Oakley Golf Sunglasses Review

It sucks to get old! A recent visit to our eye doctor uncovered some mild cataracts forming. The side effect of cataracts is that bright light sources start to add a halo effect & glare to your vision. What the heck does that have to do with golfing & sunglasses you ask? Well if you've ever stared down at a new shiny, white golfball with the sun overhead it's quite bright. Which leads us to our review today of the Oakley FLAK 2.0 XL sunglasses.

The FLAK 2.0 XL has a sporty look to them and we are all about sporty looks! The frames utilize Oakley's lightweight O-Matterᵀᴹ material coupled with soft rubber touch points on the nose bridge and temples made from Unobtaniumᵀᴹ Marketers, LOL!  

The FLAK 2.0 XL comes with multiple lens options based on your preferences. We opted for the Prizm Dark Golf, figuring the darker lenses would be best for reducing our halo & glare issues. 

Besides serving as sporty sunglasses, the Prizm lenses also help improve color and contrast on the golf course on sunny days, see image below.

We've owned a number of pairs of Oakleys over the years and the FLAKs do not feel as robust as other models. Flimsy is the word that comes to mind when holding them. That being said, trying to keep the weight down on the bridge of your nose over a 5-hour round of golf is probably a good idea. 

The Prizm lenses do offer increased contrast on the course, however the difference is not as great as that shown in the promotional image. We noticed more detail with approach shots to the green better recognizing undulations, shelves and false fronts. Green reading, especially on long putts, was improved by the lenses allowing us to better see the grain, surface imperfections and breaks on bright sunny days. 

As far as sunblocking, the FLAKs fall a little short as a traditional pair of sunglasses. In really bright sun they help, but they don't quite provide the light darkening you expect from Oakley or any other quality sunglass lenses.

 

SPECS:

Frame color: Matte Black

Lens color: Prizm Dark Golf

Base lens color: Rose

Light transmission: 22%

Width: 6" edge to edge front of frame

Height: 1 5/8" 

Retail price: $176 ( We paid $132 on sale) 

PRO's

Lightweight, extremely flexible frames

Prizm Dark Golf lens improves color/contrast on course

Hard case keeps glasses safe in your golf bag

Replaceable lenses

2-Year warranty

Made in USA

CONs:

Price

Frames have a cheap feel to them for the money

Oversized storage case eats up a lot of space in your golf bag

Not as good at light filtering as other sunglasses

SUMMARY:

Our big concern going into this review was that the FLAK 2.0s wouldn't hold up to rigors of constantly going on and off, stretched out over our hat/head and going in and out of our golf bag. With a few rounds and range sessions in the books we have to say there have been no durability issues whatsoever.

The FLAKs stay in place on the face even when taking a huge cut at the ball off the tee or looking straight down over the ball when putting. There's nothing worse than having to push your sunglasses back on that have slidden down your nose all day.

While they carry the designation XL, we feel like the FLAKs could benefit from a slightly taller lens. We sometimes noticed a sliver of light below the the lenses that could be a bit distracting at times. 

Overall we are neutral on the FLAK 2.0 XLs. We felt like they helped a bit with seeing more contrast on the course, but if you are seeking a more traditional pair of sunglasses you may want to consider one of the other lens options that filters more light. 

 

The sunglasses for this review were purchased by Golf Gear Box.

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