Toronto, Ontario based Knetgolf boasts of saving golfers $20 million dollars per year for their golf balls, which averages out to over a dollar per ball. $20 million sounds like a huge sum, but considering golfers lose over a billion balls per year, and 4.5 per round, it’s a believable number.
Golf Ball Recycling
Knetgolf is able to produce a huge savings on golf balls because they’re recyclers. They recover lost golf balls from more than 2,000 golf resorts, mainly in Arizona, California and Nevada. Once the balls have been recovered, Knetgolf puts them through a cleansing process to ensure top condition. The refurbished Titleist, Callaway, Nike and other balls are then graded Mint, "A," "B" or "C" and offered at half price or better directly to the golf public through their website, e-Bay and other locations.
Refurbished golf balls can be seen as a "green", environmentally friendly undertaking. It certainly is, and that’s great, but both the recycler and the consumer have more "green" in their pockets as a result of the refurbishing.
Half-Off, At the Least
It’s open for argument, but when it comes to deciding which golf equipment can deliver the largest measurable improvement for any given golfer, a high quality golf ball is right at the top. High quality golf balls deliver the best performance, but they unfortunately come with the highest price tag. Some of the best balls can cost around $50 per dozen. Yes, $50 for 12 golf balls.
Recycled, or refurbished golf balls, according to Knetgolf, begin at half-off the regular retail price of new golf balls. That means, golfers can purchase a dozen Titleist Pro-V1 balls and save $25, at least, and have mint condition balls! The Pro-V1 is the most popular and widely used, not to mention the most expensive, golf ball. Other manufacturers produce tour-quality balls, as well, and the savings on those, the Nike One Platinum, Callaway Tour ix, and Bridgestone B330, for example, are just as good for refurbished golf balls.
Companies like Knetgolf, who offer access to quality, brand-name golf balls at significant savings are making the game affordable in a time where golf could be one of those luxuries that gets cut from the budget. "Right now, it’s very difficult for many golfers to spend $40 per dozen," says Gary Shienfield, CEO of Knetgolf. "Our balls, in many cases, were hit just once and lost, so neither performance nor appearance is affected. The major difference is Knetgolf leaves consumers with extra money in their pockets for other essential purchases."
