The Trip
As I write this post, I’m sat in the bloody United Kingdom 4000 miles from home. I’m here for a week of work related to my day job, but thanks to a fellow golf nerd colleague, I’ve arranged to squeeze in a little golf at the Barbazon course at the Belfry. Just the home of the 1985, 1989, 1993, and 2002 Ryder Cups (ever heard of it?). In fact, by the time this goes up, I should be about 2/3 through my round. Anyway, as I was unpacking at my hotel, I realized I have a very strategic method of packing for golf on trips like this. I’m here for work, not golf, but I still want to be prepared for a quick recreational round. That said, if I didn’t have any golf lined up, I wouldn’t pack anything.
What’s the Purpose?
In my case, golf is usually just a quick add on to the work trip. For my day job, I travel to the UK every so often and fortunately I have a coworker who is also a golf fanatic. Golf has nothing to do with my trip so we try to sneak out for fun if possible before or after work. I’m just looking to play some courses I’ve never seen and fit my hobby into my trip. I don’t need to break any course records in order to have fun. Given it’s just for fun and not that serious, I pack as minimally as possible. If you’ve ever traveled with all your golf gear, you know it’s much easier to NOT have to travel with it. So this is what I’m going to focus on. Afterall, I’m not here to golf…technically.
How to Pack the Bare Minimum
Given my work trip is not based around golf, I only want to bring the bare minimum. Worst case scenario, I’ll have to buy a few extra things at the pro shop. Here are the essentials that I pack.
Golf Shoes
No matter how much you don’t care about your round, you don’t want to risk trashing your shoes and slipping all over the course. Pack a pair of golf shoes. Now, in this day and age, there are so many “street to course” options that you may be able to consolidate quite a bit. For instance, the TRUE Linkswear Major we’re reviewing soon could be the perfect “one shoe to rule them all” for this kind of trip. It can multi-task as an everyday wearer AND cover your six on the links.
If you are packing a pair of golf shoes separately, I recommend a pair of shoes that can squish to save space. And make sure you use a shoe bag so all your luggage doesn’t get gross in transit either direction.
Gloves
Gloves aren’t exactly cheap, and if you factor in exchange rates internationally, it could be even worse. Given they’re compact, I just throw a few in the suitcase. Be smart, check the weather. If there’s a chance of rain or cold weather, pack two pairs of rain gloves and/or a pair of cold weather gloves in addition to a regular glove. In my case, this is England…I packed them all.
Balls
Yeah, you could just buy a sleeve or two at your destination, but depending on where you’re playing, golf balls could be absurdly expensive. They don’t take up much space, so if I’m only planning on playing once, I just throw a dozen in a side pocket and keep it moving. One time I was supposed to play three rounds over ten days so I packed two dozen balls just in case – that was overkill (not to brag). Anyway, just bring your own, they don’t take up much space. I’ve taken a risk, I’ve only brought two sleeves this trip.
Tees
This could just be me, but I’ve told you guys before I’m weirdly superstitious about my golf tees. So just because it’s easier and I know I’ll have what I need, I fill up a small ziplock bag with about 18 of my tees and throw them in my suitcase.
Valuables Bag
I’ve started packing this recently too. Basically, I have all the little weird odds and ends PLUS it helps keep me organized if I’m borrowing or renting clubs. I don’t have to worry about leaving anything behind in a bag.
What About Golf Cubs?
Yeah, seems clubs are pretty important right? After making multiple trips lugging my clubs around, I can’t tell you how much I hate it. I’ll gladly still do it for the right occasion, but otherwise, I just don’t care. I’m perfectly happy not shooting as a good of a score because I’m using loaner clubs and just enjoying the experience. A fortunate break I catch is said coworker mentioned earlier has a son that let’s me use his clubs when I’m in the UK, but I’d rent if I have to. I’m just happy to be playing golf as opposed to sitting in my hotel room watching videos on Youtube or a rerun of Cash in the Attic.
Let’s be honest though. If you’re playing only one round, but it’s St. Andrews, Pebble Beach, Pinehurst #2, etc then you want your own clubs. It’s worth the struggle for such premiere courses. Suck it up and haul the extra gear.
Final Thoughts
The whole point of this post is get you thinking in a practical and simplified fashion to better pack for a work trip where you might squeeze in a little golf. Worst case scenario, you don’t play any golf and these minimal supplies didn’t add much extra burden onto your luggage. Most importantly, just bring what you need to have a good time. The whole point is to enjoy yourself and make the most of an opportunity. Forget about the scorecard, have fun, and leave a little spare room in your luggage to bring home some sick gear from the pro shop.
