Why Do Golfers Wear Hats? [Including PGA Tour Players]

If you’re reading this, then we’re assuming you’ve roamed your golf clubs’ fairways (and rough) pretty extensively over the past few months.

During that time, you’ve probably seen a fair few golf hats kicking about on the golf course. But why is it that golfers wear hats when they’re out playing golf?

In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the reasons why you’ll see your mates and the pros on TV wearing golf hats.

Why Do Golfers Wear Hats?

Why Do Golfers Wear Hats?

There’s a few different reasons why golfers wear golf hats when they play golf. Whether that’s a professional golfer or just your average club golfer. A golf hat has many different uses and there’s a few different types

Let’s take a look at a few of the reasons why golfers wear hats while out on the golf course.

Safety

Picture the scene. It’s mid-August, you’re stood on the twelfth tee and you’re waiting (yet again) for the group in front of you.

It’s 30 degrees, and the shenanigans of this group mean you’ve already been in the baking heat for nearly three hours. Good job you brought your favourite branded cap.

Having some decent headwear on summer’s hotter days is a godsend for most golfers searching for any form of extra shade when they play golf.

Keeping a cool head on the golf course is proven to improve your scores when playing golf. That goes for temperature as well as temper.

With technological advances in clothing as well as golfing hardware, you’ll find that a lot of golfing headwear now has UV protection.

This has obvious health and safety benefits if you’re spending five hours in the sun. Just a word of warning, choose your hat carefully for the weather.

If it’s hot, do yourself a favour and put a lightweight cap on. Old Tom Morris might’ve gone for a tweed cap in the colder climates of Scotland, but unless you’re traversing Carnoustie and it’s blowing a hoolie, you shouldn’t.

Alternatively, the hardier golfers among you might consider an extra layer when playing off the winter tees into frosty greens.

Keeping the heat in during the dark days of Jan and Feb makes golfing a lot more comfortable, and a lot more fun.

Style

Choosing what we wear to the course is our opportunity to show a bit of personality outside of our golfing ability – or lack of.

There are thousands of options for looking good (or not) on the course and these options extend to emulating the headgear of our favourite professional golfers on the PGA Tour.

Want to look as sharp as Rory McIlroy? Matching cap and polo shirt. Have a forehead especially prone to sunburn? Get the early 2000s look with a snazzy little visor. Got golf at midday and festival at 6? Go for a bucket hat, a la Joel Dahmen.

Golf hats are a great way of showing your personality on the course, just take Rickie Fowler’s bright orange effort or Greg Norman’s straw wide brim.

They’re also a fantastic way to draw attention away from that slice you thought you’d fixed by aiming left.

Getting a good-looking golf hat can complete a solid-looking outfit, hopefully giving you confidence on the first tee. Look good, feel good, play good. Right?

Functionality

If nothing else, golfing hats are a source of practicality. Golf is hard. Anyone who’s driven a Par 4 and then four-putted can testify to that.

A solid headwear choice can make the game fractionally easier. As we’ve discussed already, hats can shade you from the sun, but they can also improve your vision on the golf course and help you see the golf ball easier.

The last thing you want to be doing after you’ve just pured a 4 iron into a green is to be squinting up into the sky looking for your golf ball.

Utilising that extra bit of shade means being able to see the buttery draw you’ve just hit even better. As good a reason as any to wear a hat.

If you’re a long-time purveyor of golfing headgear, you’ll be more familiar with the functional advances in the hat section.

Some golf hats will have a handy little magnetic spot on the bill to keep your golf ball marker.

Very useful indeed, if like me you always seem to lose the only marker you own.

Sponsorships

One of the most common reasons that professional golfers wear hats is because of their sponsorship deals.

When watching the PGA Tour or DP World Tour, almost all of the players will be wearing a hat with a few logos on it.

From the club manufacturer they’re using, to the ball that they’re playing, to any other company outside of golf that wants to have their name in prime position on one of the best golfers in the world.

The PGA Tour players are being paid a serious amount of cash to have a few sponsors’ logos on their golf hat.

A golfers hat is one of the first things you will see when you’re watching a tour player on TV. For a brand, this is amazing exposure for them and so are more than happy to pay a player just to have their logo on the front or side of their cap.

Types Of Golf Hats

Baseball Caps

The most standard of the golf hats is the baseball cap. It’s what you’ll see 90% of professional golfers wearing when they’re out on the golf course.

This style of golf hat usually has an adjustable strap at the back and a curved front brim.

Some options will be fitted and so won’t need an adjustable feature.

A baseball cap can be made from different materials such as mesh for breathability. They also come in a range of colours and designs to fit a golfer’s style.

The golf hat also gives sun protection for the top of the head.

Tiger Woods is known for wearing a baseball-style hat.

Visor

Visors are also a common golf hat that players will wear. A visor golf hat is one that has an open top and a brim on the front.

They usually have either a velcro or adjustable strap at the back for easy adjustment.

The visor golf hat provides great breathability for a golfer’s head, however, there’s a lot of sun exposure as the top of the head is exposed.

Luke Donald is a good example of a tour player that loves a visor.

Bucket Hats

The bucket hat is a perfect choice for a lot of golfers. Especially over recent years, bucket hats have really become a popular choice for local golfers and even some professional golfers.

A bucket hat offers the best sun protection as it has a 360-degree brim to prevent any rays from getting to your neck.

Bucket hats usually are made from waterproof materials which makes them great for the rainy days we’re so used to in the UK.

Final Thoughts

Generally speaking, wearing a hat on the course is arguably one of the biggest factors in making sure a round of golf is as comfortable as possible.

It won’t turn you into a pro any more than that shiny new driver in your bag, but it’s probably worth taking out on the course with you.