My wife has a purse. I am reminded that it is not “just a purse” it is a “Coach something or other that I don’t understand with a leather strap that is stitched with a blah blah blah.”

Suffice it to say, I don’t understand the concept. She needs something to put her belongings in that she needs every day. It would be terribly inconvenient for her to carry them in her hands all day.

But why does she need different colors and different styles…and why do they have to cost an arm and a leg for each one?

I don’t get it…until she puts it in my terms. You see, I have a couple of golf bags. In fact, I have more than my fair share of golf bags. I have different colors, different sizes, different styles, and even different brands. Like she has her purses, I have my golf bags and once she put that in perspective for me, I finally got it.

Golf bags are more fashion than they are function after you decide what style of bag you are going to use. The bag is more about the color or the way it looks with your favorite golf outfit than it is about the size of the pockets or the accessibility of the water bottle as it sits in your bag. But you have to decide on a few functional aspects of the bag before you decide on the color.

First thing I do is decide what use of the bag I am going to have. Am I going to walk and carry my bag with me? Am I going to put the bag on a push cart? Do I typically ride in a cart when I play? These questions will pretty much decide for you if you are going to use a stand bag or a cart bag.

Stand bags are built with the walking golfer in mind. They are fitted with legs that extend to hold the bag up when you set the bag down. Cart bags, on the other hand, are without legs and so they perform best when riding in a cart or on a push cart. Typically stand bags are smaller and lighter and cart bags are larger with more storage space.

Just because you decide on a stand bag does not mean that you can not use that bag on a cart and vice versa, but the designs of each bag lend themselves for the specific use they are designed for. Stand bags are typically the most versatile due to their weight. Cart bags are much heavier and so they pose a task to carry them for 18 holes.

I use a stand bag from Ping called the Ping Hoofer. I like the size of the bag. It is large enough to carry all the stuff I need (snack, water bottle, golf balls, tees, etc.) and it is light enough to not kill me to carry it for an 18 hole round. I am very intrigued by the Sun Mountain brand of bags and the Swift X Carry Bag in particular. It is one of the lightest bags on the market and still has enough pockets for my stuff.

I have never used a cart bag. If I were to use one I would probably give the Sun Mountain C-130 a go. It has an individual compartment for every club in the bag and comes with a “putter well” set aside from the rest of the clubs for easy access. It looks great and is one of the lighter cart bags out there. Another cart bag I like the look of is the Taylor Made San Marino. With 14 individual dividers for the clubs and weighing in at 4.8 pounds, this bag would be one I would not worry about carrying if I chose to do so every now and then.

Once you have decided between carry bags or cart bags, you are ready to make the biggest decision of them all…what color goes with the shoes that you just got. I would suggest having the wife along to make that decision easier.

PLAY WELL!!!!!

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