Golf Ball - Non-standard and Novelty Balls

Non-standard and Novelty Balls

A number of designs of novelty ball have been introduced over the years, mainly as practical jokes for the amusement of fellow golfers, but also as "cheater" balls that do not conform to the rules of golf. All of these are banned in sanctioned games, but can be amusing in informal play:

• Breakaway balls are brittle and hollow, and shatter into many small pieces when hit.
• Exploding balls are similar, but employ a small explosive device that disintegrates the ball when hit. Many courses have banned these as the charge can damage the turf, the player's club or even cause injury, leading manufacturers to develop the breakaway.
• Stallers are far softer than a normal golf ball, allowing them to be compressed far more easily and are given greater backspin when hit. Both of these give the ball a huge amount of lift, producing shots that climb very high into the air with very little distance traveled over the ground. In the right conditions, such a ball may travel backwards along its flight path or even perform a loop-de-loop.
• Sponge balls are softer still; they are generally used as indoor or backyard practice balls, but some are deceptively similar in appearance to a normal ball. Such a ball will travel less than a quarter of the distance of a normal golf ball.
• Wobblers have a center of mass that is not in the exact center of the ball or is loose within the ball. When putted, the ball will move unpredictably off the intended line.
• Floaters are less dense than a regulation golf ball so when hit into a water hazard, they bob on the surface when a normal ball would sink.
• Super-distance balls have deeper dimples and are heavier than allowed by regulation, which allows them first to maintain momentum and second to maintain a thicker "envelope" of still air around them which reduces turbulence and wind resistance. Marketers of these balls generally advertise a 12 yards (11 m) gain on most distance shots.
• Night golf balls Glow in the dark golf balls either luminous balls or inserted glow sticks. These balls are often used for play in indoor minigolf courses or outdoor ones at night.
• Streamers unravel into ribbon of up to 12 feet (3.7 m) or more after being struck.
• Water-filled novelty balls are packed with water and create the illusion of evaporating when struck.
• Laughers are golf balls that laugh and giggle while in motion.