Travel bags?

[dbleber]

What are some recommendations for a travel bag to protect your clubs when flying? I would think hard shell would be better, but since I have never travel with my clubs on a plane I don't know for sure. What do you guys use?
Denny

[jvincent]

I use a hard shell and they are very good at protecting the clubs. If you've ever seen the way baggage handlers treat clubs, you'd always go for a hard shell. Good example of this, after one trip, my hard case had a crack in it from being tossed. No damage to the clubs though.

The negative to the hard cases are:

1. They are heavier, but this is mitigated by the fact they have wheels.
2. They don't fit into most cars. SUVs, Vans, or hatchback with folding seats required.

The pros supposedly swear by the Club Glove soft cases, but when you're carrying clubs on your private jet, they get less abuse.

[Colby]

I've travelled a lot with a soft case, no issue at all. But I do perform some protective tasks:

1. I have a hockey stick cutoff so it is longer than my longest club. This takes the brunt of end on hits.
2. I wrap extra padding around the heads of the clubs.

[powerlefty]

I've travelled a lot with a soft case, no issue at all. But I do perform some protective tasks:

1. I have a hockey stick cutoff so it is longer than my longest club. This takes the brunt of end on hits.
2. I wrap extra padding around the heads of the clubs.

I agree with Colby. I travel a couple of times a year with my clubs in a soft case with wheels. Instead of a hockey stick I put a piece of copper pipe in my bag. It is a couple of inches longer than my driver and a tape it at both ens so it does not vut through anything. BY being longer, it takes the brunt of any impact if the bag lands on its top. My bag already has lots of foam padding in it but I also wrap extra towels around the glubs inside the bag. So far, so good.

[maak]

I also use the soft bag but it has a lot of padding near the top of the bag. Like the other guys, I use a longer stick than the longest club, just in case. I find you can carry much more in the soft bags than the hard bag. I don't use it much, but it is nice when we take our yearly trip to Myrtle. Good wheels on any travel bag are a must, due to the weight of all the gear...maak