Worst golf balls ever

[ltom]

What's the deal with these all white balls without any markings?  They're pretty bad.

[Hairpie]

On 5/5/2021 at 11:09 AM, sevenfourate said:

Spalding Molitor’s, Players, Yellow Tornado’s (Showing my age here hey: fellow UK’ers 🤣) Balls with ‘Titanium Distance stamped all over them; or anything from Sports Direct 😳

Back in the day when I played Titleist Balatas we used Molitors exclusively for long par 3's in windy conditions. To this day I've never seen a ball own the wind like that. But otherwise they were crap.

[jc2]

On 5/8/2021 at 5:15 PM, Phireside said:

Worst durability, I would agree. But I think this ball really performs great. 

 

I don't disagree with the performance.  They spun on wedge and short irons fantastically, loved them around the greens for touch shots.  If they could keep that with a decent amount of durability I'd give them another shot

[mogc60]

Callaway first red and blue models were garbage!  Oddly Callaway purchased the rights to Top Flite and their golf balls immediately improved dramatically. For all the rocks top flite put out they broke a lot of barriers with the Tour Edition, ZBalata and Strata lines that has a huge influence on the modern golf ball designs. 

[ltom]

17 minutes ago, mogc60 said:

Callaway first red and blue models were garbage!  Oddly Callaway purchased the rights to Top Flite and their golf balls immediately improved dramatically. For all the rocks top flite put out they broke a lot of barriers with the Tour Edition, ZBalata and Strata lines that has a huge influence on the modern golf ball designs. 

I liked those old callaways. I just bought some old tour ix balls off ebay.

[Can'tThinkOfAUsername]

 

Slazenger had the bright idea to put bald spots over their ball. The result was a ball that had no ability to fly in a straight line and made you dizzy trying to track its flight

[mogc60]

21 minutes ago, ltom said:

I liked those old callaways. I just bought some old tour ix balls off ebay.

Not the ix...before those. The very first golf ball. You had two options. Red and blue. Ball flew anywhere but straight. 

[soregongolfer]

5 hours ago, ltom said:

I liked those old callaways. I just bought some old tour ix balls off ebay.

I liked the Rule 35's as well.

[dubbelbogey]

One of the early Callaway balls (HX? - not sure, can't remember the name) had a cover that shredded like parmesan cheese and I even had a couple of those balls that had the cover actually delaminate from the core. Once a chunk started to peel away, you could just rip the rest off like an orange peel.

 

This was their "high end" ball at the time (early 2000s, maybe...)

[Old Tom Morris]

1 hour ago, dubbelbogey said:

One of the early Callaway balls (HX? - not sure, can't remember the name) had a cover that shredded like parmesan cheese and I even had a couple of those balls that had the cover actually delaminate from the core. Once a chunk started to peel away, you could just rip the rest off like an orange peel.

 

This was their "high end" ball at the time (early 2000s, maybe...)

The HX and HX 56.  It was a urethane covered ball but was not very durable at all.  A bunker shot would skin an entire side of the ball.  Easily scuffed from normal play.  It was beat to hell at the end of a round.  Good distance and green side playability though.

[me05501]

I've been a financial advisor since 1998. Back then it was common for mutual fund companies to send golf balls to advisors as a thank you for using their products. The whole time I was training I'd notice boxes of premium balls arriving for my coworkers.

 

This seemed like a great perk of which I was anxious to take advantage. 

 

My first couple of weeks on the job I was helping clients invest money and starting to get daily phone calls from the vendors whose products I used. If I put some money in a Putnam fund one day, I'd get a call the next day from a rep at Putnam to say thanks. But no golf balls were arriving!

 

I inquired around the office and was told "It's easy. When someone calls to thank you and asks how they can help, you tell them you're taking a client to play golf and could use some balls to share with them." 

 

So the next day I got a call from Dreyfus Funds saying "Hey, thanks for the $10,000 purchase of our fund yesterday...good to see your name on our list. Is there anything we can do to help your business?" I said "Sure. I could use some golf balls to share with clients!"

 

This is the part of the story where I realized that I had not asked my colleagues for enough information.

 

I never asked them how much business I needed to do with a company to expect a nice thank you gift.

 

Apparently that amount was something more than $10,000, because the next day I received a FedEx package from Dreyfus Funds that contained a box of generic SPALDING golf balls complete with the Dreyfus logo emblazoned on each one. They literally spent more shipping the balls to me than they did on the actual balls. They might as well have sent me a postcard with a middle finger on it! 

 

I had to laugh. It was one of many very important lessons I've learned over the last many years.

[Ghostwedge]

On 5/5/2021 at 2:36 PM, makana said:

Agreed. What I don't understand is why would one buy balls like Snell, Vice, Kirkland, Cut, etc...if you can buy barely used non water balls for like $1.50 a ball...

 

I personally get them on Ebay...I have my people on there, but I just don't get it. 

So you know for a fact they're "non water balls" ? Why would anybody play a USED ball of any brand over a NEW quality ball like the Snell, Vice or Kirkland.

[philly2kuk]

A friend bought me some Taylormade balls back when they had Star Wars logos on. No idea which ball they were, they weren’t the TP5, but they are horrendous. It’s like putting with an eraser.

[Steele47]

On 5/8/2021 at 5:42 PM, farmer said:

I'm glad Dave brought up PoDos and Club Specials so I didn't have to.  Faultless made an awful ball in the early 70's, but Club Specials were sold in pro shops as the poor man's Titleist.  Lay off the Inergels, I made an ace with one.

 

Holy cow!  I completely forgot about the Club Specials. 

[mukster]

On 5/6/2021 at 12:51 PM, The Pearl said:

While perhaps not literally "the worst ball", the Callaway Warbird should get some recognition for its longevity in being consistently bad. 

Yep, one ball that I really disliked. 

[elwhippy]

I received some Warbirds as a gift. Needless to say I donated them to a high handicapper who thinks they are great. 

 

I really liked the Ruel 35 balls. Never had durability issues either. 

[ten8suited]

+1 on the Molitors. I found one at Treetops on a trip there a few years ago and was laughing hysterically b/c it took me back to my childhood and playing shitties b/c that's all we could afford. One of the guys in the group hit it off the next tee and the sound it made off the driver was akin to drilling a rock in the center of the face. Incredible that it didn't split the face in two.

On 5/5/2021 at 2:09 PM, sevenfourate said:

Spalding Molitor’s, Players, Yellow Tornado’s (Showing my age here hey: fellow UK’ers 🤣) Balls with ‘Titanium Distance stamped all over them; or anything from Sports Direct 😳

 

[sevenfourate]

26 minutes ago, ten8suited said:

+1 on the Molitors. I found one at Treetops on a trip there a few years ago and was laughing hysterically b/c it took me back to my childhood and playing shitties b/c that's all we could afford. One of the guys in the group hit it off the next tee and the sound it made off the driver was akin to drilling a rock in the center of the face. Incredible that it didn't split the face in two.

 

Not only do they perhaps sound like they’d split a modern Ti driver face in two. I’d imagine they feel like it too….😉 😂

[ten8suited]

On 5/5/2021 at 2:09 PM, sevenfourate said:

Spalding Molitor’s, Players, Yellow Tornado’s (Showing my age here hey: fellow UK’ers 🤣) Balls with ‘Titanium Distance stamped all over them; or anything from Sports Direct 😳

 

12 minutes ago, sevenfourate said:

Not only do they perhaps sound like they’d split a modern Ti driver face in two. I’d imagine they feel like it too….😉 😂

Great call...the guy's hands were vibrating for the next 3 holes.

[makana]

On 5/14/2021 at 9:23 PM, Ghostwedge said:

So you know for a fact they're "non water balls" ? Why would anybody play a USED ball of any brand over a NEW quality ball like the Snell, Vice or Kirkland.

Mainly because the performance is going to be better vs one of those Snell, Vice or Kirkland balls. If you have done extensive testing on Ball speeds, launch, spin etc. then you would know there is a big difference.

 

I do not know for an absolute fact. But what is integrity these days. I can only believe what people tell me when they sell me the product...Isn't that the truth for everything? 

[Ghostwedge]

@Makana, unless you are buying direct from the outfit that recovered or salvaged the balls and know they were never in the drink then NO.

Been a single digit cap for a lot of years, I know a few guys that are better than me who play the lesser known balls and like them. 

"Integrity" the word doesn't seem to be in vogue these days, but if I buy a used refurbished Pro V1 that may or my not have spent 2 weeks at the bottom of a Florida lake.... no thanks. You're gonna have to show me some independent testing results that say a "used" Chrome Soft is a better ball than  brand new Snell, Vice, etc.

[philly2kuk]

On 5/15/2021 at 7:17 AM, mukster said:

Yep, one ball that I really disliked. 

Terrible ball, but my old man got to a 6 handicap using that ball. He doesn’t use them now, but for one year they were magic and he won two big club comps with them. I tried them and couldn’t get the same results as him.

[No_Catchy_Nickname]

Molitors existed to make Wilson Ultras feel soft. 

Back in the day, they were about the only ball I'd leave on the course if I found one. Oh, Penfolds, too.

And another contender: The Tobiemon Golden Ball. I won a dozen of these in a competition. A bling golf ball.

Incidentally, the photo's not blurred. The golden layer is covered by a layer of transparent material (urethane?) and the gold is sort of reflecting off that.

[mukster]

9 hours ago, philly2kuk said:

Terrible ball, but my old man got to a 6 handicap using that ball. He doesn’t use them now, but for one year they were magic and he won two big club comps with them. I tried them and couldn’t get the same results as him.

I remember going on a fun golf trip a few years ago.  We had a new player join us for the trip.  He has since become my regular golfing partner.  He showed up with a few boxes of these balls.  Turns out he is approximately a 5 handicap and shot lights out and took all the prizes!

[makana]

On 5/17/2021 at 9:23 AM, Ghostwedge said:

@Makana, unless you are buying direct from the outfit that recovered or salvaged the balls and know they were never in the drink then NO.

Been a single digit cap for a lot of years, I know a few guys that are better than me who play the lesser known balls and like them. 

"Integrity" the word doesn't seem to be in vogue these days, but if I buy a used refurbished Pro V1 that may or my not have spent 2 weeks at the bottom of a Florida lake.... no thanks. You're gonna have to show me some independent testing results that say a "used" Chrome Soft is a better ball than  brand new Snell, Vice, etc.

I see what you're saying. But I am not buying refurb balls. those balls are horrible. Made friends with ground crew folks at a Bunch of CCs in my area SO CAL and there is no water for the most part. They say bushes and rough is where the pick them up. 1 hit to barely used. 

Trust me I have played some really good rounds (-2 69) with a Kirkland 3pc ball. But side by side with the Kirkland ball and the Vice Pro + ball vs. Bridgestone Tour BX; the Bridgestone beat them out in all areas (ball speed, carry, hit my windows, loved it off the irons and feel off the putter). That's just for me though. Could be different for everyone. Use whatever ball you please or is in your budget. I'm sure DJ will kick the crap out of me 100/100 times with the SpongeBob ball from Walmart as I have mentioned is the worst ball ever...

[Ghostwedge]

@Makana, I've been playing the Bridgestone B RX since it came out and whatever it was before  (under 105mph SS) pricey but fortunately keep em in the fairway. My 6 cap wouldn't hold up against DJ no matter what ball he was using. lol

[HappyGilmoresBoots]

Reading through this thread is like digging through my juniors bag, all the hand-me-downs from my dad and uncles.  Hit my first 200 yard drive with an old Target special Ultra, broke 50 for the first time with a Dunlop DDH, thought I was hot s*** when my uncle gifted me a sleeve of Taylormade Innergels.

 

The newish DDH's aren't terrible - I bought a 15 pack last summer and have been using them as practice balls.  I got backed up at the course a couple days ago, so started hitting one DDH alongside the e6's I was keeping score with, and I gotta say, for short shots (greenside pitches and chips), the DDH's came alive.  I would've saved par on at least 3 holes if I were scoring the DDHs with greenside chips.  But noooooooo, the USGA doesn't like it when you're playing with 2 balls.

 

 

Maxfli Noodles were great...but, my money for this thread goes onto the blem/overrun Taylor Made Noodle Neons from golfballs.com.  I made a thread about the erratic-as-hell performance I got from them that I've literally never seen with any other ball.

[SkrappyHacker1]

Callaway Warbirds and the original HX Hot

 

Anything Slazenger

 

Pinnacle Gold

 

Top Flite XL

 

I've used all of these as range balls and never felt bad about it

[801]

You all have forgotten about the all time worst golfball ever manufactured ... from a major manufacturer as well.

Taylor Made Inergel golf balls.  They were packaged in those tupper-ware'esque 'air-tight' sleeve containers for a reason ...

remember?  once exposed to 'air', you had about 1 hour before they turned into complete mush.

No joke.  Early ball experiment by Taylor Made that went horribly, horribly wrong.

 

[north_east_pro]

The Strata was a terrible ball.