Some of the best golf balls in America are apparently from Costco — and they've been sold out for most of the past two months. Sold for just $1.25 apiece, Costco's wildly popular Kirkland Signature brand golf balls are suddenly causing quite the commotion in the billion-dollar industry, The Wall Street Journal reports, with secondary market prices soaring. The balls are thought to perform as well as rival balls that sell for more than twice as much, "threatening one of the sport's long-held consumer beliefs: When it comes to the quality of golf balls, you generally get what you pay for."
Released in the U.S. last fall without much fanfare, the Kirkland balls were originally manufactured in South Korea by a company called Nassau Golf, which sold an "excess supply" of the balls to Costco. The retail giant ordinarily isn't very involved in the golf business, but when avid golfers discovered the impressive quality of the balls, they quickly became a fan favorite. Major players in the industry are apparently fascinated by the product as well, the Journal reports: "The ball was such a curiosity to one major equipment company that employees there cut one in half to study its interior, hoping to discern more about its origin and composition."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutinySpeed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress codespeed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirementspeed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff displaySpeed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loomSpeed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panelsSpeed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of businessSpeed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores
-
Trump's China tariffs start after Canada, Mexico pausesSpeed Read The president paused his tariffs on America's closest neighbors after speaking to their leaders, but his import tax on Chinese goods has taken effect
