I’m all about things that make golf a little easier.
And fresher.
So when young PGA Tour star Min Woo Lee let me in on his not-so-secret love for Oakley sunglasses, I had to dig into the “why” behind his affinity for the sun.
He gave me three big reasons why having the right sunglasses is important, including one that I think will get you some mileage: reading the greens.
“The golf lens is a big part of it,” Lee said. “You can see some contours on the greens that you might not see without the sun.”
What Lee said (or rather what he saw), is a simple truth: sunglasses are not just a fashion accessory. The right pair can also contribute to better performance.
Anyone can make a good frame. Anyone can make a cool design (as Lee can attest, Oakley definitely does too). But not everyone can make a lens that actually helps you on the golf course.
Oakley’s Prizm technology is the real deal. More specifically, Oakley’s Prizm golf lenses are the real deal. They manipulate the light hitting your lens to enhance certain colors, create intentional contrast, and more.
Want to see green contours more clearly? Prizm Golf and Prizm Dark Golf lenses are formulated to allow a certain amount of light to enter and filter out certain colors to create contrast that has to be seen to be believed.
Heck, the Prizm technology even works to filter out and reduce blue levels. This makes it easier to spot your white golf ball as it (ideally) flies across the sky and onto the green.
In a game where focus is the ultimate mental edge, an accessory that can keep you focused on the right things (your ball, the slope of the green), the right sunglasses are an invaluable tool.
This is what makes them a cheat code, so to speak.
Now, for the other two reasons that sunglasses are so important to Lee?
Protection and style.
“I just feel like it’s fresh — they keep it fresh and it’s great. It looked good on the golf course and it protects my eyes.”
Amen, boss.
(PS: Min Woo Lee’s favorite sunglasses are those Radar EV. I was partial to Holbrook)
Main photo caption: Min Woo Lee hits a green during the Australian Open. (GETTY IMAGES/Josh Chadwick)
