If you're a golfer, you know the importance of practice and, no doubt, good practice balls. In the past, practice balls were very brittle and cracked easily. But now there's a new generation that's closer to the real thing.

Carl Alexander is a golf instructor and knows golfers need plenty of practice to develop a great swing. He says, "any opportunity to swing, hit a limited flight ball, or go to the driving range will help when you go to the golf course."

Consumer Reports just tested four new types of practice golf balls: Qolf-ball, Almost-Golf-P-3, Birdieball, and Gear for Golf foam practice balls. Seven avid golfers were asked to hit each ball six times, with three different irons.
The golfers then commented on the feel, flight, and performance of each ball.

The Gear-for-Golf ball, at a $1.33 was definitely was not a hit. Comments were generally that the ball was too light and didn't travel well through the wind.

The .83 Almost-Golf-P-3 ball was also light, but it responded well -- almost too well! Make sure you've got plenty of room when using a 5-iron because it can go about 75 yards.

Shaped like a napkin ring, the Birdie-Ball was the most unusual, and the most expensive. It can cost more than $2.00, but how did it fly? Our testers said the ball sounded odd when hit, but had a good feel overall.


So what is the preferred ball of the bunch? Consumer Reports says six out of seven panelists would use the $1.00 Qolfball. Our participants agreed it felt realistic and flew like a real ball, which lets advanced golfers shape their shots.