Callaway Par 3 HD Pencil Bag Review

For golfers who like to travel light and who don’t use a buggy or trolley, having the best golf bag for carrying is essential. Callaway produce some of the best golf bags for all types of conditions. Whether it’s cart bags, tour bags, stand bags or waterproof golf bags, Callaway have something for everyone.

I have used most types of golf bags but I had never used a pencil bag until I got to try out the Callaway Par 3 HD pencil bag, which takes many of the features of the best stand bags and uses them in a much slimmer, ultra lightweight package. When it arrived in the box, the box actually felt virtually empty. There’s hardly any weight to this thing at all until you start to add clubs.

Up until a couple of years ago I always carried my bag on the course. The older I got though I found that my game would suffer over the closing holes as fatigue set in, so I reluctantly bowed to Father Time, got myself a trolly and switched to a cart bag. 

It had been a while since I carried a golf bag for 18 holes so I wanted to travel as light and possible. The Callaway Par 3 bag is the lightest bag I have ever used but it is not designed for carrying a full set of clubs. You could squeeze all 14 clubs in there as there is enough room, but the whole point is to travel light so it made sense to me to leave a few clubs out of the bag. I carried 10 clubs as I played 18 holes at the beautiful Palmerston Course at Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire.

The main difference between this bag and a stand bag - apart from the size and weight - is the legs. On a stand bag the legs are longer and automatically unfold when you set the base of the bag onto the ground. The Callaway Par 3 HD bag has micro legs which are much shorter and need to be extended manually before setting the bag down on the ground. 

This would be a bit of a faff if you were doing it every time you set the bag down, but the bag is designed in such a way that I was able to just leave the legs extended as they are so short they do not get in the way when carrying. Having the micro legs extended the whole time made it much easier to put down and pick up without the clubs bashing together when the bag hit the turf. The moulded hip pads and strap also added to the comfort and convenience of carrying the bag. 

In terms of storage, there’s not a great deal of room but that’s the point. If you’re travelling light you don’t need eight pockets full of stuff you don’t need. I know when I’m using my trolley that my cart bag is rammed with things I don’t need. Enough golf balls to last a full season, a spare pair of shoes, waterproofs, food, extra drinks, all sorts of stuff that never ends up being taken out of the bag. You can do that when a trolley is taking the weight, but when you’re carrying it on your back it’s a different story. 

So to keep things light I had a dozen balls and a bottle of water in the mesh pocket at the base of the bag. I also had my wallet and a few tees in a smaller side pocket and a sweater in the main side pocket, which also contained the fully waterproof rain cover. There is also a secure, waterproof pocket where I could keep my car keys.

I used the double shoulder strap for carrying, but the option is there to unclip the strap and carry it by the handle, which is something I would probably do if I was playing a par 3 golf course and only carrying a small number of clubs. 

Another little feature I like is the velcro glove holder, which for me should be a staple of every golf bag. I get irrationally annoyed when a bag does not have that as I don’t like to keep the glove in my pocket when putting.

The Callaway Par 3 HD bag is made from 10K waterproof fabric and is fully seam-sealed so unlike many pencil bags, you can safely use this in a downpour and not have to worry about your clubs and belongings getting soaked. 

All in all this is the perfect bag for holiday use or for any golfers who want to travel light and don’t mind leaving a club or two behind.