The polo has been sitting in an open tab for two days and you are stuck on a drop-down menu. S, M, L, XL. You wear a medium in town, but a golf polo is something you wear while turning on yourself for four hours.
So which size of golf polo should you order? Start from your measurements and the model’s size guide. For the Dogleg men’s Tour Polo, between two sizes, take the larger one if you want a more relaxed fit. Your usual size is a starting point, not a guarantee.
The rest cannot be settled with a letter. The armhole, the collar and the fabric belong to the choice of polo itself, not to the size.
Take the size of your swing, not the size of your chest
At the top of the backswing the back lengthens, the shoulder blades spread, the trailing arm rises. That is the body the polo has to dress, not the one in the mirror in the morning.
A common mistake: fixing a cut problem with a size. If a polo rides up when you raise your arms, it may be too small, too short, or simply wrong for your shoulders. Try the neighbouring size, but try another cut too if the problem stays.
The three measurements to take: shoulder, chest, back length
Weight alone is not enough. Take the polo that already fits you, lay it flat, spread out properly, without pulling.
- The shoulder. From one shoulder seam to the other, passing behind the collar. On a classic cut, the seam sits at the end of the shoulder.
- The chest. From one armpit to the other, laid flat, then double it. That is the garment’s chest measurement, not yours.
- The back length. From the base of the collar to the hem, straight down. Nobody looks at it, and it is the one that decides whether the polo stays in your trousers.
On our pages, two tables live side by side. One matches your body measurements to a size. The other gives the garment’s measurements laid flat. Always compare like with like: your body against the body table, your polo against the garment measurements. For the chest, do not mix flat width and full circumference.
Between two sizes: the model’s advice first
For the men’s Tour Polo, the larger size gives a more relaxed fit. Then look at which measurement is making you hesitate.
If it is the back length, check the larger size’s. It has to let you keep the polo tucked in without weighing it down.
If it is the shoulder, compare the two sizes in movement. A seam sitting too low can signal a polo that is too wide, but the cut matters as well.
If it is the chest, keep enough room to turn without tension. Elastane adds stretch, but a polyester without elastane can be supple thanks to its construction. So the composition alone does not entitle you to size down.
If you take one thing from this article, take this one: between two sizes, read the model’s advice, then check it against your swing.
And do not order a size up in anticipation of the wash. Machine at 30 degrees, no fabric softener: how you look after it is what decides the rest.
Men’s, women’s and children’s sizing: what changes
A table applies to one cut, and one only. A women’s golf polo is not a men’s polo made smaller: the proportions differ behind the same measurements.
From one Tour Polo to another the letters do not move: XS to 2XL for adults, men and women alike, and age sizes for children. What changes behind the letter is the centimetres.
For a child, take the size they are now, not next year’s. A polo that is too big moves before their swing does. Allow room to grow, without letting the collar and sleeves float around them.
If you got it wrong
A polo that is too small pulls when you move. A polo that is too big can feel comfortable standing still, then shift during the swing. Both can be checked.
Too big shows in three signs. The shoulder seam has slid down onto the arm. The short sleeve reaches the elbow. And the hem no longer stays tucked in, because the whole garment rotates.
Too small is quicker: the collar pulls the moment you button it, or the fabric marks a line across the back at the top of the backswing.
The test happens at home. Polo on, one slow backswing in front of the mirror, labels still attached. It saves you a parcel to send back.
The right size is the one that leaves the movement free without asking you to readjust the polo after every shot.
At Dogleg you have fourteen days to change your mind, with a prepaid return in Switzerland. Elsewhere in Europe the return is at your expense, unless the mistake is ours.