Never Lose a Ball Again with the Prazza Golf Ball

Calling all golfers! Your life will never be the same again, after this month's unveiling of the Prazza®, which is set to rid the sport of one of its most annoying problems: the lost golf ball.

Dutch firm Prazza Group have revealed initial plans to retail the Prazza Golf Ball Finder system in the UK from November 2010, with a global roll-out in 2011.  The balls contain a micro-chip which is activated when the golfer hits a shot and uses RFID technology to enable the Prazza® Tracker handset to locate the ball from up to 100 metres, even in the thickest rough.

This obviously poses many questions and has potential to benefit golf in general; will it aid beginners to the game of golf with a findable golf ball, will it banish 5 hour rounds with no searching for balls, can it save golfers money with less balls lost ?

With an average of thirty minutes wasted looking for lost balls during each round of golf, and an estimated 500 million golf balls lost around the world each year is this the technology to provide the next revolution in golf ?

It's not yet sanctioned by the R&A for competition play and with a price tag of £329 and £39.95 for a sleeve of 3 golf balls, it might not yet be mass market but the technology is certainly there to push the boundaries to another level.

The balls transmit a radio signal for 30 minutes after each shot and assuming you are within 100m will find the ball within 2 feet (including in up to 8" water).  The RFID microchip can last for up to 120 round. This does highlight the current challenges with this ball; how long will the ball last before it scuffs up and it will only find a lost ball within the course and not OOB or in water.

Simon Holmes, Sky Sports Analyst, using the Prazza track for real and finding his ball in the woods!

Similar technology exists in use at TopGolf driving range venues but however you look at it it's great to see this technology being made available to aid and assist the golfer on course even if it's only for social play and comes with a high price.

It will be interesting to see how this technology develops, if the price can come down and how the existing ball manufacturers embrace this technology.

For more information, including the latest stockist details, see www.prazza.com.