In Australia, according to Golf Australia, the game’s popularity grew by 21 per cent last year, as an extra 210,000 people took to the fairways.
Demographics like this, in a sport that has become increasingly style-conscious, were always going to catch the attention of the world’s fashion houses, which are now well and truly entrenched in a game that has been dominated for years by traditional golf apparel companies such as Nike, adidas, Puma, Footjoy and Oakley.
South African golfers Richard Sterne, left, Ernie Els and George Coetzee wearing shorts at the Alfred Dunhill Championship in Malelane, South Africa in 2019. Getty
The new kids on the block include Under Armour, Lacoste, Uniqlo, Bogey Boys, Hugo Boss, Castore, Lululemon, J Lindeberg, Travis Mathew and Birds of Condor.
Shorts for men are now commonplace on the course in the summer months and the days of skirts having to reach the ankle – or, later, the knee – are long gone for women.
No one was really surprised at the most recent Ryder Cup contest when Team US strode onto the first tee wearing hoodies by Ralph Lauren.
But don’t think it’s all plain sailing, particularly at private golf clubs. Nothing causes more heartache for their committees, or takes up more time in meetings, than the vexing subject of clothing on the course. Jeans are still not allowed at most private golf clubs, nor – for men – are T-shirts or running shorts. Women golfers are subject to far fewer regulations, although jeans are still a no-no.
Club committees realize they are treading a fine line here; helping the game to appeal to younger players while keeping some semblance of tradition and history.
Trend-setter: Rafael Nadal vs Diego Schwartzman at the Rod Laver Arena during the Australian Open in 2018. Alex Ellinghausen
Much of the clothing revolution has been led by the professionals, and it’s not just with golf. As soon as Spanish tennis champion Rafael Nadal turned up at the 2018 Australian Open in pink shorts and a sleeveless gray top – which happened to show off his shoulders and biceps beautifully – the tennis world was forced to adapt its clothing rules. If it was OK for Rafa, it had to be OK for tennis. (That said, Wimbledon is unlikely to relax its all-white policy any time soon; the official rules still state players must wear “suitable tennis attire that is almost entirely white”.)
Professional golfers – including Tiger Woods, Ricky Fowler and Justin Thomas among the men, and Sandra Gal, Paige Spiranac and Lexi Thompson among the women – now sport form-hugging outfits with tighter fits and bolder colors, which accentuate their athletic figures.
And no one was really surprised when, at the most recent Ryder Cup contest between the US and Europe at Whistling Straits, Team USA players strode onto the first tee wearing hoodies by Ralph Lauren.
“You have lifestyle apparel on one side, and you’ve got performance or athletic apparel on the other,” says Ryan Ellis, chief executive of the men’s lifestyle brand Travis Mathew. “[And] over the past 10 years, you’ve got athleisure, which bridges that gap.”