How long do you play a ball?

[Fuzzifus]

Well, with all this talk of which ball is best, blah,blah,blah, I pose a question that I have thought about for a while and approached differently myself a few times. How long will you play the same ball, provided you don't "misplace" it. And also under what conditions? I.E. Tournament play versus league play versus leisurely games with your pals? How long will you play a ball in all these situations?

I find that I will play the same ball for say, 3 consecutive rounds before demoting it to the ball pouch, this being under league/tournament conditions (when I am trying to play my best.) If I am out for a friendly round or practice, I pull one out of the pouch rather then a new ball. This is partially because Pro V's are a bit pricey to go through as many as I would if I always te'd up a new one, and that the ones that have been demoted are still good, just with some mileage on them.....

[nsherman2006]

well, i just play it until it fails to go in the hole in a reasonable number of strokes, then i hit it into the woods. If a ball stays alive for long enough to be unfit for play in that the cover is getting beat up, i just leave it at home to hit into the woods

[DaveE]

I think the longest I've gone without losing a ball is about 3 rounds, so I usually just play them till they go away.

Other than that, I would switch if I really damaged one on a cart path or car hood.

[Rockford35]

I play a ball as long as I can. If it's banged up, but still going straight and dropping in the hole on putts, it stays out there.

No sense wasting a good thing. Or, smoking the next clean ball into the trees.

I don't lose balls all that often, so I can go quite a long time with the same ball. I have a ball that has a nice reddish purple mark on it from a budding poplar tree this spring. Stupid 3 wood....

R35

[BentGrass]

It's the old beat up ones that I can't seem to lose. The sure way to lose a ball is to get out a nice new shinny one. My theory is after a few rounds I've beaten the water magnet out of them.

[longiron]

I try to use the same ball for 2-3 rounds unless it get realy marked up. I saw in GD where they tested ball with grass, mud, Scuffs, ect. to see what affect it had on them and it was preaty interesting. Sorry i looked and cant find it in my stash or online.

[Loop]

I play balls that don`t look too scratchy. I don`t even count how long I`ve played them, as I`m sure some of them are more than 2 years old, but looks okay.
I`m just waiting for my elder brother to come here, as we`ve got a golf bet going... The prize: either a golf bag, or a box of balls of your choice (Nike One platinum? )

[Lamma]

Like everyone else, I ride the horse until it drops or runs off. The only time I'll get rid of a ball on purpose is if I've put a smiley face on it. Then it's no good.

A friend of mine who's a scratch player plays with the expensive ones and even he keeps a ball until it's completely worn out.

[MyGolfDomain.com]

I usually play a couple of balls on average per round. If I cut it with a wedge or hit a cart path I often toss it. I buy new balls with pro shop credit to keep goin' hehe.

[LazySumo]

I play mine until they get about a three foot layer of pond water over the top of them. So that's usually two to three holes. Depends on how many water hazards are out there.

A few weeks back I picked up a brick of Titleist at Costco, may as well have been a flock of ducks for how much those balls loved water. Would have been cuter at least, and better eating.

[mgoblue]

I usually dig in my bag until I find a ball that doesn't look to bad. Then I play that until I lose it. Repeat. When I'm feeling lucky, I'll pull out a new ball, but they don't usually last a whole round.

[goatster]

weekend rounds i try to use older balls as long as they arent beat to death although after about the first month ive managed to lose the bad ones.league i either use a new one or or one in very good shape.unless i have a ball that ive played with for more then 3 matches and am scoring well with that ball barring any major scuffs.same for tourneys.

[ChrisR]

Well I tend to lose at least one or 2 a round. So Not very long.

[caddyshackgolf]

I just play a ball until I lose it or the cover gets messed up. But I figure if I am hitting well then keep going with it.

[warbirdlover]

Play 'em until they get a surface flaw that might affect flight. Then they're practice balls.