Seven Ways to Arm Yourself for A Safe Return to The Golf Course

Let’s face it. Many millions of golfers have been sheltered for the last two months. If that includes you, and if you’ve been in hiding, you may need special protection when you emerge and enter the golf course.

While the TaylorMade Driving Relief and The Match II had officials at the ready to remove flagsticks or otherwise assist players on the golf course, when you tee it up, you will be on your own. You’ve been sequestered, and now you want to jump into the great outdoors. Just make sure it’s not with reckless abandon. Here are some products and ideas to consider for your own protection.

1. Big Hats. Maybe something that looks like the one Joe LaCava wears with a shade in the front and the back. Usually, you work your way into the sun by playing golf in March, April and early May. That means most avoid a sunburn. But diving into four hours of golf, even if part of it is in a cart, means the back of your neck is vulnerable as are your ears, no matter what your skin shade. While sunscreen is good, it can’t beat a big hat. Try ones from Walleroo. They have styles that are packable and crushable. You can’t keep them down. They spring back, ready to keep you shaded.

2. SParms, arm protectors, SPF 50 fabric. SParms is from Australia, and their expert, who I talked with at the PGA Show in January, said that even the Australian Rules Football players wear them. And nobody ever called them sissy. The SParms come in several styles, and the most interesting one is a combination of arm covers that wrap around your shoulders and the top of your back. Basically, you are wearing a set of arm covers that don’t have any annoying elastic at the top to bind your magnificent biceps. But SParms also have just the arm sleeves as well as sleeves with hand covers that leave your fingers free. The fabric is SRF 50.

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3. The new way to cart share. Ask in the golf shop, if it is open, if you can put two bags on a cart and alternate walking and driving. If you are germ nervous, make sure you have some hand sanitizer when it’s your turn to drive so that “cooties” from your companion don’t jump over to you. This idea is also good for the golf course because they will have more carts available for golfers.

4. Cart divider shields. This is genius, but I’m not sure how long we will really need it. A company in Richmond, Indiana, probably one with a lot of golfers working there, has invented a plastic divider to separate the two seats on a golf cart.

The company that makes them is Primex. They make two versions of the product, for for $30 and one for $50.

Basically, the cart divider is made from a sheet of vinyl, and the divider rolls up out of the way when not needed. If you are nervous about sharing a cart, even post pandemic, get your own. They attach with Velcro and can be cleaned with soap and water.

What else might you need?

5. Gloves. Sure you have a golf glove you use for hitting irons and woods and wedges. But try not taking it off when you putt, and hey, why not add a glove on the other hand? Queen Elizabeth always wears gloves to meet the public, and from a sanitary standpoint, better to look like a lady with gloves than shake hands with someone who has something you don’t want to catch. She can always toss the gloves at the end of the day, and so can you. If you’re gloved up, you can pick up the flagstick or rake any time you want and not worry about it. The late Dinah Shore used to wear gloves on both hands. I was told that by someone who used to sell them to her that in Dinah’s case, she didn’t want uneven tan lines. If you watched The Match II, you probably noticed that Phil Mickelson wore two gloves when it started raining sideways. So channel Phil.

6. Sunscreen. Everyplace that’s exposed. If you are out for four or five hours, you’ll need to reapply, so find a place to wash your hands after reapplication or your club will go one way and your hands will be going another.

7. Wipes/ hand sanitizers. If you can find wipes or hand sanitizer, take them/it along when you play. It never hurts to wipe down the steering wheel or the cart seat, even if you’ve been told it’s been clean. Everybody’s idea of “cleaned” is different. My mother’s was to sterilize, but she was a nurse. You probably don’t need to wash everything in bleach.

And remember to park the cart so that the seat and steering wheel get some direct sun for a minute or two several times during the round because, according to William Bryan, the Under Secretary for Science and Technology at the Department of Homeland Security, who recently reported on different ways to effectively kill the COVID19 virus, it degrades the quickest in direct sunlight.

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