I knew this review was going to be different the moment my wife picked up the bag.
She’s a lefty. She golfs occasionally. And because I had my first-ever lefty-specific assignment, I invited her to come along to test the new Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty. I don’t think she expected to have a strong reaction. Neither did I.
After a couple times of putting the bag on, taking it off, and feeling around the general ergonomics of shouldering and carrying the bag, she said, “I didn’t even realize that I was using a bag meant for righties.”
A couple of days later, I’m at the driving range and notice a guy a few spots down hitting lefty. I had the bag with me, so I walked over and showed it to him, curious if his reaction would be anything like my wife’s.
He set his club down, looked the bag over, picked it up, and said almost the exact same thing she did. “I never even thought of that. I didn’t know there was any difference between a right- and left-handed bag. This is awesome.”
The funny part is, he had just bought a new Maxfli stand bag. The plastic sleeves were still on the legs. He hadn’t even broken it in. And after just a couple of minutes of talking about and looking at the Lefty, he said he’d wished he’d known something like this existed before he made his purchase.
How much that matters, well, I guess that depends on whether or not you’re a lefty. But even if you are, do you really need this or even want it?
That’s what I’m trying to answer here. This is a golf bag that is exactly the same as the standard-edition Sunday Ryder bag. Only everything is reversed. The pocket configuration, the hip pad, the strap configuration… all of it is mirrored so that the bag is positioned facing the opposite direction when you’re carrying it.
I’m right-handed, if that wasn’t already clear. I am, by every measure, exactly the wrong person to evaluate the daily lived experience of a left-handed golfer.
So for this review, I’m going to do two things. First, I’ll tell you what I can speak to, which is the bag’s build, its design choices, and how it fits into Sunday Golf’s broader catalog.
Second, where I can’t speak from experience, I’m going to lean on my wife, who can.
That feels like the honest way to approach this one.
Where the Lefty Fits in Sunday Golf’s Catalog
I’ve reviewed a handful of Sunday bags now, and I’ve come to really appreciate a lot about their approach.
This is a brand that’s built out a remarkably complete bag lineup after starting with one tiny Sunday bag. Now, they’ve got the Loma on the small end, the El Camino in the middle, and the Ryder as their full-size carry bag. Plus several other variants like their Big Rig cart bag, their more premium-materials Ranger, their crazy-light El Camino Superlite, and their waterproofed Storm Ryder.
The Ryder Lefty isn’t a new bag. It’s the standard Ryder, mirrored. Same dimensions, same weight, same build, same materials, same Frosty Pocket, same five-way top option with full-length dividers, same 4.9-pound carry weight.
If you want to go deep on the Ryder bag itself, our original Ryder review covers all of that ground in detail.
What this review is about is what’s different. The differences are simple but specific:
The straps are built so that you pick the bag up with your left hand to move it onto your left shoulder first, before then pulling the back right-shoulder strap up and on
The valuables and apparel pockets are positioned on the left side
The hip pad sits on the right side
It’s just everything in reverse. Normally, when you carry a bag, the club heads are pointing to your right as you have the bag on your back. Now, they’re pointing to your left. And all of the grabbing around you’d do for whatever pockets you can access as you’re walking, you now do that reaching around with your left arm and hand rather than your right.
That’s it. There are no functional features the standard Ryder has that this one doesn’t. No material changes or new pockets or anything else.
Also, the price is identical. Lefties aren’t asked to pay any extra just because they’re lefties.
Sunday Golf put a small “LEFTY” embossing on the back of the bag. It’s very discreet, and I think kind of a cool differentiator. Other than that, unless you studied how the straps were positioned, I don’t think you’d be able to tell this bag apart from another Sunday Golf Ryder model.
Best Golf Bag for Lefties
Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty | Save 15% with Link
Lefties, this one’s for you. The Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty is the standard Ryder bag, mirrored and built specifically for left-handed golfers and at the same price as the righty version. Click the link and you’ll get a custom 15% discount pop-up on the site.
Buy from Sunday Golf
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Is a left-handed golf bag actually different?
First thing I’ll say is that this bag definitely feels weird to me, a righty. Picking it up by first putting your left shoulder strap on just feels completely foreign and awkward. It honestly gives me an appreciation for the simple everyday adaptations that lefties are probably making constantly.
I had my wife test it out and her answer kind of surprised both of us.
To her, it felt natural immediately. Even after spending her whole life picking up backpack-styled golf bags by grabbing the right shoulder strap first, this somehow felt more normal to her. I guess the strap just goes where it’s supposed to go, and my wife said it felt less awkward for her to pick up a bag this way than the way she’d always done it.
But what we both thought was interesting was that she had never once considered that the straps were “backward” for her. Or the hip pad, which she told me she actually had never even noticed before. Or the pocket configuration. None of it had ever occurred to her before.
Granted, she’s not a hardcore golfer. But she plays. And with me doing what I do, she’s out on the course a fair amount. Certainly multiple times in a given month.
And all this time, she never once looked at a golf bag as being right-handed.
Same with the guy I visited with on the range. He said he never even considered the concept.
Basically, I think lefties have been overlooked so long that they don’t even notice anymore.
So, do they care? Now that Sunday Golf is actually addressing this issue?
Well, yeah. At least, kind of.
My wife’s reaction was, “Do you get to keep this one?” She knows that some review products stay and others are returned.
When I told her that I likely would, she claimed it immediately. Fair, of course, as the only lefty in our household. But she definitely appreciated the difference and I think just the mental freedom of picking the bag up in a more natural way enough to want the bag for herself.
The guy at the range didn’t test the Sunday Lefty at all beyond picking it up and talking to me about it. But he said he’d have considered this one over the Maxfli he just bought.
So, a tiny sample size, but a resounding one nonetheless. The lefties seem to appreciate being thought of.
The Honest Stuff About the Bag Itself
Now, as I said, the Lefty is still the Ryder. Which means it inherits both the Ryder’s strengths and its small frustrations.
On the plus side, it’s lightweight at 4.9 pounds, the double-strap system is easy to adjust, the build quality is solid for the price point, and Sunday’s understated branding remains one of the things I appreciate most about their bags. This bag in particular, which is all matte black, looks amazing and is not at all junked up with logos and words. Love that.
Another really cool bonus on this all-black Lefty bag are a couple of small color pops on the side pockets. The velour-lined valuables pocket has a red internal lining that contrasts really nicely with the black when you open it up. Then, below that, there’s a small pull-open pocket that has a very colorful lining design with some yellows and reds and turquoise. I’m not entirely sure what the design is supposed to be, if anything, but it looks really nice.
On the negative side, the pockets are plentiful but on the smaller side, especially the garment pocket. The Frosty Pocket, despite being marketed as a four-can cooler, really fits three standard 12-ounce cans comfortably. The carry handle on top is a little thin.
None of these are dealbreakers at all, and we’ve covered all of this stuff already in the other Sunday Golf Ryder golf bag reviews.
The point is, don’t buy this bag if you’ve got a problem with the standard Ryder model. Or, if you love that bag but you’re a lefty, definitely buy it.
As for colors, you don’t get any choices. Lefties still can’t have it all it turns out. It’s just the matte black. Personally, I think it’s a great look, but it’s not going to be for everyone.
Pricing
The Ryder Lefty is priced at $274.99 retail, typically selling for $249.99. That’s identical to the standard 5-way-top Ryder.
I think that’s worth pausing on. Sunday is making a smaller production run of a configuration that takes additional design and tooling work, and they’re not charging extra for it. They could have. The fact that they didn’t is worth calling out, I think.
And if you click our link here, you’ll get a pop-up for another 15% off, which brings the price down to around $212. At that number, this is a strong value for a full-size carry bag. Same value proposition as the standard Ryder represents, just for the other 10 percent of the golfing population.
Who Should Buy the Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty?
Um, lefties. That’s who should buy this bag. If you hadn’t guessed that by now, well…
The real question is, if you are lefty, should you buy this or should you just continue on in the right-handed-dominant golf bag world you’ve already learned to accept?
I’m not a lefty, so I can’t answer that for certain. But my thinking based on what I’ve seen is that, why wouldn’t you want the bag that was built just for you? I saw in my wife the comfort this bag brought, but I also saw just a tinge of what was almost like pride. Like, check me out doing my lefty thing. Lefties unite!
Legitimately, these design decisions are meant to make this more comfortable for you lefties. And if you’re most comfortable both lifting and fishing around with your dominant hand, these are obviously improvements for you.
My wife liked it enough that she’s claiming it. The lefty at the range told me he wished he’d known about it before buying his Maxfli. Two lefties, two very different golfers, same reaction. This is something they didn’t know they were missing. If you’re a lefty, that should tell you most of what you need to know.
Best Golf Bag for Lefties
Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty | Save 15% with Link
Lefties, this one’s for you. The Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty is the standard Ryder bag, mirrored and built specifically for left-handed golfers and at the same price as the righty version. Click the link and you’ll get a custom 15% discount pop-up on the site.
Buy from Sunday Golf
We earn a commission if you click this link and make a purchase at no additional cost to you.
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Finally, some love for the lefties. But do they need the help?
8.8
Buy It
The Sunday Golf Ryder Lefty isn’t a new bag. It’s the standard Ryder, mirrored. Same build, same features, same price. But for golfers who play lefty, that mirroring matters more than you might expect. It’s a small, thoughtful product for a customer base the golf industry has largely ignored.
The Good
Mirrored design feels immediately natural to lefties
Identical pricing to the standard Ryder
Sunday’s understated branding is a win, especially in matte black
Nice color pops on a couple of the interior pocket linings
The Bad
Limited to one color choice (matte black)
Inherits the standard Ryder’s small frustrations like tight pockets and a thin top handle
Presentation
9
Performance
9
Price
9
Personal Affinity
8