Effect of Age of a Golf Ball?

[MaxEntropy]

I've done some quick googling and can't find a good answer. Does anyone have a good source that shows the effect of golf ball age on performance?

A friend was cleaning out his closet and decided he needed to get rid of some of his golf ball stash, so he brought me a dozen last night. They are ProV1's from 2013.

[cnosil]

9 minutes ago, MaxEntropy said:

I've done some quick googling and can't find a good answer. Does anyone have a good source that shows the effect of golf ball age on performance?

A friend was cleaning out his closet and decided he needed to get rid of some of his golf ball stash, so he brought me a dozen last night. They are ProV1's from 2013.

Here is a response from Tony: 

Do brand-new balls from let’s say 3-4 years ago lose performance with the years passing or should we expect the same results from back when they were made?

A: It’s better than it used to be. With balata, the liquid cores evaporate so the balls shrink and get lighter. The modern solid-core ball will typically get firmer over time but will eventually level off. Ten compression points over three years isn’t out of the question. Any time you change a layer (for example, the core gets firmer), you invariably change the relationship between layers so spin properties may change a bit as well.

And this article seems in line with the general consensus I have seen: https://honestgolfers.com/do-golf-balls-go-bad/

 

 

 

[DiscipleofPenick]

1 hour ago, MaxEntropy said:

I've done some quick googling and can't find a good answer. Does anyone have a good source that shows the effect of golf ball age on performance?

A friend was cleaning out his closet and decided he needed to get rid of some of his golf ball stash, so he brought me a dozen last night. They are ProV1's from 2013.

You're cleaning up this year!

[MaxEntropy]

39 minutes ago, DiscipleofPenick said:

You're cleaning up this year!

These and what you gave me would very much go into my bag for when I have to implement my "three ball" rule. Fortunately, I've only had to use that rule a two or three times this year.