Three weeks ago, I played an 18-hole event at Strawberry Farms Golf Club in Irvine that was sponsored by Cut Golf, a local company that sells high-quality golf balls for a fraction of what major brands charge. Think two-piece balls with an ionomer cover for less than $9 per dozen. You didn’t read wrong. I’ve been hearing more about this company lately, and was thrilled that they handed out ball samples to everyone playing in the tournament. I grabbed a Cut Blue ($12.50/6-pack) urethane-covered, four-piece model. With its core and mantle designed for optimal ball speed and spin, it made Golf Digest’s Hot List Silver level this year. I played it the entire 18 holes and thought it was really good. Soft, lively off the tee, and generating lots of good spin around the greens. For the weeks leading up to this round, I had been testing excellent prototypes of two upcoming balls from a major manufacturer. If you’d blindfolded me, I would’ve struggled to detect which model was which. They felt identical — and performed similarly. I can’t address the durability or consistency of Cut balls. But I can say that fresh out of the box, they make a pretty compelling purchase worth trying.