How do you mark your ball for identification?

[Jay-Bird]

How: super thin red line around the equator, red dot right above the number on both sides.
Why: I've hit a "wrong ball" before. It cost me a lot of money. Now my mark is very distinct.

[ekcolam]

I look for four dimples that make a good diamond pattern to the left of the number and mark them (birthstone, baseball fan). I like to use blue since most balls I see use red or black.

[Gerald]

I prefer no. 1 balls and put a red minus sign, before the number ....... going for a birdie !!!

[The Recreational Golfer]

One green dot above the trade name. Reminds me of the Maxfli Green golf balls I used when I was kid. Besides, no one uses green ink to mark their ball, which makes mine that much easier to identify.

[goob3r]

Usually, a star through the logo of any color. Sometimes, I'll just hand my daughter a box of balls and bunch of sharpies and let her get creative. I usually play better with these because they keep me relaxed.

[Valleygolfer]

I first spin balance the balls with the check and go dealie bob, I would never by it but my dad being the gimmick guy gave it to me so I use it. I mark the equator and dot the top. They I finish the process with an little "x" in the right hand corner of the number. I do the balancing for obvious reasons and the "x" comes from watching stock car racing when I was a kid.

[2bGood]

A big orange dot on each side of the sleeve number.

Why? I lost my sharpie one day and borrowed sharpie from the pro shop to mark my balls for the day. They had pink and orange. I choose orange and shot my first 79. I bought a 12 pack of orange sharpies the next day and it has been my mark ever since.

Orange is all that common, and I would never play an unmarked ball now, helps me know its mine, and helps other know it is no theirs.

[c. lassiter]

A black diamond around the number.

the "x" comes from watching stock car racing when I was a kid.

I have no idea what this means (and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one).

[Valleygolfer]

I have no idea what this means (and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one).

Cars with similar numbers would put an "x" after their number in effort to have the number they liked.

[chilly]

I put a dot on each side of the number. I do it this way because I'm usually scrambling to get them marked at the last minute while my group is on the first tee, and I don't have time to do anything else =)

[Chilli Dipper]

I make a green dot above right of the logo. When I started playing the game frequently, I had a set of Sharpies at my home desk: red, blue, green, and black. I had the least use for the green one, so I threw it in my bag, and that was that. I like to keep my ball markings as simple as possible.

[Dave40]

I just want to know who the dude is that puts his initials on his Top Flite X-out recycled water balls. He is littering my course with them.

[Bogey317]

Used to do a green dot to the right of the number. But I found a ball in the water up in Michigan on Vac. that had LOSER written on it in Pink Sharpie. It was a TM TP Red. I use those anyway so I gamed that one and I ended up beating my stepdad and brother-in-law. Might start writing LOSER on my balls from now on.

[lumpuckeroo]

Three blue dots under the number, no special reason except blue it my favorite color.

[Fourputt]

A small "RP" (my initials) near the logo on both sides. Color is optional. I've been marking my ball for so long that it feels weird to play one that isn't marked. When you play in any sort of competition (or you just believe in playing by the rules like I do), then being able to positively identify your ball is not optional, it's a necessity. I've even found an identical ball with identical number and marked with dots in the same location where I put my initials, and of the same color I was using that day. Had I just had a couple of dots on my ball, it would have been impossible to know if that ball was mine or just a stray ball, and my ball would have been deemed lost. For me, a distinctive mark is essential.

[groovezilla79]

I used to write "NOT YOURS" on the blank side of the ball... it got a few laughs out on the course. Now, I put a blue or red dot to the left of both the Bridgestone name and the number of the ball.

[scgolf]

i marked one black dot just beneath the number on each side of the ball for personal identification.

[Deryck Griffith]

I placed two red dots on either side of "Taylormade" and 1 red dot uinderneath the number.

When I walk to my ball in deep rough, there is no question which one is mine!