You've probably seen them at your course: Dowdy Dan and Sloppy Sam. Lumpy Larry and Baggy Bill will often round out the unfashionable foursome. The clothes they wear are classic... but not in the good sense. No... I mean in the unimaginative, oversize sense... that such men swear by. Muted colors, conservative cuts... outfits that look like afterthoughts.
Meanwhile, many/most lady golfers dress for success... sartorially speaking... and now have an extraordinary choice of designers and styles. They shop at pro shops, or on the internet, and anecdotal evidence suggests most shop with some degree of enjoyment.
There are of course, guys like Ian Poulter and Rickie Fowler... fearless individualists who've never met a skittle color they didn't like. But many guys I know, when they're heading to the course, just throw on whatever they find in their closet that day.
So, do guys care what they wear? Or is it just not something that'll ever be too important to them. That's what we'll be talking about tonight on "Only Two Things". We'll be broadcasting from 9:30 - 10:30PM ET. And you can weigh in on-air by using call-in number 917-889-9592. Or join the conversation in the chat room or on Twitter... or just listen at BlogTalkRadio. Talk to you tonight.
Interesting question. I think for most male golfers what they wear on the golf course comes a distant second to being concerned about their clubs and how they play.
ReplyDeleteHowever watching a Europro event recently I observed some sartorial differences between that tour and the big boys tour.
http://golfurl.net/hkm
I might be in the minority (but I'm also Asian, so I'm already a minority) but I do care.
ReplyDeleteFor me, looking good on the course (or anywhere in public) goes along very way from a confidence perspective. If I feel like I look lumpy, dowdy or sloppy, it's more likely that I'm going to play lumpy, dowdy and sloppy.
Most of my golf shirts are more fitted in the arms and torso ("athletic fit") and I'm always aware of what color shoes & hat I'm throwing on for the day. I don't have a PGA-sized wallet to shop with, but I make it work... Perhaps I should've started with the fact that I'm jealous of Mr. Fowler's wardrobe. But I'd swap out his all-orange and go scarlet & gray... Put a shiny silver Puma on that red or white hat...
I would equate it to going to a job interview in a tailored 3-piece suit with freshly buffed shoes. You look good, you feel good, and you'll exude just that much more confidence.
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ReplyDeleteL O L ....i was able to cut/paste this here from the last topic about obama -
i just don't think most MEN care all that much about what they wear
i'm NOT in the cargo pants camp either, but i don't care really what the rest of the guys wear
when it's HOT, i wear what is comfortable which typically means cotton
frankD
ftlauderdaleFLA
i dont care. image is a scam.
ReplyDeleteUrban professionals who are used to putting more thought into the way they dress on an everyday basis, tend to bring that along to the golf course. I think that sometimes when a guy works in a place where he can basically wear jeans or sweats, he just never develops the desire to "dress to impress", and retirees often get out of the habit. That's my take.
ReplyDeleteWhat about the huge banner in the window at Gap stores that says "Put some pants on!" The tag line in small print at the bottom is "we all can't look good in shorts."
ReplyDeleteA lot of guys don't care what they look like off the course, so it's no surprise when they show up for a tee time looking a little sloppy.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, most microfiber shorts and shirts look nice and, over time, most men will get tired of sweating their butts off in cargo shorts and baggy cotton shirts. So things will hopefully begin to look up.
I think if a man is in good shape he can, and often will wear stylish outfits if he's not in good shape the best thing he can do is go boxy and conservative. Same applies to women. The less nice one's body is the less one should bring attention to it. Or so it would seem to me. That being said most of the guys I know just hate to shop, so if they don't have a female who'll do it for them they end up looking boring ... or awful.
ReplyDeleteHey - I care what I wear...but have to admit - not as much as my wife.
ReplyDeleteMany care.
ReplyDeleteMany care not to care–or at least care to appear that they don't care.
I love this topic, my friends and I talk about this all the time.
ReplyDeleteAt Country Clubs, there isn't much controversy because there's strict dress codes and most private club members are in higher income brackets and their more refined fashion sense is a reflection of their socio-economic condition.
At public courses, it's a different world, you see all kinds of weird stuff guys wear: work boots, cut-off camo pants, and even wife-beaters at some really lax munis. Obviously, socio-economics apply here too but inversely to the private set.
However, status is only party true. From what I've observed most men dress lousy because of peer pressure within their group. With blue collar guys, they tend to dress down to the lowest denominator of their group. Because nobody wants to get humiliated by their peers for being the best dressed but worst playing golfer. They is great fear in being called a poser.
I am always dressed up no matter where I play. I play as a single all the time, and I get grouped with a lot of lousy dressers and with those have this poser call-out mentality. When those type of guys first meet me on the course, I know exactly what they are thinking.
But I usually put their poser assumptions to rest very quickly as I out drive them all by like 40 yards every time.