Tips for playing in heat

[mdrengl]

Yesterday I returned home from a wonderful trip to Pinehurst, NC. 4 rounds in 5 days is quite a bit of golf! 98 degrees and high humidity makes for a difficult 4 rounds though.

I had some trouble being able to swing the club with confidence when I'm sweating so much. I always feel as if I'm going to lose the club in my hand, and a few times I almost did. I used a towel to dry off my grip and non-glove hand before every shot, but even a few practice swings would be enough to make my grip slippery again. I went through 2 brand new gloves in the heat...

Can anyone recommend anything?

[feller010]

I sweat quite a bit myself, but never to the point where I was worried about losing my club. I'd say take your glove off between shots and try to keep it as dry as possible.

[Lange]

Drink lots of water, and shade your club grips

[Cheez-It]

I play out here in So Cal and it gets 95* and above. I take my glove off every shot and use my towel to whip my grip almost every time. Everyone has there own tricks.

Sounds like its a mental thing for you tho. If you sweat and worry about your swing chances are you wont feel comfortable and wont hit well.

Try to get early tee times. In the summer my tee times never get past 7AM.

[m11]

I play out here in So Cal and it gets 95* and above. I take my glove off every shot and use my towel to whip my grip almost every time. Everyone has there own tricks.

down here in florida it overcasts every afternoon. Going out at 3 or 4pm seems to be the way to go. The clouds block out the sun..and by the time you get down to 5 or 6 pm it gets relatively 'cool' out. The humidity is still up..but at least you dont have to deal with the sun beating down on you like you would if you were playing when the sun is fully out.

[dkinser86]

I love playing in the middle of the day. It seems that I have the entire course to my self. I live in So. Indiana, and in the summer we have heat indices around 105-110. I keep about 5-6 good gloves in my bag at a time and rotate them every couple of holes. Also, I find ways to air them out, such as attaching them to something outside my golf bag if i'm walking, or to the golf cart if i'm riding. Another trick that I use is to have a small container of baby powder in my bag. When you start to feel uncomfortable, sprinkle a bit on your hands. That seems to do the trick for me.

And as always bring plenty of water and gatorade to drink, and stay in the shade as much as possible, even if it means a bit longer of a walk.

[CG031]

Anything under 100 degrees doesn't really bother me as long as I have plenty of powerade, gatorade, vitamin water, water, etc.

[underparnv]

I'll be playing in Vegas in exactly 9 days. Here are some of my tips:

• Drink LOTS of water before, during and after your round
  
  
• Keep a damp towel nearby to wipe your hands down with. This may seem strange, but it will actually keep your hands a bit drier
  
  
• Apply liberal amounts of sun screen before and during your round
  
  
• Eat fruit or other healthy foods before and during your round
  
  
• Don't think about the heat! Simply concentrate on the shot at hand
  
  
• Bring a spray bottle and fill it with cold water. This seems to help cool me down if it's super hot out

I play in 100 degree weather all the time here in the Reno area too...so those tips have been put to good use by myself

[goblue107501]

Here is what I do when it is hot.

First, I use three gloves and rotate them each hole. I will hang them on the cart or my bag so any sweat will have a chance to dry. I have been using the same three gloves all summer and they are still good as new.

Second, I use a wet towel (handtowel size) to dry the sweat off my hands. Before I tee off I will go and get it wet with cold water, not dripping wet, just damp. Before every shot, I just grasp it with my hands and wipe off the sweat. The cool water makes you hands think that they are cool so they will not sweat for a few minutes. So when you approach your ball, just pick up the wet towel, check your yardage and figure out the club you want. If it is hot, by the time you pick up the club your hands will be cool and dry with no sweat. If they don't dry right away just wipe them off with a dry towel, they will still be sweat free. It the towel starts to dry out just get it wet at the next water cooler. It is also good to use it to wipe off your face and arms and you will feel a little cooler. On really hot days, I will wrap it around my neck or put it on my head to help keep the whole body feel cooler.

I played last Friday afternoon when it was 95+ with humidity. My hands never slipped, and the glove I put on was always dry and I never really felt that hot.

[Socrates]

Most people sweat too muich because they are not adequetly hydrated. This doesn't mean drink water while you play (which you should do) but more in the day before. Drinking wine or beer with dinner is only going to hurt you the next day in the heat. Salt tablets or just drinking sports drinks will help as well. Other than that, not too much you can do except wipe off your hands. I can't say I've ever had an issue and it's been 100+ for I think ~60 days in a row here now and I've played in the middle of the day with no issues unless I drank the night before or just didn't hydrate the sday before.

[jambalaya]

Bring at least three gloves and change to a dry one when one starts getting soaked. Bring extra towels and if the course has water jugs soak a towel with cold water, wring it out a bit, and put it around your neck. This is for when you get overheated and need a break. Very refreshing. Find shade whenever possible. Don't rush. Drink water.

[kafka01]

Today was the hottest day on the course for me this year and i had a tee time at 1pm. Over the whole day i drank about 6liters - the day before i took magnesium tablets to prevent muscle cramping (happens when i do sports and sweat a lot) and though i dont sweat a lot with my hands and after each shot i hanged my glove over the clubs to dry out i still had some problems with hitting it properly since you cant really dry your hands/gloves completly.

On the upside - my balls just fly crazy far :)

[ks8829]

Hydrate before, during and after the round. if your riding keep it cool with ice, bring plenty of golf gloves and a nice towel and even a wet towel with ice to cool off. Make sure you have sunscreen and a nice hat and sunglasses and don't forget to snack during the round.

[TinCupTampa]

Currently I have 7 gloves in my bag. Use a rotation and take them off while you are putting.

The heat in Florida can definately kill the lifespan of gloves.

[JaY_B]

Just a quick tip if you have sweaty hands, blow lightly on your hand (keep your hand close to your mouth) as this helps to dry up the sweat. In hot/humid rounds or even rounds where its raining I do this before and in between shots as I find it very effective and drying out my hands.

[chingali]

Lots of water for the 12 hours before you play and then at the very least 2 litres for each nine you play, preferably more than 3. And don't forget to wear a big wide brimmed hat. Also don't forget to drink plenty of water for the 12 hours AFTER you have played as well. If you find yourself with a splitting headache in the evening after you played guess what? You didn't drink enough water.

As for sweaty hands, carry a couple of towels with you and 3 or 4 gloves and keep rotating the gloves and hanging them on your bag to dry. If you can carry an extra towel and wet it as often as you can and hang it over the back of your neck between shots that helps too.

It gets plenty hot down here in Australia during summer!

[leftypro]

If you go through so many gloves have you ever thought of taking the glove off between swings to dry your hands with a towel?

[mdrengl]

If you go through so many gloves have you ever thought of taking the glove off between swings to dry your hands with a towel?

I do.

Thanks to everyone for the great tips!