IN THE BAG
By Ken Van Vechten
A big part of our love for the game is the places it can take us. And where we go, our clubs go, and when dropping seven bills on a custom-shafted driver, another $1800 on irons, a number of Mercedes-equivalent payments on the rest of the ensemble, our clubs need to get there intact.
Swaddle ’em up.
I’m sure we’ve all seen a bag fly down the oversized baggage chute clad only in its provided – and wholly unprotective – rain cover. Don’t be that person. Respect your sticks if not the investment and ensure they have a cozy and secure home before disappearing into the blackhole beyond the check-in conveyor belt. That means a travel cover, be it soft- or hard-sided, and there are a few hybrid options in the market, too.
Soft cases are the 800-pound gorilla in the marketplace, particularly as presented by Club Glove, which offers several sizes of covers to accommodate folks who use stand/carry bags and those who need more elbow room for cart or staff bags. The covers are made from tough, ballistic nylon, with reinforcing straps, heavy-duty zippers, internal padding at the top end, and a hardened, shock-absorbing outer wheelbase.
As Forman explains: “With Club Glove, they are made so well. It’s absolutely worth the investment. It’s not just the Cordura (nylon). You’re talking about the inline wheels and how easily it rolls. It is properly balanced so it will stand up. … That’s what you get when you start paying for premium products.”
Pro tip: Club Glove’s Tour and Tour SB are worth the extra $100 over the Pro Traveler due to the better, longer-lasting materials. “The best in golf travel got a whole lot better when we relaunched this product into 2025 and beyond last June,” says Neil Carroll of Acushnet, which bought Club Glove in 2024.
Forman also touts the Sun Mountain ClubGlider, a soft cover of similar construction that incorporates a collapsible legs-and-wheels system that props the cover (and contents) at a comfortable, easy-to-roll angle.
On the hybrid front, there is a myriad of options. Notable choices include Ogio’s Alpha Slim and Alpha Mid travel bags, which are collapsible while still adding durable protection; the Bag Boy T-10, which is a soft-sided case with a (removable) hard upper end; and Sun Mountain’s Kube, which provides a novel solution to a vexing if not first-world problem when traveling: space.
Toward that end, Sun Mountain’s Seth Enes, director of design, shares the tale of a eureka moment involving cargo-challenged spots: “I took a golf trip to Scotland with friends. We had all these ClubGliders, our luggage, and the rooms are small, the cars are small, so the idea behind the Kube was to come up with a travel cover that could easily fold up, opening up space in rooms and making it easier to pack a size-limited rental.”
The Kube is as you are envisioning, a compact, hard, square-clamshell case that opens into a rollable soft-sided travel cover.
None of this is to suggest that hard cases have gone the way of the stymie, however. The durability and protective capability are real, and many if not all airlines specify that they will not be liable for any damage to soft-cover-packed clubs. Notable manufacturers include Vessel Golf and SKB. If there is a downsize, it might show up after leaving the rental counter, given the volume taken up by cases that don’t collapse or fold. The best solution is to make sure your rental is big enough to accommodate them.
However you choose to roll it, pack smart. If using a hard case secure your bag within the carrier. If it doesn’t have enough foam to hug the bag snugly, pad with your shoes, towels, outwear, whatever to keep things from banging around.
Despite the airlines’ caveats, as Forman maintains, don’t fret going soft. He prefers that route – NYGC no longer sells hard-siders – so get a good one and follow the hacks below.
A Stiff Arm is a must – Backbone by Bag Boy is another of several options. These telescopic arms made of lightweight aluminum with a durable cap slip in the bag and extend beyond the longest club; the idea being that if your travel bag comes down the chute bass-ackwards, the head won’t crater and that spendy Ventus shaft won’t snap. Club Glove makes the Stiff Arm and includes one now with every cover purchase.
Another hack is to pack your wrench, remove the driver head, put it back in the club cover, wrap it in a towel and stow it in your golf bag before it goes into the travel cover. (You also could do this with fairways and even hybrids, but that’s probably overkill.) You’re going to want to protect that now-exposed shaft tip so slip it in a head cover and don’t forget the Backbone or Stiff Arm.
And with any case, give the business end of things additional love by capping the bag with that rain cover you’ve never otherwise used for added protection and to cut down on the clanging. Slip another towel under there, too, while you’re at it.