Recovered Pro V1 to Tour B: A$ prices by grade, and why you shouldn’t fetch your own from the dam
A Mint recovered Pro V1 was A$54.99 a dozen in October 2026, about 65 per cent of a new box, and Near Mint was A$34.99. A 2023 study found Pro V1s left a year in ponds lost no significant distance, but year labels, logo balls, drifting grades and refinished look-alikes still split a good dozen from a poor one.
In brief
- Pro V1s left up to a year in golf course ponds showed no significant loss of distance in a 2023 peer-reviewed study; a yellowing cover was the visible sign of time underwater.
- Recovered dozens read in October 2026 ran from A$59.99 for a Mint Pro V1x to A$11.99 for C-grade Tour B X, with the Mint to Near Mint step worth up to A$20.
- A refinished Pro V1 flew 5.5 to 11.9 metres shorter than a new one in a MyGolfSpy test, depending on swing speed.
- Don't retrieve balls from the water yourself: crocodiles have bitten or moved onto Queensland courses, and club officials say leave the ball.
Spring is restocking time, and plenty of Australian golfers fill the bag with recovered balls rather than full-price boxes. The sums are simple: a new dozen 2025 Titleist Pro V1s was listed at A$84.95 by a large Australian golf chain in October 2026, about A$7.08 every time one finds a dam, while recovered dozens of the same badge started at A$17.99. Less simple is what the brand on the cover tells you once a ball has been underwater. This page goes model by model, with Australian prices by grade, the research on submerged balls and the complaints golfers keep raising. Nobody at Panxis Golf has struck any of these balls.
For the groundwork (grades, recovered versus refinished, when used makes sense), see our guide to used and lake balls.
Does a ball that sat in a dam still fly?
The older evidence is a Golf Digest robot test from September 1996, summarised in U.S. Patent 5,823,891. With a driver swung at 93.7 mph (about 151 km/h), a three-piece ball lost roughly 5.5 metres of carry after eight days in water, 11 metres after three months and 13.7 metres after six. A two-piece ball lost about 8.3 metres over three months. The figures were published in imperial units and are converted to metres here; the balls were mid-1990s designs.
The recent evidence is a peer-reviewed paper by Thomas Raffel and Patrick Long of Oakland University, Michigan, in the International Journal of Golf Science (September 2023). They left 2016 Pro V1s in course ponds for up to a year, then had a robot at Golf Labs in San Diego hit them beside dry balls. Distance and dispersion showed no significant difference even at twelve months, but the covers yellowed steadily. Their reading: a Mint urethane ball with little yellowing has probably spent under a year underwater. Golf.com noted in March 2024 that a ball-diving business helped fund the work.
Manufacturers are warier. Titleist told Golf.com that every ball material absorbs moisture at its own rate, and that a ball you did not see go in is quite likely not to perform as designed. In the same article, the USGA’s John Spitzer said a modern ball with an intact water-resistant coat should not lose much performance over one to two years. In short: clean urethane is probably fine, and yellowing is the warning sign.
October 2026 prices, grade by grade
Read in early October 2026 from an Australian reseller that sorts recovered balls by brand, model and, for the Pro V1, model year. Prices are per dozen, GST included. Its grades: Mint (little or no wear), Near Mint (like a ball played for three or four holes), Standard (scuffs and slight colour variation, no cuts) and C grade (worn and discoloured). Pen marks and logos are possible in every grade.
| Model (seller’s label) | Mint | Near Mint | Standard | C grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Titleist Pro V1, “2026” | A$54.99 | A$34.99 | A$27.99 | A$17.99 |
| Titleist Pro V1x, “2026” | A$59.99 | A$42.99 | A$31.99 | A$17.99 |
| Titleist Pro V1, “2024” | A$39.99 | A$39.99 | A$34.99 | A$15.99 |
| Titleist Pro V1, “2022” | A$41.99 | A$33.99 | A$23.99 | A$18.99 |
| TaylorMade TP5 | A$49.99 | A$34.99 | A$28.99 | not listed |
| TaylorMade TP5x | A$49.99 | A$36.99 | A$31.99 | A$21.99 |
| Callaway Chrome Tour | A$44.99 | A$39.99 | A$27.99 | A$19.99 |
| Callaway Chrome Soft | A$44.99 | A$37.99 | A$26.99 | A$15.99 |
| Srixon Z-Star XV | A$39.99 | A$32.99 | A$31.99 | not listed |
| Bridgestone Tour B X | A$44.99 | A$29.99 | A$23.99 | A$11.99 |
| Titleist Velocity | A$29.99 | A$25.99 | A$19.99 | not listed |
| Callaway Supersoft | A$25.99 | A$22.99 | A$18.99 | A$12.99 |
The newest Mint Pro V1 works out at about A$4.58 a ball, roughly 65 per cent of the new-box price: a saving, but not the “half price” often promised. One grade down, Near Mint, it is about A$2.92. The Mint to Near Mint step is where the value hides, and it swings widely: A$20 on that Pro V1, A$15 on the TP5 and Tour B X, A$5 on the Chrome Tour, nothing on the “2024” Pro V1. For most club golfers, Near Mint is the sweet spot.
Titleist Pro V1 and Pro V1x: check what the year means
From Titleist. The 2025 Pro V1 has three pieces (high-gradient core, high-flex casing, cast urethane cover) and 388 dimples; the Pro V1x has four, via a dual core, and 348 dimples. Both went on sale in January 2025. More on our Titleist Pro V1 page.
After a soak. The 2023 study used Pro V1s, so clean white ones are the best-documented buy here. The catch is the label: the reseller calls its newest recovered balls “2026” Pro V1s, while new boxes in Australian shops were still sold as 2025 models in October 2026. With a new generation every second year, ask which one is actually in the box.
TaylorMade TP5 and TP5x: covers that show the wedge
From TaylorMade. Both are five-layer, cast urethane balls. The February 2026 generation has a very thin cover, TaylorMade’s largest Tour core in the TP5, new mantle materials in the TP5x and a more even paint process. The TP5x is faster and spins less.
After a soak. No submersion study covers the TP5. Golfers talk about wear instead: threads on earlier TP5x balls describe wedge scuffs appearing quickly, and a scuff costs a grade. Both were A$49.99 in Mint, so choose on spin, not price.
Callaway Chrome Soft and Chrome Tour: one name, many vintages
From Callaway. For the 2026 Chrome range, released 30 January 2026, Golf Digest reported four layers in the Chrome Tour and Tour X, three in the Chrome Soft, urethane covers and a mantle Callaway says is about 16 per cent stiffer.
After a soak. “Chrome Soft” has been on boxes for many seasons, so a recovered dozen rarely says which edition you get. Golfers also report soft Chrome covers cutting and scuffing easily, especially in wet grass, so some marks may predate the water.
Srixon Z-Star XV: when yellow is ambiguous
From Srixon. The 2025 Z-Star family, launched 24 January 2025, has a very thin urethane cover containing biomass, a Spin Skin+ coating for approach spin and a FastLayer DG Core 2.0 that is soft in the centre and firmer outwards.
After a soak. Yellowing is what the 2023 study linked to time underwater, and also what golfers notice on Srixon covers after a few rounds, along with visible seams; some Z-Star Diamond threads mention torn covers. So a slightly yellow Z-Star might have been played a few times, or wintered in a dam. The plain Z-Star was not offered in Mint when prices were read.
Bridgestone Tour B X: know the letter
From Bridgestone. The 2024 Tour B X was a three-piece urethane ball with Reactiv iQ and a gradational compression core; Golf.com reports the 2026 range adds a Kevlar mantle.
After a soak. With four Tour B models per generation, check the letter. The X had the cheapest C grade of the premium balls, A$11.99, and a steep drop from Mint to Near Mint. Forum regulars note that discounted new prior-year Tour Bs can shrink the saving.
Velocity and Supersoft: the budget end
Both are two-piece balls: the Velocity with what Titleist calls a NaZ+ cover and 350 dimples, the Supersoft with Callaway’s Hybrid Cover. The 1996 two-piece ball lost less carry than the three-piece, but the 2023 paper notes older ionomer and balata covers resisted water less well than today’s urethane over an ionomer casing, and no published test compares current two-piece and urethane balls after equal time submerged. At A$25.99 for Mint Supersofts, these are the balls for the course with water everywhere.
Refinished balls are another product
Refinished balls are stripped to the cover, repainted and recoated. One Australian reseller marks them with a small “refinished” line, and listed a Standard refinished Pro V1x dozen at A$25.99 in October 2026. Cheap, but not the ball Titleist made. In a MyGolfSpy lab test, a refinished Pro V1 flew shorter than a new 2021 Pro V1: about 11.9 metres at 115 mph (185 km/h) driver speed, 6.9 metres at 100 mph (161 km/h) and 5.5 metres at 85 mph (137 km/h), converted from imperial. The legal backdrop is American: in Nitro Leisure Products v. Acushnet (2003), a U.S. appeals court let a reseller keep selling such balls because they were labelled used and refurbished.
What golfers are saying
For:
- Top grades can pass for new. Velocity, Chrome Tour and Pro V1x buyers describe Mint balls they could not tell from a fresh box.
- Water carries stop being scary. At a few dollars a ball, golfers take on the carry over the dam instead of laying up.
- Decent sellers fix mistakes. Reviewers mention quick refunds when the wrong model arrived.
Against:
- Logo balls in a premium dozen. Pro V1, Chrome Soft and Z-Star buyers find club or corporate logos through Mint orders, sometimes most of them.
- The wrong ball. Another brand in a Titleist order, or an older generation sold as the latest.
- Grades that drift. Near Mint that looks a grade lower, with yellow water stains, and Mint dulled by mud.
- Refinished feels different. Around the green, refinished Pro V1s do not feel or spin like the original.
Where to get lake balls in Australia, and where not to
Not from the water yourself. In April 2015, a golfer in his seventies was bitten by a 1.2-metre saltwater crocodile on the 11th at Palmer Sea Reef, Port Douglas, after his ball landed near the water, the ABC reported. In January 2025, three crocodiles moved into a creek between the first and second holes at North Rockhampton Golf Club, whose president told golfers, via the ABC, not to go looking for balls hit into the water. Up north that settles it, and further south a slippery dam bank is still no place for an A$4 ball.
From your pro shop. Some clubs sell balls pulled from their own dams: recent, little time to yellow, and you can inspect them.
From specialist resellers online. The widest choice by model, grade and colour, with cheaper per-ball prices on packs of 50 or 100. Check the grade definitions, real photos, which model years are included and what the year label means, whether logos are mixed in, the returns policy, and whether “refinished” appears anywhere.
For competition. Golf Australia applies the Rules of Golf as administered by The R&A. Under Model Local Rule G-4, the One Ball Rule, every ball you play in a round must match one entry on The R&A’s List of Conforming Golf Balls, and each entry counts as a different ball. The R&A recommends it only for professional and elite amateur events, but a mixed-generation dozen would fail it. For pennant or a club championship, read the conditions of competition first.
Making a season of recovered balls work
Pick one model and generation and buy the spring and summer’s supply in one order, so your distances hold. Mint urethane if greenside spin matters, Near Mint or Standard for practice and watery layouts, no refinished if you want the factory ball. Check each dozen on arrival, and if you rarely lose a ball, price a new prior-year model on sale first.
How this page was put together
This is a product overview and a summary of public opinion, not a test; nobody at Panxis Golf has struck these balls. Specifications come from Titleist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Srixon and Bridgestone announcements and product pages, some as reported by Golf.com and Golf Digest.
Recovered-ball prices and grade definitions were read on lostgolfballs.com.au in October 2026, in Australian dollars per dozen; the new 2025 Pro V1 price on drummondgolf.com.au in October 2026. Submersion research: Golf Digest (1996, via U.S. Patent 5,823,891), Raffel and Long in the International Journal of Golf Science (2023), and Golf.com (2024) for the Titleist and USGA statements. Refinished test: MyGolfSpy. Legal case: U.S. Federal Circuit, Nitro Leisure Products v. Acushnet (2003). Crocodile reports: ABC News (2015, 2025). One Ball Rule: The R&A’s Model Local Rules. Distances were converted to metres by the Australia desk.
What golfers say was read on the GolfWRX forums and in customer reviews on golfballs.net, a U.S. recovered-ball seller; nobody is quoted, nothing is counted, and no impression is presented as a statistic. There are no commercial links here, no affiliate arrangement and no commission. If content on this site is ever paid for by a brand, it will carry an advertising notice at the top of the page, before the first line.
