I've heard it before . . . I'd love to play golf, but I'm not rich and I can't afford to. Well golf is like most any sport, there is a high end and a low end as far as equipment, supplies, clothing and location.  You just have to know your budget, stick to it, and know where to shop.

There are several things in golf that will suck the money right out of your budget.   So let's break it down and tackle each one separately. We'll start with equipment, which is the first and probably most obvious expense in golf.

To get a set of golf clubs and a bag, you're going to have to fork over anywhere between $300 to $5,000 or more.  And as to almost anything, to some extent you're going to get what you pay for.  If you're expecting to get the same play from a $300 set as you do from the $5,000 set, you're in for a rude awakening.

However, you can purchase a very nice set of clubs and the necessary bag for $1,000 and get a great deal of enjoyment from them and though you might not have the latest and fanciest clubs on the course, you won't be 'out-clubbed' by anyone.

If you're a frugal buyer and a careful shopper, you can watch the discount golf stores and online auction stores and pick up great buys on last years models, and pay even less.   The Golf Caddy has a great selection for instance .

Supplies, such as balls and tees can be purchased at the discount stores or from online auction stores too.    Look for used AAAA balls and you'll pay only about half the price of buying your balls new and you won't be sacrificing performance.   Buy in bulk. You will save money on balls and tees by doing so.

Golf clothing is important, because of both tradition, and ease of movement.   Most golf clothing is designed to restrict movement as little as possible.    And while you can get carried away and purchase traditional golf caps and knickers to wear, there is really no need.    A comfortable shirt and slacks or shorts, a pair of shoes with cleats and a golf glove are all that's really needed.

And last but not least - we have the expense of Green fees.   And yes you can pay exorbitant amounts of money to play 18 holes , but you can get by with much lower fees by playing local golf courses. Often you can find green fees between $10 and $20.

So yes golf can be quite expensive, but if you budget and are a smart and frugal shopper, you'll be able to enjoy the sport and still  afford green fees.

Surprisingly, or maybe not, the response was all over the place.  There were however basically two camps.  The first addressed the question simply.

It's a matter of personal preference.  For many, a soft ball was the way to go - something like a Srixon Soft Feel.  Many don’t like anything rock solid like Dunlop DDH or Top Flite because the ball is too hard.

But for others like Phil Mickelson, who said he changed his ball from Titleist to Callaway when he changed his putter.   His new putter was not very responsive to the contact, and he wanted a ball that would make a louder noise at contact. He changed to a Callaway ball because it seemed more “firm”.

The opinion of the second group of responders was a little more pragmatic. There response was it's not just about the green or the tee, you have to look at all round performance. And though Tiger may like and play a Nike, and they may be gaining ground with golfers, the Titleist Pro V-1 is still King.

It simply out-performs any other ball off the tee, and is not too soft and not too hard on the green. It's just right. But in the end, it's your game and your skills. We each have our own preferences.