If you’ve been paying attention, you know that insides of golf balls are unexpectedly beautiful — like psychedelic bullseyes or surreal alien planets. But what is all that colourful stuff made of? As this video from Wired shows, golf ball is a serious piece of technology crammed into a mere 46g.
The modern golf ball has come a long way since its leather and compressed goose feather days. The main stuff is cis-1,4-polybutadiene, or a synthetic rubber that quickly springs back into its original shape after being whacked by a club.
Chemicals like zinc acrylate and benzoyl peroxide are also added to give the polybutadiene its desired flexibility. For your full chemistry lesson, watch Wired’s explanation of what exactly goes inside a golf ball.
