Better than a Sharpie?

[mdbuschsr]

I have recently started marking all of the balls I play with an orange Sharpie "permanant" marker.

I write my initials MDS around the sleeve number (both sides), and then strike through the alignment arrow. The problem is that the mark never seems to last a whole round, or even a few holes. On occasion I get through a whole round with the same ball, by the time I am done, almost none of the marker is left. Do you guys re-mark your golf balls during the round?

I'm a bit superstitious... If I have a good round going, I don't want to change balls, or make a change to the ball I'm playing. Would the marking hold up better if I did them several days in advance??

I realize this is a stupid question, but I'm FULL of those!!!

[colin007]

maybe if you hit the ball fewer times? lol, just kidding bro!!

i dont know, i dont bother marking my ball, but i would imagine that drawing your mark a couple of days in advance might allow the ink to fully "cure"?

[golfro]

i just put three dots in a triangle next to the logo...it fades a bit throughout the round but not enough for it to not be obvious

[TheLauncher]

Try using a darker color.

[whhyjay]

As the poster said above, use a darker color. I usually don't have to remark after I use a black marker

[iacas]

I've used black sharpies and the line is faded after a few holes and gone by about nine or ten. I haven't found a better solution than a Sharpie.

[B-Con]

I used to completely fill in 5 of the dimples. The outer edges of the dimples would wear off faster than the inner most part. Sometimes after a well-struck ball I'd see sharpie residue on my club. I took to just filling in the middle of the dimple, and it still lasts about as long.

Only advice I can offer is to make as much of a mark as possible without distorting the ball beyond what you prefer. I make 5 dots, and they'll last all round. My friend used to draw two hemispheres around this ball, it would take dozens of rounds to completely wear that all. Obviously you may not want to do that, but if you could add a dot or two in a different location that you wouldn't mind, it will increase the total amount of time that at least part of your marking is on the ball.

[mdbuschsr]

So, I guess I'll just have to re-mark during the round and deal with it! Not a biggie, I was just curious if anyone had come up with a better solution.

[DonW]

I have found that red lasts longer than blue or green sharpie, it's a scarlet red sharpie that came with an alignment line guide. It will fade to pink if it's damp out but that just prevents most guys from stealing my ball from the course, the blue I used to use would be almost gone by the end of a round. Wipe your ball with rubbing alcohol before marking it, seems to help it last longer.

[DaSportsGuy]

The longer the Sharpie is on the ball the longer it will last. As soon as I get new balls I mark them so by the time I use them, it's settled and won't come off as easy.

[Jay-Bird]

Tattoo gun.

[Stretch]

Customised balls.

[2bGood]

Orange is my colour too and I do find it fades faster then other sharpie colours. I do manage to get 80-90 shots out of a ball before it is faded so much a I can't see my two dots on each number. Some times I will colour in the dots part way through the round, or before I start a second round with a ball. I can't say touching up my marks ever bothered me.

[Paradox]

two pink dots on the ball and they last for far longer than the ball is playable.

[goblue107501]

I don't think it is the marker as much as it is the ball. The cover of a ball hardly absorbs the ink so after it gets worn a bit, it will start to fade. I have marked balls and used them the next minute, and have had balls marked for days/weeks/months, and the marks all last about the same. It just depends on if you hit them with the club or something on the ground that wears off the mark. Some colors tend to not fade as easily, but I don't think it has anything to do with the actual marker.

[TourSpoon]

i just put three dots in a triangle next to the logo...it fades a bit throughout the round but not enough for it to not be obvious

Same here...three black dots to the upper right of the logo. I mark inside the dimples so the black doesn't come off.

[rebby]

Purple and yellow dots for me. I mark my golf balls when I buy them (usually by the dozen) and usually don't game them after that for at least a few weeks since I keep a decent stock of golf balls on hand. My marks will fade during the course of a round but never disappear completely.

[zeg]

I got a little demo pack of GolfDotz and they held up with minor scuffing through 18 holes with one ball, including surviving a few trips through the ball washer. If you can find a design you like and are willing to pony up the ~50 cents per mark, that's a solution. It's a bit cheaper than getting custom logo balls, though mainly it means you don't have to buy $200-$400 worth of balls at once.

Personally, I'm going to stick with the Sharpie. If the mark gets scuffed off, I just mark it again.