Finesse, feel, power, touch, speed, and stability are just a couple of characteristics you need to be a successful golfer. Wearing a golf glove can help a golfer feel comfortable and provide support for those following characteristics.
A golf glove can provide stability and extra grip support compared to not wearing one, and that can be the difference between a great round and an average round of golf.
If you are new to the game of golf you might have a couple of questions related to wearing a golf glove. What glove is best for me? Which one should I wear? How to maintain my golf glove? Why do the professionals wear one for this shot and that shot?
Take a breath, relax, and we will be covering many of these questions below. Let’s get started.
Why Should You Wear A Golf Glove?
Probably the most asked question related to wearing golf gloves is the question above. There are a few reasons why you should be wearing a golf glove.
For all your full swing golf shots, driver through wedges, you should wear a golf glove. If you are a right-handed golfer, you wear the glove on your left hand, and vice versa if you are a lefty.
This is because in the golf swing your non-dominant hand acts as “the guide” of the golf swing. Wearing a golf glove provides the golfer with the confidence when holding the club that your grip is solid, and it will not slip during your backswing and downswing.
Essentially, it provides more grip and security during the golf swing.
For some people, they might not wear a glove at all, but for a lot of golfers wearing a golf glove has become a consistent accessory that most golfers use to help maintain their golf swing.
Why Do Professional Golfers Take Their Glove Off To Putt?
If you ever watch the PGA Tour on television, you will see that when professional golfers are putting they will not be wearing their golf glove.
The answer to this question is based on one thing: feel. The most crucial aspect of putting is the idea of “the feel” and being in tune with the putting stroke, the speed of the greens, and the slope of the greens.
Putting without a glove on gives the golfer the most feel. Wearing a golf glove while putting can feel awkward and you can lose the feel of the putting stroke and your putter.
Do Any Professional Golfer’s Putt With Their Glove On?
If you have ever heard of Jack Nicklaus, raise your hand. I hope those of you reading this article have your hand raised. Jack Nicklaus, arguably the greatest golfer of all time who won 18 major championships, wore a golf glove while putting for decades.
Why did Nicklaus putt with a glove on? The answer is probably simpler than you think. Golf is much more a mental game than it is a physical one.
Nicklaus was only concerned with getting the golf ball in the hole as this quote explains, “I never found an advantage or disadvantage to taking the glove off or leaving it on. I practiced putting many times without a glove on, and it never bothered me nor was it ever an advantage. It should be about whether you knock the ball in the hole or not, not whether you are wearing a glove or not. If you are worrying about a golf glove, you’re not worrying enough about making a good stroke and making the putt” (Source).
Most professional golfers take their gloves off to putt as it provides more feel on the putting green, but there is nothing to say that you can’t wear one if it is more comfortable for you.
Do Professional Golfers Wear A New Glove Every Round?
Most of us know what it feels like to put on a brand-new golf glove. It fits perfectly tight on your hand, it’s smooth, and it lasts the entire round of golf.
With that above sentence in mind, it’s safe to assume that the majority of professional golfers wear a new glove for every round.
Is this feasible for the everyday amateur golfer? The answer is probably not.
Most PGA Tour professionals have sponsorship deals either with a club manufacturer that makes golf gloves or a clothing company that makes golf gloves.
So, given that they have a sponsorship, most professional golfers are given dozens of new gloves for each tournament round they play. They also probably have their sponsor manufacture custom-made golf gloves that fit their specific hand size.
For example, Jordan Spieth is sponsored by Titleist, and he uses their golf clubs, and golf balls, and wears their golf gloves when he plays on the PGA Tour.
PGA Tour golfers are looking for every advantage to help them shoot lower scores and wearing a new golf glove every round can help them do just that.
Why Do Professional Golfers Take Their Glove Off After Every Shot?
The answer to this question is quite simple. Professional golfers take their gloves off after every shot, so their glove and hands don’t get so sweaty while they are playing golf.
Golf, at the professional level, is a game that is played mostly in warmer to tropical climates. It can get hot!
With that in mind, it makes sense for PGA Tour players to take off their glove, dry their hands with a towel, and put it on for their next shot. It keeps the glove fresh and dry from sweat and provides the golfers with the consistency they need to execute each shot.
Do Golfers Need To Wear A Golf Glove While Playing?
All this talk about golf gloves and why golfers wear them might have you wondering if you need to wear one while playing.
The answer is of course not. The most famous recent professional golfer to not wear a golf glove while playing is smooth swing Fred Couples. Fred spent decades on the PGA Tour, won the 1992 Masters Tournament, and continues to golf without wearing a glove on the Senior.
Again, Fred probably doesn’t wear a glove because he doesn’t need to.
With today’s golf grip technology, if you regularly change your golf grips annually, your golf clubs can provide enough grip and stability that you do not need to wear a golf glove while playing.
It really is a personal preference whether to wear a golf glove while playing the game of golf.
Would Golfers Be Better Off Wearing Two Golf Gloves? What Is The Advantage Of Only Wearing One?
The only time it is appropriate to wear two golf gloves is when you are playing a round in the rain or in really difficult conditions where gripping the golf club is challenging.
Most golf glove manufacturers produce golf gloves that are specific to playing in the rain and it can be advantageous to wear 2 gloves. For example, Phil Mickelson in the past has worn two golf gloves when playing in difficult conditions as this article and picture show (Source).
The advantage of only wearing one glove is that wearing one glove on your non-dominant hand provides the perfect stability with your grip.
A major aspect of the game of golf is feel and the connection your hands feel to the golf club. If you don’t have a good feel and grip of the golf club, how can you expect to play good golf?
So, unless you’re playing in the rain and need extra grip, playing golf with one glove is the norm.
Will Wearing A Golf Glove Prevent Blisters On My Hands?
Wearing a golf glove can prevent blisters on the hands. The golf glove is a physical separator between you and the golf club so it can act as protection from blisters.
If are someone that consistently develops blisters when you play golf the first step in solving that problem would be to loosen your grip pressure.
If you have a death grip on the golf club it can cause blistering of your hands and not even a golf glove will protect you from that.
In short, a golf glove will protect you from getting blisters on your hand if you hold the golf club with a standard, light grip of the golf club.
Final Thoughts
To those new to golf, the etiquette of wearing a golf glove can be confusing. Even lifelong golfers might not under the importance of wearing a glove and what situations to stay away. Lucky for us, we can look at the pros for guidance. Everyone PGA Tour Pro is a bit different, but we can use their approach to help guide our glove usage. At the end of the day, the best advice on golf gloves is the advice that you feel most comfortable with for your game!
Like this article? Check out our other blog posts!
4 thoughts on “Everything You Need To Know About Golf Gloves”