CA Report: Top 8 Golf Cigars to Improve Your Game
2020 CA REPORT: 8 of the Best Golf Cigars for Rounding-Out Your Game
Updated May 2020
Allow me to begin with full disclosure: I don’t play golf. At least not the traditional game. My minimal experience with the sport amounts to taking golf lessons as a youngster with a friend at his dad’s country club, what I’ve seen on TV, and what I’ve learned from my brother whose love for the game is insatiable. He even helped me with this article. My game is mini golf. Yes, indeedy. Starting practically from toddlerhood, I spent every summer on Long Beach Island, New Jersey, and played A LOT of mini golf. I’ve even managed to attain a 2 handicap. But I’ve never smoked a cigar playing mini golf. That’s an advantage reserved for the real golfers.
Cigars and golf go together like bees and honey
It’s all about relaxation. Fewer things make better use of the time between holes, drives, chips, and putts than the pleasure of a good cigar. Even when you miss another three-foot putt, shank into the water, or find yourself washed-up on the beach, a cigar can be a magical sedative. One of the best depictions of the golf-cigar kinship comes from another best golf cigars article:
What’s the best golf cigar?
There’s no such thing. The question is, what’s the best golf cigar for you? Having gotten to know a number of cigar smoking golfers over the years, they seem to like cigars that share some combination of the following: full in flavor, not overly complex or too strong, and big enough to get them through at least nine holes.
Using the above criteria mixed with a nice cross–section of brands, blends and sizes, the following should have no problem finding a place among both, cigar smokers who play golf and golfers who smoke cigars.
Arturo Fuente Sun Grown Double Chateau
Size: 6¾x50Strength: Medium
Wrapper: Ecuador Sun Grown Habano
It’s hard to imagine this mouthwatering vitola from Arturo Fuente being absent from the course. Sheathed in a cedar sleeve that blankets most of the oily, sun-kissed wrapper, the Double Chateau is a grand-looking cigar in every respect. Packed with vintage Dominican tobaccos at its core, the creamy smoke supplies a well-balanced passel of leather, cedar, toasty notes, and nuanced spices with a floral bouquet. This is relaxation at its finest.
Enclave Broadleaf by AJ Fernandez Toro
Size: 6½x54Strength: Full
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Enclave Broadleaf cigars were the first blend in AJ’s stable to suit-up in a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, and boy did he pick a goodie. Thick, oily, and toothy, this wide-bodied Toro stands up well to the elements. Nestled below is a blend of Nicaraguan binder and fillers from Pueblo Nuevo, Estelí, and Jalapa. Peppery spice, cedar, sweet tobacco, coffee, cocoa, and a curious fruity note combine for a full-flavored “Masters–piece” that golfers with a bent for robust Nicaraguans can enjoy during or after their round.
Excalibur No.1 Natural by Hoyo de Monterrey
Size: 7¼x54 Double CoronaStrength: Medium
Wrapper: U.S. Connecticut Shade
You could say that the Excalibur No.1 is the cigar that defined the term “golf cigar.” Hailed as Excalibur’s “flagship cigar,” it’s been around for years and continues to rack up sales. You can also see why so many golfers love bringing this big daddy to the course. Stoked by a Honduran, Nicaraguan, Dominican core wadded in a Connecticut Broadleaf binder, the smoke provides a well-rounded, sweet and cedary profile padded with a suggestion of mocha java on a long, creamy finish. A tried n’ true classic that shows no signs of slowing down.
My Father Connecticut Corona Gorda
Size: 6×48Strength: Mellow-plus
Wrapper: Ecuador Connecticut Shade
This Connecticut Shade-clad Corona Gorda from My Father is a fine choice for the golfer who wants a cigar with Nicaraguan gusto, yet runs leaner in strength. Even Janny Garcia, herself, said, “It is absolutely a mild cigar but definitely full-flavored.” Within its Corojo, Habano, and Criollo core also lies one of its secrets—a specially-fermented viso leaf cured and aged for three years. Starting with bright peppery spice, rounding out to cedar and coffee notes, and finishing with sweet spices, it’s impressively complex, too. A marvelous cigar for the back nine, the My Father Connecticut also makes a rewarding 19th Hole candidate.
Nat Sherman Timeless Sterling Churchill
Size: 7×48Strength: Medium
Wrapper: Ecuador Connecticut Shade
The Nat Sherman Timeless Sterling Churchill is one of the most relaxing cigars you’ll ever put to your lips on the links. Opulent in appearance, the smoke is plentiful, ultra-creamy, and perfectly balanced due to its golden Ecuador Connecticut Shade capa and vintage Dominican binder and fillers that are aged up to 10 years. Medium in body, rich flavors of oak, nutmeg, graham cracker, brown sugar, and exotic spices are just some of the flavors that make this vitola downright seductive. It’s also a marvelous alternative to the Ashtons that have become so popular over the years with golfers. Make sure you bring more than one with you, too.
Oliva Serie G Figurado
Size: 6½x60 Perfecto, box-pressedStrength: Medium-plus
Wrapper: African Cameroon
This eye-catching Oliva Series G Figurado has everything you could want in a great golf cigar. For one, it’s plenty big, yet comfortable to hold. Next, it has a rich-tasting core of fully-aged Nicaraguan fillers encased in a dusky Cameroon wrapper. The smoke is dense, creamy, and balanced with an earthy–woody–spicy character. The perfecto foot makes it a breeze to light in a breeze. Plus, it’s box-pressed, so it won’t roll off your golf cart. Eight 5-star customer ratings out of 10 ain’t bad either. And the coup de gras. . . it’s really affordable.
Rocky Patel Tavicusa Sixty
Size: 6×60
Strength: Full
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
The Rocky Patel Tavicusa Sixty is one of the finest examples of blending ken to come out of Rocky’s Tavicusa factory – period. This portly primo starts with a sweet-spicy Mexican San Andrés wrapper that caps a diverse, Estelí, Condega, and Jalapa center. This big boy is full-bodied, markedly complex, and could even be called the Ping G400 Max of golf cigars. Notes of earth, leather, cedar, sweet and tart fruit, mocha, black pepper, and floral nuances are just some of what you may encounter. That last double bogey? Cheer up and move on to the next hole. This big boy will keep you engaged enough to ease the pain. Geared more for the experienced smoker, the Tavicusa Sixty might even be better suited for the 19th Hole while you celebrate that par-4 eagle.
Romeo y Julieta Verona Short Magnum
Size: 5½x60
Strength: Medium – Full
Wrapper: Mexican Habano
If the Tavicusa above seems like a little more than you can handle, try this Romeo from the House of Verona selection. Like the Excalibur above, the Short Magnum has a savory multi-nation core – in this case, Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian tobaccos – wrapped in a dark, oily, Mexican Habano capa. The long sleeve offers extra protection before lighting-up, and once you do, the magic happens. The creamy smoke is medium bodied out of the gate, accompanied by rich flavors of earth, leather, cedar, sweet spice, light pepper, and roasted coffee. Shifting to a more full-bodied smoke in the final inches, it’s a great all-around cigar. Plus, if you’ve had the bestselling Romeo Capulet Magnum, you’ll enjoy this Verona, too; different in character, but just as satisfying.
Not bad for a quasi golfer, huh? Whether you smoke cigars during your round, after your round, or someplace else, I hope you’ve found new cigars to sink your teeth into while sinking that birdie putt.