Winter Golfin’ Blues

First the bad news: Fall has officially faded away, leaving our favorite links covered in ice and snow just about everywhere (Florida and Arizona golfers excepted). But even with spring seemingly an eternity away, the news isn’t all that bleak, because even if you don’t have the time and money to travel to a warmer climate right now, you can still earn your winter golf stripes on the cheap!

If you’re brave (or crazy?) enough to face the cold, I promise you won’t regret it. There’s something about being out in the elements, alone on the course or with a few of your closest friends, and living to tell the tale that makes it all worthwhile. Just make sure you take a few precautions to ensure you escape the sting of frostbite and keep your extremities intact:

• Wear lots of layers – You’ll need to find a balance between warmth and mobility, but the days of down-filled parkas are a thing of the past. There’s plenty of thinner, thermal fabrics that will keep your warm without restricting your swing.
• Protect your noggin, pinkies & piggies – Humans lose the most body heat through their heads, so make sure you’ve got something covering your cranium at all times. You’ll also want to keep your hands warm & dry, so stock up on some cold weather golf gloves and keep a towel and some handwarmers in your golf bag. If you find the extra padding of the winter gloves interferes with your grip, you can take your gloves off before each shot, but be sure to slap ’em right back! Invest in some insulated socks and keep your feet dry at all costs, too.
• Change ball colors – Common sense, but since so many players only use white golf balls during the regular season, you may need to make a special effort to get some orange or yellow golf balls before headin’ out to the course.

Speakin’ of balls, you’ll notice that the same golf ball will perform differently in the cold than it did back in August. Since the air is denser in winter, your ball will harden and be more difficult to hit, so think about playing a low compression golf ball to offset this issue.

~Scratch

PS: Have any experience playing in the snow? I’d love to hear your stories!