How we recommend
We recommend gear by category and use, not by brand, and do not quote prices. We may earn a commission on purchases at no cost to you.
What the rules say
Everything in the bag counts
Rule 4.1b of the 2023 Rules of Golf, in effect from 1 January 2023, says you must not start a round with more than 14 clubs, and the count covers every club carried by or for you. A bag with spare slots is not a reason to fill them: the penalty is two strokes per hole of breach in stroke play, up to four in the round. Count your clubs before the first tee. The R&A says the next edition of the Rules is due on 1 January 2028.
Caddies and trolleys
Under Rule 10.3b(1), a caddie may always carry, transport and handle your clubs and other equipment, including driving a cart or pulling a trolley. Rule 10.3a(1) allows only one caddie at a time, and says someone who carries only things such as a rain suit, umbrella, food or drink is not your caddie unless you name them as one or they also carry or handle your clubs.
Riding: Model Local Rule G-6
Rule 4.3 lets a Committee restrict motorised transport by Local Rule. Model Local Rule G-6 lets it prohibit riding on motorised transport, such as golf carts, during a round unless authorised, with the general penalty for each hole of breach. An update from 1 January 2026 lets a Committee later approve a ride a player accepted by mistake but reasonably, for example believing the driver was authorised. G-6 applies only where a Committee adopts it, so in competitions where it does, a push trolley or a carry bag is one way round.
Our picks by category
Stand bags
Retailer Haggin Oaks describes stand bags as having built-in legs, double straps and dividers, at about 5 pounds; BirdieBall, another retailer, gives a range of 3 to 7 pounds. Weigh the actual bag if you will carry it for 18 holes. For a short set, Haggin Oaks also describes the lighter Sunday or carry bag, at about 2 to 4 pounds with no stand, for fewer than nine clubs.
Best for: Golfers who carry their clubs
Cart bags
Haggin Oaks describes cart bags as having rigid sides and a flat base, rarely with carry straps, at about 5 to 7 pounds; BirdieBall says about 6 to 8 pounds. With carry straps rare, they are made for wheels rather than shoulders. Check that the bag sits securely on the trolley you plan to use.
Best for: Golfers who push a trolley or ride a cart
Push carts and trolleys
Rule 10.3b(1) lets a caddie pull a trolley for you, and pushing your own is simply walking with your equipment. Where a Committee has adopted Model Local Rule G-6 to ban riding, a trolley keeps the weight off your shoulders without breaching it.
Best for: Walking golfers who would rather not carry
Golf umbrellas
Rule 10.2b(5) lets you hold an umbrella over your own head, but you must not make a stroke while a caddie, another person or an object is deliberately positioned to shelter you; the penalty is the general penalty. Put it down before you play.
Best for: Anyone who plays in rain or strong sun
Golf towels
Rule 4.3a allows a towel or handkerchief wrapped around the grip. Clip one to the bag where you can reach it.
Best for: Every bag
How to choose
Match the bag to how you get round
Haggin Oaks describes four types of bag:
| Type | As Haggin Oaks describes it |
|---|---|
| Sunday or carry bag | About 2 to 4 pounds, little structure, no stand, for fewer than nine clubs |
| Stand bag | About 5 pounds, built-in legs, double straps, dividers |
| Cart bag | About 5 to 7 pounds, rigid sides, flat base, rarely with carry straps |
| Staff or tour bag | Largest and heaviest, often over 13 pounds |
The weights are retailer figures and other retailers give different ones, so treat them as rough guides.
Cart safety
If you ride, a 2008 study from Nationwide Children's Hospital's Center for Injury Research and Policy, using US emergency-department data, estimated about 148,000 golf-cart-related injuries in the United States from 1990 to 2006. It found that falling or jumping from the cart was the most common cause at all ages, and that more than 30 percent of injuries involved children under 16.
In storms, the US National Weather Service's lightning toolkit for golf facilities states plainly that golf carts are not lightning-safe vehicles. Follow the course's lightning plan if it has one; see weather gear.
Before an event, check the Terms of the Competition for a Local Rule on riding, and count your clubs.
Sources
- Haggin Oaks, Types of golf bags
- BirdieBall, Types of golf bags
- The R&A, Rules of Golf (2023 edition), Rule 4
- The R&A, Rules of Golf (2023 edition), Rule 10
- Danish Golf Union, Official Guide to the Rules of Golf 2023, Model Local Rules section G
- The R&A, New and updated Model Local Rules for 2026
- Nationwide Children's Hospital, First national study to examine golf cart-related injuries (June 2008)
- National Weather Service, lightning safety toolkit for golf facilities