How Much Do Golf Balls Cost?
Golf is an expensive sport. Even the average leisure player will need a set of clubs, balls, tees, golf bag, shoes, gloves, and apparel. Most US golfers will lose 1-2 golf balls per round. As a beginner, you will often lose more and have to replace them, which adds to the expense. So, how much do golf balls cost?
Golf balls cost between $15 to $75 per dozen, depending on the quality, brand, and materials used. Prices reflect the number of layers found inside a ball, with each layer representing a fair amount of research and technology. The two-piece ball is the cheapest and the five-piece the most expensive.
Golf has a well-known reputation as an expensive sport, played by the wealthy. Everything connected to golf seems to be super pricey. Let’s dive into more detail on the cost of golf balls.
Average Price of Golf Balls
Golf balls can cost as little as $15 per dozen, but don’t expect professionals to use these balls. The average price that recreational and amateur players spend on golf balls is somewhere between $20 to $35, and this price range includes good quality 3-piece balls.
On the opposite side of the golf ball spectrum, high-quality 4-piece and 5-piece golf balls will, on average, be close to $50, and some manufacturers have products that get close to the $80 mark.
Golf Ball Price Chart
For easy reference, I have created the below table and grouped the cost of golf balls according to the brands and various price ranges. (Please note these are not affiliate links).
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| Brand | $15- $25 | $25- $40 | $40- $60 | $60+ |
| Titleist | TruFeel | Tour Speed Tour Soft | AVX Pro-V1 | Pro-V1x |
| TaylorMade | Soft ResponseKalea Rocketballz | Tour Response | TP5 | N/A |
| Callaway | Warbird Super Soft Max | Superhot E-R-C Soft | Chrome Soft | N/A |
| Dixon | Wind | Earth Spirit | N/A | Fire |
| Bridgestone | Laddie Extreme Precept Powerdrive | E12 Contact E6 | Tour BX | N/A |
| Srixon | Soft Feel | Q-Star Tour Divide Q-Star | Z-Star XV Divide Z-Star Diamond | N/A |
| Polara | N/A | XD | XS Ultimate Straight | N/A |
Why Are Some Golf Balls So Expensive?
It can be confusing why some golf balls are so expensive? They are round, dimpled, branded white balls, hit from a starting tee to inside a hole. Why the difference in price then? It’s all in the design.
Golf Ball Layers
When you cut open a golf ball, you will observe that various layers (pieces) make up the golf ball’s construction. The more pieces you find, the more expensive the golf ball is.
Every layer represents time-consuming research and high-quality materials that cost money, directly translating to a higher-quality ball and higher retail price.
Don’t cut open a 5-piece TaylorMade. That ball is too expensive to use on a simple experiment! You get the following number of layers in a golf ball:
- 2-Piece
- 3-Piece
- 4-Piece
- 5-Piece
Every core is filled with an artificial synthetic compound, so a 3-piece ball will essentially have two core layers and an outside cover (the part we see). Each core is designed to behave a certain way when hit with a particular club or iron.
The determining cost of a golf ball is the materials used and the technologies immersed in the design of the core and cover. Golf is a game of small inches, and you will pay more for a ball that either increases or decreases your inch total.
Do you want to know the best golf ball brands? Check out this article, 7 Best Golf Ball Brands.
What Type Of Golf Ball Is Right For Me?
As a beginner, you should not go for the most expensive ball on the rack, as you first need to evolve your game before the proper selection of balls comes into play.
Choosing a dozen balls that cost $75 works out at $6.25 per ball – balls that you’re certainly going to lose along the way with a certain regularity. Do you want to know how many golf balls are lost? Check out this post, How Many Golf Balls Are Lost Each Year?
So how do you know what type of ball is the right choice for you? Always speak to the pro at your local pro shop. They usually are very knowledgeable and can steer you in the right direction. The following ball classification can also help:
One-Piece Golf Ball
Perfect for beginners to use on driving ranges to practice, they are cheap but do not offer enough performance to take them onto a golf course.
Two-Piece Golf Ball
Perfect for weekend, amateur, and casual golfers, they are fairly cheap and known for providing more distance and less spin.
Three-Piece Golf Ball
Depending on the components used, three-piece golf balls can be described as tour-level balls and are ideal for better-than-average players. Amateurs are also fond of these balls due to the extra performance it gives the user.
Four-Piece Golf Balls
These balls are for players with a low handicap and professional tour players. The four layers are designed to give golfers maximum individualized performance when any club is selected from their bag. Low spin with both drivers and wedges, high launch, and low launch when required.
Five-Piece Golf Balls
They are the most expensive golf balls on the market and the most performance-enhancing ones to boot. I, for one, avoid these. Known to provide a softer feel around the greens, increased spin qualities, and a faster speed overall.
Read More: What Are Golf Balls Made Of?
Where Can I Buy Less Expensive Good Quality Golf Balls?
Buying balls from companies that get golf balls from golf courses across the country usually fished out of water hazards will be a less expensive option. These balls are commonly known as ‘lake balls.’ Some of these balls have only been hit a couple of times or for a couple of holes or rounds.
Companies such as lostgolfballs.com then recycle and refinish the balls before selling them to the public at a discounted price via sales drives and special promotions.
- Mint Recycled Golf Balls – These balls show no or minimum wear; they appear and feel like a new ball and may have logos or player pen markings of all shapes and sizes on them.
- Factory Refinished Golf Balls – These balls have been processed via stripping, stamping, painting, or clear coating and will not display any logos or pen markings, only a small “Refinished” printed on one pole as required by law.
- Near Mint Recycled Golf Balls – These balls are in a condition of a ball hit for a few holes. Logos or player markings can be present, discoloration, or slight cosmetic imperfections.
- Good Recycled Golf Balls – These balls may have some imperfections, slight scuffs, a little discoloration, or a smudged print with high-grade x-outs and practice models included.
Final Thoughts
There’s no doubt that golf is the most expensive sport in the world. Purchasing balls will continually drain your wallet, depending on your skill level and how much you play. Buying the correct type of balls for your level of play can potentially save you hundreds of dollars in the long run.
That is until you become a low handicap player. Balls will cost you $50 on average because only the best will do when you reach this level. But at this point, you may be winning local competitions and be able to spend your winnings on new ones.
Until then, go for a well-priced 2-piece or 3-piece ball.
But always remember to clean your ball after every hole as mud, etc., will affect its performance no matter how much you pay.
