There are a lot of pieces of equipment needed when you head out to the course.Obviously, you need golf clubs, balls, proper footwear, and tees. It’s understandable why the golf glove is often one of the most overlooked pieces of equipment. In fact, you aren’t a golfer if you haven’t had to run from the first tee to the pro shop to buy a bionic golf glove before teeing off.
A lot of people assume a glove makes no difference to their game. They buy the cheapest glove off the rack or they choose a brand that they know well without comparing features or pricing.
However, the truth is that little piece of fabric between your hand and the grip of your golf club can have a major influence on your game. Choosing the right glove is important.
Bionic golf gloves have become popular in recent years. It’s a relatively lesser known brand when compared to some of the popular names that stamp their brand on gloves including Titleist, Footjoy, and Callaway.
What sets a Bionic golf glove apart from a glove made by a well-known brand like Footjoy? Should you choose Bionic over another brand with a more established reputation in the golf industry?
Let’s take a look at what makes a Bionic golf glove unique within the golf equipment business.
Features of the Bionic Golf Glove
There is a lineup of several different styles of the Bionic golf glove. Each has their own unique offering, but there is a general focus throughout the lineup: Bionic golf gloves are designed for comfort.
Padded Areas to Reduce Pain While Playing
Specifically, a Bionic golf glove is meant to be the ideal choice for golfers with arthritis. Golfing with arthritis is a difficult task and the pain can often prevent players from gripping the club with enough strength.
A Bionic golf glove includes padded portions in strategic areas of the palm and fingers to help people with arthritis grip the club and reduce pain in the hands while playing.
Moisture-proof
In addition to this padding, Bionic golf gloves are built with durability in mind. If you have ever experienced frustration with gloves wearing out quickly due to friction or sweat then the Bionic golf glove may be the glove for you.
Miniature cloths line the inside of the gloves to help wick away moisture and ensure the premium Cabretta leather is ready for your next round of golf.
3D Finger Pads
The shape and design of a Bionic golf glove are also very different than traditional gloves. 3D finger pads are used in their patented pad technology. Tapered fingers provide a snug fit for all players.
Washable and Durable
Another very interesting feature of the Bionic golf glove is the durability. The gloves are washable and Bionic has a golf glove care guide for buyers to follow in order to get the longest life out of their golf glove. For those who tend to wear out gloves quickly due to sweat or dirt, this should be a very welcome feature.
Pros
- Made of Terrycloth interior on high risk zones managing moisture without losing grip
- Made of washable genuine leather boasting an additional pad on the palm for extra support and lifespan
- Features a patented anatomical pad relef system preventing fatigue, increasing grip and displacing your grip pressure evenly on the club.
Cons
- Much thicker than your average golf glove
- 30 day guarantee
- Some customer reviews stated that the gloves felt stiff
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Public Perception of the Bionic Golf Glove
Since Bionic is not an incredibly popular brand you will find at every golf pro shop across the country, going online to golf forums is one of the best ways to gauge the perception of this unique golf glove. Does it live up to the hype or is it just another golf product looking to grab its share of golfer’s wallets?
The Good
After searching online, it’s clear that there is a dedicated following for Bionic golf gloves. There are inspiring stories about people who thought they may have to give up the game they love due to arthritis before they purchased a Bionic glove.
The added padding is greatly appreciated by arthritis sufferers. Seniors especially found that the padded glove and finger pads made it easier to grip the club with the strength they once had. Without a Bionic golf glove, it’s likely many online reviewers would have had to give up the game or reduce their playing time significantly.
Bionic golf gloves also get a lot of love for their durability, especially in hot climates. Some golfers marveled at the ability of Bionic gloves to stay dry during a long round in the sun. More importantly, the ability to clean the glove greatly extended the life of the glove and reduced the need for golfers to purchase multiple gloves at once to ensure they are always ready to play.
The Bad
A lot of the negatives you can find about this glove are really more questions about the brand and its history. Bionic has the unfortunate honor of going head to head with some big names in the golf industry. When placed beside names like Footjoy, golfers are hesitant to choose a lesser known brand like Bionic.
Budget is also a major complaint that you will see about Bionic gloves. These gloves are at the higher end of golf glove budgets. However, that is not too far off the budget of other top golf gloves.
However, some people paying top dollar for a brand that isn’t a household name is too much. Given the added features and durability of the glove, others are easily able to justify the expense.
How Bionic Golf Glove Compare to the Competition
Bionic is in a unique position which can make comparing their golf gloves with other options on the market somewhat difficult. For starters, Bionic is directed at a niche market of golfers who suffer from a specific medical condition. Of course, players who want to wear Bionic gloves don’t have to have arthritis – unless they plan on playing in a USGA tournament.
This brings up the major drawback of choosing a Bionic golf glove. The glove is not actually legal for play in tournament events unless the player suffers from arthritis. Players who simply enjoy the comfort of the glove but still want to play competitively are unfortunately unable to use the gloves as shown on the USGA medical exceptions website.
The USGA ruling effects
This ruling from the USGA is somewhat of a blessing and a curse for Bionic. On one hand, it shows that their padding does provide better protection and support than other golf gloves. In fact, the padding is so good that players cannot use the glove in tournament events.
The obvious downside to that is that players who do not have a qualifying medical condition cannot use the gloves in a tournament which may make the gloves, no matter how good they are, useless to some.
Of course, those that don’t play in competitive golf tournaments are free to wear the gloves that they choose. For most people who play casually, a USGA ruling won’t affect the type of glove they choose to wear during their weekend rounds of golf.
Durability
The durability claims of Bionic are also very different than what people typically expect from golf gloves. Most gloves, in fact, are seen as disposable items. Players will get a number of rounds from their gloves before they expect the gloves to wear out and require replacement.
The Bionic golf glove can be washed and cared for to extend the life of the glove. This is a very nice feature in a golf glove that is pushing the upper budget limits of the golf glove market.
As for the premium Cabretta leather build: that is to be expected from a golf glove at this budget. It is a very nice feature to enjoy this soft leather but it is hardly something unique to Bionic gloves. Golf gloves from a number of other brands use similar premium leather and it would almost be shocking to see a glove at this budget not make use of quality leather materials.
Ultimately, Bionic does have some unique features that simply cannot be found in other golf gloves. Of course, players will pay extra for those features. With that said, Bionic gloves are only a few dollars more than some of the top products from other golf brands. The difference, spread out over a number of rounds of golf, is essentially negligible.
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Our Final Thoughts on the Bionic Golf Glove
There is a lot of hype online about these gloves and Bionic makes some big promises. Could people with arthritis who were considering of stopping playing golf finally have the solution they were hoping for? It certainly looks that way.
Bionic is a product targeted at a niche market of golfers. While you don’t need to have arthritis to appreciate the comfort and durability of these golf gloves; people who do have arthritis will have a completely different appreciation for the product.
There is one major drawback of these gloves and that is the USGA ruling that players without medical authorization cannot use the gloves in a tournament setting. For competitive players who simply enjoyed the comfort and durability of Bionic gloves, it would seem they may need to look elsewhere for a different solution.
However, for the average casual player who just wants to enjoy golf without pain and tenderness, the Bionic golf glove is the real deal.
The premium materials used and dedication to helping create a durable, long-lasting glove shows that Bionic is not some gimmicky company looking to appeal to arthritis sufferers. Instead, this is a company that has made a high-quality product that also happens to be very useful to people with arthritis.
Best of all, the gloves are stylish and don’t look out of place compared next to any other brand in the game. Players can wear these gloves without feeling like they are advertising their arthritis to the world. It’s a simple, elegant solution to a condition that threatened to take a player off of the golf course, doing what they love.
For the budget, getting a Bionic golf glove may be worth it if only to try for a few rounds of golf. The budget is high for a golf glove but the benefits should be well worth it.
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