thinking I had struck gold if I found a new pinnacle or wilson ultra - mainly because my dad told me that they were good. Years later the titanium core balls were all the rage - quite funny in hindsight.

 

[Swinger]

Now one has mentioned the Lynx Jumbo. A football sized ball (1.80 inches in diameter).

I think the Topflite Magna was similar to this. Always made a normal ball look small after you used one.


I personally grew up with Wilson Ultra balls. I remember saving the Competition models for serious rounds while using the distance ones for messing about.
Also remember loving using/finding Maxfli HT-90's/100's , Rextar Promodels, Ram Tour Balatas and Precept EVs among others.


I have a collection of balls each of my hole in 1's (3), one I made my second albatross with and one I made my first birdie ever with!! That was awhile ago!! It was orange too!


Another Golf Ball Memory I have is about what we as kids used to do up my club, in between smoking and playing snooker that is. Burning Titleist Tour Balatas! Most of them you found were no good (to play with) as were cut, chewed and mishapen but they made for a good fun couple of mins for bored youths. The trick was to burn the cover with a lighter until it caught fire then quickly place the ball on the ground with the flame facing upwards. The cover burns, melts and bubbles away for a bit then the elastic begins to make the opening expand. The flame then burns through the elastic making a popping sound while the ball continues expanding at the opening. Then all of a sudden the liquid core shoots up through the opening like a fountain with a bit of a whoosh to boot. I still have a few in a bag in my locker just in case I get bored!