Golf Apparel

What to wear in what conditions

Most golf apparel advice is written for a catalogue rather than a round. This is the version we actually use — built from playing through Midwest summers, spring wind and autumn rain, where conditions on one round can span 30 degrees.

Conditions	Base	Layer	Gloves	What actually matters
Under 50°F, dry	Thermal base layer + midlayer	Quarter-zip or vest	Winter glove pair	Layers you can shed by the 4th hole. A vest keeps your core warm without restricting the shoulder turn.
50-65°F, dry	Long-sleeve polo	Light quarter-zip	Standard glove	The most forgiving range. One layer over a polo covers most of it.
65-80°F, dry	Short-sleeve polo	None	Standard glove	Colour matters more than fabric here. Light colours measurably reduce how hot you feel on an exposed course.
Over 80°F, humid	Lightweight polo, light colour	None	Two gloves, rotated	This is where cotton fails and where a second glove stops being a luxury. Sweat destroys grip before it destroys comfort.
Any temp, rain	Polo + waterproof shell	Rain jacket, taped seams	Rain gloves	Rain gloves work opposite to normal gloves: they grip better wet than dry. Water resistant is not waterproof.
Any temp, wind	Polo + windshirt	Windshirt, not a rain jacket	Standard glove	A rain jacket in wind traps heat and rustles through the swing. A windshirt is the specific tool.

Fabric, in the order it matters

Avoid cotton entirely. It absorbs sweat and holds it, so it gets heavy, stops breathing and stays wet for the rest of the round. Every performance golf shirt is polyester, a polyester blend, or a poly-spandex mix for stretch. This is the one rule with no exceptions.

Stretch decides comfort more than weight does. A shirt with four-way stretch in a heavier fabric will feel better through the swing than a lighter shirt with none. If a polo pulls across your back at the top of the backswing, the fabric has no give — that is a construction problem, not a sizing one.

UPF is a real spec, not marketing. A UPF 50 shirt blocks roughly 98% of UV. On a four-hour round with no shade, that is the difference between reapplying sunscreen twice and not thinking about your arms at all.

Waterproof and water resistant are different products. Water resistant sheds a shower. Waterproof, with taped seams and a rating in millimetres, survives a round in steady rain. If the seams are not taped, it is not waterproof no matter what the tag says.

Sizing: where golf apparel differs from normal clothing

Golf shirts are cut for a rotational movement that no other shirt has to handle, and brands solve it differently. Two things are worth knowing before you order online.

Check the shoulder and the sleeve, not the chest. The chest measurement is where most people size, but the swing is limited by the armhole and the sleeve. A shirt that fits the chest and binds at the shoulder is the single most common apparel complaint we hear.

Athletic cut runs about a size small. If you are between sizes and the shirt is described as athletic, tailored or slim, take the larger one. Standard and classic fits generally run true.

Trousers are the opposite problem: golf trousers are usually cut with more room through the seat and thigh than dress trousers in the same waist size, so your normal waist measurement is usually right.

What we would buy first

If you are building a golf wardrobe from nothing, the order that gets the most use per pound spent is: two performance polos, one pair of golf trousers, a windshirt, then a proper waterproof jacket. Hats, sunglasses and shorts come after — they matter, but they are rarely what ends a round early.

The guides below cover each category in detail, with the products we bought and tested in each.