Three brands we came across this week, each built around a different part of the game: the feel of it, the look of it and the habit of it. One began with a single leather glove, one makes performance clothes that want to look at home in the clubhouse, and one is a small line of tees, hats and towels built around the idea of playing every Sunday.
ITL Golf stands for Inside The Leather. Stefan Cox, a PGA Professional with more than ten years in the game, grew up outside London, according to ITL’s site, and CTV News Calgary has reported him as director of instruction at the Calgary Golf and Country Club. ITL’s Our Story page says he couldn’t ignore how disposable most golf gloves felt, so he spent years testing Cabretta leather until he had one he liked. The 2.0 Signature Glove is $30, and the line has since grown into leather headcovers, belts, a glove wallet and a $700 duffle.
Masterpiece Sports Club calls itself an elevated golf lifestyle brand, “from the course to the clubhouse.” The clothes are performance pieces with a members’-club look: polos with crests and vintage labels, Tempo shorts and pants with tee holders built in, a tech hoodie, a vest, printed gloves and a stand bag. Its About page says golf is personal for its founders but does not name them, so neither do we.
52 Sundays started, its Our Story page says, with a simple idea: there are 52 weeks in a year, “and if we’re doing it right, we’re golfing every Sunday.” It is the cheapest and most casual of the three: $30 graphic tees, $35 hats, $15 towels and a collaboration with Pro-Five Brewery.
ITL is for the golfer who notices the details. If you replace a glove the minute it goes stiff, this is your brand. Start with the $30 2.0 Signature Glove, the product ITL was built on, in nineteen colors. Add the $170 Player’s Wallet to keep a glove, tees and a marker in one leather case. Save the $700 Monarch Duffle for the golf trip.
Masterpiece is for the golfer who wants the full outfit. Buy from it if you like your clothes to match and want to walk from the 18th green into dinner. The Tri-Tech Polo ($118) with the Tempo Short ($128) is the core look, and the short has a tee holder built in. The Tempo Pant and Tech Lite Vest cover cooler mornings. The $35 Apex gloves are the cheapest way to try it.
52 Sundays is for the weekly game with friends. These are clothes for the standing tee time with the same group: easy, a little funny and cheap enough to buy a few. Get the G’s Up Holes Down Tee ($30) and a Fairway Hat ($35), and wear the Hermosa Sage Polo ($60) on the course. A $15 towel is the easiest gift in this post. Nothing here is over $60.
If you only buy one thing from each: the ITL 2.0 Signature Glove, the Masterpiece Tri-Tech Polo and the 52 Sundays Fairway Hat. That is $183 for all three, and you will use every one of them every time you play.
Calgary · nine picks · $20–$700It started with one Cabretta glove and grew into leather headcovers, belts and bags, made by a teaching pro.
ITL on the courseFrom ITL’s own photos.
Nine picks · $35–$400Performance golf clothes with a clubhouse feel, from polos and shorts to a tech hoodie and a stand bag.
Masterpiece on the courseFrom Masterpiece Sports Club’s own photos.
Nine picks · $15–$60Graphic tees, hats, headcovers and towels. Nothing here is over $60.
52 Sundays on the courseFrom 52 Sundays’ own photos.
These three show how many ways there are to start. ITL began with one object a teaching pro thought could be better, and grew outward from it. Masterpiece started with the whole wardrobe and a name to live up to. 52 Sundays started with a feeling about how often you should be playing.
None of them is big, and all three sell direct. Buying a glove, a polo or a $15 towel from one of them puts money behind people building something they care about. That is what we look for every week. If you find a brand like this, tell us about it.
