Imagine playing on a black-and-white golf course. How will you find your ball after you hit it down the fairway? If you’ve ever played golf in the dark or the snow, or even when rainclouds block the sunlight, you might have run into this problem. Thankfully, ninety-one years ago the Wilson Sporting Goods Company first colored in the lines of the golf ball.

At first a fluorescent ball, the colored golf ball was invented to improve visibility during adverse weather conditions and in general flight and play. High-visibility colors also help golfers (including us!) find lost balls—yes, this is definitely one of our favorite inventions. In dark and snowy conditions, orange has the highest visibility. However, the first colored balls sacrificed some functionality for their hues. The trade-off for color was a lesser-quality cover because of the unique pigments and dimple patterns used.

Wilson introduced the first colored golf ball in 1923—the Wilson Hol-Hi Ball in Canary Yellow and Oriole Orange. Initially these balls had little success in the market, possibly because they were priced at $10.75—that’s the same as a whopping $136.00 today. Wilson reintroduced the colored golf ball in 1982 and ended up gaining 20% of the market. By the early 1990’s, many colored golf balls were available (and mainly marketed to the ladies).

Wayne Levi broke the color barrier in 1982 at the Hawaiian Open with a yellow golf ball. He became the first player to win a PGA Tournament with a colored ball. At the time, most players opted for traditional white golf balls due to their better performance. Colored golf balls have since gained popularity thanks to new technology that allows them to be made with the same high-quality material of traditional balls. Even distance balls and urethane covers come in color today.

Show your true colors with the rainbow of balls available at Lost Golf Balls. And if an orange ball doesn’t light up the night enough for you, try a NightFlyer glow-in-the-dark ball for colors that truly fly. 

A colored golf ball would be recommended on this course.