Does anybody else "Ball hunt?"

[PlacidCasual]

I like to spend 5 minutes or so... while the rest of my foursome walks to the next shot, to look for balls in the bushes; they are more plentiful than you might believe.
I must explain.
Years before I actually played, as a munchkin, I had a friend who lived on a course. We'd walk around on the wooded areas, find a bunch of lost balls, and then go down to the range and sell them to guys trying to hit a few. Very lucrative as a youth.
As an adult though, I have access to a very nice course (my parents own a house there), and there's no feeling I like more as someone who doesn't buy balls than "F***, ANOTHER Titelist?!"
The weird thing is, other than the fact that it's great to play with balls that I wouldn't pay for, is "why don't I meet a lot of other golfers who do this?"

[goob3r]

It's a good idea. I'm just way too lazy, and cannot afford the distraction to my fragile golf game.

[Golfwolf]

I don't, usually too busy looking for my own golf ball.

[Shorty]

  PlacidCasual said:

I like to spend 5 minutes or so... while the rest of my foursome walks to the next shot, to look for balls in the bushes; they are more plentiful than you might believe.

Because if you spend even one minute, let alone five looking for balls you'll fall well behind the guys you're playing with.

Figure out how far you walk in five miutes. That's how far you'll be behind your playing partners. About two holes, I'd say.

[goob3r]

  Shorty said:

Figure out how far you walk in five miutes. That's how far you'll be behind your playing partners. About two holes, I'd say.

Whoa! Two holes in five minutes! That would be awesome! Get a round finished in less than an hour! :)

[Blades4me]

As a young boy I caddied for my father and would look for balls while I caddied cuz it was hard to afford to buy balls with how many I'd loose. I guess I never got over that cuz when I'm in the rough helping playing partners look for balls I'm also looking for tour quality balls for me.

I'll p/u most any ball, but its got to be tour quality for me to keep it now.

[Shorty]

  goob3r said:

Whoa! Two holes in five minutes! That would be awesome! Get a round finished in less than an hour! :)

IF he did it a couple of times a hole.

[PlacidCasual]

To respond to the "not enough time" folks... if I'm playing with my friends, of course there's no time. If I'm playing with my step-dad however... who hits at least two balls badly from anywhere, and who takes at least three minutes with any shot, I can find plenty of time. And ball hunting at night is super-fun with a flashlight.
All I'm saying is that I'm not super-wealthy, nor good enough with my budget to justify paying 40 for a box of balls.
But if I spend 5 minutes in the bushes, I can find 12-15 Callaways, and TM's to justify doing it. And that feels good.

[PlacidCasual]

BTW, just so I make sure no-one misunderstands, this is on a twilight-nobody on the course situation. Not a saturday thing.
And a late-night, with flashlights, maybe we'll get attacked by Racoons if we're lucky thing.

[chilly]

I don't usually have time on the course, and honestly I don't see too many in the spots you'd think they'd be on my home course. However, I do go fishing for them on the island green hole after I'm done with my round. Usually just keep a few, and throw the rest on the bank for anyone that wants to pick them up.

[burnabao]

On the few occasions that I've managed to convince the wife to play/walk a round with me, she has always had far more interest in turning up lost balls than anything else. Maybe it's a hunter/gatherer instinct!

[Valleygolfer]

I will pick them up when I see them or when I look for my ball. I usually do not play them. I practice with them some but I try to stick with the same ball for consistency. Every once in a while I will find one I would like to try and play it.

As a kid I treated them like gold because I had no money. I searched for them daily only because I was dropped off at the golf course all day.

[sean_miller]

  Valleygolfer said:

As a kid I treated them like gold because I had no money. I searched for them daily only because I was dropped off at the golf course all day.

That sounds like child abandonment - very sad. Did you have to sell those balls to buy food? Maybe that's what the OP is doing.

[Leftygolfer]

Read my signature. If you do, you never have to buy balls again unless I actually play a competitive round which I will buy new.

[Valleygolfer]

  sean_miller said:

That sounds like child abandonment - very sad. Did you have to sell those balls to buy food? Maybe that's what the OP is doing.

Mom and dad always did hate me. I was fifteen and chose to be there.

[Chief Broom]

One of the benefits of walking is that you can easily look for balls as you play. You can take a minor detour through the woods or other areas where people lose balls nd pick up a few without holding up play. Depending on the ball I find it'll either go in my shag bucket at home or the bag to be played when needed.

[BostonSully]

Nothing wrong with keeping an eye out. But when I play with my dad at least once a round he whips out the extendable ball finder and actually goes like fishing with the damn thing in the pond. He usualy makes away with liek 12+ balls but damn I am like embarassed when he does it hahha.

[bkoguy07]

I go swimming in par 3's i got 200 balls in my bag, 150 still in my car and I gave away 300.