| Balls, Balls, Balls |
| The world of minigolf is rich with “curiosities” for the occasional player. For example not many know that every professional player possesses at least a hundred balls, all diverse in colour, material, hardness, bounce, dimensions, weight and surface |
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(12/12/06)
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| Some of the various balls used by professionals |
There are many different kinds of balls used for minigolf which differ according to their weight, hardness, bounce, dimensions (from 37 to 43mm) and surface (smooth or rough, varnished or coarse (raw materials).There are thousands of WMF (World Minigolf Federation) approved balls, almost all of which are manufactured in Europe.
Every serious player will have hundreds of balls because every different “putting green” has different qualities which calls for a different ball.
The different characteristics
of the balls allow a player to achieve his best performance, and for this players choose the ball best adapted for the green they have to face. At times the choice of the ball will determine the outcome of how a player performs. In fact some balls are made for one specific kind of course, some are more universal and some are so specialized that they might be used only once every ten years!
Futhermore, another factor which considerably contributes to a players performance is the
temperature of the ball. Normally, heating a ball enhances the bounce while reducing its hardness. When a ball is cooled it has the opposite effect and for this reason, usually during the heat of summer, players will cool their balls with ice or cold water to prevent the balls from having irreversible changes due to overheating. In essence the temperature of a ball can influence its overall performance and a player must know how a specific temperature will affect his/her chosen ball.
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