It’s been two years now since we opened the doors of Titleist Ball Plant 3 to golfers for the first time, allowing them the opportunity to go behind-the-scenes of our manufacturing process and see everything that goes into making our Pro V1, Pro V1x and AVX golf balls, and consistently delivering the performance and quality that golfers expect from a Titleist. 

On the morning of Nov. 20, 2017, the first group of visitors to the new Titleist Golf Ball Experience checked in at BP3, and were taken on the complimentary 90-minute tour that weaves through the more than 200,000 square feet of manufacturing space filled with state-of-the-art golf ball making technologies designed and built by our own engineers. 

Thousands of #TeamTitleist members have since made the journey to New Bedford, Mass. –following in the footsteps of many of the world’s best players, including Justin Thomas, who came for his first tour in May – to visit the home of the #1 ball in golf and meet our team. 

The highlight of those 730-plus days (and counting)? If you ask June Medeiros, our Titleist Golf Ball Experience coordinator, it’s unequivocally one thing: “It’s the people. Without a doubt. It’s all of the passionate golfers and Team Titleist members that we get to meet every week.”

So as the holiday season approaches and we get ready to turn the page on 2019, we wanted to share a few stories and tidbits that we’ll remember from the past year:

- Team Team Titleist member Kyle B. was the first to schedule a BP3 tour as part of his bachelor party, kicking off the golf weekend with a Friday afternoon trip to Titleist. When Kyle’s fiancé, Casey, learned of the plans, she contacted June to arrange a surprise for her future husband. After the tour, BP3 tour guide Patty Sands led Kyle and his group back into the Welcome Center, where a dozen personalized Pro V1 golf balls were set out on top of a display case. On one side of each Pro V1 were the letters “KB,” Kyle’s initials. On the other side: “I LOVE YOU MORE” with their wedding date 9.17.19.”

- Having packed his bags, Team Titleist member Marc S. was ready to make a big journey, moving from Texas to a new job overseas early this fall. Before crossing the pond, however, Marc had to make one detour — to New Bedford, Mass., for a Ball Plant 3 tour. Fortunately, there was just enough room left in his luggage for some golf balls and a Titleist T-shirt (which are only available at the BP3 Welcome Center shop, by the way!) to mark the occasion. Did we mention Marc has a Team Titleist tattoo on one of his calves? Talk about #TeamTitleist! (Thank you, Marc!)

Team Titleist member Marc S.

- Come to think of it, many others have used Ball Plant 3 as a favorable stopover on their travels. BP3 is a popular escape for golfers who have travelled to Boston or Providence for business. This summer, our schedule was packed with golfers making their way to local vacation spots such as Cape Cod, Mass., or Newport, R.I. This fall, we’ve hosted many high schoolers and their families during road trips to visit colleges. BP3 is also a popular winter destination, considering there's no chance of a frost delay!

- It's also a blast hosting golf teams and their coaches, and we've been fortunate to welcome several high school and college squads this year and answer all of their golf ball performance questions. High school and college golfers also like to take full advantage of our "Ball Pit" for photo opps. Where else can you get a picture of yourself laying down on a bed of thousands of Pro V1's?

- Retired Boston Red Sox knuckleball pitcher Tim Wakefield dropped by Ball Plant 3 at the end of September, after a club fitting at our Manchester Lane Test Facility. Wakefield, a low single-digit handicap who you can see play as part of the celebrity field at the LPGA’s 2020 Diamond Resort Tournament of Champions, created quite the stir among our associates. At Ball Plant 3, the average length of service is 21 years. While that represents the largest collection of golf-ball making experience in the game, it also adds up to, considering our location, a lot of long-time Red Sox fans. While we don’t keep official records, Tim may have taken as many pictures as Adam Scott, the time he visited wearing his Green Jacket! (And very graciously, may we add. Tim stayed an extra hour, signing everything –including a hat that one of our associates had worn to one Tim's playoff games, the back of one of our associate's lab coats, and the cloth gloves that are used by quality inspectors in our stamping room to pick up freshly-painted Pro V1's.) 

- Speaking of the Red Sox, a group of PGA teaching professionals from Canada were headed to Fenway Park for a Red Sox game immediately after their BP3 Tour in September. Before the tour, they mentioned about forgetting to make a sign to bring with them to Fenway in the hopes of getting on TV. After the tour, they found a “WE VISITED TITLEIST BALL PLANT 3 IN NEW BEDFORD, MA TODAY” sign waiting for them in the Welcome Center, thanks to June. Did anyone happen to see it?

- And we can't forget about our friend Michael Breed, who has made Ball Plant 3 a biannual destination to meet up with listeners of his "A New Breed of Golf" radio show on SIRIUSXM.

Have you visited us yet at BP3? Tour availability continues throughout the winter season and can be booked up to one-year in advance here. We look forward to seeing you - and tell June we sent you!