For a golfer to carry their own set of accessories is a must. However, having allthe latest golf equipment brimming the shops and online stores, it may get a little overwhelming when it comes to shortlisting all the items you need.
If you have been golfing for a while now, you may be familiar with the guilt of slinging with an overloaded golf bag. On the other hand, if you’re a beginner, you’ve had a mindboggling experience of trying to gather all the information on what to buy. Well, we’ve all been through that, haven’t we?
Accordingly, the worst is to be the victim of your confusions. I’ve been through that myself; hence in this article, I am going to save you from the trouble of surfing through numerous golf accessories by guiding you to some easy to carry golf essentials in the least confusing way possible.
What are the Accessories Essential for Golf?
Now, let’s get you off your worries, shall we?
Divot Tool
A golf divot tool or pitchfork is used to repair a divot in the ground. A divot is a piece of turf that you take out of the ground in the fairway. It is nearly as small as a thumb. It flicks open after you push the button on it to reveal two or three prongs in the front; just like cat claws when you press their paws.
Some may even come with a straight line, but they all serve the same purpose nonetheless. These tools let you repair a ball mark. It’s recommended to fix these marks to keep your greens in better condition.
The NFL, Golfers, The Putt Partner, The Circle Game, NFL CVX and Pitchfix Seattle Seahawks are some of the lightweight, easy to use divot tools which would hold the ball securely in place.
Club Brush
Using a good brush makes it easier for you to clean your clubs. Golf clubs, as we all know are costly items. They can easily rust after a while if you don’t wash them.
You can’t expect them to perform well if they aren’t looked after. For them to last longer, you must clean them well or else your clubs won’t last long, and that’s just money down the drain.
This little tool with a pointy implement and bristles can help you do wonders. Just get the worst of the dirt in and work in there with your brush. Make sure you don’t miss out on cleaning those grooves. If you don’t clean the grooves, you are not going to be able to spin it.
It’s the best to go for brushes containing both hard and soft bristles. Hard for cleaning the stubborn dirt and soft for cleaning the surface with water. Some good quality golf brushes include YiwerDer, Ace Golf Brush, Mile High Life, PureShot Golf and Frogger.
All of these brushes come with a long retractable extension cord. This makes it easier for you to clean your clubs even when the brush is attached to your bag!
Golf Gloves
The main reason for putting your gloves on is of course to get a steady grip, but here are some more benefits that you may have been oblivious to.
- Blisters (if you grip your club too tightly you mind end up having blisters soon)
- Better performance (allowing you to make smooth vertical circles with the golf club)
- Reduces swing weight (with gloves on, you don’t have to put much pressure on the scale for swinging your club)
Always carry an extra pair just in case of rip, harsh weather or only because of your sweaty palms. It’s a smart choice to get your hands on the perfect fitted gloves because a smaller pair will make your fingers grow numb while the bigger ones won’t allow you to have a solid grip.
You can look up the ones from Callaway, FootJoy, Nice Shot, Nike, TaylorMade, Under Armour and FINGER TEN for excellent breathability, fit and durability.
Shoe Bag
Muddy golf shoes getting your car dirty is probably the last thing you’d wish for. This also implies when it comes to keeping your golf equipment clean. Golf shoe bags or simply shoe totes will let you keep your shoes neatly stored and make you travel with them anywhere you wish to.
CaddyDaddy, FINGER TEN, Athletico, FootJoy, PUMA and NIKE Sports III are some brands worth looking up for your shoe tote. These totes provide built-in ventilation for your shoes to keep the stink out, enough compartments for extra storage, padded walls, and easy grip handles to carry.
Golf Balls
The most common mistake we end up making is to fall for the trick of buying expensive golf balls. Needless to say, you’ll end up losing most of them!
Carry with you at least 6-8 of them just in case you lose them all. There’s no harm in carrying extra. It is also necessary to move around carrying the used ones along with your new ones to practice with.
The other misconception regarding the golf balls is the difference between premium and lower end golf balls What is the difference that lies between the two?
- A premium golf ball is built to where with a driver it can still go long but with the shorter shots it can get a lot of spin on it.
- A budget golf ball gives you much slower ball speed and low spin rate. Therefore, getting that business as the launch is always a little higher. This way, you can gain distance.
However, when it comes to durability, you might consider purchasing the high-end brands. Sometimes the cheaper ones may end up having a lot of external damage for overuse.
For high-end golf balls, you can try brands like Vice, Pinnacle, Callaway or Titleist. Likewise, if you think you want to keep the price on a check, look up for brands like Layer, Srixon or the latest customer favorite, Kirkland Signature.
Golf Umbrella
When the weather hits south, an umbrella can save the day protecting both your clubs and you for sure. These umbrellas provide the same functions as a regular umbrella but are typically larger than those.
Rain can ruin the game many a time. The best way to protect your golfing items is, of course by an umbrella. Despite being slightly larger than any regular umbrellas, golf umbrellas are much lighter and convenient to carry because of the shaft made out of fiberglass.
Other great factors include these umbrellas’ ability to withstand strong winds, durability, quick drying, protection from rain and UV rays.
Some recommended umbrellas include;
- G4Free
- UV-Blocker
- Marino Avenue
- LifeTek
- Third Floor Umbrellas
- LIFF-Umbrellas
- Alex Bezugly
- Lattice Automatic Open
Golf Cap
The choice is up to you on this one. If you have the sun beaming in your eyes, you can always carry your cap with you. That way, you’ll be able to keep the glare away and have a complete focus on the ball instead of the background.
However, most professionals wear them for their sponsors. Yep, it has always been that way! If you’re going for caps, always keep in mind to go for the ones that give you a relaxed and comfortable fit. Here are some caps worth trying out.
- Nike Mens Golf Legacy91
- NIKE AeroBill
- NIKE Authentic Dri-Fit
- NIKE TW AeroBill
- adidas A12
- Titleist
- Oakley
- Masters Merchandise
- TaylorMade 9Fifty
If you want to keep the sun off your ears and face too along with your scalp, you can always try out hats. They are a great alternative giving you ease of sight lines. In that sense, brands like Coolibar are a great choice. Their braided palm crown and larger circumference keep the glare away.
Tees
Golf tees allow players to tee up the ball and can only be used on the tee box. It looks like a peg made out of plastic, rubber or wood which lets your ball sit on it. There are many different characteristics to golf tees which allow you to shape your shots and allow the ball to perform differently.
Shorter tees are utilized more for the irons while the longer ones are geared more towards the drivers. The larger the head, the more the ball has to be teed up for you to find the sweet spot.
It’s always important to keep in mind that the amount that you tee the ball up has to do with where your swing plane is. You can use a higher lofted tee if your swing plane is on the upswing to produce the optimum trajectory for the golf ball.
On the other hand, the lower fiction tees (zero friction tee or mirror tee) equate to lower spin on the ball which equates to more distance off the tee.
It’s better to try out both the higher and lower tees because, of multiple options. You can see which suits your swings best. At the same time, you can stock up on your golf tees as well.
Pride Professional (pro length), Martini, 4 Yards More (from Greenkeepers), VORCOOL (if you wish to use rubber tees), Olinkgolf, etc. would all provide consistent tee depth, flexibility, less resistance (meaning, more distance for the fairway) and less friction.
Towels
If you’re an avid golfer, you’ll understand that care of equipment is pretty critical to include, especially in keeping your clubface and the grooves in your club free of debris. It is also important to make sure that the ball is actioning off your clubface in the proper manner. Therefore, golf towels can play a vital role in this manner. They can be used for;
Cleaning
Dirty clubs will result in poor shots. Sure a club brush can get the job done, but a towel gives a thorough cleaning for both your golf balls and your clubs.
However, microfiber or cotton towels are the best options. They are a lot more pliable and stretchy. That allows it to get into your club base and the grooves with very much less effort. It gets more caked dirt out of the club.
Drying
Dry towels can come of great use when it’s pouring or in dewy fairways. It can help to absorb moisture and keep your items dry like the ball. It constantly needs to be dried off after putting out.
You can also save your clubs from getting rusty by drying them between shots in such weathers. Additionally, many golfers prefer using a towel to wipe their sweaty palms or grip of the club.
If you decide to carry a towel with you, always take an extra one just in case of one getting spoiled with spilled drinks, smearing food or simply by a rip. In addition, you don’t want the same towel to dry off your face or palms as the one you used to clean your golf clubs.
Difference Between a Regular Towel and a Golf Towel
Well, a regular towel does not help to clean all your grooves thoroughly. When it’s not cleaned enough, you’ll naturally want to use your tees or any other sharp objects you can find in your house to get the mud off. You may hurt your fingers and kill up more time in the process as well.
This is where your golf towel kicks in to provide various functions starting from cleaning your muddy bags to give you relief from your clammy hands. Accordingly, Greens Towel, Frogg Toggs, Team Golf, Tri-Fold, Greenside microfiber towels, etc. are some of the popular golf towels.
Alignment Sticks
The name is pretty self-explanatory, isn’t it? Just as the name suggests, golf alignment sticks help you work on your alignment. They’re also great for ball position and great for swing playing, start line etc. Some of the basic uses of alignment sticks include;
- Keep things in check
- Control your target line by lining yourself up off and putting the golf ball on either side of the stick. You can also throw in two of them, either parallelly or perpendicularly.
- Create a gate before swinging your ball by sticking the stick 6-8 inches width and with 6-9 feet in front of your target line.
If you are working on your swing and your mechanics, alignment sticks can ensure that you’re always lined up in the same spot every single time.
Range Finders
Distance Measuring Devices (DMDs) can precisely measure the distance. The most suitable type of DMDs are the ones which are lightweight, weatherproof, battery supported and higher magnification (allowing you a wide field review).
There’re typically two different kinds of DMDs. GPS units (watches or app in your phone) and laser rangefinders. GPS units are the best to avoid as they don’t give you precise units right to the flag.
Precision Pro NX7, Leupold GX-2i3, Bushnell Pro X2 are some excellent choices for laser rangefinders that will help you get accurate with your yardages. Make sure you pop in some extra battery too because it’s always safer that way.
Stationaries
Golf Pencils: These pencils are short so that you can easily fit them in your pockets or keep them with your tees.
Marker Pen: Sharpies for instance can be a good option. You can use them to mark your balls to identify them. This can be handy for competitive rounds.
Scorecard And Holder: Golf is a game filled with numbers. They’re on the golf balls, clubs and the most important one are the scorecards. The scorecard lists the holes and the length in yards for the tee markers to the center of the green.
The scorecard holder is entirely optional but the more organized you are the easier it is for you to locate your belongings. Instead of throwing the scorecard in your bag, you can try carrying a holder to easily have access to it.
Don’t Forget to Look After Yourself
In the midst of gathering all your golf essentials, you might miss out on to focus on your necessities. Here are some equally important supplies that you should not forget to get in your bag before going about to hit the turf.
Sunscreen: Because you don’t want your skin to get roasted out in the scorching heat during the summer. Sunscreens with higher SPF, preferably of 50 should be an ideal choice.
Sunglass: Both polarized or non-polarized should get the job done. However, if you want to block the glare, it’s a more sensible move to go for polarized golf sunglasses.
Medication: Carrying a travel first-aid kit with you is a must.
Lip Balm: The weather can result in dried, chapped or flaky lips.
Bug Spray: Bug sprays will not be required if you play in bug-free golf courses. Despite, if the area is covered with bugs, keep the bugs off from eating you alive. Besides, these sprays take up little to almost no space in your bags.
Blister Tape: Blister tapes can be lifesavers if you often get blisters on your hands. It will save you from the pain and allow you to throw in your full concentration in the game.
Water Bottles And Snacks: Quench the thirst and satiate the hunger!
Our Final Thoughts
Indeed, the key is to not overload your bag. It’s not only going to cause you discomfort but also an overloaded bag with non-essentials isn’t a very smart move to rely on.
This chiseled-down guide should help you have a better understanding of your golfing necessities. Thus, get out there, strike a good balance by having the essentials right at your fingertips and enjoy the game!
