PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — There’s a reckoning coming to golf.
No, not the LIV Golf defectors or anything like that, but if Sam Ryder and his purple jogger pants have any say, the latest trend in golf fashion will soon catch fire.
Ryder shook up social media in January when he sported purple-colored joggers during the Farmers Insurance Open in January.
He elicited the support of some but drew the ire of others, including Phil Mickelson and John Daly, who both criticized the joggers worn by Ryder as he led the tournament for a large portion of play.
Ryder is hardly the first person to sport a different trend of clothing in golf fashion. In 2003, Tiger Woods debuted his mock neck shirt, a style staple he has continued to wear throughout his historic career.
The late Doug Sanders pushed fashion limits with his colorful outfits. He’d dress in the same color from head to toe, owning a variety of brightly colored shoes to match his pants and sweaters.
And before golfers sported Nike, Titleist and Callaway caps, recent hall of fame selection Tom Weiskopf wore his taxi-cab hat.
There’s always a trend in the golf world and while joggers may not get across with most golfers, something else has already started to catch on.
Hoodies.
Light-weight jackets and pullovers that can provide warmth for athletes and still allow them to have a full range of motion.
Not to mention how cool they make them look.
“I’m 5-9 and I have short legs, so I don’t really look too good in (joggers). I like ’em. But I don’t mind it,” Collin Morikawa said earlier this week. “I think now we went, what, a year ago I think I was wearing a hoodie, and everyone loved the hoodie and now we’re into joggers. It’s a style, right. It’s a trend. I think a lot of people own joggers. I think they’re very comfortable to wear. I just, I don’t think I fit that style or that mold as well as some other guys can pull it off.”
Joggers aren’t sold in shops, but hoodies are the latest product flying off the shelves.
“We don’t carry joggers and we’re not finding much of a demand for them. But I love it when players take risks when it comes to fashion,” said Lea Osol, directing of merchandising for the PGA Tour. “The younger generation of PGA Tour players is certainly more open to new ideas and they’re primarily responsible for hoodies becoming popular on golf courses. We’re finding that men and women love the fashionable hoodies that are out now.”
Keep an eye out for your favorite golfer to be sporting hoodies if temperatures allow, and don’t count out joggers yet because for those that can pull it off, it’ll likely stick around.