Proper Golf Attire: A Primer in Fashion and Function

Like building the contents of your perfect golf bag, filling your closet with the proper golf attire should start with some fundamental elements. Having spent the last 15-years traveling the world as a golf apparel designer, I know a thing or two about golf attire.

I’ve been behind the scenes and know exactly what is worth spending your money on, and what you can skip. Whether you’re a casual player or fully obsessed golfaholic, this primer will help you build a golf wardrobe that looks good and works hard.

And a quick note to point out that we’re focusing on men’s golf attire here. Stay tuned for our deep dive into the world of women’s golf apparel.

The Ubiquitous Golf Polo

The uniform of golf begins with a collared shirt and bottoms. Yes, there is room in the golf dress code for any and all manner of variety these days but, for the sake of covering off on the needs and expectations of most golf clubs, a polo (not a t-shirt) is still the ubiquitous silhouette of the game and generally required at private and better public golf courses.

If you remember from Golf Performance Apparel 101, you’re going to want to look for moisture-wicking fabrics and lightweight, breathable layers. We covered that in-depth before, so we’re going so skip to style now.

Flat-Knit Collars

Boiled down to the fundamentals, there are really two polo types, defined by their collars: flat-knit (sometimes called ribbed) and self-fabric. Flat-knit collars are more traditional and generally have a slightly heavier, textured look and feel compared to the rest of the garment. You can instantly recognize flat-knit collars from Ralph Lauren or Lacoste whose vibes tend to skew decidedly more classic. Ralph Lauren’s Iconic Mesh Polo Shirt is an undeniable staple, which features the flat-knit, or rib collar as a main detail.

Self-Fabric Collars

Self-fabric collars are, as the term would indicate, collars made from the same fabric as the rest of the polo itself. Any brand that offers a collar almost certainly offers a self-fabric collar. More modern brands will lean more toward this style exclusively. Offerings like Travis Mathew’s Heater Polo, or Linksoul’s Astoria are great examples of golf-specific self-collar styles that can go far beyond the fairways.

How Many Polos Do I Need?

For the purposes of covering your style bases in golf, having at least one of each collar type is a great first step. For the more athletically inclined, you can certainly work in a blade-style collar, mock or another alternative golf shirt.

Depending on how much you play, three to five polos will allow you to choose a different hues to mix things up. If patterns are your thing, go for it but remember solids will maximize your ability to mix up your golf outfit. Keeping print and pattern to subtle repeats, micro stripes and tonal graphics will give them a life beyond the golf course, too.

Golf Pants 101

As for trousers and shorts, the two cornerstone silhouettes differ mostly on pocket construction and placement: on-seam and five-pocket. On-seam pockets are, like the knit collar, widely considered to be a more refined silhouette.

They’re what you would find on a more formal trouser and, as the name would lead you to believe, the pockets of these trousers are usually constructed into, or placed very nearby, the side seam that runs the length of each leg. Greyson’s Montauk Trouser is a modern interpretation of the classic on-seam pocket silhouette, tricked in a modern Italian fabrication to perform as good as it looks.

Five-pocket bottoms, named for – wait for it – the number of pockets they possess, are generally considered more casual due to their  workwear origins dating back to the 19th Century. Jeans are a five-pocket silhouette, for example. Personal preference plays a role here as well, of course.

I love five-pocket shorts and trousers as they’re easier to get in and out of while at the same time generally better for keeping tees, ball markers and divot tools more secure if you’re sitting or crouching to read a putt. Their aesthetic is sportier and it stands to reason why you see them all over the course from the likes of many athletic brands, like Nike’s Dri-FIT Repel 5-Pocket, built with performance in mind, despite it’s denim soul.

As with polos, having a couple of foundational options here is key to creating versatility. Broadly speaking, I would have two to three options of both trousers and shorts in varied hues. 

Color: The Ultimate Utility Club

With the basic silhouettes covered, color becomes the next major consideration in determining just how you can build a wide variety of looks with a few great core elements. We could spend a lot of time talking about color and styling but at a foundational level, classics and neutrals will serve the widest variety of needs and for the longest period of time as they are always on-trend. Always. 

Sticking to our polo prescription of three to five in a basic golf rotation, I would opt for white or very light grey, navy blue, a lighter powder blue, black or charcoal, and a pop color as a wild card.

The same classic foundational approach should be applied to bottoms. Adhering to the recommended three pairs of bottoms, whether trousers or shorts, I would opt for light-to-mid-grey, khaki, and a darker tone in navy or charcoal. 

The colors outlined above for polos and bottoms will give you a variety of mix-and-match options that will keep you looking fresh for months without the dread and despair of a repeat look gnawing away at your soul. That may be a touch dramatic but you get it. 

Proper Golf Attire: Fit and Function

The way your clothes fit plays an undeniably important role in your personal style. As the home intruder Goldilocks once suggested, getting it “just right” can be tricky, but it is key. For those a bit more sartorially savvy, slimmer fits will lend a more modern edge to a generally classic look.

Moderation is key, however. There are a lot of guys pushing the boundaries of leggings versus trousers and compression versus polos. Conversely, oversized apparel can make you look like a slob no matter the designer’s name you choose. 

As with a very minimal number of my tee shots, somewhere down the middle is a good place to be. Opt for a polo with sleeves that extend to about the middle or bottom of your bicep with your arms at your sides, along with a body that doesn’t billow like a sail in the breeze. 

The same is true of bottoms. For trousers, whether flat-front or pleated, too much excess fabric looks sloppy and unsophisticated while the aforementioned “so-tight-they-could-be leggings” variety feel uncomfortable – not for you but for anyone in your group who has to be around you for four hours.

Inseams and Breaks

The right length in slacks and shorts also makes a massive impact on aesthetic. For trousers, just beyond or at the ankle is good. A trouser leg’s finish, its “break”, that ends as a clump of fabric on your shoe not only looks heinous but will also stain and collect moisture and dirt.

The length of shorts is also a hotly contested aspect of a guy’s wardrobe these days. Younger golfers are generally opting for shorter inseam lengths, some of which can border on “uh, awkward?”

Conversely, there are some older dudes stepping up to the first tee in what appear to be golf shorts replicated from the Fab Five of Michigan circa ’92 – also no bueno. A good rule of thumb is to keep your inseams between seven and 10 inches, enough to show a bit of your quads, but not long enough to cover your entire knee.

Golf Footwear: The Functional Foundation

Now that we’ve covered the basics of tops and trousers, we can dive to the very bottom and think about footwear.

Boiling it down to foundational styles, I would look at footwear in two silos: traditional and athletic. Inside each is a byzantine subset of endless options but as we think about building our foundational wardrobe this will give us a good place to start. 

As with polos and bottoms, versatility is key. And while the best golf shoes are a matter of opinion, I would suggest opting for a pair of traditional and a pair of more athletic kicks. When you think classic, it’s hard to outclass a style like Footjoy’s Premiere Series Field. Spiked or spineless is the only tough decision to make as these will work with literally everything in your golf wardrobe.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, unless you’ve been sleeping under a rock, you’ve seen just how far sneaker culture has made its way into golf. With it have come some of the greatest footwear classics from the German juggernauts. With versatility in mind, nothing can top the timeless simplicity of the Stan Smith Golf Shoe. Unlike my wedges, they are and will remain crispy!

Golf Shoes: What Color to Choose?

On footwear basics, color can play less of a role than it does in apparel. Generally, white-based shoes will give you the most flexibility, especially if you choose to align with the color direction of the polos and bottoms suggested above. Beyond a white-based pair of each, the next frontier is finding darker-based grounds to work in.

With the increasing popularity of classic sneaker styles, you may find yourself wanting to get bold. The brighter and bolder your footwear, the better suited some of the more traditional neutral hues I suggested work for polos and bottoms with which to pair them. A color wheel can do wonders to help ground a seemingly impossible-to-match option into a well-constructed look. 

Lastly, as a general rule of thumb, a more athletic style will pair more easily with shorts while a more traditional style, like an oxford, cap-toe or wingtip, will look better when you wear pants. 

Finishing It Off: Golf Accessories

Like great food, art, architecture and design the details truly matter. Accessories can do a lot to put the proverbial punctuation mark on your style. The most essential accessories in the golf wardrobe center around headwear and belts. The argument for socks could be made but no one would really care, would they? Besides, who argues about socks? 

Finding the Right Belt

Whether your preference is traditional leather, braided or woven constructions, webbing, canvas or other, color plays the largest role here. Contrary to very popular belief, belts and shoes don’t always need to match and in some cases just straight up should not.

The most important rule in choosing a belt is to pick colors that don’t clash with the polo or bottom you’ve chosen. A high-contrast belt bisects your body, making you look shorter and wider. In other words, please, for the love of all that is holy, if you’re not wearing a white polo or white bottoms, put the white belt down and step away.

A simple brown or black leather is almost always the answer and, yes, it can work with a white-based shoe assuming you’re keeping it tonal to your polo or trouser. The options here are truly endless, but as with all things in your golf arsenal, opt for quality and durability. While Peter Millar’s Reversible Leather Belt gets zero points for creative naming, it more than makes up ground for style simplicity and wardrobe flexibility.

Golf Hats

For hats, the ubiquity of the baseball cap is undeniable.

The same exact recommendation made for polos applies to hats: Pick two to three basic colors that will work back to the other staples we’ve outlined. White, navy and black options will cover a huge assortment of looks. Like belts, matching to a polo or trouser is a great place to begin. But that’s not to say you couldn’t look to connect it to a pop color in a shoe as well. 

Proper Golf Attire: Style, Function and More

While function plays a much more significant role in golf style today, style is, at least in this guy’s opinion, just as important. After all, we call it a gentleman’s game and any gentlemen of any age would agree that how you present yourself to the world is a reflection of ourselves. Or, said far more eloquently by tennis legend Arthur Ashe, “Clothes and manners do not make the man; but when he is made, they greatly improve his appearance.”