A travel-worthy golf bag

The hubby and I got to play a round of golf with family while we were in Cali last week.  We knew we were taking some clubs when we learned that Jet Blue actually doesn't charge an oversize bag fee for checking golf bags, but we also didn't want to haul 2 big bags of clubs cross-country.

I've been wanting a new golf bag for a while now, because my current bag is a really heavy cart bag, which is much to bulky for taking to the driving range, or to a par-3 course. I looked for inspiration on the internets, and found only one example of a diy golf bag.

from Table Calendar

It's a lovely, orange carry bag, and it looks easy to make, but I knew I wanted something with a few more features, like the ability to stand on its own and lock into a cart, yet still fold down for easy travel.

My source of inspiration came from the Caddy Sack

Don't let weird pictures of the old man fool you.  This bag has a cool shape that makes it lightweight, able to carry a few clubs, and it stands.  The only problem: it's really ugly.  

And so I began to make my own DIY version with this:

I grabbed some black sailcloth and jute strapping for the bag body.  I also chose the golf clubs I wanted to carry, as a guide for the finished size of the bag.

I added a decent amount of internal support to this baby, 2 zipper pockets (for balls, tees and wallet) and 1 large pocket (for a water bottle and a hat), and a metal stand that I rigged from a few hardware store supplies. I sewed the entire bag on Veronica, and she didn't complain at all, even with the multiple layers of heavy-duty sail cloth and thick jute strapping.

The result is an attractive, lightweight "sunday" golf bag. It's not perfect yet, but it is a very functional bag, that travels very well. The hubby and I were able to pack all our clubs into his golf bag (so we only had to check one golf bag), while my bag folded down into our luggage, taking up very little space.

It even straps into the golf cart easily.

Once I have made my last few adjustments on the stand, I will share more information about the inner structure of the bag.  And because I already had the sailcloth, the total cost for this bag was under $15 (for zippers, jute, strap hardware, and stand hardware).