Be The Ball Golf Sunglasses Review

Be The Ball Sports Optics

Grade: A
Teachers’ Comments: Great sunglasses for the price

Be The Ball Sports Optics produces line of good looking, highly functional sunglasses at a very reasonable price. The review pair that I received is their golf model (naturally) BTB 800 (shown above).

Of much interest to this golfer were what BTB calls its “High Definition” lenses. These are designed to filter out blue light, reducing haze and making the landscape appear more clearly. UV/Haze filters on a camera lens work the same way. I keep a UV filter on all of my camera lenses at all times (they protect the lens against damage, do much good in many situations, and do no harm in the rest). In practice, the haze filters on the sunglasses work well. Most of my rounds thus far this year have been played in hazy twilight—and these really make a difference.

The lenses also offer 100% protection from UVA and UVB rays—very important for eye safety in a sport where 100% of our time is out in the sun.

Another interesting bit of technology in these sunglasses are the “visually decentered lenses.” This is explained in the diagram below:

The end result is a set of sunglasses free of the distortions that generally plague inexpensive models. That’s also important to a golfer, especially when trying to read a green.

From a design perspective, I found a lot to like. The “medium to large” size fits my rather large head perfectly well (I often struggle to find good fitting sunglasses and hats). The arms are gently curved and the temple areas rubberized, ensuring a snug fit—these won’t fall off when you work to give that drive an extra few yards. On the other hand, they don’t feel too snug, either. In fact, they’re so light—and the vision through them so good—that I forget I have them on. I particularly like the half frame design because they allow air through and don’t cloud up in humidity.

Fit and finish on the glasses is good. The hinges don’t wiggle and the nose pieces are solidly attached. The material from which they are constructed is light, and flexes well. The lenses are said to be able to withstand a shot from a .22 caliber at 50 feet (I wouldn’t try that at home).

I have just two reservations. First,  the smoke lenses may not be dark enough for some on a very bright day. And second, I’m not sure about their long-term durability. The frames are quite light and while in no way “flimsy”, seem to me as though they would not stand up to hard use. That’s not an issue for me—I take care of my toys—but others may not be as careful.

**Update: The manufacturer says that there’s a lifetime warranty. So you don’t have to worry.

Be The Ball’s website pushes their marketing phrase “The Best $100 Sunglasses you can get for $50.” I think they’re absolutely right on this one. All of the “golf” sunglasses are priced between $35 and $50. The $50 models have polarized lenses. Most of the models are priced at $40. Those are very good prices for some very good glasses.

I think I’m going to get another pair.