Not every good beer is a good golf beer. The cart has special requirements: it's hot, the round is long, and you've still got to swing a club. The perfect golf beer is crushable, refreshing, and won't leave you squinting at your tee shot on the back nine. Here's how to pick right.
What makes a great golf beer
- Refreshing over heavy. Crisp, clean, and cold beats rich and boozy when the sun's out. Lagers, pilsners, light pale ales, and wheat beers shine here.
- Lower ABV. Five hours in the heat is no place for a 9% imperial anything. Session beers under ~5% let you enjoy a few and still play golf.
- Cans, not bottles. Cans chill faster, travel better, don't shatter, and won't rattle around the cart like a bag of glass.
Build a cooler that lasts
Pack more ice than you think you need, and layer it — beers on the bottom, ice on top. A little rock salt in the ice water chills cans faster if you're in a hurry at the first tee. For a foursome over eighteen, plan on a small mix: mostly light and crushable, with a couple of "reward" beers for the turn.
Read the group
A good cooler keeps everyone happy. Toss in a range: a classic light lager for the easy drinkers, a hazy session IPA for the craft crowd, maybe a hard seltzer or an N/A option for whoever's driving home. The host who brings variety is the host everyone wants in their group.
Keep it cold, keep it crushable, and bring a little variety. Nail the cooler and you've handled one of the most important parts of any Saturday round — the part that has nothing to do with your swing.