Best Golf Sunglasses 2024

A pair of sunglasses is one of the best golf accessories to get especially when playing golf during the summer months and when the sun is low as it rises and sets. Manufacturers have poured a lot of time and energy into improving the quality of sunglasses, or even making crossover shades that work both on and off the golf course for extra use and value for money. We now have an array of styles and colors to choose from, from more traditional shapes to more sporty, streamlined options. In this guide we have an array of options, from the popular brands like Oakley and Adidas to lesser known, niche brands like Vincero. We've got every budget sorted, too.

The best sunglasses should fit you well, look great and, most importantly, give you a comfortable visual experience and that's what we looked for during our testing and review process. We've thoroughly tested plenty of classic styles and colors, and there's plenty of different frame and lens color options for you to fully customize your glasses to your personal taste.

Now before we get to the models, we should familiarize you with some sunglasses terminology - UV stands for ultra-violet radiation, and it is split into three groups, A, B, and C, each of which can be harmful in different ways. The best models below help protect from all three.

Also for other ways to protect yourself from the sun we recommend taking a look at our guides on the best sunscreen for golf, best golf hats, best golf caps and best golf polo shirts which are made from fabrics to guard against harmful rays.

The Quick List

Best Golf Sunglasses

Top pick

The Veloce are so lightweight that you barely notice you're wearing them, which is the ultimate compliment you can give a pair of sporty sunglasses. Weighing just 28g while also coming with a handy adjustable nose piece, these are comfortable and securely fitting shades. The matte black Grilamid TR-90 frames we tested felt sturdy and well made plus there’s just enough give in them to ensure they will fit a variety of face sizes.

The lenses are both shatterproof and scratch resistant, giving the user peace of mind about the durability of their sunglasses. Additionally, given the name of these, it is worth adding that they’re easy to interchange by just popping them out using the technique highlighted in the instructions provided. Thankfully, the Veloce comes with a firm zippered carry case which stores the frame and the other lenses available.

• Read our full Tifosi Veloce Interchangeable Sunglasses Review

Most comfortable

The Portal X sunglasses are one of the best pair of shades you could buy for golf, coming from a tried and tested manufacturer. These shades are sophisticated and stylish, meaning you can wear them both on and off the course. The Prizm Dark Golf lenses undoubtedly enhance the contrast on bright days, which is especially helpful on greens with subtle slopes.

Tacky material has been added to the nose pad for extra grip and secureness - as a result these felt very comfortable to wear and we rarely had to readjust them. Add to this the special Unobtanium material on the inside of the earsocks which has a similar feel and increases in grip when wet. This ensures that when you sweat, a common occurrence when playing on hot sunny days, they stay firmly in position when you swing.

• Read our full Oakley Portal X Sunglasses Review

Best value

We've tested a lot of different pairs of sunglasses over the years and yet no brand has come close to delivering better value than Tifosi. If you know anything about us at Golf Monthly, we love value. Golf is becoming more expensive by the year, so why not save some cash with these fantastic shades?

The Swank's tick every box when it comes to performance and affordability. You get scratch resistant and shatterproof lenses paired with a lightweight frame for a cracking price - it's hard to beat.

The versatile design means you'll get a lot of wear out of them, both on and off the course. Despite these not being a wraparound design like the Tifosi Veloce Interchangeable sunglasses, we were delighted to see that we didn’t experience any obvious distractions or niggly frustrations with the Swank when playing in them during testing.

• Read our full Tifosi Swank Sunglasses Review

Best wide vision

The eye-catching but sophisticated sunglasses utilise Oakley’s Prizm Lens technology that is engineered to enhance color and contrast. This is the first time I’ve used sunglasses with such a wide view for golf and the design means no part of the glasses enters your peripheral vision during the golf swing.

The frame is incredibly lightweight, so barely makes an impression on your face and intrudes as little as possible on the golf swing. Secure nose pads as moulded-in ear socks have been cleverly designed to give a secure grip, even if sweat becomes an issue on a hot and sunny day. These haven’t been designed with golf specifically in mind - they’re designed for multiple different sports - but they fit perfectly and will be a welcome addition to any golfer looking to reduce glare and protect their eyes on the course.

Best for contrast

Next up we have the Oakley Radar EV Path glasses which really step outside the box when talking about sunglasses for the golf course. The frame design combined with the bright lenses give a futuristic kind of style which many will like (but we admit may divide opinion). Don't worry though, there are 22 lens and color options so plenty of choice out there.

The new PRIZM lens really enhance color, contrast and details of slopes around the golf course, adding an extra layer of understanding to your surroundings on those dully, flat light days on the course. The slightly larger size of the lenses gives good peripheral visions and they also reduce glare and keep your eyes safe from harmful UV rays.

In short, on the golf course these give excellent performance and yet because of the futuristic look, the versatility is perhaps limited. That being said, the look is different and pretty cool!

• Read our full Oakley Radar EV Path Sunglasses review

Best adjustability

While advertising as multi-sport sunglasses, these were primarily designed for athletes at the 2024 Summer Olympics and had a huge take-up in Paris. That being said, these are still built for golf and are more than suitable for a casual round on the links. The super-lightweight build - just 27g - leaves no impression when sat over your eyes while the large, wide lenses give you plenty of vision in your periphery.

There are five lens and frame color combinations to choose from, all with a reflective mirror finish and the maximum protection lenses can offer. The rimless lenses are rather in your face - pardon the pun - so aren’t the most subtle golf sunglasses on the market. That being said, they are incredibly effective on the course and the ability to adjust the fit around the nose and ears means they fit perfectly to any head shape.

Best lightweight

Not the flashiest pair of sunglasses on the market, but the Oakley Half Jacket 2.0 offer simplicity with performance for the golfer who prefers a more traditional or non-confrontational look.

These glasses are very lightweight, which helps with the excellent comfort levels. The lenses fought well against harsh sunlight which never impacted our sense of depth or perspective. It's also super easy to read greens while wearing these, a problem sometimes found with other sunglasses. This is helped particularly by the colour contrast, enhancing certain colours to highlight subtle contours. Whilst there are cheaper models on this list, getting a pair of Oakleys for just over $100 is hard to beat, especially because you get the overall quality, fit, robustness and effective lenses that you would expect from such a high quality brand.

• Read our full Oakley Half Jacket 2.0 XL Sunglasses Review

Best premium model

If you're all about looking good on the golf course, then the Vincero Villa should be right up your street. These shades perform really well thanks to its polarized, scratch resistant lenses. They come with a whopping five year warranty and the included hard case should help you keep them in tact for longer than most - two details we really like.

With Italian Mazzucchelli Acetate frame and Vincero's trademark Italian Marble Inlay on display, you'll turn heads whether you're wearing these on or off the course. The fit is snug and narrow, which might not suit those with bigger or wider heads, but enhances the look and ensures they stay in place while you swing. These look so good that you'll likely wear them more off the course than on it, but is that not a compliment to a pair of awesome sunglasses?

Best color/lens choice

One of Oakley’s most popular models, and for good reason. The Flak 2.0 features High Definition Optics that provides superior optical clarity and razor-sharp vision at every angle. Oakley’s Prizm lens technology also fine-tunes vision that comes into its own when you’re on the course and reading greens, for example.

The matte black frame is simple and works well with the black iridium lens to prevent glare and heat from building. Said frame is made with Oakley's O Matter material which come with both Unobtanium ear socks and nose grips for no slip grip. It's a simple but slick look paired with great technology to ensure you get a quality pair of shades that will do you for years to come.

Specifications table

How we test golf sunglasses

With every golf product Golf Monthly tests, not just sunglasses, we are committed to giving key insight into how products actually perform out on the golf course as well as off it too. With sunglasses that means seeing how they help whilst playing, but also how versatile they are to be used in other areas of life too. We should also mention that no manufacturer can pay for a good review, instead we tell it how we see it.

How to choose golf sunglasses

There are several factors to be wary of when looking at buying new golf sunglasses and below are the ones we consider to be the most important.

Clarity/tint

There are obviously several types of lens and tints that can be beneficial to different people and their eyes. Many brands have their own proprietary lens technology, such as the PRIZM by Oakley. These designs are created to bring out the colors of the golf course and help players see the ball better against grass and sky.

From a tint perspective, have a think about which color you would prefer because they do different things. For example;

Rose Copper

Sunglasses with a rose copper tint are perfect for the putting green as they remove yellow and red tones from the color green. Therefore this can help players read breaks and how the grains sit on the green. Contours are also seen more clearly.

Brown/amber

Contrast is important for golfers and lens with a brown or amber tint will work the best for this. These will even help your distance vision by improving the grass contrast as well as the sky so that you can see the ball clearly as it travels through the air. They also work very well in cloudy weather and in low light.

Gray and Green

Usually these may not be that ideal golf golf but they may help those who have light sensitive eyes.

Lens Quality

Linking with the above point, the quality of the lenses themselves is important too because good ones will give better clarity of vision on the fairways and greens. They should also help with the below factor too...

Strength/durability

Golf sunglasses have to be able to deal with some wear and tear that can occasionally come from the game. Transporting them around in the golf bag, dropping them, and other things can occur so be sure to go for a design that is durable and strong when needed.

Of course given the varying styles of golf sunglasses now, some will be stronger than others and some designs will be made from stronger materials so this is something to be wary of. The good thing is no longer are strong designs massive and chunky, as the growth in technology has allowed super-lightweight models to be sturdy too. We definitely recommend models that are scratch, impact and possibly water resistant too.

Comfort

If you are going to have sunglasses on all day they have to be comfortable. The materials used have to feel soft and yet also grippy especially on those areas around the nose and ears. Let's face it, you won't keep them on if they are uncomfortable so it is worth trying some models on before you buy.

Style

As we mentioned above, there are lots of different styles of golf sunglasses now. From classic designs to aviators, to retro models and sporty glasses, there is a design for everyone. Additionally many of them are incredibly versatile too so if you want a pair to use off the golf course, have a think about a style that can work anywhere.

Budget

Some models cost more than others so people should also think about price. Some cheaper models will do the job nicely but then there are also premium models for those who want to spend a little more.

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