Must haves when flying to play golf.

[wharfrat]

I travel to play golf quite a bit but almost always in my car. If you saw the back of my car you would understand why I never forget anything. My car is like my hiding spot for all the things I buy and don't want the wife to find. I'm about to fly to Oregon and was wondering what are some of everybody's "don't leave this behind" items?

[ALo314]

6 minutes ago, wharfrat said:

I travel to play golf quite a bit but almost always in my car. If you saw the back of my car you would understand why I never forget anything. My car is like my hiding spot for all the things I buy and don't want the wife to find. I'm about to fly to Oregon and was wondering what are some of everybody's "don't leave this behind" items?

I'm about to fly to Oregon as well, next Saturday. I'm interested to hear what others have to say.

 

New bottle of Ibuprofen. More socks than you think. 

[DaveP043]

I haven't been to Oregon, but I spent 10 days playing in Scotland earlier this summer.  To me, flexibility is the key, you need to be able to handle a variety of less-than-ideal conditions.  I'm guessing this would be wind and rain in Oregon, perhaps temperature variations too.  So pack your wet-weather stuff, including waterproofs, umbrella, rain gloves, and at least two pairs of waterproof shoes.  For temperature variations, a number of lighter layers are generally better than heavier clothing.  I imagine you can buy pretty much anything else you need once you get there, if you've forgotten something.  I also pack a small luggage scale, to make sure my golf bag isn't overweight when coming home.  

[Snowmonkeys1310]

This is a pretty open-ended question. It depends on how many rounds you're playing, where you're playing, etc. It is extremely easy to overpack and that doesn't do you any favors. Some thoughts though.

Backbone: if you've got a soft shell cover for your bag get a backbone to protect your clubs.

Protect your clubheads. Take the head off of any adjustable club you have. This will help protect your clubs and your shafts.as the longer clubs are the most vulnerable when travelling. If you bought an adjustable club it should have come with a torque wrench, and all torque wrenches, to my knowledge, are interchangeable. When doing this be mindful of the screws. I put the head of the club, with the screw still in the head, in the headcover itself. I put each headcover in a Ziploc bag (some can be two to a bag while others need their own) to make sure everything stays together. I have 4 clubs I do this with when I travel. All of those clubheads, which are inside their headcovers, that are inside 1 gallon Ziploc bags, fit inside the long pocket on the side of my golf bag. This may sound like a lot, but having a club get broken is an expensive thing I don't want to deal with, especially while travelling. No one wants to go on a golf trip and not have their driver, 3-wood, etc.

Shoes/Spikes. If you're going to play somewhere wet you might want to think about a 2nd pair, otherwise 1 will do. If you play with soft spikes it's not a bad idea to change your spikes/bring extras (Amazon has little packages of spikes). If you're bringing extra spikes then it's worth bringing a cleat wrench.

Balls. You can definitely bring too few and you can absolutely bring too many As a rule, if there's a ball in your bag you found that you wouldn't play take it out. It's dead weight when you check your bag, and, if you have a caddie it'll be dead weight for them to carry around. If you like playing new balls/ones you can pick up in a pro shop, or intend to while you are travelling, don't bring too many.  

Clothes. Pack strategically. Make sure you're comfortable when you play. If it's going to be windy, cold, etc. bring the right options. If you're tight on space wear pants on the plane and throw a pullover in your carry on.

Suncreen, bug spray,etc. As a fair-skinned individual with a subscription for sunscreen on Amazon (because I use so much of it) I know how important this stuff is. That being said, you can buy sunscreen wherever you are going at roughly the same price you can at home. There are some exception to this (e.g., Hawaii), but make this the last thing you include, if there's room. It's easily replaceable.

Ziploc bags. No reason other than they can be very useful to have when you travel and take up virtually no space. Throwing an extra couple in your bag is generally a good idea. 

Edited August 31, 2023 by Snowmonkeys1310
Wording

[alfriday101]

Keep in mind that luggage does get delayed or lost sometimes.  

 

When I travel for golf, I pack some essentials in a carry on.  One pair of golf shoes, a couple of changes of clothes, rain top and pants, layers for different weather conditions, gloves, etc.  Enough to get by for a couple of days if the golf bag or suitcase doesn't show up.  

 

Last time I went to Oregon, I shipped my clubs so I didn't have to worry.  I received word they were at the course a day before I left for the airport.  Last time I went to Scotland, my clubs weren't pick up by the shipping company and I had to check my clubs.  My clubs arrived, but one member of our party had his delayed for three days.  He used rental clubs, which were fine.  But he had to buy or borrow all the other stuff.  It's easier to just plan ahead and fill up a carry on.    

[CaddyShacked]

Some great advice has already been provided on what to bring, but a few other travel tips:

• Make a packing list of all the things you need to bring.  Add it on your phone in your Notes app so that you can refine it over time or make versions based on the length/type of trip (e.g. warm weather trip with multiple rounds vs quick turnaround single round trip)
  • It'll be helpful to make sure you don't forget anything as well as make sure you don't accidentally leave it at your destination
• Scout your destination for any golf shops in the area.  Sometimes when at resorts they can really gouge you on prices for things like balls or gloves in case you forget anything.  
  • Good to have backup options in case you leave something behind or something breaks on your trip
• Look into putting an AirTag in your bag.  It can really help tracking down lost luggage.
  • United Airlines also added a feature in their app that shows where your bag is scanned at each handoff between initial check, baggage handlers, etc that I found helpful to know if your bags are at luggage pickup or still on the plane