It’s Our Game
We’ve been synonymous with the great game of golf for as long, if not longer than most people can remember. We’ve clothed some of the greatest names to ever play, we’ve been the highest-selling golf brand in countries around the world, and we’re still selling top-tier, performance-engineered, premium golfwear to this day. But this begs the question: how did we get here? Read on to find out.
The Very Best in Knitwear
Founded in 1874, deep in the Scottish Borders, we spent the first decades of our story perfecting our world-class knitwear. Though our garments had received wide acclaim from the late 19th century – renowned for their intricate craftsmanship and innovative design – it was in the 1950s that we finally found knitwear stardom. Having produced a number of prestigious collections that were sold far and wide across the United Kingdom, one of the world’s most celebrated luxury designers – Christian Dior – asked if we wanted to collaborate. Not only did this suddenly make Lyle & Scott a household name in the United States, with the range being sold in top department stores like Bergdorf Goodman, it also set the stage for us to sweep the golfing world which itself was on the rise…
The Original Golf Brand
Just as we found international renown, the game of golf was, for the very first time, being broadcast into the living rooms of millions of fans worldwide through their newly popularised TV sets – in the space of a short few years, the game’s popularity exploded, and so did its style. At the time, golfing fashion was moving away from its more formal roots to a mixture of casual and classic with a heavy dependence on knitwear – this presented an irresistible opportunity for a brand that specialised in exactly that.
We launched our first golf range in the 1960s and quickly became known as ‘The Original Golf Brand’. However, the creation of our now iconic Golden Eagle, which coincided with the golf launch, rocketed our brand to golfing superstardom. Inspired by the eagle that adorned the world-famous Gleneagles course, our new logo saw the brand quickly taken up by some of the biggest names in the game.
In 1978 Jack Nicklaus, the man arguably considered the greatest golfer of all time, became the first player to win a major tournament wearing garments produced in a Lyle & Scott factory. The iconic images of this win at St Andrew's, just an hour from the Dunfermline-based Lyle & Scott factory, show the golfer sporting a navy argyle V-neck.
In 1986, Lyle & Scott managed another major coup when Greg Norman won the Open at Turnberry and went on to win a further six tournaments that year, all while proudly wearing a Lyle & Scott V-neck jumper emblazoned with the Golden Eagle.
Ian Baker-Finch, another Australian, won the Open at Royal Birkdale in 1991 with the Golden Eagle on his sweater. Other pinnacle moments in this era included supplying outfits for the Ryder Cup team in 1981 and the Hennessey Cup Team in 1982, as well as outfitting some of the best golfers of that generation including Nick Faldo and Sandy Lyle.
And What About Now?
After this run of success, our name quickly became front and centre in the most prestigious club shops around the world. Committed to keeping our golfing customers well-dressed and ready for anything, we’ve continued to create premium, stylish and performance-engineered golfwear that will have you ready for the course, clubhouse, and beyond. Check out our world-famous golfing polos, trousers, and baselayers below, as well as our classic knitwear.
We’re still working with some of the best players out there today. Plus, we’ve partnered with some of the pioneering content creators that are helping to bring golf into the modern age, making it more exciting and inclusive than ever before. Our latest signing is the legendary Rick Shiels, and you can check out his content here.
From humble beginnings in the 19th century, legendary success in the 20th and a bold, daring new approach to a classic sport in the 21st, we can safely say this: golf is our game, and it always has been.