You’ve made the decision to get out on the golf course… that’s great news! I’m going to assume you’ve already got your golf clubs, so now we need to make sure you have all the golf essentials to take out on the course.
Perhaps you’re wondering what on earth people carry around in their golf bags, or just looking for a quick reminder to make sure you’ve got everything you need. Well, let’s take a look at what you’ll need…
(For this article, I am going to assume you already have some golf clubs and a golf bag)
Golf Balls
Lots of them. You’re going to lose a bunch when you first start so make sure you’ve got plenty in the bag. We even put together a list of the best golf balls for beginners.
A Sharpie
You need to mark your golf balls so you 100% know it’s your golf ball you find after hitting it into the trees. Adding little dots, your initials, circles round the numbers or any other creative way you can think of. As long as you KNOW it’s yours, you are all good. Plus you can draw a line on the ball to help you line up your putts, just make sure it is a straight line using the tool suggested below.
Ball Line Drawing Tool
Adding a straight line on your ball is a great help for lining up putts, something like this is always great to have in the bag, plus it comes with a sharpie.
A Ball Marker
When you are on the green you can mark and lift your ball to clean it and line the putt. Also to get it out of the way and make sure your playing partners don’t hit your ball when they are putting. Now, you need to have something to mark it with, so you know where to put the ball back down.
Most golf clubs have their own ball markers, so you’ll likely be able to pick one up at the club. But I tend to save the logoed markers for special courses I play. A bit of a collector’s item.
You can grab some relatively cheap markers, like these poker chip markers, or there has been a rise in beautiful custom markers out there recently, this “Ticket To The Birdie Show” marker is one of my favorites (slightly ironic as I rarely get birdies).
Divot Repair Tool (pitch mark repair tool)
When the ball lands on the green it leaves a little pitch mark or indent. You should ALWAYS repair that. Otherwise, the greens would be covered in little bumps. You’ll need a little divot repair tool to do that.
There are a ton of options out there, just like this one.
Also, so many golfers don’t actually repair the pitch marks in the right way, here is a quick tutorial.
Tees
You want to make sure you have plenty of tees, and if you are going to be hitting drivers and irons off the tee, you’ll need different sizes as well. Short tees for the irons and longer tees for the driver. There has been a rise in bamboo tees as well, which are better for the environment. Keeping plastic off the golf courses is probably a good thing.
Towel
A clean ball and clean clubs will help you get much cleaner strikes and better ball flights, so make sure you have a golf towel attached to your bag. After each shot, give your club a wipe down, clean your ball before you putt and at the start of each hole as well. I would recommend grabbing a couple of golf towels, for two reasons… Firstly, when it rains, I suggest you take two towels – the extra one to dry your hands. And secondly, if you’re playing two days in a row and the first day you have a mud-covered towel, well that isn’t ideal for cleaning your clubs on day 2.
Umbrella
Never get caught out on the course in the middle of a rain shower without an umbrella, so make sure you grab one now. Spending the next few hours soaked through doesn’t make for fun golf. My advice, is don’t skimp on the umbrella. I would go for a double canopy (helps with not turning your umbrella inside out) and big size, for optimal coverage, keeping you dry.
Club Cleaner
These little brushes help keep your clubs clean. The wire brush is to keep irons clean and the soft brush for your driver, 3 wood, 5 wood etc. After each shot, give the club face a brush and remove all the mud off the face and out of the grooves (if left on there it can dramatically effect your shots).
Golf Glove x 2
If you’ve been practicing on the range, then you likely already have a golf glove. My suggestion is to always have a spare golf glove in the bag. If one gets wet or gets a hole in it, you want a spare glove ready.
There are gloves specifically designed for wet weather too, and cold conditions as well.
Socks
A friend once told me that he always carries a spare pair of socks, in case his feet get wet. “A fresh pair of socks at the turn (9th-10th hole) feels amazing” he said… Even if you only change them at the end of the round, driving back home is much more comfortable. And he’s not wrong.
Waterproof Jacket
Never get caught on the course in the rain without a waterproof. Being soaked through for 4 hours isn’t fun, and it doesn’t lead to great golf, make sure that doesn’t happen to you. For some reason, golf brands seem to charge a lot for a waterproof jacket. I know this is a, you get what you pay for scenario. However, if you don’t intend to make a habit of playing in the rain week in and week out, then spending a fortune on a waterproof jacket might not be what you want to do. This is why it’s no surprise the waterproofs from Inesis, have had such great reviews and I recommend you check them out.
Suncream
The opposite problem of the waterproof jacket… the sun is out and you’re out there for at least 4 hours. If you are anything like me, you are going to cook out there. Make sure you have some sun cream.
Pencils
You are going to have to mark your scorecard, so make sure you’ve always got a pencil or pen to hand to do so.
Golf App
There are a bunch of golf apps that will allow you to keep your score, work out your Stableford points for you and even tell you the distance to the hole. All of which is super useful to have. My current favorite app is Golf Game Book, but Hole19 and GolfShot are also very good.
Valuables Pouch
When it’s pouring down with rain, you’ve had a terrible round of golf, you’re next to your car, do you know what the most difficult thing to find in your bag is…? Yes, your car keys. Also, not all golf bags are waterproof, you don’t want your phone and wallet getting wet.
Grab a little bag that your valuables can go in, that way, it’s easy to find at the end of the round and the stuff stays dry.
Accessories Pouch
Trying to keep some kind of organization in the golf bag can be tough. Throw your ball marker into a pocket and it somehow disappears for weeks, even months on end. This is why I like to have a little bag for a selection of tees, divot repair tools, and ball markers.
Drinks & Snacks
4 hours of golf is a long time without food and water, and without it, fatigue will set in and take that great round you’re having and turn it into that time you almost hit your best ever score.
Tip: Clean Out Your Golf Bag Every Now & Then
I will say, every now and then, just make sure to go through and clean out your bag. It’s often quite surprising what you’ll find in there, it kind of turns into a bag that Mary Poppins would be proud of.
Nothing worse than finding a rotting banana that you forgot to eat. More likely you’ve collected golf balls and found that your lugging around 27 of them… probably not necessary. Old snack wrappers can seemingly fill up pockets of the golf bag too.
There you have it, our golf essentials list, making sure you have everything you need when out on the course.
Make sure you check out the other articles from our beginner series:
- The Rules Of Golf – The Beginners Guide
- Golf Etiquette For Beginners
- Golf Terms For Beginners – Learning The Language Of Golf
- Golf Dress Code For Beginners
- Stableford Scoring – The Complete Guide To Golf’s Popular Format
- Best Irons For Beginners
- Best Golf Balls For Beginners
Also, if you haven’t already signed up for our FREE golf community, make sure to do that now! All the golf chat you could want awaits, along with competitions, giveaways, special offers and more!
