Yesterday I talked a bit about the clubs, bag, and balls I’ll be carrying in Ocean City.  Today I’ll briefly cover some of the accessories and apparel I’ll be carrying with me during my Ocean City golf trip.

Now I realize shirts, pants, and whatnot aren’t all that exciting, but I do have some new apparel for the trip that I think is pretty cool.   As I mentioned in the Sunshine & Rain section of my 2009 Golf Gear Guide, Columbia Sportswear (a company I generally associate with winter gear), has released their first ever line of golf clothing called Titanium Performance Golf Gear.  The line includes jackets, shorts, caps, shirts, and rain pants.  Each one of the pieces has been designed to protect you from one element or another (wind, rain, sun).  Equally as important for serious and discerning golfers like you and me, every piece in the collection is designed to fit without impeding the golf swing, and without being overly baggy.

Columbia sent me a couple of their Straight Shooter Polos to try out.  The Straight Shooter features Columbia’s Omni-Shade UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) 30 fabric.  You can think of it as sunscreen built into the shirt.  While I’ve never really thought about such things, it’s pretty cool that it’s there.  What matters more to me, however; is that the moisture wicking shirt looks great, and moves with me as I swing.

I’ve worn the Straight Shooter for one round so far.  I really like both the fit and the looks of the shirt.   I’ll have more to say about the shirts after they’ve been through the wash a few times.  A couple of years back I had a couple of Adidas shirts that I really liked too.  After a couple of wash cycles the collars were a mess.  So for now, I’ll say the shirt looks great, fits great, but any discussion of durability will have to wait.

Columbia also sent me one of their new Windcheater Full Zip Jackets.  The Windcheater is made from Columbia’s Water Beater polyester, and is wind, rain, and sun (UPF 50) resistant.  Fortunately I haven’t had the opportunity to test the jacket out in the rain, but last weekend I did play in some fairly windy conditions (30 MPH gusts).  Playing in heavy wind is seldom fun, but the Windcheater kept me warm and comfortable.  What’s truly amazing about the Windcheater is how ridiculously lightweight it is.  I don’t have an actual numbers from Columbia or anything, but after wearing it on the course, I went to my local big box sporting goods store to see how other wind/rain jackets for golfers compared. The windcheater was at least half the weight of anything on the shelves.  If it holds up as well in the rain, I won’t be impressed; I’ll be absolutely blown away.

For those looking for heavier, warmer gear, Columbia also offers a Match Play Shell (Columbia Interchange System Compatible) and Match Play Parka.  The Match Play series also includes waterproof pants; which with a little bit of luck will arrive on my doorstep before I leave for Maryland.

I’ll post full reviews of all of the Columbia Titanium Performance Golf Gear after I get back from Ocean City.

Other clothing-type gear I’ll be wearing is a pair of Nike TW 8.5 shoes, and TaylorMade Targa Tour Gloves.

I am a techie at heart, and to that end I’ll be carrying both my Callaway uPRO GPS, and my new Leupold GX-I rangefinder.  It might sound like overkill (in fact it might actually be overkill) to carry both a GPS and a finder, but I’ve found that the uPRO is great for quick readings (and blind shots), but where absolute precision targeting is required, a rangefinder simply cannot be beat.

I’m on the fence about downloading uPRO ProMode courses for the trip.  Right now, I’m leaning against it, but I could change my mind once I’m in OC.

My Bushnell rangefinder died last year.  After reading a review of the GX-I over at The Sandtrap, I decided on the Leupold GX-I as  replacement.  Originally I bought the GX-II, but the combination of “factory installed dust” on the inside of the unit, and discovering that I wouldn’t actually use all of the extra bells and whistles as much as I thought I would was enough for me to downgrade to the tournament legal GX-I.  It also doesn’t hurt that the GX-I is $100 cheaper, which is $100 I can put towards those Mizuno irons I keep talking about.

Thunderstorms are forecasted for at least one of the days I’ll be on Ocean City, which means I’ll get a chance to test out the Mibrella with the Load-n-go cart holder.  Truthfully, I wish I never had a need for an umbrella on the course, but weather being what it is (uncooperative), the Mibrella could turn out to be a day saver.

Attached to my bag (as it always is) will be the Ball Brite ball cleaner.  I reviewed the Ball Brite last year and haven’t taken it off my bag since.  Apart from being infinitely more convenient than on-course ball washers, I’ve found the Ball Brite to be a quicker, more effective way to clean a golf ball.  It just works better.  The Ball Brite currently retails for $16.95, which makes it my favorite sub-$20 golf accessory.

Finally…and much less exciting, I’ll be using Stinger tees (as I’ve done for 4 years now) and the GreenFix Wizard divot tool.  If you’re still using anything other than a push tool to repair your ball marks, it’s time to make the switch.

Check back next week for reviews of the courses I play in Ocean City, and my overall thoughts on Ocean City as golf vacation destination.