How many rounds do you manage using the same ball?

[Chrixter]

I use a ball until lost which normally is within 9 holes or less.  Very rare that I play 18 holes without lost ball.  HCP 11 and yes, penalty casued by lost ball is my main problem... 

[revkev]

On 11/19/2022 at 4:15 PM, cnosil said:

I play a ball until it is lost.   I typically just grab a ball from my bag and off we go.  I can go 5/6 rounds without losing a ball or I can lose 2/3 in a single round.  Depends on course and season (lots of leaves this time of year). 

This would be me exactly.  I do use a fresh ball if it's a truly competitive round though - not a scramble but a men's tournament at the club - I will have a fresh sleeve out for that.  If I loose that sleeve (I can't recall the last time that happened in a competitive round) it doesn't really matter anymore anyway.   My home course has hazards on 17 holes so if I'm not playing well, I will lose a ball or two per round but when I'm on I can cruise around for 4 or 5 rounds without losing one.  To put it in perspective I did the Titleist buy 3 get 4 dozen deal the last time it was offered and still have over a dozen balls left from it - I can't recall if that was two or three years ago.

[B_R_A_D_Y]

I think I’ve had a ball last 18-22 holes 4-5x out of 60+ rounds this year. We’re surrounded by forest, and have multiple ravines, creeks & ponds. But I don’t really lose a lot of balls until fall / winter. Leaf Rule can get me 2x a round and xtall rough can get me 1-2x more. So I can easily lose 4 balls per round on shots that normally would be findable / playable. They stop mowing in late October and even tho u can see where ur ball landed in the rough, when ya get there it might be so deep ya won’t see the ball unless it’s right under ur nose … it takes 4 of us in Nov to find balls in the rough, and we still don’t find them all … so playing by myself is a recipe to lose balls. Next year in October, I’m switching to Kirkland as my fall / winter ball. The ball pocket in my bag was full in Sept & I made the comment to my buddies that it was time to move balls over to my shag bag. But then by mid Oct it was only 1/2 full & by the end of the month I tossed in a dozen “losable” balls I bought off one of our resident “ball farmers”. I only play a new ball in tournaments, which is once a month. I will play a scuffed ball in any of the 3 skins games I play per week … and I’m usually winning at least 1 skin a round … gross or net. We play gross beats net in the big Sat morning game. That said, 2 bad holes with a scuffed ball & I’ll toss it in the pond myself. 

[Albatrass]

I tend to use one ball for two rounds.  Sometimes less when I lose it.  The one's I use for two rounds I give it to my wife for her to use.

[GilB]

I start the new round with a new ball and if I didn't lose the ball from the previous round, that's my "water ball" meaning if there's a water hole coming up that'll be the ball for that hole.

[drb1956]

I do lose a few a round, but sometimes I can get 3-4 rounds on the same ball. Depends on me(!!), and the course, conditions, etc...

[Richard Fahrney]

I can go up to 36 if I don't lose it in the water.

[jolter1]

I will start with a new ball. If it lasts an entire round and not scuffed, then it goes in my bag, and I will use it a back-up ball for another round. That being said, I have no qualms with using that ball to start another round.

[tdc1]

Like many of you I will play a ball until lost or scuffed to the point that ball looks chewed — usually 27-36 holes (more if I’m finding fairways and greens).

I find that balls I find last significantly longer than balls I actually paid for — don’t know if that is causation or correlation.  

[Ryan Luke]

In general I will use a ball as long as I possibly can provided the cover remains in good shape.  I have been fortunate enough to have used the same ball many times between 18 to 36 holes & I have managed to get 54 holes out of the same single ball every so often too.  I tend to hit down really hard on the ball so at times I will generate a lot of spin & I end up taking a chunk out of the ball where I deem it not in good enough shape to use any longer.  When that happens they go to my basement net ball collection so it's not a "wasted" ball since I can hit them for years without worry of performance issues.     

[TylorJudd]

Unless they hit a rock, path, or smack a tree trunk it's her time to fly.

[EasyPutter]

I can keep one in play for about 36-45 holes depending on how the condition of the cover deteriorates.  I don't consider my swing to be fast and/or powerful but some balls get cut from the clubface grooves easier than others.  Those that suffer most are Nitro so I no longer play Nitros even if they must be rescued as lost, neglected, and/or abandoned golf balls that are given to whomever wants them.  

[Everardo]

On 11/18/2022 at 6:15 PM, CarlH said:

I normally put a new ball in play every round and will keep it in play for the whole 18 (assuming it isn't lost or drowned during play).  I will take a ball out of play that has become scuffed from a cart path or otherwise damaged even slightly.  When I'm playing a more casual round, I'll often just grab one that has been played but still in good condition.  Scuffed or blemished balls will be tossed or added to a shag bag....

Pretty much the same for me 

[LarryG]

I use two new balls every round-alternating on holes!

[Onestoptech]

When I was younger I could get a ball to last 3-4 rounds before switching it out. With the newer balls I'm lucky to make it a round with the same ball due to scuffs or damage to ball in some way. I live in Vegas so desert golf. I find myself going through a sleeve a round most days. It's unfortunate but seems the more expensive the ball the less they hold up to striking hard objects or coming out of sand. I have found for me the most cost effective balls for durability and quality are the maxfli tour x or snell Black. Titleist balls at the rate I go through them are cost prohibitive. In the early 2000s I remember my whole freshman and sophomore year I went through only 24 balls a year. We had a sponsorship with Nike at the time. There first generation solid core ball was extremely durable. I was also playing in Utah where courses had less rocks and hard pan bunkers as well. 

[Ramon Rivera]

I purchase the higher end golf balls and will use the same ball until it is lost or scuffed up. 

[GolfNut14]

I will usually play a ball till either I lose it, it gets badly scuffed or worn out to the point it looks dirty and less bright than a new ball. It's not like we are getting these balls for free like the pros soI'm more apt to play them till they are lost. 

[Beakbryce]

I play one till it's lost or ball flight indicates it is too scuffed to continue. Since I have been playing found balls for years, no telling how many actual rounds a ball actually has on it. Don't know why, but my group finds a good number of balls on the course. If it isn't new looking or a brand no one wants to play, we "catch and release", i.e. we leave it for someone else on the next tee. Currently have a shoe box full of mostly Pro Vs, with a few Vice pro and Bridgestone BRX balls that play pretty similar for me. Recently found a couple of AVX balls and they are very long. They are inconsistent off the irons distance wise so not sure they will be added to the keeper list. That is part of the fun though, get to test lots of balls for free.

I mark balls with red lines and generally have to remark every second or third round. Not unusual to play 8-10 rounds with the same ball.

[ChiefMikeOfficer]

My dad prides himself on keeping the same ball in play for as long as possible (even takes pride in continuing to use a scuffed ball for some reason...). Me? Not so much. 

Assuming I don't lose it, average ball life for me is probably around 6 holes. Some make it longer, but rarely make it through a full round; others only make it 1-2 holes. I inspect the ball on the green and/or between holes, and take out anything that's scuffed or damaged in any way. I do make exceptions for casual/fun rounds, so minor issues stay in play in those situations. Main things that take it out of play:

Cart Path, Tree, Rock, or similar?  immediately taken out of play, even if it appears minor. 

Wedge from the fairway?  inspect closely - probably 30% of the time the wedge scuffs it enough to make a difference. 

[Jrwatkins7]

Always start with a new ball.  There aren't really a lot of opportunities to lose a ball at my course, so they normally last a full round.  If they aren't too scuffed up, they stay in the bag for a "provisional" situation.  If I lose a ball, an old one comes out then, too.  Obviously I must not be hitting it well enough to warrant a new golf ball... 

[bill ding]

I'm playing Titleist avx and these balls are quite durable as well a being right for my swing speed (90 mph) I can play this ball, barring scuffs, for 3 or 4 rounds. I'm currently an 11.2  index.

[sglj3]

I am fortunate to live in the PNW where we can play virtually all year long, very little snow here just lots of rain and leaves. So during fall and winter most likely to lose a ball in the leaves or even plugged in soggy fairways. I have gone a few rounds now and then without losing a ball but I am still usually losing 1/2 a round. I will take one out of play if it gets too banged up and reserve it for my backyard putting green...

[Gopokes14]

If I was looking at averages, I would say I can get about 2-3 rounds out of a ball. If I scuff one or it starts looking like crap, I will switch it out and donate it to the 1st tee shag bag we have at my club. Obviously, there are days when I can lose a couple in a round, but usually a ball will last me about 2-3 rounds. I play a pretty heavily treed course here in Tulsa, Okla. and we have water, OB, etc... but it's generally the wind or trees that get you in trouble here. I recently played out in Vegas and brought 9 balls with me and played the same ball for all 3 rounds. 

[cbpicker]

If Im playing a competitive round its aways a new ball.  If its a casual round I will play a ball until it has a significant scuff or cut.  I don’t keep track of how long. 

[John S]

I typically look at the condition of the ball after any given round and either return it to the bag or put it in the shagbag should there be any scuffs, marks, etc.  Very unscientific and probably not best practice

[Franc38]

I usually keep using a ball until it's lost or too scuffed to fly "straight". What I usually do is pick a ball in my bag that's not too scratched or even a new one, and play with it. If I loose it, I'll pick another ball in my bag, if I don't loose the ball in the 9 or 18 or 14 (in winter I often do play 14, the routing of the course allows it and the time before sunset is OK) back in the bag it goes, where I'll probably pick it up the next time I play. After a while my bag is full of very used balls (either my old ones or balls I've found while playing) and I use these for chipping practice, or some times I use them on the range (only with short irons, else I could go over the back net as my range is fairly short. At this time I usually put a few (4 or 6 typically) new balls in the bag.

Rinse and repeat!

[NoRebound]

I play them until I lose them or damage them so badly that they don't play correctly (overcooking a 3 wood and blasting it off the edge of a guardrail 40 yards above the hole will do significant damage to a ProV1).  This year I've gotten two rounds + out of a ball a couple of times, then made up for it by losing 5 in a late fall round.  

I'm buying most of them from LostGolfballs.com or Maxfli Tour from Golf Galaxy so I'm not going broke on balls this year.

[mywong23]

I never buy any new balls:

1)  I find more than I lose.

2)  I take lots of risks (as I don't care if I lose a ball).  so balls last a round or two.

3) type/brand of ball doesn't really affect my game.

I can drive 230yd using ProV-1 or range balls.  perhaps brand names go further???  I've never measured; as 10 yards either way off the tee won't change my overall score.   I do think I can work the ball better using a ProV-1, though... (TBD) 

[Mrlaw@yahoo.com]

I play a good ball and want to get the most out of it. Therefore I play one until it gets really banged up or scuffed really bad. I always use a new ball in a competition and then use it for my normal outings until it meets my very loose, "too damaged for further use" test. 

[James L. Marshall]

As a guess, I would say about 6 rounds.  Don’t lose balls very often.  Will take ball out of play because of scuff marks.   I also find balls and clean them up.  Generally end up removing balls from my bag because I have too many!