Antigua’s Perform model comes in four different color combinations.
Some 20 years ago my golf season metaphorically started with a visit to the Gap, where I’d grab three of its traditional short-sleeved pique cotton shirts, invariably in singular colors, including pure black, dark blue or bright white. I appreciated the raised ribbing of the weaving style, which yielded a stiffer fabric that resisted wrinkling. These shirts also sported no logo, be it for a brand or club, apparel anonymity that was, at the time, greatly valued.
When Gap stopped making stolid T-shirts that lasted for several years, I stopped going to its stores. Meanwhile, golf shirts rapidly evolved in composition and style. Lightweight “performance fabrics” that resisted heat while absorbing sweat and facilitating its evaporation took an ever-increasing share of the market. And even while weeding out pilled and permanently burrito-stained garments, the reserves in my closet included a large percentage of Antiqua-branded shirts.
In a wide variety of styles and colors, the Antiqua line included of 100 percent polyester shirts that were incredibly lightweight and virtually immune to wrinkling – – which for a wrinkle-inducing fellow is an obviously desirable attribute. In the past few years these included the company’s Desert Dry™ technology, which absorbs and wicks moisture quickly and evenly, leading to that efficient evaporation that helps keep golfers comfortable and dry on hot summer afternoons.
That technology, and more, is a large part of the Spring 2015 Line for the Peoria, Arizona-based Antigua Group, including a fabric that recaptures the often missing feel of casual and soft cotton. Antigua developed a Desert Dry™ fabric that’s 40 percent polyester and 60 percent cotton, which they call, naturally, the Desert Dry™ Performance Cotton. Several additional models feature Desert Dry™ Xtra-Lite material, which is an ultra-light fabric that looks and feels like cotton, yet handles perspiration like a 100 percent poly shirt.
A number of its models include “self fabric” and flat knit collars, adding style to what are clearly well-constructed and long lasting
The Reserve style is just that, coming in 9 solid colors and a 60 percent cotton and 40 percent Polyester blend, dry and Xtra-Lite.
polos. And many of this year’s colors are more muted than the “pop” style that gained much positive attention for Antigua for its 2012 line.
Among the models I recently tested were the Perform, which features a trio of contrasting colors. Made of 100 percent polyester, it’s among the lightest in the line. I have the white, gray and purple shirt shown in the initial photo. It comes in four different combinations.
I’ve also tried the Reserve, which has the Desert Dry Xtra-Lite 60 percent cotton and 40 percent polyester blend. Antigua’s website shows it coming in nine different colors; mine is a muted gray. For those who prefer the clean look of a solid color, Reserve is an excellent choice.
A trio of good looking shirts that will hold a golfer into the next season.
Finally, I also have been wearing the Blaze, again a Desert Dry Xtra-Lite, but with the cotton-like feel. The subtle, horizontal striping gives the shirt more of a textured look, despite its supple smooth feel.
All in all, these shirts look good on a golf course, in a club house or anywhere, for that matter. They are another good take on the classic polo shirt.
Find Antigua on the web at: www.Antigua.com and ShopAntigua.com; Like Antigua on Facebook at: facebook.com/Antigua;Follow Antigua on Twitter at: twitter.com/AntiguaWear: Watch Antigua YouTube videos at: youtube.com/AntiguaWear
