15 Best Gifts for Golfers in 2024 | Reviews by Wirecutter - Weifang Golf Accessories Group Co.,Ltd

By Samantha Schoech

Samantha Schoech is a writer focusing on gifts. She spends her time finding things that combine quality, beauty, usefulness, and delight.

The world is awash in golf-themed novelty gifts and corny “tee” shirts, but according to the many avid golfers we polled for this article, that stuff never appears on anyone’s list. What true links lovers really want is golf gear that will make their game better, or at least more fun. We asked putters from California to New York (plus Ohio, South Carolina, and Florida) to come up with a list of golf gifts that they would actually use.

Highlights include the best golf balls we know of, sunglasses that enhance visibility, and an excellent range finder.

Is your gift recipient an equal-opportunity hobbyist? We’ve also gathered our favorite gifts for pickleball players, gifts for gardeners, and gifts for runners.

This lightweight, 2-pound bag holds up to seven clubs—not a full set of 12 or 14, but enough for putting practice or driving-range visits—and comes with a foldable stand to keep it upright.

There isn’t always time for the full 18 holes with all the trimmings. When your golfing giftee is simply headed to the driving range or trying to get in a little putting practice, they don’t need to lug around a full set of clubs. Besides, odds are, they already have a full-size bag. The Orlimar Pitch ’n Putt Lightweight Stand Carry Bag is the 2-pound alternative to the standard golf bag, which can weigh upwards of 8 pounds empty. Senior editor Caitlin McGarry gave one to a frequent player, and it was a big hit. It holds up to seven clubs in a divided main compartment, and it features an accessories pocket, a water-bottle holder, a carrying strap, and, of course, a folding tension stand to keep it upright.

These golf balls, from the historic Titleist company, are beloved by professional golfers and weekend warriors alike for their renowned consistency and quality control.

Good golfers, bad golfers, and in-between golfers will always and forever need more balls. Give them the industry standard. Titleist Pro V1 Golf Balls are used by Professional Golfers’ Association pros such as Sahith Theegala and Jin Hee Im, as well as millions of non-ranked players around the world (including staff writer Samantha Schoech’s stepfather, handicap 5, thank you very much). Titleist has been making golf balls since 1935, and these particular balls are beloved for their soft feel, low long-game spin, high short-game spin, and midflight superiority. One needn’t have a long or short game to trust that they’re great balls for amateurs and experts alike.

The polyester-spandex blend of this pullover hoodie layers comfortably over a polo and is stretchy enough for the full range of motion. It’s a great option to keep early morning chill at bay.

Peter Millar is a big name in golf clothing, and according to reviews and the players we polled, the Peter Millar Pine Performance Hoodie is almost universally loved for its comfortable and casual style that doesn’t look too sloppy or feel restrictive. The slim-styled hoodie carries a hefty price tag, but it’s made from a soft polyester jersey that wicks moisture and provides four-way stretch to accommodate even the most robust swing. It’s available in eight muted colors, and though it might not be warm enough when the Pebble Beach fog rolls in, it makes an ample second layer for brisk-morning tee times.

Made from a single piece of precision-cut cabretta leather, these breathable, flexible golf gloves come in both men’s and women’s sizes and a variety of attractive colors.

If your giftee wears a glove—and many golfers do—note that gloves wear out rather quickly, depending on how often someone hits the links. Deputy director of social and community Julia Bush’s “golfiest friend,” who plays at Dyker Beach in Brooklyn, New York, likes the handsome Asher Evergreen Golf Gloves. They’re made from cabretta leather, a particular sheep leather that is known for softness and flexibility and snugly molds to a player’s hand to improve grip and prevent blisters. The gloves also hold up better to use (and abuse) than cheaper, non-leather versions. The gloves are available in nine pastels and six sizes.

This golf-ball marker magnetizes to a bobby-pin-like hair clip so it’s nearly impossible to misplace.

Sure, a golfer can mark their ball’s spot on the putting green with a penny, but golf is a classy game and calls for classy accessories. And according to editor Signe Brewster’s mom, who plays golf all winter in Palm Springs, California, a handy clip-on is best. The magnetic piece in the Sierra Madre Ball Marker Hair Clip not only marks a putter’s ball position, but its triangle shape also helps them find and keep their line, which aids aim and alignment. But the best part is that it magnetizes easily to the included gold-toned barrette, so it’s always at the ready.

This reliable midrange model with 6x magnification and laser-guided pin acquisition helps golfers read the course and improve their strategy.

Laser rangefinders measure the distance between a golfer and their target. Some models, the Callaway 300 Pro Laser Rangefinder included, also calculate the slopes and angles between two points. The final word on whether golfers need rangefinders is contentiously debated—they aren’t allowed on the PGA Tour—but some players find them helpful. Senior staff writer Rachel Cericola’s husband uses the popular and favorably reviewed Callaway 300 Pro Laser Rangefinder faithfully. It isn’t the cheapest or fanciest model, but it is a solid midpriced option that offers 6x magnification at a range of 5 to 1,000 yards, a buzzer to indicate when the laser locks on to the desired target, and slope technology to measure inclines. It’s also waterproof and approved for tournament play.

These nearly universally flattering, affordable sunglasses are polarized with high-contrast lenses for seeing the course in detail.

Goodr’s The OGs have been one of our cheap-sunglasses picks for a while because they’re versatile, unisex sunglasses that work on almost any face, regardless of size or shape. Goodr’s Three Parts Tee sunglasses are specialized for golf with brown-gradient, polarized high-contrast lenses intended to aid visual perception of the slope and texture of the course. Looking for something flashier? They also come in a version with white frames and pink lenses.

This beautiful, perfect-bound quarterly journal covers all things golf and is collected by the golf-obsessed worldwide.

There are golf magazines meant to sell you supposedly game-enhancing doodads or to lure you to expensive destination courses, and then there is The Golfer’s Journal, a quarterly compendium of photography, stories, profiles, and advice. A subscription also grants digital access to every article the journal has ever published, plus discounts on merchandise. Each issue is a full-color keepsake worthy of collection.

This insulated drawstring shag bag stays upright and holds six-dozen balls or roughly six bottles or cans.

The rugged Jones Ranger shag bag—that’s a bag for holding golf balls and, often, liquid refreshments—has an insulated liner, a sturdy rubberized bottom that keeps it upright, a drawstring closure, and exterior ripstop fabric. Capable of holding 72 balls or six beverages, it’s an ideal companion on the course or after, depending on the club’s policy. It comes in nine different colors and can be personalized with text, a monogram, or a logo. One golf enthusiast we interviewed takes one bucket-list golf trip a year; on this year’s holiday to the Pacific Northwest, he had a few of these monogrammed as gifts for his buddies.

Rugged, small, and loud (but not overly so), with battery life sure to withstand at least 18 holes, this handy mini speaker clips to bags or carts.

It’s nice to have some musical accompaniment during a leisurely trip through 18 holes—as long as you’re not interrupting someone else’s swing or breaking course rules. The rugged little clip-on JBL Clip 3 is not one of our Bluetooth speaker picks, but it makes the grade for a day of golf because it’s lightweight, and the carabiner-style metal clip attaches easily to a cart or golf bag. It pairs easily with a phone or tablet, it offers about 10 hours of play time, and it’s waterproof should one get caught in a squall on the course.

This magnetized microfiber towel sticks to carts, bags, and clubs and absorbs 400 times its weight in moisture.

Whether they’re wiping down their clubs, balls, or faces, players always need a towel at the ready. The generously cut microfiber Ghost Golf Magnetic Towel holds 400 times its weight in water and has a corner carabiner for clipping to carts and bags. But the best part is a magnet on the corner that allows golfers to swiftly scoop up the towel with an iron. It comes in 10 colors and is machine washable (but doesn’t do well in the dryer). One golfer shared that it was particularly useful at public courses, where towels aren’t provided gratis.

This cotton cap is the official caddy cap of the Masters—and a certified swagger piece.

Instantly recognizable to any golf fan, the Masters Green Caddy Hat is worn only by caddies on the famed and exclusive Augusta National Golf Club. It’s 100% cotton with an adjustable brass slide in the back. The impressive part, though, is having it at all, since one can get the hat only in person, at the course. MMOGolf reliably and repeatedly purchases them annually at the Augusta National pro shop and resells them online.

Keep track of visits to the 50 most famous courses in the US with this scratch-off poster.

The 50 Best Golf Courses in the USA Scratch Off Poster serves as both a memento and a visual bucket list. Once your gift recipient visits a course, they can scratch off the corresponding lottery-ticket-style wax covering to reveal a full color photo of the course. The poster includes top greens from Friar’s Head in New York to the Emerald Course at Wailea in Hawaii. It’s perfect for anyone who travels to play golf or wants to.

This scorecard holder fits in a back pocket and allows golfers to leave their phones off the links.

According to the avid golfers we spoke to, people are walking the courses more than ever after the pandemic. And since phones on the course are considered gauche, many players are turning back to analog score cards. The simple and stiff Rawhyd Leather Golf Scorecard Holder keeps paper cards from getting rumpled as they glide in and out of back pockets.The 5-by-4-inch bifold holder comes with 50 scorecards, a slot to hold a credit card or ID, and a pencil loop, but no pencil.

Culled from over a century of reporting, this book collects the best golf stories, moments, and tournaments in the game.

Collected from more than 100 years of New York Times reporting on men’s golf, the 100-page Golf’s Greatest Moments book features stories by Masters co-founder and golf legend Bobby Jones, dramatic tournament stories, obituaries, and in-depth features, all on reprinted newspaper pages. It’s bound in soft, green faux leather, and you can have the cover personalized at no extra cost.

We love finding gifts that are unusual, thoughtful, and well vetted. See even more gift ideas we recommend.

This article was edited by Hannah Morrill and Jennifer Hunter.

Samantha Schoech

Except for the time she gave a boyfriend her mother’s old toaster for Christmas, staff writer Samantha Schoech has a reputation as an excellent gift giver. She lives in San Francisco with two teens, two cats, a geriatric betta fish, and a bookseller husband. Her first book of short stories, My Mother’s Boyfriends, is coming out in 2024.

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