It’s that time of year again for ‘conkers’, which brings me to that old chestnut of a topic; dress codes.
I have never fully understood why elderly men folk insist they know best on what younger people should wear to play golf. They must know that your taste in fashion changes through the decades. I am sure one day, which is rapidly approaching. I will like wearing a navy blazer with gold coloured turn-up pants with a striped shirt and tie in the clubhouse. And pleated beige pants with an indescribable coloured polo shirt and jumper combo on the course. So what are dress codes really for? I keep hearing they are to maintain standards. Nothing wrong with trying to maintain standards.
Golf should be taking a leading role in supporting apparel standards. I am not talking about superficial tit-bits such as the length of your summer socks or the tailoring of your shorts or the toss-up between a collared and a turtle-neck shirt.
I am proposing that golf’s new dress codes signs outside the clubhouses around the world should go for the jugular; ‘only ethically made apparel in the clubhouse’, ‘no sweatshop apparel on the course’. Apparel which is made by textiles working who are paid a ‘living wage’ and who have workplace health and safety standards to protect them from handling the hazardous toxic chemicals used to make moisture-wicking golf wear.
Now if these new dress code standards were introduced today, I appreciate that most golf pros and hackers would be butt-naked on the course. And I ca't think of a better image to highlight the need for golf to get real dress codes. ----------------------------------------------------------
