What Size Golf Glove Do I Need? How to Get the Fit Right
Most golfers wear their glove a size too big, then blame the leather when it bags out by June.
The right size golf glove fits like a second skin: fingertips touching the ends, no loose leather across the palm, tab closing without strain. Between sizes, go down, because cabretta gives slightly as it shapes to your hand. That's the whole rule. Here's how to check it before you buy.
How to measure your hand
Measure the glove hand, which is the opposite of your swing (the full explanation is in which hand a golf glove goes on). Wrap a soft tape around your knuckles, thumb excluded, and note the length from the base of your palm to the tip of your middle finger. Then match both numbers against the chart in our glove size guide.
No tape measure? Use the tab trick. The size of the glove you already own is printed on its closure tab. If that glove passes the test below, buy the same size; if it's gone baggy, drop one.
The second-skin test
Fingertips. Leather touches the ends of your fingers with nothing to pinch. Empty space at the tips is dead leather that will only get looser.
Palm. Flat and smooth, no bunching when you make a fist. Wrinkled leather across the palm moves against the grip, and moving leather is what wears out.
Tab. Closes comfortably around the middle of the strap area. A tab at full stretch means too small; a tab doubling back on itself means too big.
Knuckles. No blanching white when you grip a club. Snug means contact everywhere, pressure nowhere.
What M/L means, and the rest of the range
M/L sits between medium and large, and it's our most-sold size, which tells you where most male golfers actually land. The full run goes S to XL in mens and ladies cuts, wear on left and wear on right. The ladies glove is cut on its own pattern, narrower through the palm, so a small mens glove is a poor substitute rather than a clever workaround.
What the wrong size costs you
Too big and the glove slides against the grip with every shot, wears through at the palm heel, and dies in five rounds instead of twelve. Too small and the seams take the strain until one gives, usually mid-round, usually at the thumb. Sized right, a cabretta glove reaches its full lifespan, which we've put numbers on in how long a golf glove lasts.
Golf glove sizing FAQs
Should a golf glove be tight?
Snug, never tight. You want full contact with no pressure points: think of how a batting glove or a good pair of driving gloves fits the moment it's on. If you have to work to close your fist, size up.
What size should I buy if I'm between sizes?
Down. Cabretta stretches a little as it moulds to your hand, so a glove that starts slightly firm becomes perfect, and a glove that starts comfortable becomes loose.
Do golf gloves stretch over time?
Slightly, and in shape rather than size: the leather learns your hand. What it never does is shrink back, which is why "roomy but comfy" is the most expensive fitting mistake in the shop.
Where can I find a golf glove size chart?
The full golf glove size chart, with knuckle and finger measurements for every size from S to XL, lives in our glove size guide. Measure once, check the chart, and the second-skin test above confirms it when the glove arrives.
Are womens golf gloves just smaller mens gloves?
No. Our womens range is built on a separate pattern with narrower palms and finger proportions, in the same AAA cabretta and the same designs; the ladies golf gloves collection has every current edition. Scaled-down mens gloves fit nobody well.
Two measurements, one test, and the guesswork is gone. Take your size to the cabretta leather golf gloves collection and spend the saved effort choosing the artwork.