I HAD the top of my left ear removed a few years ago that turned out to be cancerous from years of golfing in the sun with a baseball cap that didn’t cover my ears.
The tops of our ears are prone to sun exposure, especially for those of us with shorter hair—it’s an area that can easily be forgotten about. I personally am not a huge fan of most suncreams as they are mixed with petroleum. A chemical left behind in petrol tanks that is put into our skin products including suncreams and lip balms just doesn’t make much sense to put on the biggest organ of our body.
A quote I heard a few years ago made a lot of sense: “if you can’t eat it then it should not go on to your skin”. So outside of finding suncreams with no chemicals, I have turned to a sun bucket hat that not only protects your face but also covers the ears, which I feel is an option that is best suited for most of us golfers playing for up to five hours out under direct sunlight.
These bucket caps have become a huge industry over the past decade with them coming in all shapes and sizes. Some are even wide enough to keep most of your body covered from the direct sunlight.
A few years ago, while in Dubai, I went to follow Padraig Harrington as he was in contention to win. The midday sun was reaching up to 40° so I decided to buy a bucket cap for the first time. To my surprise, I was able to stay out in the heat for a lot longer due to the shade the bucket cap was giving me because it had quite a large rim around the sides.
It was a bit like I was stood under the shade of a tree, and there was a nice breeze that day so it was a lot more pleasant because of the bucket cap.
These caps come with both rigid or softer rims that can be ironed should the softer caps get creased, which is often the case when they get balled up in the pocket of the golf bag. The advantage to the rigid bucket caps is they hold their shape but they can’t be folded into the pocket of your golf bag.
I have also noticed, though, even if you wear a bucket cap on a warm breezy day, those who are prone to getting burned can still suffer sunburn from the breeze. So it is still advisable to wear some suncream, preferably without petroleum, as I would argue long-term use of petroleum products can’t be good for our skin either.
I have researched zinc oxide; it is very effective and a much healthier option for protecting our skin from getting damaged. Zinc oxide sits on top of your skin rather than being absorbed. It acts like a shield, reflecting and scattering both UVA and UVB rays (the parts of sunlight that cause sunburn, aging, and skin cancer).
Unlike some chemical sunscreens that block only part of the UV spectrum, zinc oxide blocks a wide range of harmful rays.
This week is promised to be in the mid-twenties so it’s important to be ready if you are hitting the fairways. Another alternative tip is to set up your umbrella in the umbrella holder on your trolley to help to protect you from getting too much direct sunlight.
It is important to the human body to get direct sunlight, but after 15-20 minutes our skin can begin to burn from the lack of exposure in Ireland. So make sure to protect yourself and don’t forget to protect your ears also so you don’t face the same issues I had a number of years ago.
