The 13 Most Creative Ways To Repurpose Golf Balls In Your Garden And Home

Fore! Keep your eyes out for flying — and lying — golf balls. These little spheres have a limited amount of play in them. Whether they've soared into the rough or just seen their best days, golf balls can be a canvas for imaginative upcycles. The next time you spy an errant golf ball in the weeds, or if one of yours has gotten too scuffed or cracked to play with, extend its life with one of these smart DIYs.

Check out this collection of projects that are both decorative and practical, all of them are savvy ways to repurpose old sports equipment in your home. While the list is brimming with ornamental ideas, there are also a few utilitarian projects that pair form and function. Plus, very few of these projects require tools and materials we don't commonly have at home. Whip one or two up for a golf lover in your life, or just treat yourself to a new household item that's both cute and clever.

Decorative garden stakes are a lovely addition to a flower bed, especially ones that help gardens maintain some color in winter. You might have spied striking allium-inspired garden stakes that cost a pretty penny. Rescue a lost golf ball and morph it into an upcycled version of these expensive accessories. An orb studded with wood screws, painted purple, and mounted atop a plain stake leaves you with a dupe that costs a tiny fraction to make versus purchasing a ready-made one.

Round, white balls are the perfect blank slate for winter ornaments. YouTuber @artisticpursuits speckled a golf ball's indentations with multicolored painted dots. They topped it with an inverted shank button affixed with heavy-duty glue to act as a hanger. Lean into the color and shape by detailing a white ball with a snow globe scene. For a more secure hold, you can drill a tiny hole in the ball to attach a small screw eye hook and string it up with ribbon.

A tower made from a clutch of golf balls and mounted on a wood block will astound onlookers as they guess the materials it's made of. YouTuber @theleftyvlogger glued together a quad of balls in a sort of zigzag arrangement with a powerful adhesive. A coat of stone-look spray paint disguises the balls' original purpose. They mounted it atop a wood cube. The effects are eye-catching. However, if you'd like your decorative items to serve a purpose beyond aesthetics, glue this geometric sculpture to the outside of a metal support for a gorgeous bookend on a budget.

A lamp made from panels of golf balls suspended in glittery resin is one of the most ambitious. The final product may convince you to incorporate resin art in your home decor. The ingenious YouTuber @CraftKlatch molded four resin panels — 12 balls per panel — that come together as the body of a table lamp. They pieced the panels together with some extra wood for a base and trim, and then outfitted it with a lamp kit.

A short length of 1-inch-by-2-inch lumber, some thick dowel, and a clutch of colorful golf balls make a simple and adorable set of hanging hooks. With a bit that matches the width of the dowel, drill holes in both the wood piece and each golf ball. Dab a bit of heavy-duty glue into all the holes, fit the dowels into the 1-by-2, and cap the ends with golf balls. Affix some hanging hardware to the back, and display it somewhere that will earn it both attention and lots of use.

With as little as one tool, disguise fluorescent orange golf balls as leering jack-o'-lanterns. Uncap a black Sharpie, and give each ball the quintessential triangle eyes and nose and the gap-toothed grin. If you're stuck with balls in a different color, or your fluorescent balls have seen better days, coat the balls with orange paint first. Tuck these tiny jack-o'-lanterns into unexpected spaces, and their peeping faces will be a subtle way to decorate your home for Halloween.

Golf balls become cheery ornaments on a faux tabletop tree for the holidays. Bedeck a cone form with pine or spruce cones painted green and flocked with white paint for a snowy effect. The icing on the cake is a smattering of red-painted, glitter-topped golf balls that give the whole a quintessential Christmas tree look. Top the cone with a star twisted up from gold pipe cleaners. Even better, swap out the DIY star for an LED star ornament lit like the Polaris design in this set of Baquler 6-Piece Bethlehem Christmas Window Lights.

If you don't know what a bradawl does, this handheld tool marks holes in wood where you'll insert brads, screws, or nails. Make one with a golf ball as a handle! Grab a golf ball and a 3- or 4-inch nail with a wide head. Bore a hole all the way through the ball using a bit that's thinner than the nail. Drive the nail through the drilled hole, and your bradawl is ready to mark the holes for your next project.

Inspire curiosity with a golf ball trapped in a "cage" carved from a wood block. Start with a rectangular wood piece about four or five inches long with about three-inch sides.

Use a drill press and a 1 ¼ inch Forstner bit to carve out a row of holes on each 3-inch face of the block to carve out a cavity just slightly narrower than the diameter of a golf ball (1.68 inches). Soak the wood in boiling water for 15 minutes, and slip the golf ball between the "cage's" softened corners.

Creatures made from golf balls appeal to both the young and the young-at-heart. With some paint, a drill, some glue, and a bamboo skewer, link painted balls or add appendages to golf balls. Into the balls you want to connect, drill holes partway through the balls with a bit close to the size of the bamboo skewer. Fill the hole with glue, work it into the hole, and trim away all but about 1 inch of the skewer. This way, you can connect two or more balls or add appendages. Make birds, bugs, and other beasts.

Golf and beer go together like peanut butter and jelly. Make a very apt bottle opener with a golf ball as a handle. Purchase a bottle opener hardware piece. Find a bit that's roughly the same thickness as the bottle opener hardware body. Drill a series of holes into the ball in a line that's the same width as the bottle opener's body. Drill away the material between the holes until you have one continuous line. With the help of some heavy-duty glue, slide the body of the bottle opener into the ball.

Like with the bradawl and the bottle opener projects, a golf ball becomes a quirky handle for an attached tool head. Make a screwdriver with a set of heads to trade out for different jobs. Order this DEWALT Screwdriving Bit Set that comes with three different heads. Since this set comes with two shanks in different lengths, choose the length you're most likely to use. Drill a hole with a bit that's the width of the shank. Apply heavy-duty glue and insert the shank, and your tool is ready to use once the glue dries.

This resin garden sphere isn't for the faint of heart, but the results may motivate you to try out some new tools and techniques. Fill a cylindrical form with golf balls and transparent resin. Fit the hardened resin form into a lathe. As it spins, carve away the outer surface of the resin, concentrating on the ends. Form it into a sphere, and lathe off enough to cut into the sides of the golf balls so that their colorful clay interiors are visible. Buff the surface to a shine, and give it pride of place in your garden.