If you watched the final round of last week’s Women’s U.S. Open in Houston, you’d swear they were playing in Alaska.
There were players who took snow parkas out on the course with them, giving their caddies more stuff to tote for 18 holes.
We’ve made two trips to Scotland in mid-October where the conditions can be a bit chilly and the wind can blow. It’s the wind that makes things tough.
But last Monday, there wasn’t enough wind to speak of at The Champions and with today’s high-tech clothing, there’s no need to “bundle up.”
Here are a few tips to make your round more tolerable when the temperatures drop.
Get some pocket warmers: This one is really simple and very inexpensive — disposable pocket warmers. You can find them at places like Wal-Mart or any outdoors store. You buy four to use for each round you plan on playing. You open the package and that activates the warms. They are small yet very, very effective. Put one in each of your front pockets, one in each of your back pockets and let them do their thing. This will make a huge difference. Bet here is that none of the women in Monday’s final round used these.
Hi-Tech layering: Technology has done away with the need for bulky clothing. In Scotland we went with a basic microfiber short sleeve tee shirt with an Adidas thermal shirt over it. Then we added a very light wind-shirt from Zero Restrictions then a sleeveless hi-tech windproof vest.
The neck scarf: In the fishing world they are called “neck gaiters.” You pull them over your head and they bundle up nicely around your neck, keeping the wind and cold out and the warmth in. These little dandies also work well in hot weather — keep the sun out and keep you cooler. How do they know? Truth be known, you need to have one of these and you can use them in cold and hot weather. They are worth their weight in gold.
Socks: Make sure you have socks such as the one Foot-Joy offers with it’s “Dry-Sof” technology. Big problem in cold weather with wool socks is that your feet may start to sweat, the sweat stays and suddenly your feet are freezing. The Dry-Sof socks are wonderful and your feet will stay warm and dry.
Hats: There are all sorts of wonderful beanies out there. You only need a beanie if it gets really cold. When it was 43-degrees in Scotland with a 20 mile-per-hour wind, we put one on but after walking a few holes, it was too hot and we went for the wool baseball-style cap and it was just perfect. But always have a beanie handy in the bag if things get too cold.
Gloves: If you have pocket warmers, you won’t need gloves but there are great choices available. The mitten styles are most popular because they are easier to take off and put on than regular gloves with fingers. If you’re riding in a cart, yeah, you might want some mittens.
Rain suit: A rain suit is a must in any golf bag, especially when you’re going to Scotland. A year ago in October, our first round was at Kingsbarns and the wind was blowing 40 miles per hour. Simply awful. Added the rain suit to my other layers that day simply to break the wind and what a wind it was.
Trousers: Found some regular style trousers that basically had a label that read “windproof.” They were great. They add something to the material that keeps the wind from cutting through. Check your retail stores.
There you have it. It’s cold up north while down here in Florida it’s been pretty balmy.
Hope these cold weather clothing tips will help.
