Golf Ball Finders: How They Work

Have you ever hit a ball and lost it in the sunlight or in the trees? When you lose a ball, searching for it seems to take a lifetime, especially with a group playing behind you.

The advent of technology has brought golfers a golf finder, a device that locates a ball in flight or on the ground. These devices come in various styles, save the golfer from wasted time in the rough and allow for more time on the greens.

Information

A ball finder is an electronic device that works with any standard white ball. Photo imaging is used to locate a ball with a range of 35 feet if the ball is 1 percent visible. Many of these devices are battery powered and can be clipped onto a belt or other similar object.

Technology

The Ballfinder Scout uses a digital imaging system to locate errant golf balls.

The imager uses 3.2 megapixels of precision imaging to locate balls within 35 feet with only three dimples visible. A buzz confirms successful ball location and LED lights point to the vicinity of the ball.

Glasses

The Visiball ball finder eyeglasses use technology that allows light to reflect off a golf ball by eliminating the light of its surroundings.

The technology works to stop as much light as possible from returning to the Visiball glasses. To do this, designers created the wrap-around style to keep out unwanted light.

Prescription Glasses Visiball

The prescription glasses Visiball is used for golfers who wear corrective lenses. This device wraps around standard prescription glasses. The prescription Visiball finder works eliminating light to focus only on the light reflected off of the golf ball.

Cost

Cost plays a role in the technology, as ball finders can range from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars as of July 2010. The price point depends on whether you're using the electronic imaging technology or if you're using something more basic, such as a ball finder with a lens. The amount you spend can determine the quality of the finder.