Ask any avid golfer, lost balls are an infuriating part of the game. Every player feels frustration at the loss of a ball. Not because they are expensive. On the contrary. A lost ball means a penalty, and it could potentially cost you a game. Although players lament lost balls, many children and green keepers love them. They are a valuable source of revenue, often being recovered and sold on again. But there are two golf balls that may never be recovered. That’s because there are two golf balls laying idle on the moon. Yeah, seriously. There are two golf balls on the moon.
Golf fanatics will find any excuse to play a game of golf. Alan Shepard, who was one of the few men who had the privilege of walking on the moon kind of misplaced a couple of golf balls on the moon. As a keen golf player, he fitted a 6 iron head to the handle of a lunar sample collection device and launched two golf balls which are still there today. He hit the balls with one hand as the suit made it impossible to use both hands, and this is how he did it.
He had only two balls, yet took four swings to complete a unique task. He placed the first ball on the lunar surface. He swung his makeshift club and managed to move it less than a meter. On his second swing he missed the ball completely, only managing to move a little dust around. His third attempt hit its mark, but only just. He sliced the ball, sending it about 200 yards into the air. He dropped the third ball and nailed it dead center, sending it about 400 yards away from him.
Obviously, he didn’t bother collecting the golf balls from the moon, opting to leave them there as monuments to his brief moment sportsmanship. So if you’re ever lucky to get there yourself, you might be able to go and look for the two golf balls on the moon.
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- Penguin poop can be seen from space
- The moon smells like gunpowder
- Neil Armstrong nearly missed his flight to the moon
- The Apollo 11 crew have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
