Whether collarless polos are accepted or not is still a murky grey area at most golf clubs. For Women & Golf, the collar-free trend is welcomed with open arms, but what do you think?
Collarless polos caused quite a stir when they first came on the scene, and whether they’re accepted or not is still a murky grey area at most golf clubs. For Women & Golf, the collar-free trend is welcomed with open arms, but what do you think?
By Charlotte Ibbetson
Fast becoming a recurring topic du jour, modernising the dress code is something Women & Golf have talked about time and time again in the great debate of how to get more people into golf. By no means do I think that scrapping the traditional dress code will solve all of our problems and see hordes of women rush to the fairways, but I certainly think it will help.
One such way that we’re seeing the dress code evolve is the introduction of collarless polo shirts, donned by the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Brooks Koepka, Melissa Reid and Michelle Wie, to name just a few. We even saw Paula Creamer sporting a slogan-tee at this year’s Evian Championship, reading “Kiss my putt” (which, for what it’s worth, I LOVED).
But it seems that the new trend has caused a stir amongst golf clubs, and whether going collar-free is acceptable or not continues to be a bone of contention.
To take a really simplistic view of it, as long as people look smart on the golf course, is the playing and participation not the most important bit? I’m not suggesting that we all wear what we want on the golf course – I do believe that we need some form of dress code to uphold the etiquette that makes the game what it is – but if someone is more comfortable without a collar, then, so what?
Does the issue really sit with the fact that we seem to have blurred the lines between standards and traditions? Yes, you should dress smartly on the golf course, but why should you feel uncomfortable just because “it’s what we’ve always worn”?
I honestly don’t know what the ‘official’ rules are at the clubs I play at. I’ve worn collarless polos plenty of times without so much as a flinch from anyone else, then I’ve worn them at the same club and been met with questions of whether it’s allowed. So I am genuinely interested to find out from our readers – are collarless polo shirts permitted at your golf club? Please let me know by emailing [email protected].
