Whether your on the beach in Florida, staycationing at home, or stuck in the TSA line - Spring Break is upon us and we all deserve relax and recharge.
Just make sure that sunglass tan is fixed before you go back to work. We hear that Zoom calls make them look even worse.
Here's what had our attention this week.
🗂️ IN THIS ISSUE
→ The most exclusive golf ball you've never heard of
→ A new candidate for your favorite golf short brand
→ Nike's best running shoe is finally a golf shoe
👀 Best Things We Saw This Week
Mark Wahlberg, Doug Meijer, and Sergio Garcia started a new invite-only golf ball brand. The Underground is invite-only, capped on membership, and built around one premise: make the best ball possible without chasing volume. Garcia has already put them in play on LIV. Applications are open now, but don't expect to just click and buy. This is the kind of thing that asks for your handicap, your club affiliation, and your golf philosophy before deciding if you're in.
The era of squinting at a yardage book while your phone overheats on the dash is officially over. Club Car just dropped new 2026 models featuring in-cart Apple CarPlay integration — part of a broader industry shift where premium carts are starting to feel less like golf equipment and more like a second vehicle. It was only a matter of time.
Nike has been putting running silhouettes into golf for a while now, but a modern Pegasus-inspired golf shoe is coming and it looks exactly like what it should: a running shoe that happens to grip turf. No golf shoe awkwardness, no clunky outsole. If you've been waiting for a shoe you can wear from the parking lot to the 18th green without anyone noticing the difference, this is it. Keep an eye on this one.
🔦 Brand Spotlight
We featured Juniper & James Dove Grey shorts last week and a few of you asked about the brand, so here's the short version.
Juniper & James is a southern golf apparel brand built for guys who play in actual heat — the kind where you're sweating through your shirt by the 3rd hole and the round is still four hours away. The founder named it after his twin kids and started it because he couldn't find a shirt that held up to 102-degree Texas rounds without looking like you'd just come off a job site.
The entire line is focused — shorts, polos, pants, a quarter zip — which is usually a good sign. Brands that try to do everything tend to do nothing particularly well. These guys are focused on warm-weather performance and it shows in the details: 4-way stretch nylon, 7" inseam, built-in microfiber cloth, glove loop, gripper waistband. Nothing gimmicky.
The colorways are clean and Southern without being loud about it — names like Sea Storm, Driftwood, and Dove Grey instead of the usual neon marketing palette. Worth bookmarking before everyone else figures it out.
✍️ Editor’s Picks
Jones Utility X Golf Bag in Navy ($345) Jones has been making carry bags since 1971, and the Utility X is where a decade of stand bag refinement lands. F-35 recycled ripstop, 5.1 lbs, 4-way dividers with three full-length channels, an insulated cooler pocket, dual strap system, and a flex bottom that actually stays put on uneven terrain. The navy colorway is clean — no loud logos, no circus branding, just a well-built bag that looks right on any course. Built for walkers who take their gear seriously. → Shop here
Lopar Golf Leather Grain Rangefinder Case ($69) Your Bushnell deserves better than getting tossed loose in the side pocket. Lopar makes a vegan leather case with a magnetic snap closure, waterproof zipper, and a hidden internal pocket for an extra battery. Clean colorways — Saddle Maple, River Rock, Stowe Twilight — that actually look good clipped to a bag. Made for the player who cares about the details. → Shop here
Hudson Sutler Kiawah Cooler Backpack ($199) Handmade in the USA. Roll-top waterproof liner, padded straps, two zippered exterior pockets, and insulation that keeps things cold long enough to matter. Built for the round, the range, the tailgate, or the golf trip where you actually want to carry the cooler instead of drag it. The name alone earns points. → Shop here
Nexbelt Hampton Augusta V2 Ribbon Ratchet Belt ($79.99) The classic ribbon belt has a problem: it never fits quite right. Nexbelt fixed that with their ratchet system — quarter-inch micro-adjustments, push-button release, no holes stretching out over time. The Augusta V2 does it in green grosgrain with Georgia-inspired embroidered details, timed perfectly for Masters week. It's the belt you wear to the watch party and then to the course the next morning. → Shop here
🙌 Thanks for reading
Stay cool, swing easy — see you next week.
— Riley, Founder & Editor
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ABOUT CLEVER
Clever The Optimist is a weekly newsletter curating elevated menswear and golf gear for guys who refuse to settle.
Founded by Riley Kearns in 2024.
Based in Columbus, OH.