Estill turns golf balls into miniworks of art

Michelle Estill: Artist

Several years ago, Michelle Estill was stuck in a hotel room in Dayton during a tournament that was saddled with several days of rain - sound familiar? - and to occupy her time began drawing on her golf balls with color markers. It has since become part of her regular routine.

“The fans, especially kids, really like it,” Estill said after a third-round 72 positioned her at 1 under for the Farr Classic.

“My favorites? I like the beach-ball look, Easter eggs, and I love flowers. I like to draw circles and lips. I use magenta and orange on the lips and the fans like that.”

Her caddie, Robbie Robertson, said one of his favorites was two palm trees with a guy suspended in a hammock between them.

“She comes up with some beauties,” Robertson said.

Problem is, regardless of how pretty her golf balls are, when they're rolling across a green and the designs and colors mesh together, they sort of look like range balls.

“I've never heard that,” she said. “I've heard people say my caddie never cleans my ball.”

Yesterday, Estill's ball was a geometric design in purple and green that she called a “cat rattle.”