Winter Golf Tips

Winter is well and truly here and if you are playing golf in Melbourne at the moment you are certainly facing the challenges of winter golf. Most courses at the moment are wet and the temperatures around the city have been chilly to say the least. These types of conditions pose certain types of challenges to golfers and golfers need to be able to adjust and adapt their golf game to ensure they still play good golf during the winter months. Below I will outline some basic strategies that you can use to help with the challenges of playing golf in the colder months.

         Staying warm and dry: This is arguably the most important piece of the winter golf puzzle. If you are not comfortable when you are playing the game you are going to struggle to score well. Making sure you are dry and warm and still able to swing freely is extremely important. I would suggest you invest in some high quality, golf specific, wet weather clothing. Wet weather golf clothing has the benefit of keeping you warm and dry as well as being light enough and with a large enough cut to not restrict your golf swing. Being rugged up like the picture may keep you warm but you will struggle to swing the club effectively. Investing in good quality, golf specific, winter clothes will help your game.

      The golf ball doesn’t go as far: Unfortunately, when the air is cold and the golf ball is cold, the golf ball does not fly as far as it would in warmer conditions. You need to take this into consideration when you are choosing your club on the course. The majority of golfers under club on the golf course normally and in the colder months, this problem is magnified. Make sure you choose enough club when approaching the green to get you to the flag at least. The ground is soft so the ball won’t roll as far as usual and the cold air reducing the carry on all shots. Make sure you get the ball to the hole.

      Grip and traction is important: Being able to keep your balance and hold on to the club securely while swinging is very important in winter golf. Make sure your golf spikes are new and clean when you are playing in the wet. Slipping while you are swinging makes it impossible to hit good golf shots so make sure you replace your spikes regularly and keep them clean with a tee during the round. Good quality, good condition and dry grips are also important for good golf. The grip is your only contact with the club so you need to make sure it is good quality contact. Replace and clean your grips often and make sure they are dry when you are playing. Having a dry towel is critical for wet weather golf so make sure you keep it dry under your umbrella or under the hood of your bag. It is also a good idea to carry a couple of spares in case one gets too wet.


These are some basic tips and ideas for playing your best golf during the winter months. If you have any specific questions or problems please feel free to comment and I will answer them as best I can.

Until next time,

Brent