Luke is an avid weekend-warrior golfer from the East Coast who plays golf more than he cares to admit.
You might not ordinarily assume it, but having clean golf balls is crucial to playing the sport at your very best.
Not only can a clean golf ball travel much better across long distances, but a clean golf ball is also more satisfying to hit!
Have you ever hit a brand-new golf ball and noticed how satisfying it was? Well, luckily, there is a way to achieve that sensation as often as you want, without having to buy thousands of brand-new golf balls.
Join us down below, because we are going to show you how to clean your own golf balls, to get them looking as good as new.
This can not only be incredibly satisfying and improve your game, but it will also save you a lot of money in the long run.
Read onwards to find out how to clean your own golf balls!
How Do You Clean Golf Balls?
There are actually quite a few ways to clean your golf balls, each of which requires slightly different tools and methods. Let’s take a look at each of them!
Soap And Water
Luckily, if you want clean golf balls, you can actually achieve it pretty easily with just some soap and water!
Simply take a large container, and fill it with some warm water, and some dish soap. Dish soap is best because it is designed to remove difficult dirt and grime that is stuck to objects.
From here, simply dip a dry washcloth into the water, rinse it off, and then use it to scrub away at each golf ball.
If the washcloth ever gets dirty, simply dip it back into the water and allow the dirt and grime to wash off. Then rinse and repeat this method until each golf ball is clean!
If any pockets of dirt prove particularly troublesome, we recommend using a scrubbing implement that is a little more coarse, such as a toothbrush to chip away at stubborn stains and grimy spots!
Make sure to dry each ball after washing, in order to get that final glimmering shine!
Dishwashing
That’s right! If you have a large number of golf balls that you want to be cleaned, but you don’t have the time to painstakingly scrub each individual ball, then placing them into the dishwasher can be a great way to save time!
Simply place the golf balls into the dishwasher, and into each of the various compartments. Make sure there is some space between each ball so that the water can effectively reach every inch of them and provide a proper clean.
Once you have inserted the golf balls into the machine, all you then need to do is insert the normal amount of detergent you normally would and set the machine on a normal cycle.
We were impressed at how well a washing machine was able to clean up such massive batches of golf balls. And if there was any dirt still left on the golf balls, it was easy to get it off by giving them a quick scrub!
Nail Polish Remover
If there are particularly egregious marks, such as from markers, or just really caked-on dirt, you can also make use of nail polish remover.
Simply grab a small cloth, dip it into a small amount of nail polish remover, and then scrub away any affected areas on each golf ball.
This is the best method for removing stains on individual golf balls. It may take slightly longer, but it really gets to work.
This is a great method if you are cleaning second-hand golf balls because many second-hand golf balls have permanent marker ink on them, which once may have been used to help players to identify them!
Make sure not to use acidic cleaning solutions such as toilet cleaners, as these can eat away at the surface of the balls, which can permanently damage them, and affect how well they fly through the air in play.
Rinse With A Hose
This is a great practice to get into between games of golf.
Naturally, over the course of a play session, golf balls will accumulate a layer of dirt, though it would take numerous play sessions for that dirt to become firmly stuck to the balls.
Rinsing off the golf balls between play sessions can help to prevent the need for larger cleaning jobs.
This can easily be done by placing the affected golf balls into a container,, and then lightly hosing them down!
Soak
This method is a great one to try out if you find that scrubbing each golf ball just isn’t cutting it, and if you don’t want to place the golf balls into your dishwasher.
All you need to do is grab a large container like a bucket, and then fill it with plenty of warm water and a large helping of dish soap.
This will create a mixture that is soapy and ready to eat away at the dirt on the surface of the golf balls.
Once you have created your solution, simply place all of the affected golf balls into it and allow them to soak for around 15 to 20 minutes.
This will allow the dirt on the balls to weaken and loosen their grip, allowing the balls to be scrubbed clean.
Once the balls have soaked, remove them from the solution. Some of the balls may come out totally clean, while others may still have a small amount of dirt on them.
If so, simply scrub them quickly, and you will find that the dirt falls off easily, thanks to the time spent scrubbing.
If you find that even this method doesn’t work, you can also submerge golf balls in a solution of white vinegar and warm water, though make sure to monitor them as they soak, so that the acidity of the vinegar does not eat away into the surface of the balls.
To Wrap Up
We hope that this guide has proven enlightening and that you now feel ready to clean up your golf balls and have them looking totally as new!
