Do you balance your golf balls?

[max power]

Whatever time is spent "balancing" your golf balls, even if it's only 5 minutes, is time that would be better spent practicing putting.

[Fourputt]

Whatever time is spent "balancing" your golf balls, even if it's only 5 minutes, is time that would be better spent practicing putting.

Ding ding ding..... +1

[kingface12]

I like to balance things.....the checkbook......on the balance beam....when I'm doing a triple sow cow.... golf balls?!?!?! Nope........Never even heard of it. If I put a bad swing on the ball....I don't give a *&^%.....the last thing I'm thinking is "If I only balanced the ball"......

[clam fist]

Rofl. So crazy.....I luv it.

[Shanks A Million]

Didn't those studies date back a decade or so? One had mentioned balata, no?

No, the Wishon study was published in 2006. Maltby used Callaway HX Tours I believe. If the balls are balanced well enough, play them, but the point made was that if they are severely unbalanced, they're going to hurt you, and if they're just a little off, you can mark them. The cheaper golf balls are more important to balance. As was pointed out, the Noodle balls were much more obviously off balance than the Pentas.

[Ultrastick]

Do I balance my golf balls? Yes. Been doing it for a few years now. Does it help? I believe it may save a stroke or two a round, maybe more as I improve. Do I "know" it helps? Nope, no way to tell, but with a balanced ball at least its going where I aim. Once again, I need to improve my aim.

Real world variables are certainly going to affect the roll or flight of the ball. Like target shooters or anything else, you allow for the variables you know about and can do something about, and trust that your missile will go truly to where you aimed.

For those who say an unbalanced ball may occasionally go in, then maybe an even more unbalanced ball would stand a better chance. Go for it. Also, balancing will not save a ball that is slicing or hooking, although in mild cases it might mean it goes less deep in the woods or rough.

I use a dry erase marker and one of those line em up cups that clip over the ball to mark my line with a Sharpie. I can then erase the dry erase line with a paper towel if I wish.

An argument I've heard elsewhere is that once a ball is hit, it's again out of balance, but guys on other forums have rebalanced experienced balls with little or no difference in balance. I've rebalanced about 6 balls and they came back to the same line.

A guy on another forum cut some balls in half and found, by visual means, and a caliper, that there were variations in cover thickness.

Pros, & remarks:
1. I have a mark to line up my putts.
2. Easy to tell my ball from others.
3. I can face the Sharpie mark to the clubhead and tell where I'm striking the ball.(easily removed with Windex and paper towel)
4. The ball rolls truer, so I can over time improve my aim.
5. Spinning reveals some balls that are far out of balance.
6. On those days I don’t want to be distracted by the line on the ball I can line it up, then put the mark on the bottom.
7. From time to time, especially on good fairways, I find the mark on the ball still aimed straight ahead.

Cons:
1. Time taken to balance. (I've started putting a finger on top of the cage after marking and turning it upside down. It makes a racket, but stops spinning almost immediately. What it does to the mechanism I have no idea. So far so good. You're on your own here.)
2. Cost of balancer and supplies, including AA cells over time. I have the Check-Go, btw, and I have no affiliation with the company in any way.

Check out the link below, done with real world golfers. I would like to have seen a comparison done with the marked line at 90 degrees to the line of flight or roll.

http://clubmaker-online.com/golfclubreview.pdf

[SpoiledRotten]

I

And how is that any different from your stance? You are trying to make everyone believe that your OPINION on this subject has real value and might go so far as to say that you seem to think that your OPINION, "through your own ego" "is the only right way". So, how can you be so different? Several people have tried and proved, yet because you believe it doesn't help, then it certainly can't help someone or be of any significance to a golfer. hmmmmm Kind of full of yourself, aren't you?

[Valleygolfer]

And how is that any different from your stance? You are trying to make everyone believe that your OPINION on this subject has real value and might go so far as to say that you seem to think that your OPINION, "through your own ego" "is the only right way". So, how can you be so different? Several people have tried and proved, yet because you believe it doesn't help, then it certainly can't help someone or be of any significance to a golfer. hmmmmm

+1 He reminds me of the grumpy old guys that work the evenings at my golf course.

[Fourputt]

And how is that any different from your stance? You are trying to make everyone believe that your OPINION on this subject has real value and might go so far as to say that you seem to think that your OPINION, "through your own ego" "is the only right way". So, how can you be so different? Several people have tried and proved, yet because you believe it doesn't help, then it certainly can't help someone or be of any significance to a golfer. hmmmmm

Anyone who can't see Pelz's ego leaking out all over isn't looking very closely. I don't buy much of anything he espouses for short game, so I'm not likely to buy his "proof" of imbalance either. I merely stated my opinion from 35 years of playing this game. I've played with a lot of low handicap and scratch golfers who debunk the ball balancing theory just as vigorously as I do.

You are welcome to believe whatever you like, just don't spout it like it's gospel just because some so-called "guru" who wants to sell something says it's true. You don't need to get your panties in a wad when someone doesn't buy your "proof". I used to believe in Santa Claus too... but I got over it.

[TD22057]

Anyone who can't see Pelz's ego leaking out all over isn't looking very closely. I don't buy much of anything he espouses for short game, so I'm not likely to buy his "proof" of imbalance either. I merely stated my opinion from 35 years of playing this game. I've played with a lot of low handicap and scratch golfers who debunk the ball balancing theory just as vigorously as I do.

I'm not a huge Pelz fan but that doesn't make him completely wrong either. At least he says "I performed this experiment and here are the results". I'll believe someone doing that before I believe someone who says "I played for x years and so I know better" - unless you thing Dave's just lying about actually doing experiments or the results...

[max power]

Do I balance my golf balls? Yes. Been doing it for a few years now. Does it help? I believe it may save a stroke or two a round, maybe more as I improve. Do I "know" it helps? Nope, no way to tell, but with a balanced ball at least its going where I aim. Once again, I need to improve my aim.

I'm not buying that this makes a "stroke or two a round" difference in your game, and as a 25 'capper I can't fathom how you would even begin to quantify where you saved a stroke or two because your ball was "properly balanced".

Any amount of time you spend "balancing", or thinking about it, or preparing to, or whatever would be better spent practicing in some capacity-even if only in preparing a mental game plan of how you will attack the course. And this extra practice could actually save a stroke or two. Ultimately, whatever floats your boat-but this attempt to improve golf performance through "balancing" is utterly ridiculous.

[Shanks A Million]

I'm not a huge Pelz fan but that doesn't make him completely wrong either. At least he says "I performed this experiment and here are the results". I'll believe someone doing that before I believe someone who says "I played for x years and so I know better" - unless you thing Dave's just lying about actually doing experiments or the results...

Pelz does have a degree in Physics, and 17 patents, as well as having been a senior scientist at NASA.

[Valleygolfer]

I'm not buying that this makes a "stroke or two a round" difference in your game, and as a 25 'capper I can't fathom how you would even begin to quantify where you saved a stroke or two because your ball was "properly balanced".

What are you doing on here? Shouldn't you be putting somewhere?

[max power]

What are you doing on here? Shouldn't you be putting somewhere?

Yeah-if I was unable to differentiate between activities that could improve my game and those that clearly won't. I spend any time on theSandTrap fully cognizant that it's not shaving strokes off my game. Though I'd wager that the occasional tip or the ability to have one's swing analyzed on here is more beneficial than ball "balancing".

[double_j]

My thoughts on ball balancing...

Random stroke (or swing) + random environment (humidity, wind, green, fairway, etc.) + random ball balance = random outcome

Random stroke (or swing) + random environment (humidity, wind, green, fairway, etc.) + balanced ball = still random outcome

It can't hurt but I doubt it helps.

[Mark Lewis]

I have a ball balancer and even though I hit a lot more "not so good" shots than good  ones, I feel that the advantage of a balanced ball is definitely in the  putting.  It does roll more consistantly when plaed on the axis!!

[Paradox]

now I figured it out! My shots move off-line because the ball isn't balanced!  My swing is perfect!

[alexbaha]

I am going to start balancing and checking my balls. It makes perfect sense to me if the balls weight is more on one side than the other and you don't know which your putts will lean onto the heavy side and you miss your putt. Doesn't seem that far fetched. Watch some guys on youtube use salt water to balance balls and you'll see how off even the expensive ones are.

this is my first post. Hi SandTrap.