Golf is an outdoor sport.

If you’re a true enthusiast, you need to take the good weather with the bad and embrace the game regardless of the conditions Mother Nature throws our way.

This especially rings true in the Midwest where you’re destined for a four-month season unless you bundle up and take on the cold in March and November.

“Bundling up” can be far easier, though, with the aid of heated apparel.

I had never tried heated apparel, thinking that shivering through early spring and late fall rounds was a badge of honor in a northern climate. After reading WiscoGolfAddict’s Heated Apparel Buying Guide, though, I began to question that notion.

This offseason, the opportunity came up to review a brand I had never heard of, featuring a diverse lineup of multi-purpose heated apparel – Venustas.

I was simply looking for a piece to slip on during cold and windy rounds that’s lightweight enough to allow for an unrestricted swing, so I immediately honed in on the Lightweight Recycled Heated Softshell Vest.

After receiving the item in December, I thought it might be months before I could actually test it out on the golf course. However, a stint of cold golf weather came knocking in January, in the place I least expected – Florida.

As emphasized in my recap of WiscoGolfAddict’s team trip to Florida, it was cold that week. Like, March-in-Wisconsin level cold.

Our rounds at Streamsong Black and Cabot Citrus Farms, in particular, were brutal with temps in the 30’s-40’s and a steady drizzle, plus one bout with a torrential downpour. As Dario aptly mentioned in his Streamsong Black review, I’m no meteorologist, but the cost of being wrong about the weather is certainly lower when you have heated apparel in your court.

Heading into the trip, I questioned whether I should actually bring my heated vest to Florida, of all places. As it turns out, this top saved the day and kept me toasty throughout the week. Not only did the vest help during golf rounds, it was also clutch during photography sessions, where I’d otherwise have frozen in a cart with numb fingers fumbling over the controls of my DJI Mini 3 Pro.

Functionality

The Lightweight Vest features best-in-class functionality with five heating zones (collar, left & right chest, mid-back and low back) that will keep every main area of the torso warm. With three heat settings, you can adjust the warmth to a level the conditions dictate. The heat distributes across the zones almost instantaneously after engagement, when you need it the most.

The heat settings are controlled with a button on the top – simply hit the button and it will change color to denote the mode – blue for low, white for medium and red for pre-heat and high. I appreciated this convenienty-located control as my demands for heat constantly waxed and waned throughout the rounds.

As I found out in my first experience, with heated apparel it’s important to minimize any layers worn underneath, as the heat takes a long time to work its way through multiple, thick layers of clothing. I settled on simply wearing a thin quarter-zip underneath the vest to bring out its full magic.

The battery life is advertised as “up to 10 hours” and in practice I was able to complete a full 18-hole round while only depleting about half of the charge. The battery will drain faster if you’re using the hotter modes, so I was careful to stick with the low and medium modes most of the time.

With 7.4V of juice that will provide up to 131℉ of warmth, this piece packs a lot of punch in its weight class, ensuring you can get through a lengthy round without the shivers.

A rechargeable lithium-ion battery inserts into the inner-left pocket of the vest, convenient for plugging and unplugging during a round. And that’s another point worth mentioning – if you leave the battery plugged in, it will drain slowly even if the heat is turned off. So be sure to unplug the battery after use, especially if you plan to turn it on again before charging.

The battery takes about three hours to charge, so it’s important to charge up the night before a round.

The battery of the Venustas vest is lightweight, compact and USB-C and B compatible

Fit

My golf swing deteriorates if I’m forced to wear thick, heavy layers, so a lightweight vest seemed like the only viable option to keep me warm while also allowing for free, athletic movement.

Venustas’s lightweight vest certainly fit that bill, weighing in at only 0.86 pounds with surprisingly thin FELLEX® insulation. Pound-for-pound, I can’t imagine a lighter top that could deliver the same level of warmth. Combined with a stretchy softshell, I’ve enjoyed the same freedom of motion in my swing that I’d expect from a non-heated fleece or vest.

Even better, if conditions improve to the point where you can turn off the heat, you can probably keep the vest on as it’s thin enough to provide optimal warmth in moderately cold weather.

The PFC-free water-repellent shell was HUGE in Florida as we battled monsoons – in fact, during our epic adventure at Streamsong Black, my torso was the only area of my body that stayed dry.

Closing Thoughts

At a price of $179.99, the Venustas Lightweight Heated Vest clocks in at a reasonable price point for a high-end product. The function, performance and fit of the vest all exceeded my expectations, and I’ll be donning this piece in comfort throughout the early spring Wisconsin golf season.

Do you struggle with the chills during rounds in the colder months? Venustas may have the solution you’re looking for.

Add heat to your golf game with Venustas today!