Glammed-Up Golf Gloves
In the dream scenario, you return to your regular weekend foursome on opening day with a brand-new swing, devoid of that accursed slice or nagging hook. When that doesn’t happen, think instead of improving your look by giving your glove some color.
“People are turning to color more and more to speak to their individuality, to look and feel unique,” says DJ Zabkar, senior product manager, gloves, for Footjoy, the leading producer of golf gloves in the world. He explains that roughly 95 percent of gloves are white because top-tier golf gloves are made from supple, but strong cabretta leather (sheepskin), which arrives from the tanner in a white or pearl color. But they don’t have to stay that way.
FootJoy (seen below left, and second from right) introduced colorful gloves in the 1980s and 10 years ago dedicated an entire line, FootJoy Spectrum, to colors. Spectrums range from the relatively staid navy blue and gray to vibrant orange and a red that looks like Tiger’s Sunday shirt. Each pair ($24) is made of cabretta leather, with a seam of expandable fabric near the knuckle for flexibility.
True to its mission to be “a disruption to the mundane,” Asher Golf (second from left and far right) is even more fashion forward. As CEO Matt Smart has said, “We wanted to address a gap in the marketplace. You couldn’t find variation, you couldn’t find style.”
In that vein, Asher’s product lines run from the stately (Pine, Navy and Wheat) to the avant-garde (Firework, with red dots and several versions of camouflage) to the truly out there (Deathgrip models that make it look like your hand has been X-rayed with the bones visible beneath). The top models are made with cabretta leather, with prices of $28 or $30 a glove.
No matter which color you wear (even if it’s boring white), the experts advise rotation to get the most out of your glove. Zabkar even recommends swapping gloves at the turn as sweaty ones can ruin your grip. Who knows, you might improve your game as well as your style.
