While many golfers opt for brand-new golf balls at the start of every season, others are content to play with used balls that they have found or purchased online.
This explains the popularity of Reload golf balls, which are available at several brick-and-mortar stores as well as widely available online.
But are these any good? Where can you buy them from? And where do they actually come from?
In the sections that follow, we introduce everything you need to know about these types of balls, so you can make a decision about whether to add them to your golf bag this season.
1. What are Reload Golf Balls?
Reload golf balls offer a wide range of refinished and recycled golf balls to recreational players, which can offer huge cost savings when it comes to buying golf balls every season.*
Every year in the United States, millions of golf balls are lost in water hazards, out of bounds, and in various wooded areas. These are collected and sorted before being refinished or recycled by Reload.
Reload clean and sort lost golf balls, before inspecting them for any required cosmetic impairments.
Once the process is complete, they are packaged and retailed at a hugely discounted price, enabling you to buy like-new golf balls for a fraction of the MSRP.
If you’re interested in buying Reload golf balls this season, read on to find out everything you need to know about this unique approach to recycling golf balls, to decide whether or not they’re a good option for you.
2. Are Reload Golf Balls Legal?
Yes, Reload golf balls are 100% legal. Think about it this way – if you find a Titleist ProV1 in the rough when you’re looking for your ball, you can pick it up (provided that it’s lost!) and put it in your bag. You can then play it as and when you like.
When the folks at Reload sort through the lost golf balls that they’re processing, they ensure that all of the balls that they refinish and recycle are legal, meaning that they can be used in competitions as per USGA and R&A standards.
In each Reload package, you will find a range of golf balls from leading manufacturers like Titleist, Nike, Callaway, Bridgestone, and others.
The refinishing process makes them like-new without changing the characteristics of the ball.
As such, you can rest assured that the Reload golf balls that you buy this season are perfectly legal, meaning you can use them in any official golf competitions that you participate in.
3. Are Reload Golf Balls Good?
The jury is out when it comes to buying refinished golf balls. Some reviewers believe that you lose distance with recycled golf balls, but that is only one side of the story.**
Even if you lose 5-10 yards on a drive with a refinished golf ball, the fact that you can buy them for such an affordable price means that it’s worth it for a lot of players.
After all, not everyone can afford to spend $50 on a dozen Pro V1s!
As such, we think that buying Reload golf balls can be a great option for all recreational players, particularly those that are looking to save some money.
We also like the environmental benefits of buying recycled golf balls, considering that millions of golf balls litter green spaces in the US every year.
While a recycled golf ball might not perform as well as a brand-new ball fresh out of the sleeve, we don’t think that it’s a viable reason to stop you from playing with recycled balls, and Reload golf balls are well worth considering.
4. What Premium Golf Balls Does Reload Have?
Reload provides practically every premium golf ball you can think of. You will find Titleist ProV1s alongside the leading balls from Bridgestone, which are golf balls played by some of the best players in the world.
You can also buy brands like Pinnacle from Reload, which are popular with recreational players for their distance and durability.
When you search through the Reload range, you will see a whole spectrum of refinished golf balls available for a great price.
This allows you to try out new golf balls before paying the going rate for a new sleeve, or it enables you to stock up your practice bag with refinished balls without spending the big bucks on new balls to use out on the range.
So, if you’re happy to go with refinished golf balls this season, you will find that Reload has multiple options for you to consider, from leading brands like Titleist, Bridgestone, and many others.
5. Where Do Reload Golf Balls Come From?
The beauty of Reload golf balls is that they come from practically anywhere! After all, golf balls are lost in lots of different places out on the course, from water hazards to designated OOB areas.
Reload does a great job of breathing new life into lost golf balls, and it’s a great way for recreational players to access affordable, used golf balls, which is hugely beneficial given the high cost of new golf balls from the leading brands in the game.
While we like the idea of Reload golf balls, it’s always a good idea to be a little careful of balls that have been submerged in water for a long time, as they may become waterlogged.***
But if you read the description carefully and understand the condition that Reload golf balls are in before ordering, you will find that they’re more than satisfactory for most recreational players to use out on the golf course.
6. Where to Buy Reload Golf Balls?
You can buy Reload golf balls from a huge range of retailers, including Walmart, Amazon, and Dick’s Sporting Goods, among others. You will often find them in the discount or used section at online stores, given the fact that they’re recycled.
But Reload isn’t the only brand that refinishes and recycles used golf balls, you can find recycled golf balls from so many online and brick-and-mortar outlets.
These balls are on sale everywhere and are great to pick up to add to your practice bag.
Given that Reload golf balls are widely available, it makes sense to shop around so that you can find the best price for the make and model of ball that you’re going for.
Reload packages their balls by make/model but tends not to differentiate between years of production, meaning that you might get a mixed bag, depending on where you buy them!
So, the fact that they’re widely available for a great price makes Reload golf balls a super viable option for most players, whether you buy them from Amazon or Walmart, for instance.
Is there a Reload Golf Balls Website?
Although Reload golf balls are widely available, we couldn’t find a website dedicated to the brand itself. However, most online retailers have designated an area of their site to introduce Reload balls, so you can find lots of information about them online.
Another reason why Reload golf balls might not have a website is the fact that they’re not a direct-to-consumer brand, and they retail its golf balls via distributors like Amazon, Walmart, and Dick’s Sporting Goods.
It would certainly be helpful to have a website to refer to when looking for more information about Reload golf balls, but the good news is that there is a lot of information already out there about what you can expect from these golf balls.
What are Good Alternatives to Reload Golf Balls?
As mentioned, there are several alternatives to Reload golf balls, as there are so many brands that provide reconditioned or refinished golf balls to recreational players. Lostgolfballs is one such site, offering you the chance to select your golf balls based on condition, make, and price.
Another option is to perform a simple search on eBay or Amazon for used golf balls, and you will find a huge number of options for you to consider.
However, you need to read the reviews and client feedback carefully, as some refinished golf balls are in better condition than others.
Rock Bottom Golf also has a sizeable collection of used golf balls available online, enabling you to search for the balls that you require via make, model, year, and other helpful filters.
Some golfers also look to lake balls as a viable alternative to these golf balls, but as mentioned, you need to be mindful of the quality of a lake ball, if it has been submerged for too long underwater, it will significantly affect the ball’s playability.
But the bottom line is that if you’re looking for used or refinished golf balls online, there are plenty of places to find them, and Reload is only one of the options available to you.
Conclusion
Reload golf balls are attractive to recreational golfers for lots of reasons. While they might not perform as well as brand-new golf balls, they certainly offer a decent level of performance for the price point.
If you’re unsure about playing Reload golf balls during a round or competition, you could always add them to your practice bag to use out on the range.
Ultimately, Reload golf balls offer a wide range of golf balls at a great price point, offering recreational players a good alternative to buying new golf balls every season.
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