Which Hand Do You Wear Golf Glove On? [And Why]

Golf is a sport with a lot of tradition. It’s done things for many years and they have just stuck. When it comes to wearing a golf glove, one of the most common questions asked is which hand should you wear your glove on?

But it can feel a little bit of an overkill to slide that new, white leather golf glove on before a round, especially if you’re a beginner just getting into the game.

However, there are many reasons why you would wear a golf glove and it is important on which hand it is worn. Whether you’re an avid golfer or a complete newbie, it’s pretty common practice.

But when it comes to a golf glove which hand is it worn on and why is it you need a golf glove in the first place? Here we’ll take a look at a few reasons and factors involved in wearing your golf glove, plus what you should think about before buying one.

Let’s get into it and find out a little more about the golf glove hand and what hand do you wear golf glove.

What Hand To Wear Golf Glove?

What Hand Do You Wear A Golf Glove On?

A golf glove should be worn on the less dominant hand when playing golf. This means for right-handed golfers, who play golf right-handed, the golf glove should be worn on the left hand and for left-handed players, they’ll have the glove on their right.

For many golfers, they’ll only have a single glove. However, sometimes golfers can have golf gloves for both hands. Even the PGA Tour has seen their professional golfers wear two gloves such as Aaron Rai.

This is very much down to the preference of the player. If they feel more comfortable wearing two golf gloves, then it’s probably better for their game to wear two. This can sometimes be the case in the Winter where to protect against the elements, a player can wear a pair of Winter or waterproof golf gloves on each hand.

In some instances might choose not to wear a golf glove on either hand. This could be down to feel or taste. Most notable is Fred Couples, one of the legendary professional golfers from the PGA Tour who never wore a golf glove (despite having an unlimited supply as with the nature of being a top professional).

Why Do Golfers Wear Golf Gloves?

So now we know which hand do you wear a golf glove on, but why is it that most golfers tend to wear golf gloves and keep them in their golf bag when they play?

Help With Grip

There’s many different reasons we wear gloves when playing golf, and almost the main reason is it’s there to add grip when holding the golf club and making a golf swing. It offers that little bit of extra grip for your weak hand. The golf glove hand is sometimes referred to as the lead hand because it is the hand that is pointing toward the target at impact. This added grip helps to stabilise the golf grip on the club, as you strike through the golf ball.

It’s also important in changeable conditions. You can get specific wet-weather or all-weather golf gloves which will actually get better in the rain. There’s nothing more frustrating than when you’re playing golf, it starts raining and your grips become like bars of soap. This type of glove will solve this problem.

Protect Your Hands

Another reason is to prevent blisters and damaging the skin on your hands. During an 18-hole round of golf, you’re likely to hit between 30 and 60 golf shots (depending on your level of ability). This begins to take its toll on the palm of your hands, offering up blisters and calluses. By wearing your glove, it acts as a second skin and protects against this happening.

It also depends on the types of grips you have on your clubs. The firmer, more coarse grips are likely to do more damage to your hands than softer, more basic grips.

You’ve also got winter gloves, which will keep your hands warm on those colder days. Winter gloves are nice and warm when the temperature drops, stopping the cold elements from getting to your fingers.

Provide Better Feel

As many professional golfers would attest to, wearing a leather glove on your hand is the best choice and helps provide an excellent amount of feel, especially on short iron shots.

This of course will vary from golf glove to golf glove. Premium leather golf gloves are the best gloves and will feel a lot more comfortable and mould around your hand better than the far cheaper synthetic leather golf gloves on the market.

If you choose to wear a golf glove, you should noticeably feel more feel when hitting golf shots and will receive the most feedback from the shot.

Why Do Golfers Wear One Glove?

Golfers usually wear just one glove because the lead hand is the one which has the most contact with the grip and is most likely to slip during a swing or lead to blisters occurring.

Having just one glove also helps with the overall feel for a golfer taking their shot, as the lead hand offers the power and grip with the glove, and the other hand is there to maintain control through the swing rather than offering much grip.

Having just a single glove offers the perfect combination of grip and feel, hence why you’ll see most golfers using just one golf glove.

A golfer might choose to use two gloves, however, this tends to reduce the amount of feel and control on the shorter shots where power isn’t necessarily the main aim.

What To Consider When Choosing A Golf Glove?

So you’re convinced that a golf glove is a good choice for you, but what sort of things do you need to consider on how to choose a golf glove?

Type

There’s plenty of different types of golf gloves out there on the market. From premium leather to all-weather, to even pairs of gloves.

For new golfers, it wouldn’t really make sense to start spending £25 on a top-of-the-range premium leather glove as you wouldn’t be good enough to benefit from it yet. You’d be better off getting a more affordable synthetic glove made with synthetic material. Although there’s plenty of cheaper soft leather gloves available.

Perhaps you’re prone to playing golf in poor conditions, with harsh cold and rain coming at you regularly? It might be worth investing in an all-weather glove that can cope with soaking rain, unlike a leather glove which will end up crinkled and slippery.

Of course, if you’re playing to a good level or you’re an avid golfer, you’d always be better off investing in a leather glove. It provides the most supreme of feels and will last you much longer. But a lot of the time it will just come down to personal preference.

Then you’ve also got the gloves for different types of conditions. If you’re based in the UK, where we get wet conditions most of the year, it might be worth getting yourself a wet-weather glove for the golf bag. These rain gloves absorb water and use it to create more of a grippy surface (not sure that’s the technical terminology, but it works…), making it easier to hold the golf grip in wet conditions.

Fit

The fit of your golf glove is also very important. It’s your main point of contact with the club, so making sure the glove fits properly is crucial.

A loose glove means you won’t be able to grip the club correctly with excess material getting in the way and will affect the golf swing.

On the other hand (pardon the pun), a glove that is too tight will likely affect the blood supply in your hand which is obviously not ideal. Plus if it’s too tight then it is more likely to rip or tear when you’re hitting.

Golf glove manufacturers make their products with very specific sizing, from smaller hands to much bigger hand shapes. So you’ll be sure to find the glove size that’s a snug fit and fits your hand perfectly even if it’s from different brands.

Hand

As mentioned earlier, most golfers tend to wear the glove on their weaker hand as it is the lead hand and is in full contact with the grip. Therefore you need to make sure that you buy correct-hand dexterity when choosing your glove.

If you’re a right-handed golfer you’ll need a left-handed glove. For left-handed golfers, you’ll need a right-hand glove.

This is obvious if you’re trying the glove on in a pro shop. But if you’re buying it online, it can be more confusing. So always check to make sure you’re getting the one you need.

Final Thoughts

Golf is very much about personal preference. At the end of the day, what hand do you wear your golf glove on is about what feels the best to you and what helps play your best golf. Wearing a golf glove is totally a personal choice and one only you can decide on.

If you like wearing one glove on one hand that’s great. If you hate the feel of a glove – don’t go out buying one. If you’re only comfortable when you’ve got two gloves on – that’s absolutely fine! Do whatever works for you. Find the best glove, choose your own golf equipment, and enjoy the brilliant game of golf.

Which Hand For Golf Glove FAQs

Why do right-handed golfers wear a glove on the left hand?

Golfers wear gloves on the opposite hand because it offers more grip and feel, plus the left hand is the lead hand. The lead hand is usually weaker and so it needs more grip at the impact of the ball. Therefore one glove is worn on this hand to help stabilise the golf club.

Should you wear golf gloves on both hands?

If you wish to, you can wear a golf glove on both hands. Some golfers find they have a better grip with two gloves on, but it is not common. In Winter, some players will choose two gloves to help keep their hands warm in the cold. However, there is no requirement to wear gloves on both hands.

Why do PGA Tour golfers take their gloves off between shots?

Golfers usually take off their gloves between shots to let the glove air out and dry up any sweat from inside. On hot days, hands sweat can build up and soak into the glove. Sweaty hands will make it slippery and have less grip.

Why do golfers remove their glove when putting?

Top players remove their gloves off when putting because they believe it gives them more feel over the putt. For short shots that don’t require much speed, a glove is not necessary and may hamper the player’s feel so they remove their gloves for these shots.

Why do some golfers have two golf gloves?

Some players wear two gloves because it provides them with more grip when hitting shots. Usually, they will take both gloves off when they’re putting.

What hand do left handed golfers wear a glove?

Left-handed golfers will usually wear a glove on their right hand. This is because the right hand will be the leading hand in the swing and require the maximum possible grip.

Why don’t golfers wear two golf gloves?

Golfers don’t usually wear two gloves because they believe it impacts the feel they have on the golf club. The leading hand in the swing requires the most amount of grip, hence this is the golf glove hand. The other doesn’t need as much grip, so by not wearing another glove, it can have maximum feel instead.