Golf Ball Diver specialty

[chris_b]

I was looking for a shop near me to try out a drysuit (by taking a course) and came across this site. Scroll to the bottom and note that they offer a Golf Ball Diver specialty. At first I thought I should post this in Humor> but I'm not sure if it's a joke!

I love some of the text, though:

Discover new ways to protect yourself from flying golf balls during daylight retrieval and what to do if your buddy gets conked on the head

and

learn which balls are better then other balls and who has bigger!

[Cave Diver]

chris_b once bubbled...
I was looking for a shop near me to try out a drysuit (by taking a course) and came across this site. Scroll to the bottom and note that they offer a Golf Ball Diver specialty. At first I thought I should post this in Humor> but I'm not sure if it's a joke!

Psssssssttt... Try posting the link...

[JT2]

Oh no, I hope PADI doesn't find out about this. If PADI does find out about it, what do you think the jacket patch and C-card will look like?

[dc4bs]

A picture kind of like a midevil knight with a scuba tank strapped on the back?

Or a guy in regualr scuba gear with a big lump on his head and a little 'Doh!' word baloon?

[joens]

this might be a situation where diving with a helmet is a OK.
Joens

[chris_b]

The site is here. I'll be sitting in the corner wearing my dunce cap.

[DiverBuoy]

Last month on American Airlines in the cabin I read that stupid air travel all-ads mag they put out. The only real content in the entire magazine was an article on a group that trains people to dive for golf balls. Some do it for collectors items ... like the ball that almost won the tournament type of thing. Or classic balls from bygone eras. There are all kinds of concerns about water moccasins, silt, pests, and of course ... very cold water. New balls can be sold back to the pro-shop for cleaning and consignment sales.

Mostly it's another opportunity to dive...

[froop]

Surely most golf course water traps wouldn't be deep enough to warrant scuba to retrieve balls. Isn't a snorkel good enough for the 5-10 feet that I presume they mostly are?

[TropiGal]

"What drives poachers and pros to risk polluted water, snake bites, gator attacks and accidental drowning? As much as $100,000 per year."

That was the catch line to the article entitled Water Hazards - The Murky World of Golf Ball Divers which I read in the November 2002 issue of Rodale's Scuba Diving. It caught my eye because the diver/retriever that is interviewed has his successful business in the Dallas area.

It took me a while after reading your posts to remember where I had read an article relating to the subject, then find the magazine in "the stacks" or I would have posted this sooner. Anyway, you might want to check it out...it's a good read...but before you run out to take that speciality class...consider the fact that near the end of the article it was stated that "The Boom Goes Bust" and that for poachers and pros alike, the crazy amount of money available from this type of diving in the past is now not quite the same. (I wonder?????)

I thought that you might be able to view the article through www.undercurrent.org if you are a member but when I checked the site I realized that they have a two to three month delay before all the articles from the Scuba Diving magazine are posted on the site for members. So...see if you can round up a copy of the mag from some dive buddies.

Let us know if you pursue this and what you find out!! And watch out for "Big Mama". I certainly wouldn't want to meet up with her in a black pond!

[Jester]

I guess the lesson to be learned is......If you want to make money diving, maybe there's a better way.