When you spend far too many hours on a golf course walking through the rough, bushes or trees (an affliction that severely affects some of us) then you'll likely uncover more than your fair share of abandoned golf balls that are looking for a new home.
Indeed, what often happens is that you find others, potentially long discarded by earlier golfers, but not the ball you were actually searching for. Remember, you only have three minutes to conduct your search these days.
What this scenario underpins is that a significant proportion of the golfing population go through a series of balls during a typical round.
But do you lose more golf balls than the average person?
That was just one of a vast range of subjects that were covered in a recent Golfshake golf equipment survey that was completed by 3,000 respondents, which has given us a considerable amount of fascinating data across each handicap category of player.
How Many Golf Balls "Should" You Lose Per Round?
Looking at all golfers broadly, just under a quarter (24.4%) will normally lose no golf balls during a round (lucky them!), while the majority (50.8%) admit to losing one. Another 18.3% typically lose two, with around 6.7% losing three or more.
When you think of how much a dozen golf balls can cost (assuming you buy more expensive models), then you quickly realise that losing balls won't just be ruinous to your score, it'll also put a dent into your bank balance.
Naturally, when you break down the results across different levels of player, you see stark differences. Logically, better golfers will lose fewer balls and those on the other end of the spectrum will go through a heap of them.
But what does the specific data illustrate - and how do you compare to other golfers of a comparative standard?
More than half of low handicap golfers (52.1%) will typically complete a round without losing a ball, compared with 21.8% of mid handicappers and only 13.0% of higher handicap golfers who claim they manage to finish 18 holes without having lost a ball.
Ultimately, this shows that the overwhelming majority of higher handicappers will lose at least one ball every time they play.
When it comes to the number of balls lost, virtually no low handicappers reported typically losing three or more balls during a round, compared with around 12% of higher handicap golfers.
Losing Balls Can Cost Golfers a Lot of Money
Losing balls and incurring penalty shots is one thing, but there is an accompanied financial expense too. When you think that a dozen Titleist Pro V1 balls or Callaway Chrome Softs could set you back in the region of £50, if you are losing two or three golf balls in a round, then the potential outlay quickly adds up.
Therefore, it's no surprise to see that higher handicap golfers are more likely to seek out less premium alternatives.
47.5% of higher handicap golfers have purchased budget golf balls, with 43.5% having also bought lake or recycled balls. That said, given what we've outlined before, you might be surprised that 42.9% of higher handicap golfers have spent money on premium golf balls at least once.
It's not a shock to learn that an enormous 92.6% of low handicap golfers have bought premium golf balls. These are the players who lose the fewest and who are most likely to benefit from the advantages that these advanced models offer.
Elsewhere, 71.0% of mid handicappers have bought premium, while just 20.9% of low handicappers have spent money on budget golf balls, with only 29.6% spending their money on lake or recycled balls.
Mid-Price Golf Balls Appeal to Most Consumers
However, everyone appreciates value, particularly when you consider that the most common lifespan for the same golf ball was two rounds, cited by 35.0% of golfers. Another 19.6% manage three rounds and 15.7% four rounds or more using the same ball.
That perhaps explains why mid-price golf balls have been bought by 72.6% of low handicappers, 83.9% of mid handicappers and 79.7% of higher handicap golfers, demonstrating that this is clearly the most popular segment of the market.
For manufacturers and retailers, these are the golf balls that are going to connect with the broadcast range of consumers.
Every golf ball you find on the course will have a story behind it. Some may have gone through several hands before they reached you. But it goes without saying that the fewer of them you lose, the better scores you will shoot and the less money you will have to spend on replacing them.
If you are someone who rarely loses a ball, then you are a special golfer indeed.
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