Birdies and Bogeys: Style guide to US PGA Open Championship 2012

Before I get into this article, I have to come clean: I know absolutely nothing about golf... other than what I learnt from playing a Tiger Woods video game back in my student days, so please don't take offence to what I'm about to write. Personally, I don't understand sports where you don't run, sweat or experience some sort of pain afterwards. Having said that, I'm no one to argue against millions of fans and hundreds of years of tradition (I'm also rubbish at golf and jealous of people that have good hand eye co-ordination, but that's besides the point).

Golf is one of the only sports in which you wear casual clothes and most of your attire provides little to no function in relation to the sport. On the other hand, it's important to wear loose, comfortable clothes that won't interfere with the swing, and there are still certain rules that need to be adhered to (i.e. you can't wear shoes like this...). Trousers are a must, and players will also wear either a polo shirt and/or sweater combination, with or without cap. 

With that in mind, you would think that it would be easy to get the required style right... 

OK so you can't completely blame a golfer for getting it 'wrong', as they all have sponsorship contracts that require them to promote the work of their respective brands. Nonetheless, there is definitely a choice element in what they're wearing, which has lead to the basis of this blog post. 

If, like me, you don't know your 'eagles' from your 'albatrosses', then here is my (very complicated) key to the following: a Birdie is apparently quite good in golf, hence this is how I describe my approval of that particular golfer's style. A Bogey is, quite appropriately, not desirable in golf, hence this will serve the opposite purpose...

Birdie

Martin Kaymer

A former world number one and only the second German to ever win a major tournament, this man is no stranger to an 'iron'. I really like his Hugo Boss polo shirt with the subtle emblem on the back (I also think Hugo Boss is a lot cooler than your run-of-the-mill sports brands like Nike). In almost any other situation, I would say that a white belt is one of the worst accessories you could wear. However, he makes it work with matching cap and glove, and you can't go wrong with a pair of navy chinos.

Bogey

Miguel Jimenez

I'm not going to criticise the man for his weight, he is playing a sport without much of a cardiovascular benefit after all. I think that pink is a dangerous colour to wear, difficult for any man to get right - your skin tone and the shade of pink are all things that need to be taken into consideration. On this occasion though, he definitely deserves his Bogey, as his risk of wearing pink has not paid off. Kudos on the cigar though... 

Birdie

Matteo Manessero

One of the youngest golfers out there, this 19 year old Italian looks great while he breaks records (youngest winner of the British Amateur Championship, youngest player to play at the Masters Tournament, youngest winner on the European tour). The chinos, shoes and belt are all on point, his cap, glove, polo shirt and shoes all match, and his polo shirt has a nice horizontal stripe pattern. Good job.

Bogey

Ian Poulter

Probably the most predictable Bogey on the list, Ian Poulter has a long-standing reputation for being the most eccentrically dressed golfers of all time. He was once widely criticised for wearing an Arsenal shirt for the duration of a golf tournament (however, as a gooner, I commend him for doing this!). It lead to the rules being changed so that this could never happen again (evidently they were Spurs fans...). I don't have any issue with the top half of what he's wearing, but the trousers look like pyjamas that your mum would buy you, and the shoes don't do him any favours either. If you disagree with the above, you can actually mimic his style in it's entirety, as most of what he wears has his own stylistic input and is available to buy through his website... 

Birdie

Webb Simpson

The winner of this year's tournament - this man has championed his swing, as well as his style. A white Titleist cap seems to go with pretty much any golf outfit, but he must be commended on his choice of chinos, belt and polo shirt. I really like the shade of his chinos, and his canvas belt looks great in my opinion. Webb has made the classic golf look effortless, and all up and coming golfers can learn a lot from the American champ. 

DOUBLE BOGEY!!!

Phil Mickelson & Tiger Woods

I very nearly didn't include this last section as I know how loved and respected 'Tiger' is all over the world (so much so that I'm half expecting a barrage of social-media related hatred...). I'm also aware of Phil Mickelson having a large following too, so it was perhaps a risk on my part, but for better or for worse everyone has an opinion... Let's start with 'big Phil'. It's great to have sponsors, but is it really necessary to be sponsored by both KPMG AND Barclays and display BOTH of these on your attire? Is it not also contradictory to be sponsored by two rival financial institutions? He looks like a retired accountant! Not only that, he's dressed entirely in black, without any contrast and style whatsoever. 

This brings me on to Tiger Woods. Normally he gets it right in major tournaments, and if it wasn't for his grey sweater then his outfit would probably be perfectly acceptable. However, he has worn the grey sweater, which has left him with a grey on grey situation, which in my opinion looks absolutely dire. Grey has to be the most boring colour out there, (of which Tiger is anything but...) and I doubt even David Gandy could pull off such an atrocious look. Unfortunately for these two though, they couldn't match a certain Webb Simpson in either style or substance. Better luck next year boys...