Playing with the best golf gloves will improve any golfer’s game, whether you’re an amateur or a pro. Gloves are often overlooked compared to other golf equipment like clubs, the best golf shoes, and balls, but they are a vital piece of kit that belongs in any golf bag. To help you find the best pair for you, we’ve tested and “hand”-picked the most popular golf glove choices from the major brands, ranking them so you can know what’s right for your level of play.
A good golf glove will give players a secure grip on the club while preventing blisters and calluses, making the game more enjoyable, especially if you hit the green regularly. Additionally, a well-made glove gives a golfer a natural feel for the club, while still protecting the hand. A proper golf grip is deliberately light and free of tension, and most golfers wear one glove on his or her non-dominant hand. Confused? Read our guide on everything you need to know before buying a golf glove.
There are dozens of different types of gloves available — some are manufactured prioritizing supreme feel while others are designed for maximum grip in wet or damp conditions. It’s important to remember that the best golf glove for you can change based on the weather forecast or the frequency of your play. Read on to find our pick of the best golf gloves for all occasions.
What is the best golf glove?
The best golf gloves will have a spot-on fit, provide solid grip, and still last through plenty of swings. We found that the Titleist Players Flex golf glove hits all the right notes for comfort and quality. At $26, the Players Flex is as premium-feeling as you’d expect, with satin reinforcements on the cuff and thumb.
If you’re hoping to spend less, or perhaps you’re new to the green, the best budget golf glove is the $12 Callaway Dawn Patrol. While the leather isn’t as soft to the touch or as durable as the material used for higher-priced gloves, it gets the job done.
For players looking for a consistent grip despite sweat or damp conditions, we’re confident the FootJoy Weathersof won’t let your clubs slip. Plus the additional leather sewn into the thumb and palm means this glove will last for several rounds. A more extreme option is the FootJoy Rain-Grip, which are sold as a pair so that both hands will remain tacky on the club’s grip.
Shopping for golf equipment? Check out the best golf bags to carry on the green here, and the best golf shoes to keep you comfy.
Best golf gloves you can buy today
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The Titleist Players Flex is the best golf glove overall, striking the ultimate balance of good looks and comfort. When we first slipped this glove on, we couldn’t wait to hit the green. Netted satin panels across the back delivered top-notch comfort and mobility. The tanned cabretta leather was the most substantial we tested and the stitching held up swing after swing, lasting several rounds without damage.
The glove also rates high for style points, and the velcro closure operated easily and consistently. Because the leather seemed a bit thicker to us, we tended to take it off more for touchy shots around the green. But on full swings it provided great feel and control on the club without stretching out.
Beyond the great design that includes the iconic Titleist logo, we appreciate the smart look the glove provides. Titleist is among the most well-known golf brands, providing a full suite of golf balls, golf clubs, course attire and more.
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The Callaway Dawn Patrol is a well-made glove for the price. At $12, it’s among the most affordable gloves from one of the golf world’s leading brands. Callaway’s reputation for craftsmanship shows through, even in one of its least expensive products. It has more of a “pro” feel than we’d expect in this price range. We like how it includes an elastic band in the cuff comparable to the one found in the tour-quality models, which offered a thin, light and secure fit when we wore it for an entire round.
While we appreciate the clean, all-white look of the glove, we’re a bit wary of how many more games it will last. The perforations throughout the inner portion of the glove are helpful for palm perspiration but can wear down the leather over time. That said, wearing the Callaway logo gives players — especially newer ones — a sense of confidence in their game.
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Of all the best gloves on this list, the FootJoy StaSof is one of the options we’re most excited to add to our bag. Not only does the leather create a secure fit around our fingers, but the mesh lining the major knuckles offers ample stretch no matter how often we took it on and off. Although this isn’t a true wet-weather glove, it held its tackiness in damp conditions. Sometimes too much exposure to sweat or humidity wears down a golf glove’s material, but the StafSof held strong.
What makes this golf glove particularly attractive is the attention to detail. Elements like consistent zig-zag stitching, parallel perforations on the exterior side of the fingers and gold embroidered ring around the FootJoy logo elevate the design. At $24 it’s a higher-end offering from the brand but still a compelling alternative to the top-shelf gloves from TaylorMade, Callaway and Titlelist. Plus it’ll nicely complement a pair of FootJoy golf shoes.
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We’re big fans of the TaylorMade Tour Preferred (TP) golf glove design. TaylorMade has a huge roster of pro golfers wearing and using its equipment, making the brand’s products a popular choice among weekend warriors. The Tour Preferred’s leather is ultra-soft to the touch, which translated to a luxurious grip around our clubs. The glove gave us great feedback on all our shots, short and long.
The classy look makes this the one glove we might even wear in the clubhouse. But we felt the style came at the price of flexibility. The glove had a tight fit with little give, which could damage its durability when frequently taking it on and off. We wish it had a bit more stretch, especially around the knuckles. That said, the larger gaps for air between the fingers make up for the glove’s overall breathability, and the velcro closure is best-in-class.
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The Titleist Players golf glove is a top-choice on all major PGA tours, and is notably worn by Fedex Cup champion Patrick Cantley. In other words, consider this a go-to choice for serious golfers looking to play their best. We would use this glove in high-stakes rounds because of the superior feel and security. The cabretta leather is soft to the touch and quality Velcro keeps the glove snug.
The one shortfall of the Titleist Players golf is that we wouldn’t consider it a good glove for beginner players, or a good glove for practice. With its thin leather, it’s what golfer’s call a “feel” glove, which means it can be used to pick up on nuances while swinging with certain clubs or when taking specialty shots. As a result, this glove might not last many rounds, but the rounds you do play will be premium.
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Unlike the Titlelist Players, the FootJoy Weathersof is a great golf glove for practice.
Though it comes at a low price, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t plenty of good features that make this a great value. FootJoy claims its exclusive FiberSof provides a combination of soft feel and secure grip, and we agree with them. The glove is comfortable yet substantial, and the mesh across the knuckles improved comfort and breathability.
The FootJoy WeatherSof has added leather in the palm and thumb of the glove. This helped keep the slippage to a minimum, even after the glove got wet. The extra material also means this glove will hold up even in extended sessions at the driving range while protecting your hands from calluses.
In addition to white, the WeatherSof comes in all black giving you multiple style options, because there’s nothing wrong with looking good for practice. And if you want to talk about value, this one of the few golf gloves that are sold in two-packs at a lower cost per glove.
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Callaway’s top glove says you mean business when stepping up to the first tee. We were immediately impressed with the quality look and great craftsmanship seen around all the stiching. The premium cabretta leather felt exceptionally smooth to the touch, and the added elastic on the cuff creates a sophisticated fit.
The fantastic grip made us realize why this glove is a top choice on tour. Callaway touts its own “Griptac technology” and we noticed the added tackiness when we handled the club. The feedback through the swing and impact was among the most impressive we’ve seen from all the best golf gloves we tested.
We gave this glove extended play on the course, and it showed signs of long-lasting durability as impressive as any other Pro-level golf glove. Even when the glove turned damp, the grip strength felt satisfactory. The leather did not fray even in the stress points, and we could use this product for several rounds.
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The TaylorMade Stratus Soft is a winner for any player with sweaty hands or who often finds themselves on humid courses. The top of the hand is made of a breathable synthetic material that provides a good amount of stretch as well as airflow. The palm is made of fine leather and was the softest-feeling we tested. Out of the package it almost felt like they were too soft to play golf with. All the glove’s micro perforations kept my hand cool while playing, and I found no need to remove it for chips and pitches when I needed maximum feel. The cuff and the velcro closure were secure and comfortable, too.
Those perforations impact durability though. In our experience, small holes such as the ones found on the palm-side of the Status Soft are prone to wearing through after extended wear or facing particularly wet weather. Still, this is a good golf glove if comfort and breathability are your top priority. Because sweaty hands shouldn’t get in the way of your game.
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Titleist’s entry-level model still provides many of the same great features of the brand’s higher-end gloves. The leather of the Titleist Perma Soft golf glove is soft yet durable, and the attention to detail showed through with the quality stitching and smart seam placement. This glove also earned high marks for durability, showing almost no signs of wear even after an extended driving range session.
The reason we don’t rank this glove higher is the price. For a few dollars more we recommend you upgrade to the Titleist Players Flex or spend less on the Callaway Dawn PatrolThat said, you won’t be disappointed in the performance of Permasoft. The mesh panel helps the glove adjust to fit perfectly on our knuckles while the velcro closure provides optimal security.
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The best golf gloves for rain aren’t the easiest to test because, well, it means going out in the rain. The starter in the clubhouse shook his head at us when we went out in a steady drizzle to play nine holes. But the weather can be unpredictable, and some players don’t mind wet weather. In that case, the FootJoy Rain Grip gloves are a necessity.
The gloves go on very comfortably, though the suede is a totally different feel than leather. Once they started to get wet there was an “aha” moment — the palms of my hands became tacky when activated by moisture. The moment of truth, taking a full swing, was a success. While playing in the rain provided other challenges, at least holding on to the club wasn’t one of them. We still needed a towel to wipe away extra moisture, but when damp, we could swing with complete control.
As a thoughtful touch the FootJoy Rain Grip gloves feature a sewn-in tee holder on the wrist, as well as snap-on ball markers. Placing your wet gloved hand in your pocket is not easy while looking for a tee or a coin while you play.
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The Under Armour Iso-Chill golf gloves aren’t made by a brand typically associated with golf, but if you’re a fan of the Under Armour’s sports attire you’ll appreciate the athletic look of these gloves. In fact, for practice or as a back-up glove we would happily keep this glove in our bag. There is extra mesh sewn into the back panel that makes the glove extra comfortable and the sharp Under Armour logo provides an element of style.
However, serious golfers will be disappointed in the lifespan of the Iso-chill glove. We were underwhelmed with the quality of the stitching compared to the craftsmanship of the premium brands. While the fit was comfortable at the start, it quickly stretched out of form and became unreliable. But we did like the look enough to use in a pinch.
How to pick the best golf glove for you
In order to pick the best golf glove for you, you’ll need to consider your needs. The most important factor is sizing. Experienced golfers usually know their size, but beginners should start with a sizing chart found at most pro shops.You can also use a digital sizing chart like the one on FootJoy’s website (opens in new tab), though we’ve found sizes can vary brand-to-brand. All the models we tested come in a full range of sizes, including cadet specs with shorter finger lengths.
Also consider the level of your play. Low handicappers usually appreciate the finer leather found in more expensive feel gloves, however those new to the game might be better served with a glove that’s more affordable yet durable. Similarly, a player who spends significant time on the driving range should look for a glove that won’t deteriorate after a few hundred swings.
Unless it’s raining, playing with two gloves is not common. Wearing a golf glove on your non-dominant or lead hand is preferred. The importance of a secure grip with your top hand cannot be underestimated.
Lastly, the weather you usually play in can affect your golf glove choice. Wet conditions require a high level of tackiness, while hot and humid conditions call for a high level of breathability. There are even gloves designed for cold-weather play.
How we test the best golf gloves
There are three key factors we consider when testing the best glove gloves:
Comfort and fit
Serious golf players look for their golf gloves to conform quickly to their hand, as well as get on and off easily. Good ventilation and solid Velcro connection help a player forget they even have a glove on.
Durability
This is the hardest category to test because it requires a lot of ball striking. However, we understand it might be the most important to our readers who are looking for the best value, knowing that their purchase will last them a long time. We monitored how well they held up after multiple rounds and practice sessions, even after being put away while still damp from use.
Playability
What we look for in terms of playability are golf gloves made with the finest leather that provides great feedback to your hands, whether you hit it pure or a little funky. We expect to pay a little more for a glove with top quality leather, but it’s definitely worth it for lower handicap players. Beginners will benefit from lower priced options, but shouldn’t sacrifice a good fit and durability.
