Welcome to Road Rules, a GOLF.com series in which we pick the brains of expert golf travelers, ranging from professional golfers and caddies to globetrotting course raters and teachers. We’ll unlock their must-have travel items, go-to airline tips and more to inform you for your next golf excursion.
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Sam Horsfield knows how to travel. His family moved from England to Florida when he was 5 years old. He went to the University of Florida for two years and still lives in the Orlando area, although he’s now traversing the world as a European Tour member. That’s a lot of frequent-flyer miles.
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And when Horsfield, who is 25, does travel for tournaments, he always carries two extra golf clubs. If he needs to switch or one becomes damaged or — gasp! — misplaced, he’ll have one he’s familiar with as a trusty backup.
“I haven’t changed putters in like two years, but I always carry two with me,” Horsfield says. “I feel like the putter is the most personal [club] in your bag, so I always carry two of those, and then two drivers because drivers are probably the hardest to get and find right because they aren’t the same.”
But the 16 clubs — including the backup driver and putter — aren’t the only items Horsfield never travels to tournament’s without.
“I wouldn’t make it five minutes without my phone,” he says. He also says his laptop and iPad are must-haves when traveling.
“Gotta catch up on the Netflix somehow,” he says.
We agree.
Luke Kerr-Dineen contributed to this story.