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Marking a golf ball, properly

Short, honest answers to the questions golfers actually ask — how to draw a straight line, whether it's allowed, which pen, and what the pros do. No sales pitch until the end of each one.

Putting

How to draw a straight line on a golf ball

By hand, and with a stencil. Where to put it, how long it lasts, and why it wobbles when you freehand it.

7 min read
Rules

Is it legal to draw a line on your golf ball?

Yes — the Rules encourage a mark. What you can and can't do with it on the green, and why some people grumble.

7 min read
Marking

12 golf ball marking ideas (and what each one is for)

Lines, dots, initials, arrows, a filled dimple — which marks identify, which help you aim, and which do both.

6 min read
Marking

How do pros mark their golf balls?

Finau's line and ticks, Fitzpatrick's initials, Oosthuizen's family — and the one player who won't use a line at all.

6 min read
Putting

Three alignment lines on any golf ball

Why three lines are easier to square up than one, what Callaway's printed version does, and how to draw them on the ball you already play.

6 min read
Gear

Which pen to mark a golf ball with

Fine or ultra-fine, which colours show, why ballpoints don't work, and how to stop it smudging.

7 min read
How it's made

The 3D printed golf ball stencil: how it's made

A laser, a bed of nylon powder, and your design drawn into it 0.12 mm at a time. Why we sinter nylon instead of printing PLA, and how an order becomes a part.

6 min read
Marking

Golf ball stamp vs stencil: which marks your ball better?

Stamps are quick and need no pen; a stencil is sharper, lasts longer and adds an alignment line. An honest comparison, with where each one wins.

6 min read
Golf balls

What do the numbers and markings on a golf ball mean?

The play number, the old compression and dimple counts, the factory arrows and lines — what each mark means, and why the ones you add yourself matter more.

7 min read
Gifts

Golf gifts that aren't socks: 10 stocking fillers under £20

Ten golf gifts under £20 that get used — a sleeve of their ball, a glove, a towel, a stencil with their initials — and the ones to avoid.

6 min read
Golf balls

Personalised golf balls: print a dozen or mark your own?

Printed dozens are lovely — and temporary. A stencil marks every ball you ever play. Costs, trade-offs and which to buy, honestly compared.

6 min read