Reviews

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Why Piper Golf Should Be Your New Golf Ball

September 22, 2021 | By Greg D'Andrea | 4 Comments

Selecting new golf balls is never easy, but new Atlanta-based company Piper Golf provides both an outstanding ball and the best buying guide I’ve ever seen.

*Piper Golf will customize your ball to your game.*

We’ve previously posted about used or recycled golf balls. And while we feel playing second-hand balls would be a good choice for the recreational golfer, we also understand that many golfers simply want to play a new ball.

The problem is, the golf ball market can give weekend golfers a nervous breakdown. Which brand do you choose? And once you’ve picked the brand, which model do you go with? And will you hit it well once out on the course?

What about price? Will more expensive balls improve your game? Or should high-handicappers stick with inexpensive balls?

Well fellow golfers, to both answer these questions and find your perfect ball, look no further than new start up and Atlanta-based Piper Golf.

Born out of the pandemic, when golf was among the few socially distanced sports one could engage in, Piper Golf aims to both educate and arm players with the ideal golf ball, customized to their game.

Piper Golf manufacturers four incredible golf ball models…But they also offer a wonderful resource on how to choose the correct ball

Make no mistake, Piper Golf manufacturers four incredible golf ball models: Green, Blue, Black and Gold (very reminiscent of Johnnie Walker). But they also offer a wonderful resource on how to choose the correct ball. From the difference between 2-, 3-, and 4-piece balls, to which ball cover (urethane or Surlyn) is right for you, golfers simply cannot go wrong.

In fact, one of my favorite aspects of their website is the short quiz to help you select the correct ball for your game.

After taking the quiz myself (which took less than a minute), I was matched with Piper Blue – all based on things like my handicap, swing speed, and how far I hit my 7-iron.

Now in full disclosure, the good folks at Piper Golf sent me a sleeve of Their Blue model so I can test them out (I also received sleeves of Green, Black and Gold too).

There’s just something about the Piper logo that is very classic, yet unique and still easy on the eyes and calming when you’re about to strike the ball

*Piper Golf has a classic look that helps you get in the zone* .

Blue is a great fit for me. I’m liking them far better than my Bridgestone e6’s – perhaps due to the Blue’s Surlyn cover and three-piece construction. The feel is simply fantastic and there’s just something about the Piper logo that is very classic, yet unique and still easy on the eyes and calming when you’re about to strike the ball – be it off the tee or on the putting surface.

As for their other models: Green is of 2-piece construction and meant for beginners or high handicappers.

Meanwhile Black and Gold feature the softer, more spin-generating urethane covers lower handicappers love with the Gold model also rocking a high-performance 4-piece construct.

*Piper Golf Gold – the top-of-the-line model features a urethane cover and 4-piece construction.*

On a separate note, I’d be remiss to not mention Piper Golf’s Get Trashy guide, which is filled with side bets for unique circumstances (e.g. a “Sandie” is when you get get up and down for par from a green side bunker). It’s very reminiscent of our own Average Hack Golf Glossary!

We here at GolfStinks would like to wish the folks over at Piper Golf all the best – they make one hell of a golf ball. We’re really looking forward to watching this company grow!

Two Guys With Balls Is Used Golf Balls Done Right

November 22, 2020 | By Greg D'Andrea | 6 Comments

Recreational Golfers: Now is the time to start saving money and the planet by making the switch to used golf balls.

*GolfStinks Reviews* *TwoGuysWithBalls.com*

For over a decade, GolfStinks has been an advocate for the recreational golfer. This blog exists to help average golfers relax, save money and have fun playing this great game. So it should be no surprise I think recreational golfers should play used golf balls all the time.

There are two simple reasons for this:

It will save you money.
Golf is expensive and golf balls are no exception. Think about how many times you’ve pulled a shiny new ball from your bag, only to promptly slice or hook it into the woods. Now ask yourself, was that money well-spent?
It will help the planet.
The lastest research estimates around 300 million golf balls are lost annually. The environmental impact of that stat is staggering. Purchasing used golf balls will help offset that disheartening figure.

These days, most online and brick-and-mortar retailers have a small selection of used or recycled golf balls. But we golfers are finiky folks. A mesh bag of mixed-brand golf balls, or a dozen of one specific brand just isn’t going to cut it.

Enter Two Guys With Balls.

First off, their selection is incredible. Used golf balls from nearly all the major brands: Titleist; Bridgestone; Taylor Made; Callaway; Top Flight; Srixon and more. Finding not only your brand, but your specific model should be a non-issue.

For example, I play Bridgestone e6’s and was able to navigate to them within 5 seconds on their site. Once you locate your ball of choice, you can choose between “Eagle” (A quality); “Birdie” (B quality); or “Par” (C quality), depending on your budget.

Now for transparency sake, Two Guys With Balls was more than happy to send me a dozen Eagle-quality e6’s to check out free-of-charge. But if you’re a long-time follower of this blog, you’ll know I pride myself in conveying nothing but my honest opinion in a review.

That said, I made a point of going through the shopping cart process on their website; learning about the company; and scrutinizing the product I received.

What I found is the Eagle-quality balls really are like new golf balls. No scuffs, scrapes or blemishes of any kind (at least not the dozen I received). Some have the faded remnants of Sharpie marker visible, but that would hardly be a reason not to play them. For most recreational golfers, these Eagle-quality balls would be like pulling a brand new ball out of the sleeve.

*Two Guys With Balls’ “Eagle” quality balls may have some Sharpie remnants, but otherwise these look and feel like brand new golf balls.*

What I wasn’t expecting was Two Guys With Balls to also include Birdie- and Par-quality balls in the package for comparison purposes.

The Birdie-quality balls had only slight (and I really mean slight) blemishing on them. In fact, I wasn’t able to tell the difference between the Birdie- and Eagle-quality when pulling one out of my bag for a drop.

*Two Guys With Balls’ “Birdie” quality balls show very faint blemishes, but still have a like-new appearance.*

Meanwhile, the Par-quality balls look like what you’d expect a used golf ball to look like. Visible blemishes, scrapes and scuffs. But, still totally playable. If I were down to the Par-quality balls towards the end of a round, I’d have no problem teeing-them-up over the last couple of holes.

*Two Guys With Balls’ “Par” quality balls do have visible blemishes, but are still totally playable.*

Now I mentioned at the beginning of this post that going the used golf ball route will save you money. I wasn’t fibbing – using my Bridgestone’s as an example, a dozen brand new e6 balls retail for $22 USD. You can get Eagle-quality e6’s on Two Guys With Balls for just $13. As a recreational golfer, I’ve never been able to tell the difference between a grade A used ball and a brand new one. The $9 savings here is simply a no-brainer.

I would even venture to say most of us can probably get away with the Birdie-quality balls – at $10 a dozen for Bridgestone’s, it’s hard to pass-up. And at $7 for the Par-quality balls, beginners and new folks to the game simply cannot go wrong.

Now you will have to pay shipping on orders under $89. But if you buy in bulk, you can stock-up for the season and enjoy free shipping to boot.

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Two Guys With Balls likes to give back. A portion of all their proceeds go to various golf charities including kids- and military-related golf organizations.

For more than a decade, I have played mostly used golf balls. Not only does it save me money, but I know I’m supporting clean-up efforts for all the balls folks like me have left behind – either in the water or in other natural surroundings. As recreational golfers, there’s absolutely no reason to not play used golf balls. And now, Two Guys With Balls makes it easy to do so on a regular basis.

You Need Big Balls to Make More Putts

December 2, 2019 | By Greg D'Andrea | 3 Comments

Yes, that’s right; having Big Balls will help you convert more putts – especially from shorter distances. But I’m not talking about doing something ballsy on the golf course. I’m talking about gaining the confidence you need to drop more putts from 6-feet or less.

*Do you have Big Balls on the practice green?*

Pro golfers rarely miss short putts. In fact, from 4-feet or less they are more than 90% accurate. But the same can’t be said for weekend hacks. Heck, I miss 4-foot putts multiple times per round!

If I’m putting from 6-feet it gets substantially worse for me (pros are 70% from 6′). And farther back from that is anyone’s guess (pros are around 50% accurate from 8′-9′). The reality is, if recreational golfers want to convert more short putts, they need to practice. But let’s face it, practicing stinks.

Who wants to hit putts from 2-, 4- and 6-feet over and over again? The answer is simple: No one. Especially if you’re not getting paid for it (and even then you probably still don’t want to do it).

But what if we shook things up a bit? And maybe threw-in a little fun at the same time? After all, golf should be about having fun!

This is how having those Big Balls can help:

Big Balls are oversized golf balls to use as a training aid for 2-6 foot putts…The concept is simple, warm up and practice with Big Balls 10-20 times around that distance. Then when you go back to your ProV1, it will feel like you are putting a marble into a bucket, building confidence at that [critical] distance.

Recently, the good folks over at Big Balls sent me their product free to try out. After having a good chuckle unboxing them, I took a moment to wrap my brain around the fact that these were in every sense a golf ball, only in a much larger size. It was a bit surreal to be honest.

Big Balls are 30% larger than normal golf balls. It’s enough to immediately notice the novelty of it all. But it’s also super effective at building confidence: “There’s an immediate boost in confidence that gets you reading putts and sinking putts with more consistency,” it says on the Big Balls website. And they’re right, go back to a normal-sized ball and you really do feel like you’ll make every putt.

*Big Balls are 30% bigger than regular golf balls*

Despite being bigger, Big Balls are actually the same weight as a normal ball – helping them preform with true feel and roll while you practice. But the increased size provides an immediate impact that sticks in your mind – even after you switch back to your actual ball out on the course.

And while I’m sure practicing with Big Balls is actually helping your putting stroke in a physical way, these balls are really intended to mentally make you a better putter. And everybody knows golf is half mental!

So the next time you and your golf buddies hit the practice green, toss a couple of Big Balls down on the turf and begin putting. Not only will you be building confidence for the actual course, but it won’t be long before the rest of your foursome takes notice. And once they do, you’ll have a great putting tip for them and a few laughs to boot!

Take The Mystery Out Of Choosing Your Golf Balls With Forté

October 24, 2017 | By Greg D'Andrea | 6 Comments

Most golf balls on the market are for the pros. Australian company Forté Golf does something different – it helps recreational players find a golf ball designed specifically for them. Never mindlessly grab a box off the shelf again.

Recently, the good folks over at Forté Golf sent me several boxes of golf balls, which I promptly handed out to fellow recreational golfers of various skill levels. Of course, I kept a box for myself too. And I decided on which box to keep by getting custom fit directly from the Forté website: https://fortegolf.com.au/pages/golf-ball-fitting.

Below are a few stinky golfer reviews stemming from my handouts:

Stinky Golfer Matt – El Dorado Hills, CA. Handicap: 10

I normally play Bridgestone 330 RXS’s, so that was my point of comparison. Overall, I’d give solid scores across all categories for the Forté (maybe 4 out of 5 for distance, feel, and

Forté Golf’s Six-Layer Ball

performance). I’d give them a 5 for durability though. Not one scratch on any of them, and I gave them plenty opportunities to get scuffed up. It had a unique (but not bad) feel. Kind of dull, but not in a bad way. The one other thing I noticed that may or may not bug someone – the logo on the side of the ball is in cursive, so depending if you use that logo to line up and/or use it as a general line to where you’re putting, it’s not the easiest on the eye. All in all, I’d play them again.

Stinky Golfer Walt – Philadelphia, PA. Handicap: 25+

Used the Forté balls [during my round] today. Like other reviews said, they feel harder and do make a click sound. I didn’t mind it though. And I do have to say, when I had a good swing and struck it clean they take off. And I want to say that they did fly a bit straighter. I’ll try them again.

Stinky Golfer Greg – New Haven, CT. Handicap: 18

Forté APEX 6 Golf Ball

Boy did I play well with the Forté golf ball – in fact, it was one of my best rounds ever! Of course, it’s impossible to say my golf ball was the main reason. But my drives, irons and putting were all on target that day, which is a rarity. Plus, I too agree with Stinky Golfer Matt that the balls are extremely durable – my ball survived all 18-holes without scuffing! And while I realize this was only one round, I’ll certainly be playing the Forté ball again.

So the results are in from three varying levels of recreational golfer and all give a thumbs up to the Forté Golf ball. Which, I’ll admit had me a bit surprised – it’s not often you can get golfers to agree – especially on their choice of ball. For me, at least, I’ve found my new golf ball for the foreseeable future.

An Entirely New Approach To Executive-Style Golf Courses

September 13, 2016 | By Greg D'Andrea | 4 Comments

Can the Pointfive ball change the future of golf? (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

The time it takes to play a round of golf these days is borderline ridiculous. In many cases, five hours is the norm (sometimes 6) and that just doesn’t fit into the 21st-century lifestyle. But one company, Pointfive is trying to help. You see Pointfive has concluded that in order to speed-up play, you should play a shorter-length golf course.

Recently, I’ve written about playing a 12-hole course to help hasten your round. But Pointfive is referring to golf courses of more the “par 3” or “executive” variety. Unfortunately, the thought of an executive-style course doesn’t really appeal to me. And if I had to guess, it doesn’t really appeal to many others either.

One major issue with these types of courses is you can’t hit all your clubs – especially your driver. Limiting the number of clubs you can use tends to diminish the game for many golfers – myself included. But this is where Pointfive comes to the rescue.

Pointfive manufactures limited distance golf balls. In fact, these balls travel just 60 percent of what normal balls travel. That may not sound like much, but on an executive-style golf course, it brings your entire bag of clubs back into play.

Pointfive adds a twist to the golf ball sleeve (photo by Greg D'Andrea) — Pointfive adds a new twist to the golf ball sleeve (photo by Greg D’Andrea)

The good folks at Pointfive sent me two free sleeves of their Hy-Flyte golf balls and I put them to the test this past weekend on a local executive 9. Now these are 1-piece balls that actually float, so they are a bit lighter than your typical golf balls. As such, my first inclination was to test them on the putting green, but I noticed no notable difference – their roll and lag was like that of normal balls.

Moving on, the first hole was a 100-yard par 3 – a distance where I would typically hit my 56-degree wedge (sand wedge). But with the Hy-Flyte ball, I hit my 7-iron and was nearly pin-high. My 7-iron averages around 160 yards, so in this case, the 60 percent distance of these balls is fairly accurate.

There were also a few holes on this course around 300-yards long. In each case, I hit driver off the tee and landed around 110-yards from the center of the green. This would put my driving distance at around 155 yards (normally I’m about 260 with the big dog). Again, this holds true to the 60 percent distance of these balls. In addition, the flight pattern and trajectory seemed mostly on par with what I would expect to see.

By the end of my round, I knew these golf balls would entice me to play more executive-style courses in the future. The Hy-Flyte balls truly gave me back my entire set of clubs on a course where that normally wouldn’t be the case. What’s more, I felt satisfied despite finishing in just under 2 hours flat (even with a wait on most tee-boxes).

Admittedly, it was a bit strange hitting a 7-iron from around 100 yards out – at least initially anyway. And if you are a newbie where most tee-shots are flubs, it might be best to play regular balls – after all, you need all the distance you can get!

But for those in search of a quicker round, yet reluctant to play a par 3 or executive-style golf course, these balls just might be the solution.

What’s interesting is Pointfive also highlights the economic and environmental impact of their golf ball. On their website, the company points-out that with increased popularity of their ball, there will be demand for a new generation of golf course. One that is 60 percent scale and “requires minimal water and chemical usage; are much more affordable to build, maintain and play; and require only 40-70 acres of land.”

Can one ball drive the golf industry to thinking on a smaller-scale? It might be a stretch, but I believe everyone understands the game needs to get quicker, cheaper and more environmentally friendly. Let’s face it, the majority of us are recreational golfers and we are certainly looking for quicker and cheaper rounds. Hey, crazier things have been proposed (giant holes anyone)…

For the here and now, Pointfive’s Hy-Flyte golf ball will allow you to play shorter-length courses with a full-length course experience. Your options for golf on a tight schedule just got a whole lot better. And for me, that’s innovation enough.