Home → Blog → Resources → A Complete Guide to Performance Golf Clothing – Improve Your Game
In golf, success rides on the smallest details. A slight change in club angle, grip pressure, posture, or timing will be magnified by the time you strike the ball and send it on its way. When it comes to equipment and coaching, golfers have always understood and respected this simple fact. However, many players tend not to extend this truism to clothing. On the course, many still view apparel through the prism of aesthetics, rather than performance.
Fortunately, that’s starting to change. A growing number of golfers recognize that mobility, comfort, and protection all impact your ability to focus and deliver on your potential. In a sport that is both physically and mentally demanding, we need to optimize our clothing to achieve maximum performance.
Recent developments in textile technology are now beginning to enter the golf market. More brands, responding to consumer demand, are incorporating innovative solutions into their performance apparel. Today’s on-course attire draws inspiration from developments in other sports, while remaining true to its own style. The humble polo still rules the fairways, but now it’s made from moisture-wicking, stretch-fit fabrics and incorporates odor-control and cooling technologies. With this in mind, we created this in-depth guide to performance golf clothing, design trends, and technologies. It also features insights into the Polygiene® StayFresh and Polygiene® StayCool solutions, both of which are having a profound impact on the way manufacturers think about performance textiles.
With its royal associations and historic associations with exclusive gentlemen’s clubs, clothing has always been an important consideration in the game of golf. In the game’s early years, players would often wear heavy wool trousers, long-sleeved shirts, and thick jackets. This reflected social conventions and expectations, and demonstrates that early golfers were more preoccupied with class than performance.
As the sport expanded beyond the borders of its Scottish homeland, players were exposed to radically different climatic conditions. The British Empire exported golf to countries around the world, where the traditional clothing worn in the cool and wet weather of St Andrews was entirely inappropriate. Some of the earliest international courses were established in Sierra Leone, India, and Mauritius. This resulted in players switching to cooler, more relaxed apparel.
The gear we would recognise as truly modern golfing apparel was a product of professionalisation. More than any other piece of clothing, the performance polo shirt best exemplifies this change. As sport science became more influential, players were increasingly aware of the link between performance and temperature, comfort, and mobility, and selected their clothes accordingly.
Inspired by developments in other sports, such as running and cycling, brands incorporated moisture-wicking fabrics, stretch fibers, and innovative additive technologies into golf wear. Today, the global golf apparel market is valued at approximately USD 4.5 billion (market.us). Its sheer size and financial clout are a guarantee of continued investment in innovative textile technologies that enhance golfing performance.
Performance golf clothing refers to apparel that is optimised for the rigors and demands of the sport. It is designed to improve on-course performance by meeting the mental and physical needs of the players. Typically, this is achieved through the use of advanced fabrics, smart garment design, and additive technologies.
All performance golf apparel manufacturers aim to ensure their clothing eliminates distractions. Golf requires complete concentration, and even the slightest diversion can lead to mistakes. Consequently, comfort is key. Lightweight materials prevent clothing from weighing on the player, stretch fabrics allow for natural movement, and breathable designs keep them cool.
Of course, golfers don’t just want consistent performance. They’re also concerned with aesthetics. As are many golf clubs and golf courses. Performance golf clothing reflects the sport’s sartorial traditions while emphasising clean lines and a relatively close fit. In the modern game, bolder colours and patterns are increasingly common, and there is greater room for self-expression than in the past.
As such, modern golf wear combines distraction-free design, performance-enhancing technologies, and an emphasis on style.
Enhanced comfort
Comfort is central to golfing performance. If your clothing is pinching, rubbing, or uncomfortably distributed around the body, it quickly becomes a frustrating distraction. In modern performance golf apparel, you’ll often find features like smooth, frictionless seams and softer, lighter fabrics. This ensures a more comfortable feel, eliminates distractions, and enables golfers to focus on their game.
Temperature regulation
Staying cool during your round means your body is better primed for performance. Overheating can impair physiological processes, putting you at a competitive disadvantage. It will also impact player comfort, becoming a major distraction that prevents you from hitting your best shots. Effective temperature regulation – whether that’s through mesh panels, moisture-wicking, or advanced textile additives like Polygiene StayCool – reduces fatigue and mental stress, ensuring you’re more likely to stay calm and composed under pressure.
Flexibility and range of motion
Anyone who has spent time with a golf club in hand knows that the golf swing is a full-body exercise that engages the shoulders, torso, hips, legs, and arms. With so many parts of the body involved in controlling the rotation, players must avoid clothing that restricts movement and interferes with swing mechanics.
Performance golf clothing avoids these pitfalls by incorporating stretch fabrics and engineering clothing construction to support a full range of movement. Flexible materials and design move with the body, resulting in better balance, a smoother, more controlled swing, and greater consistency. In the long run, they also reduce fatigue and help sustain performance over the entire round.
Odor control
Though golf isn’t as physically demanding as many other sports, players still get sweaty. Whether it’s due to warm weather or simply the pressure, our bodies naturally respond by perspiring. While the odors associated with sweat can be distracting, they also impact comfort and confidence.
Today, additive textile technologies like Polygiene® StayFresh and Polygiene® OdorCrunch are integrated into golfing apparel to provide powerful, long-lasting odor control. An antibacterial odor control solution, Polygiene StayFresh tackles the root cause of many unpleasant odors by preventing bacterial growth. On the other hand, Polygiene OdorCrunch works to eliminate environmental odors and those associated with smelly molecules, like sulfur. The benefits also extend beyond the course, and many players enjoy knowing that they can head straight to the clubhouse without worrying about odors. Similarly, it’s reassuring to know clothing is well-suited to multi-day events and travel.
UV protection
Golfers are often out on the course for extended periods. This results in significant sun exposure. As a result, performance golf wear will often incorporate built-in UV protection to help shield the skin from damaging radiation. Effective UV protection will reduce the risk of sunburn, skin irritation, and longer-term issues. Many golfers don’t realise that regular clothing doesn’t necessarily stop UV radiation, though awareness is growing.
From a performance perspective, UV protection can reduce heat stress and discomfort. But it also ensures you can get out there day after day to play, practice, and improve your game.
Fabric selection has a significant impact on sporting performance, and golf is no different. All textiles have their advantages and disadvantages, and most golfers will have a preferred material. With this in mind, here’s a quick guide to several popular performance fabrics.
Polyester
Polyester is one of the most popular materials for performance golf wear. As a synthetic, it can be engineered to meet different performance needs. This means it is often lightweight and long-lasting, while also offering superb moisture-wicking capabilities. Well-constructed polyester tends to retain its shape and colour despite washing, making it a durable fabric. On the downside, polyester usually isn’t breathable and retains odors. Integrating additive textile technologies like Polygiene StayCool and Polygiene StayFresh can resolve these issues.
Merino wool
Often more expensive than other materials, merino wool boasts a host of natural attributes that make it ideal for use on the course. The fabric’s fine fibers guarantee comfort and are well-suited to effective temperature regulation, keeping you cool on warm days and warm when temperatures drop. Similarly, the fabric’s natural antibacterial properties keep unpleasant odors at bay. For these reasons, merino wool is often used in base and mid-layers.
Cotton blends
Cotton blends aim to combine the performance benefits of pure cotton with those of synthetics. Usually, pure cotton isn’t ideally suited to performance clothing as it tends to absorb moisture and become heavy and uncomfortable. By blending cotton with synthetics, you can eradicate these drawbacks and improve moisture-wicking capabilities and drying time. If the blend is well-designed, the apparel should retain the comfort and stretch associated with pure cotton, too.
Nylon
Nylon is often preferred in items where durability and stretch are the priorities. This means the material is well-suited to golfing trousers and outer layers. The fabric accommodates a wide range of movement while also boasting excellent abrasion resistance and long-term durability.
Polygiene technology is widely used by performance brands across the sporting spectrum. This includes golf, too. Based in the UK, Bunker Mentality designs and manufactures custom-fit performance golf polos that feature Polygiene StayFresh technology. Our industry-leading odor-control solution ensures the wearer is comfortable and confident whether they’re heading out to the first tee or on their way back to the clubhouse. By keeping the polos fresher for longer, Polygiene StayFresh reduces the need for frequent washing, saving time, energy, and water, while also increasing product lifespan.
Polygiene StayFresh isn’t the only innovation Bunker Mentality has embraced. The brand now operates according to a progressive on-demand manufacturing approach. All items are made to order, reducing waste and facilitating a more sustainable and environmentally friendly business model. On-demand manufacturing also enables Bunker Mentality to update its designs regularly, so golfers always have new patterns, prints, and colors to look forward to.
Polygiene StayFresh is an odor-control solution designed to prevent the growth of odor-causing bacteria in textiles. The technology is based on silver chloride, a naturally occurring salt with antibacterial properties.
By inhibiting bacterial growth, StayFresh stops smells from forming rather than just masking them. In performance golf clothing, this results in garments that stay fresher for longer, even during warm or physically demanding rounds.
Reduced odor also means garments require less frequent washing. This helps extend the lifespan of the clothing, preserves fabric performance, and reduces water and energy consumption. Polygiene StayFresh ensures golfers enjoy greater comfort, confidence, and convenience when on and off the course.
Learn more about Polygiene StayFresh.
Polygiene StayCool is a groundbreaking textile additive technology that helps regulate body temperature during physical activity. The technology achieves this via an innovative thermo-reactive polymer matrix that activates upon contact with sweat, cooling the fabric 2 – 3°C (4.3 – 5.4°F). The result is a long-lasting cooling effect that keeps you feeling light, dry, and comfortable throughout the day. At the same time, the solution further enhances temperature regulation by improving moisture-wicking capabilities.
In golf, maintaining a cool body temperature is closely linked to improved mental and physical performance. Overheating can lead to fatigue, a lack of focus, and impaired physiological processes. By supporting cooling, StayCool helps golfers remain calm, composed, and capable throughout the round.
Learn more about Polygiene Staycool.
Are you a golf clothing brand looking to elevate your performance apparel offering? Get in touch to learn how you can integrate Polygiene StayFresh and StayCool technologies into your designs.
As the golf market continues to develop, grow, and innovate to meet the demands of players, Polygiene is here to help you distinguish your products and elevate them above the competition. Polygiene technology means improved performance and a more sustainable product, enabling you to deliver more value for your customers.
