Diving for golf balls

[dlndavid]

I used to snorkel for golf balls, in high school during the summer, at 10- 25 cents per, depending on make/condition a few hours could net someone a significant amount of money. On a good, day 400-500 golf balls could be found.... ALL THE WEEKEND HACKERS, made for a decent summer job. Unfortantely most golf courses you need to have an "IN", or you have to offer to sell back for practice balls, at a even larger diso****ed price. Another problem would involve most ponds you can only hit up once a year, maybe twice....Word to the wise stay away from the stagnant ponds, or at least wait until mid summer when the pond dries up.... Nicer courses, with filtration systems, or constant running water, are much better.... Not a "career" job, but for some extra cash for a high school, or college student, it defenitely has perks, of being able to scuba dive, snorkel... and make some money... OOOO those were the days...

Hey I like they way SB automatically ****'d out your typo spelling of discounted "diso****ed".

 

[DavidPT40]

Some of those ponds are pretty mucky and stinking. But I guess there
is good and bad in every job. My dive instructor dove the Atocha for a
couple years with Mel Fisher. He said that was a pretty tedious grind at
times.

Maybe we had the same instructor. The guy that taught me was named Mike D.

 

[Land Locked]

Maybe we had the same instructor. The guy that taught me was named Mike D.

Nah, my instructor was Don W.
He was working down there when they were pulling up all those emeralds.
All he came back with besides his paycheck was a splinter from the hull.
It is pretty impressive though, sitting in it's little glass box!

 

[mike_s]

So was it a 7 iron or a drivers length from shore? It never fails, my golf balls
always find water, even if it is 2 fairways over. But I'll still use my extending ball retriever rather than go into the muck!

I couldn't tell you how far off shore it was.... I wasn't about to surface! The boaters at the Destin Jetties don't know much of what a "dive flag" is for. I've never heard so many boat propellers in my life!

I sounded like I was diving with "weed eaters" everywhere in the water!.

 

[Land Locked]

I sounded like I was diving with "weed eaters" everywhere in the water!.

Now that's scarry. I don't think I would have the sense of mind to pickup
a golf ball under those conditions!

 

[mrobinson]

Man drowns diving lake on golf course
Apr 24 2005

Tracy Clark
News Staff Reporter
A Vancouver Island man is dead after a diving accident at St. Andrews by
the Lake Thursday.
Patrick Allan Baker, a 33-year-old Courtney man, died while diving in the
lake to collect golf balls, said Cpl. Rick Dellebuur from the Penticton RCMP.
Baker, wearing full diving equipment including an air tank, was working
with a Delta company at the lake, he said.
The man was pronounced dead at Penticton Regional Hospital.
Foul play is not suspected in the death, said Dellebuur.
Worker's Compensation Board, the coroner and police are all investigating
the death.
"It's tragic. It's unbelievable," said a six-year employee of the course,
which is operated by a strata council. "Nothing like this has ever happened
here."
Steve Toth, owner of Oceantec Scuba Diving in Penticton, said commercial
diving is much different than sport or recreational diving.
The 25-year veteran said experience in difficult situations while diving
can often be the difference between life and death.
Although he has not dived at St. Andrew's and does not know the
circumstances surrounding Thursday's drowning, he said diving into dark and
murky waters - which is often the case in smaller and more shallow lakes
and ponds such as the St. Andrew's golf course lake - can cause confusion
and disorientation. The diver may not be able to determine which way is up.
A diver's comfort in the water is greatly decreased in these circumstances,
he said.
Police have yet to release the circumstances behind the drowning.


-----------

I don't want to discourage you from doing this but I thought you'd be interested in this related issue.

 

[Land Locked]

Sad, sad situation. My condolences to the family and all involved.

 

[DiveGolfSki]

Does anyone here dive for golf balls in the local golf courses? I watched a show about a diver in Florida who has a big business diving for golf balls. He gathers them, refurbishes them, and sells them. Seems like a neat job.

You've just cheapened by signature line! Oh well, I'll have to come up with another one.

I think you'll find a lot on EBAY on "experienced" golf balls. I think the point's been made that it's hard to make money on this .. not to mention the risks (the accident report mentioned above plus others). If this were a golf form, I'd bring up the issue of water logged balls. If this were an eco form, the environmental effect ....

Either way, I don't think it's a neat job but if you find any PRO V1's and are willing to sell them for .20 ... I might be interested.

 

[rmediver2002]

Here is a related article:

http://www.travelgolf.com/departments/clubhouse/golf-ball-divers-531.htm

 

[LexingtonDiver]

Nah, my instructor was Don W.
He was working down there when they were pulling up all those emeralds.
All he came back with besides his paycheck was a splinter from the hull.
It is pretty impressive though, sitting in it's little glass box!

I'm assuming Don W. is the commercial diver here in Lexington that went to school out in Seattle. I don't want to post last names on this board. I learned to dive for golf balls from the same source he did back in '95...MY GOD...10 yrs. ago....were getting old... Anyway, I dove about 18 months give or take a few months looking for golf balls with the founder of the original Innerspace (the best instructor this state has ever seen). Don W. is a hellavu guy.

We could scrape in around 10,000 to 15,000 balls in a day. Split that up and it paid out $1000.00 to $1,500.00 per day divided by the two divers..... 500-750 bucks. Not a bad days work other than the fact it is very difficult...in and out and in and out and in and out....constantly. But that's not really the bad part.

You know all those golf courses use chemicals on their properties. 99% of lawn chemicals have dirivitives from agent orange left over from vietnam in them. This is not myth but fact. All these chemicals eventually get washed into the golf course ponds by rain and nature. Most of chemicals that get into your system are absorbed through the skin, not by mouth like we might think.

So, if you are going to do this you must wear a dry-suit in warm-hot water and probably should wear a full face mask also. That is if you want to avoid cancer down the road.

Not to mention most golf course now a days have the automatic machines that are pretty cool.

I think the golf courses out Harrodsburg road probably still use divers. In any case, call up every golf course you can and speak to the golf pro about diving for their golf balls in their ponds.

Good Luck