Something has shifted in the last couple of years. Golf bags used to be a fairly serious place, with matching covers, brand logos and nothing much out of line. Now I watch people come into the shop and spend twenty minutes choosing a headcover the way you would choose a pet.
I am all for it. A bag with a bit of personality is more fun to carry, easier to spot on a busy first tee, and it gives you something to talk about with the group you have just been drawn with.
Underneath the character, a good novelty cover does exactly the same job as a plain one. It stops your driver getting chipped and rattled around for four hours.
Here are the ones I would put my money on this year, and why.
Why Almost Every Novelty Cover Is a Driver Cover
Nearly every novelty headcover sold is a driver cover, and that is not an accident.
Your driver is the most expensive club in the bag, it has the biggest head, and it spends the whole round knocking into everything else. It is also the club sitting highest out of the bag, so it is the one people actually see. If you are only going to have one bit of personality on your setup, this is where it goes.
Fairway, hybrid and putter covers usually come along afterwards, once someone has decided they like the look.
Best Overall: The Daphne's Range
If you have been in the shop lately you will have seen the wall of them. Daphne's is comfortably our biggest headcover range and it just keeps selling.
The reason is the quality. These are not cheap plush toys with a hole in the bottom. They use a heavy faux fur outer, a soft lining that will not mark your crown, and a long sock that actually covers the shaft rather than stopping at the hosel. They fit a 460cc head without a fight and they stay on when the bag goes in the boot.
There are more than sixty designs in the range now, so rather than list them all, here is how I would narrow it down.
The Kiwi Pick: Daphne's Fox
This one has had a run lately for obvious reasons.
Ryan Fox winning The Open on 19 July, his first major, sealed with a birdie on the last, was a genuinely special moment for New Zealand golf. Ever since, the Daphne's Fox headcover has been walking out the door.
It is a good looking cover in its own right, but it is also about as neat a way as you will find to nod to a Kiwi major champion without being naff about it. If that appeals, do not hang about.
Best for Dog People
The dog covers are the heart of the range, and there is a fair chance your breed is in there.
The Golden Retriever, Black Lab and Doodle move fastest, which will not surprise anyone who has spent time at a New Zealand golf club.
Beyond those you will find the Bernese Mountain Dog, Doberman, Rottweiler, Corgi, Bulldog, Yorkshire Terrier, Westie Terrier, Schnauzer, Husky and Pug, among others.
These make outstanding gifts, for the obvious reason that most people are quietly delighted to have their dog on their golf bag.
Best for a Bit of Wild
If a labrador is not your style, the animal covers have real presence to them.
The Alligator and Rattle Snake are the two that get picked up most in the shop, and the Bobcat, Lion, Tiger, Wolf, Shark and Panda all hold up well.
Best for a Laugh
Not everything in the range is an animal. The Hotdog, Money Bag, Bomb, Pirate, Mushroom, Pineapple and Leprechaun all do the job if you would rather raise a smile than make a statement.
There is also a John Daly Lion, which needs no explanation.
Daphne's covers run from $79.90 to $89.90 depending on the design.
Best With Attitude: PRG Originals
Where Daphne's is plush and characterful, PRG Originals is graphic and a bit cheekier. Proper artwork and slogans rather than animals.
The three that sell best for us are:
All three say something about the person carrying them, which is rather the point.
The rest of the range runs through Most Wanted, Scary Good, Vegas Strip, Neon Vegas, Money Maker, Super Dad, Super Mom and Girl Power.
What I like about PRG is that most designs come as a driver cover and a matching blade or mallet putter cover, so you can tie the two ends of the bag together without it looking like an accident. That is harder to do with plush covers.
PRG covers are $79.90 across the range.
Best Value: Masters HeadKase
Not everyone wants to spend eighty dollars protecting a driver, and that is fair enough.
The Masters HeadKase range does the practical job for a fraction of it. Clean, simple, well made covers that fit properly.
- HeadKase driver cover at $29.90
- HeadKase fairway cover at $29.90
- Blade putter cover and mallet putter cover at $25.90
- HeadKase 4-SW iron covers at $59.90 for the set
It is not novelty in the character sense, but if what you actually want is a tidy matching set that protects everything in the bag, this is the smart buy. It is our highest volume headcover range for a reason.
Best Design Led: Callaway Barrel Covers
If you want something that looks deliberate rather than playful, Callaway's barrel style driver covers are worth a look.
The 2026 Graffiti Collection and 2026 Vintage Collection are both $89.90, and they sit somewhere between tour serious and genuinely stylish.
Barrel covers also slide on and off faster than a sock style cover, which some players much prefer.
Best Putter Covers
A putter cover is usually the second thing people buy once the driver is sorted.
The PRG blade and mallet covers at $79.90 are the pick if you want to match a driver cover. If you would rather something understated, the Odyssey Tempest blade and mallet covers at $49.90 are hard wearing and look sharp on almost anything.
Do Novelty Headcovers Actually Protect Your Club?
Yes, the good ones do. It is a fair question though, because the cheap ones do not.
Three things I would check:
- The lining. It needs to be soft. A rough inner will scuff a painted crown over a season, which is exactly what you are trying to avoid.
- The sock length. A cover that stops at the hosel leaves your shaft exposed to every other club in the bag. Graphite shafts get chipped this way more often than people realise.
- The fit. Modern drivers are all 460cc. Anything designed years ago for a smaller head will either not go on, or will fall off in the boot.
Daphne's, PRG, Callaway and Masters all tick those boxes. The ten dollar ones off an auction site generally do not.
How to Choose
If you want my honest advice, buy the one you smile at. Headcovers are one of the few things in golf where there is no wrong answer and no performance argument to have.
A few practical thoughts anyway:
- Buying it as a gift? Go with a dog that matches theirs, or something that reflects what they are into. It lands far better than a generic cover.
- Playing in a lot of wet weather? Plush covers hold water. Give it a shake and let it dry rather than zipping it into a wet bag.
- Want a matching set? PRG and Masters are the two ranges where that is straightforward.
- Worried about losing it? Write your name inside the cuff. We see plenty of orphaned covers handed in.
Come and Have a Look
Photos only tell you so much with these. The difference between a good cover and a cheap one is something you feel in your hands.
We keep the full range on the wall at Golf 360 in Mount Maunganui, so come in and have a squeeze. If you are not local, everything is online and we ship nationwide.
Browse the full headcover range here
Frequently Asked Questions
Will a novelty headcover fit my driver?
Yes. Daphne's, PRG, Callaway and Masters covers are all built for modern 460cc heads and will fit any current driver.
Are novelty headcovers allowed in competition?
Absolutely. Headcovers are not equipment under the Rules of Golf, so you can carry whatever you like. Just remember to take it off before you swing, and keep it clear of other players' lines on the green.
What is the most popular novelty headcover?
The Fox has been the standout over the last month or so, for reasons every New Zealand golfer will understand. Beyond that it is the dog covers that get asked for most, particularly the Golden Retriever, Black Lab and Doodle.
Do novelty covers come in fairway or hybrid sizes?
Daphne's and PRG are driver covers. If you want a matched set across the bag, Masters HeadKase and Callaway both do driver, fairway, hybrid and putter versions.
How much should I spend on a golf headcover?
Between $25 and $90 covers the whole market. Around $30 gets you a well made plain cover, and $80 to $90 gets you a proper character cover that will last years.
Do headcovers make good gifts?
They are one of the best golf gifts going, and one of the few you can buy for a golfer without knowing their handicap, their swing, or what is already in the bag.
Final Thoughts
There is no single best novelty headcover, because the whole point is that it should say something about you.
Daphne's is where I would start for character and quality, PRG if you want a slogan and a matching putter cover, Masters if you just want the job done tidily, and Callaway if you want something that looks considered.
Whichever way you go, your driver will thank you for it.
Happy golfing,
Scott Pickett
PGA Professional
Founder – Golf 360
Mount Maunganui
Related reading: The most overlooked golf accessories that actually make a difference and a guide to choosing the right golf bag.
