Nothing breaks the flow of a good round - and pisses you off quicker - than spending 10 frustrating minutes searching for your ball in the woods while the foursome behind you stares impatiently from the tee box.

Swatting your 4-iron through mounds of dead leaves, you're thinking: If golf balls were made of metal I could use one of those detectors you see old guys using on the beach. Or even better, if my balls had built-in GPS...

Now they do. The RadarGolf system uses special USGA conforming RadarGolfBalls that are embedded with Radio Frequency emitting chips. If one goes slicing off into the trees, grab the handheld locator, wave it around the area where your ball disappeared, and bars on the screen and audible (and volume-controllable), beeps guide you closer and closer to your errant ball. Even if it’s completely buried under a pile of dried leaves, hiding behind a tree, or plugged in mud. (A Shield-It pouch keeps the extra balls in your golf bag from distracting the handheld.)

Should you truly lose one - in the middle of a lake, over some guy's house - replacement balls run about $40 per dozen. About what you'd pay for typical premium balls. Now I just need someone to invent a golf ball that swims back to shore and I'll never have to buy balls again.

$199.95, includes a dozen RadarGolfBalls
www.radargolf.com

The NFL season has officially started and that means thousands of fans will take to stadium parking lots across the country with grills fired up, coolers packed with beer, and spatulas in hand. It's time for serious tailgating. And for the first time ever we've got the America's Best Football Tailgating Cities Index - a ranking of the "tailgating friendliness" of the 31 U.S. cities that host an NFL franchise, plus NFL-hopeful-once-again Los Angeles.

Ranking criteria included: stadium parking lots (lot sizes, fees, accessibility, hours of operation and special facilities and programs for tailgaters), overall tailgating environment and tailgating-fan enthusiasm.

Coming out on top, with high scores in all categories, is a city usually known for its crab bakes and bruising defense - Baltimore. Rounding out the top 5 were Denver (it's better mile high), Houston (happy to have a semi-decent team again), San Diego (sunny, 72 degree weather, and LT), and Cincinnati (the police are too busy dealing with the players to worry about what you're doing).

And where are the worst places in the country to set up your grill? Seattle came in dead last, with Detroit (31), St. Louis (30), New Orleans (29) and Atlanta (28) filling out the bottom five. (Note to Seattle, Detroit and St. Louis: You've got to work really hard to come in behind a city still rebuilding after getting devastated by a hurricane.) ...More