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Remember when David Duval became a golf style icon?
It was the late 1990s and Duval and other PGA Tour pros started sporting futuristic-looking wraparound shades made by Oakley.
Those mostly frameless, space-age golf sunglasses received their fair share of ridicule...until countless golfers realized their benefits and started wearing them. Now, that style is part of the fabric of golf accessories.
In the hottest and brightest months of the year, wearing sunglasses becomes not just a fashion statement but a wise investment in the future of your eyesight. This is especially true of golfers, who spend hours under the sun's most intense rays each time they tee it up.
Personally, I've gone back and forth about golf sunglasses over the years. I used to avoid them entirely because I felt as though they distorted my field of vision, making it even tougher to strike a golf ball solidly than it already is.
But in recent years, I've worn them more and more often, especially as I've encountered a couple of models with golf-specific lenses (more on this in a moment) that I have not felt the need to take off when putting. That's another reason I have shied away from sunglasses, thinking they make it tougher to read greens.
The technology and build quality of golf sunglasses has made some strides recently, though, and I've had the opportunity to demo several pairs in recent months.
Here's what you need to know about buying the right pair of golf sunglasses.
3 important points to consider when buying golf sunglasses
1. Avoid polarized sunglasses on the course.
Polarized sunglasses are great if you're doing general outside activities on a sunny day. The heavy treatment of such lenses grants strong eye protection. But if you're engaging in an activity where depth perception is important - golf, for example - they are a hindrance because they flatten your field of vision, making it more difficult to see contours than with the naked eye or non-polarized sunglasses. Personally, I cannot play golf in them because I cannot read greens with them on. They also make me uneasy over full shots. Luckily, numerous brands make non-polarized golf sunglass lenses that will still protect your eyes during a round.
2. Weight matters.
One thing I hadn't considered before having the opportunity to try several different pairs of golf sunglasses was just how much difference a few grams can make. It makes sense - when you wear a pair of golf sunglasses for five hours or more, fatigue becomes a factor. Lighter-weight sunglasses may feel more brittle, but they may make a significant difference come the 9th, 18th or 36th hole of the day.
3. Think peripherally.
This might say more about my own personal preferences, but I feel like I need golf sunglasses that expand out beyond my typical field of vision if possible. If I catch the frame or even daylight at the edge of my field of vision, I'm likely to get distracted over a shot. You may not love the way aviator- or wraparound-style golf sunglasses look, but it might be a nuisance worth overcoming if it means you feel more comfortable playing in them.
Finally, many of the big golf sunglasses companies make several models for different style preferences and head shapes. For the sake of practicality, I'll focus on one model for each brand and provide links to more, in case your style choices and mine don't quite align. I'm confident that the overall quality of frames and lenses is going to be pretty consistent from model to model within each brand.
6 brands of golf sunglasses you should consider
USwing Mojing [personal favorite]
This Chinese golf sunglasses company gained notoriety when Phil Mickelson started wearing their frames, even in the rain. Pros like C.T. Pan and Michael Kim on the men's side and Rose Zhang on the women's side swear by them, too. USwing can fairly be considered top-of-the line; the Pro Series Golfer Elite model they sent me sells for a sobering $599.
I'm skeptical about most expensive golf gear, but they have taken up permanent residence in the sunglass case that hooks onto my golf bag. At just 21 grams, they're so light that they feel a bit delicate, but I take that as incentive to take good care of them. The lenses lend shocking clarity, they provide 100% UV400 protection and block 80% of blue light.
I realize that a pair of sunglasses that's as expensive as a brand-new driver is a tough proposition. Candidly, I don't know if I would pay that amount of my own money for them. But an argument can be made that if you're a hardcore golfer and plan to take good care of your USwings for years to come, they could go in the category of golf gear that is worth the (steep) investment.
Tifosi Optics [incredible value]
I'd heard of Tifosi golf sunglasses for years before finally trying a pair, and I feel silly for having waited so long. They sit at the complete opposite end of the price spectrum from the likes of USwing. Calling them "good, cheap golf sunglasses" does them a disservice. They are good golf sunglasses, full stop. No, they're not uber-light but they're not clumsily chunky, either. They are solidly made, low-cost workhorses that, at the very least, you might consider bringing on long-distance trips if you don't want to risk losing or breaking your more expensive pair away from home.
Sunglasses with Tifosi's Enliven Golf lens cost about $50. I personally love the $30, Wayfarer-like Swank XL model with stock lenses. Tifosi offers the most impressive value-priced golf sunglasses on this list.
Scheyden Eyewear [favorite mid-range option]
Golfers may not be particularly familiar with Scheyden, but pilots have been for years. The Huntington Beach, Calif.-based company has made sunglasses for aviators - including aviator sunglasses - for more than 20 years. Before entering the golf market, Scheyden did six months of testing to identify the right lenses to filter out light while providing clear images and fidelity for golfers trying to read green contours. As a result, their light and dark bronze lenses now protect the eyes of thousands of golfers, including pros like former Oakley icon David Duval, John Daly and several other PGA Tour Champions players.
The most popular golf style is the half-rim CIA Grabber, at $179. My personal favorite is the full-rim Looper (also $179), which tour caddies tend to wear. In addition to lens quality, the build quality of Scheyden's sunglasses stood out during my testing. Each pair is hand-made in Japan and feels substantial without seeming chunky or heavy. If you're capping your golf sunglasses budget around $200 (a reasonable number), you will be very happy with a pair of Scheydens.
Adidas Eyewear [solid value]
Adidas' long history as one of the preeminent sportswear brands makes its eyewear options worthy of a look, too. For golfers, the SP0083 is a nice full-rimmed option that doesn't break the bank, at $90 for the non-polarized lens that is best for golf. A nice design detail of this model is the cut-out ventilation ports positioned at your temples to help save some weight and keep you cool.
Rudy Project
Founded by Rudy Barbazza in 1985, Italy-based Rudy Project has specialized in sunglasses for runners and cyclists for most of its history. Among an extensive list of options, the Rydon ($269.99) model is available with a photochromic purple lens whose tint is tuned for golf. I found it to be a smart-looking option for those who like the half-frameless style.
Oakley
Cutting-edge style has been part of Oakley's mission ever since PGA Tour players started wearing their striking wraparound sunglasses in the 1990s. The contemporary version of this design is the Sphaera ($231), whose visor-like look with a high bridge provides full eye coverage, while Oakley's popular Prizm Golf lenses with a rose-colored base layer help contours stand out on the golf course. For a more traditional but still sporty look, the BiSphaera ($202) has the better-recognized half-rim design.
Other golf sunglasses brands to investigate
These six brands are far from the only ones golfers should consider. Maui Jim makes several models of sunglasses that are said to be golf-specific, but the fact that they're classified as polarized gives me pause. The same goes for Costa Del Mar sunglasses, which are primarily geared towards fishing and other outdoor pursuits. Many of their models use polarized lenses, so I wouldn't consider them an ideal fit for golf.
My go-to everyday pair of sunglasses is the Ray-Ban Wayfarer style I've worn since college. They look and feel great but are more lifestyle than golf-specific.
One brand of golf sunglasses I did not review for this article that might be worth checking out is RIA. They started in 2017 as an eyewear brand for racquet sports, but their new GolfHD+ lens is used by PGA Tour player Max Greyserman. If I have a chance to try RIA out, I will update this piece accordingly.
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Do you wear golf sunglasses? Let us know your preferred brand in the comments.
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