The 5 Best Golf Sunglasses to Protect Your Eyes on the Range

For many men (and women), there are few things better than a weekend on the golf course. After spending the week inside the office, you’re ready for some sunshine and relaxed fun with your friends.

So when you’re looking down the green and know you can ace a shot, you don’t want anything to get in your way. Bright sunlight can hurt your eyes, and over time, make you squint and miss those perfect shots.

Many pro golfers don’t wear sunglasses simply because they didn’t learn with them. But most people aren’t pro golfers, and would highly benefit from wearing a pair of sunglasses on the green.

To up your sports game, we’ve rounded up the best golf sunglasses to protect your eyes on the range.

Why Wear Sunglasses When Playing Golf?

When you play golf, you should wear sunglasses to protect your eyes from the sun’s UV rays. Spending too much time in the sun can lead to eye diseases like glaucoma, macular degeneration, and cataracts. These all can cause impaired vision later on in life. Not to mention, the skin around your eyes can develop cancer as well.

Wearing sunglasses outside when playing golf can also help prevent headaches and migraines from developing due to less squinting.

Plus, anytime you’re outside there’s a risk of damaging your eyes from dirt, wind, and other elements. Wearing sunglasses protects your eyes from getting scratched or injured.

Choosing Great Sunglasses for Golf: Lenses & Frames

Choose the best sunglasses for golf by selecting the right lens types and frame types according to your personal preference.

Lens Types for Sunglasses

Two different lens types typically work best for golf sunglasses: polarized lenses and mirrored lenses. Polarized lenses are designed to prevent glare from hitting your eye. This means you can spend all day on the course without experiencing eye fatigue.

However, the downside to polarized lenses is that they can distort the greens, so you have a hard time recognizing the depth of the course. Many great players get around this by taking their sunglasses off when they putt and keeping them on the rest of the time.

The other lens type for golf is mirrored. Mirrored lenses are a thin metallic layer that prevents glare from entering your eyes. However, they can only reduce glare through the coating. If the coating chips off, these sunglasses are no longer effective.

There are certain colors of mirrored lenses that work better than others as well. Grey lenses are ideal for golfers because it has better depth perception while still blocking glare. Green lens have better lighting contrast and brown generally does a good job. A color you should avoid is yellow on sunny days, but they work well on cloudy ones.

Also, the shape of the lens and frame should be large enough to block out light from any angle so you can view the green easily.

Frame Types for Golf Sunglasses

Ultimately, the frame type comes down to personal preferences, but golfers typically prefer frames with specific features. A wraparound frame holds the sunglasses tight to your face while blocking the sun at all angles. Even when your face starts to sweat, the sunglasses will stay in place making them the perfect pair of golf sunglasses.

A round of golf lasts on average for four hours and 30 minutes. You need lightweight frames that feel comfortable to wear for long periods of time. Heavy frames can cause a pinching sensation on your nose and distract you from play.

Last, many golfers opt for frames with adjustable nose pads. Nose pads stabilize the frame so they’re less likely to move around on your face. They also lessen the weight on your nose so they’re more comfortable for long-term use, and you can adjust them so the sunglasses sit better on your head.

Top 5 Sunglasses for Golfers

To help you purchase your perfect pair for golfing, we’ve rounded up the top five best sunglasses available on the market today.

The Quality Exceeds Price Sunglasses

For the most affordable, high-quality pair of golf sunglasses, check out Harvey from WMP Eyewear. These modern, double-bridge aviators have an extra-thick frame with side shields to protect your eyes from sunlight at all angles.

The stainless steel arms won’t flex or bend even after long-term use, and the lenses are polarized to protect your eyes from glare on the green. They also feature 100% UVA/UVB protection and come in a variety of different color options.

While Harvey works great on the course, this pair has a low price tag of $34, so you can afford to purchase even more sunglasses to elevate your wardrobe, like these men’s tortoiseshell styles.

The Best-Looking Sunglasses

For the best sunglasses with that classic wraparound style, look no further than Maui Jim’s Ho’okipa polarized rimless sunglasses. These offer a blue mirror coating that enhances color on the golf course and makes your vision clear to snag those hole-in-ones.

The lens is made out of SuperThin glass designed to resist scratches and shattering from small drops. You can customize the colors and magnification of these to make them work as a prescription pair.

The Best Golf Sunglasses for Performance

Oakleys are synonymous with sports, and their best pair of performance sunglasses for golf is the Flak® 2.0 XL. These wraparound frames offer larger lens coverage and a lightweight design meant for all-day use.

There are 22 different color and lens combinations to choose from, so you can select polarized if that works for you or the best mirror lens color for your golf play. You can even pay extra for the Prizm™ lenses, which were made to enhance details and colors.

The Most Durable Sunglasses for the Range

Anyone who plays for long days needs a durable and comfortable pair of sunglasses. If you tend to be hard on your sunglasses, then purchase Under Armor’s Igniter 2.0. These are made with Ultra-light ArmourFusion® frames, which are built to last.

They also include an adjustable nose pad and lens coating to resist scratches. While there’s no glare resistance, these do offer 100% UVA/UVB protection.

The Best of Sunglasses for Golf & Life

If you just want one pair of sunglasses that look stylish off and on the golf course, you can’t go wrong with WMP Eyewear’s Jacob frames. These stylish square frames go with every outfit, so you can wear them at lunch, on the green, or over the weekend with the family.

They have polarized lenses so you’re protected from glare and feature an ultra-lightweight matte finish frame, which means they’ll feel good all day.

And if you need some more options, WMP Eyewear has a wide selection of square frames for men at an affordable price point.