- How should I dress for cold weather? It can be tricky to dress appropriately for a round of golf which is going to be played in cold weather. On the one hand, you need to dress warm enough to keep yourself comfortable for the entire round. There is a lot of standing around in golf, so it’s easy to get cold if you aren’t dressed properly. On the other hand, you still need to make an athletic swing, which can be hard to do if you are wearing thick, heavy clothes. Most of the time, the best answer is dressing in layers. By wearing a few relatively thin layers, you can keep yourself warm without adding too much bulk. For instance, you might wear a long sleeve undershirt, a golf shirt, and then a light jacket. None of these are heavy on their own, but the combination of the three should help you stay comfortable. Also, think about wearing a stocking cap, as it is easy to lose a lot of heat through your head. There are plenty of golf companies which offer stocking caps, so you can still look the part of a golfer while staying nice and comfortable. For one other option, think about carrying some mittens or winter gloves in your bag. You obviously won’t wear them when hitting your shots, but you can use them to keep your hands warm while walking up the fairway or driving the cart.
- How should I dress when it might rain? Depending on where you live, playing some of your golf in the rain might just be a fact of life. If players in wetter climates cancelled their tee times due to a threat of showers, they’d never get out onto the links. If you know that it might rain at some point during your round, pack rain gear in your bag and be ready to use it. You don’t want to let your ‘base layers’ get wet, so watch the clouds and put your rain gear on before the bad weather arrives. Of course, it is dangerous to be on the golf course in a thunderstorm, so take all necessary precautions and avoid getting caught out there when lightning is in the area. There is nothing wrong with playing golf in a little rain, but a thunderstorm is a whole different story.
- Are golf shoes important? In a word – yes. Golf shoes are an important part of the overall apparel picture, so you want to make sure you have a quality pair available for each round. Some new golfers try to get away with just playing in tennis shoes, but that experiment usually doesn’t last long. A plain pair of tennis shoes might work okay when the ground is perfectly dry, but you’ll soon be slipping if the rain moves in, or even if the sprinklers come on. You don’t have to spend a fortune on a solid pair of golf shoes, as there are quality options available at a number of price points. To get the best possible performance out of your shoes, make sure to have the ‘spikes’ (plastic, these days) replaced periodically. It should only cost around $10 to have this done, and you will notice an immediate improvement in the way your shoes grip the turf.
- How can I be sure to meet the dress code? If you think the course you are going to play may have a dress code, the best thing to do is simply call and ask. If you call the pro shop a day or two before your round, they should be able to tell you what kind of apparel is necessary. Alternatively, you may be able to find this information on the course’s website. Most likely, if you are playing a municipal golf course, you won’t have much to worry about. Most municipal facilities don’t have a strict dress code, beyond the requirement to wear a shirt, pants or shorts, and shoes. However, at upscale public courses, or at private facilities, there is likely to be some kind of dress code in effect. No matter where you are going to play, it is smart to check on this point before you head out, just so you aren’t turned away before you can head to the first tee.
Apparel is a major topic of discussion in the world of golf. The clothes you wear are important for a couple of reasons – function and fashion. On the functional side of things, you want to wear clothes that are going to keep you comfortable and allow you to play your best golf. You are going to be outdoors for several hours when playing a full round of golf, so you need to dress appropriately for the conditions. Dressing for the weather while still being able to make good swings is not always as easy as it might seem.
From a fashion perspective, most people want to look good on the course, as well. You may need to comply with a specific dress code (depending on where you play your golf), so it makes sense to have some clothes in your closet which are golf-specific. If you have a variety of apparel questions rolling around in your head, we hope the questions listed below will provide some help.
Some golfers have an entire closet full of golf clothes, with endless color and style options to meet their mood and the conditions at hand. Other golfers, however, have just a few golf shirts and a couple pairs of pants. It is up to you how much emphasis you put on your dress when playing this game, but you should make sure to at least have enough apparel available to dress appropriately for the weather conditions. Over time, you will probably find that you accumulate a variety of golf apparel items, so it should get easier and easier to dress yourself nicely for a day on the links.
