How to Sell Found Golf Balls

Living next to a golf course brings many benefits. For one, you get to regularly replace your old, worn-out windows with fresh new ones. Also, you get a large supply of golf balls delivered to your yard. Serious scroungers stroll the course and comb through the rough for lost balls. The question is, how do you turn these freebies into cash?

Instructions

1. Clean the balls thoroughly. No one will buy grubby golf balls.

2. Sort the balls. Place the shiniest ones into one bucket, the moderately shiny ones into another, and old-looking balls into a third. Driving-range balls (identified by a solid color stripe around the middle) go into their own bucket. Balls with cuts go into another or possibly into the trash. If they sell at all, damaged balls will go for a very low price.

3. If you have a large supply of balls, consider sorting them by brand. Many golfers prefer a specific brand.

4. Pick a spot on or near the course where you're visible but not in the way. Make a sign that says "Golf Balls $1." This, of course, is the price for the oldest balls. Experiment with prices for better balls until you have a feel for what the market will bear.

5. Encourage haggling. This can be fun and also allows you to move more balls. If the customer says "Five bucks? No way, I'll give you two," you say, "Great, two bucks each, but you have to buy five of them."

Tips & Warnings

• Dress respectably and act friendly to reduce the likelihood that course management will chase you away.

• Try to avoid offering a customer the very same ball he or she hit into the stream 10 minutes ago.