Sun Mountain Kube Golf Travel Cover Review: Convenience with a catch

The quest for the perfect golf travel cover will generally take you in one of two directions.

On one end of the spectrum, you have fully-featured, ultra-protective and often very expensive cases in which saving space isn't even the remotest priority. 

On the other side of the spectrum, you have covers that value convenience and storage above all else, recognising that the best travel cover is perhaps one you don't have to think about storing at all when it's not in use.

Sun Mountain's Kube fits very much into this category, providing all the storage you need for an international golf trip while packing away into perhaps the most compact package in the industry. Fusing a soft, padded cover with two halves of a plastic shell, it neatly folds up into a cube-like shape not much bigger than a large shoebox for storage under your bed or in a spare room, giving it immediate appeal to golfers for whom space is a precious commodity.

There's no doubt the Kube makes your life significantly easier when not in use. But what about when you actually have to travel with it? We took it on a bunch of golf trips, embarking on both public transport and numerous flights, to find out.

Looks and features

I'm generally a person who prefers a minimalist look in my travel set up, and I'm happy to say that the Sun Mountain Kube cuts a sleek, stylish look both when folded up for storage and in full-flight. I sprung for the plain black option, which I think brings out the best in technical fabrics like nylon, but you can opt for a range of colours if you want something that pops a little more on the luggage belt.

There's a fair bit about the Kube beyond just its collapsible capabilities. It has a pair of internal pockets for additional storage of clothes and accessories, as well as internal straps for securing your clubs further on the go. The Kube is surprisingly roomy for a bag of its size. Used to transport a slightly smaller golf bag, in this case my Vessel Lux Air, it left me plenty of space for additional storage, and I ended up using it to stash a pair of extra shoes and additional clothes.

The Kube is also very sturdy and well-made. You can feel the strength of the ballistic-style nylon fabric each and every time you use it, and the additional foam padding at the business end of the bag, while perhaps not quite as protective as a full shell cover, offers valuable peace of mind that your clubs will arrive in (mostly) the same condition as they were when you handed them over to the airline.

Performance

Let's start with the major USP. It's not an exaggeration to say that the Kube is probably the most smartly-engineered travel cover on the market from a convenience perspective, using two hard plastic shells at each end of the bag that fold together into a neat little cube. 

The Kube is a simple joy to unpack and stash away again, ultimately folding into a 9” X 13” X 14.5” package that'll stash easily under a bed or into a cupboard and also save you serious hotel room space. Living in a Central London apartment where space is particularly tight, I can attest that it's an absolute lifesaver to have an option like this at hand.

The major issue with the Kube is how it feels in transit. The two halves of the hard outer shell sit at either end of the cover when it's fully extended, with only the bottom third of the bag given any reinforcement while the rest of it is designed to be collapsible. 

This is essential to making the Kube as modular as it is, but the bag's lack of a full backbone or additional pop-out legs means your clubs effectively turn into dead weight at the end you need to pull along, something even more awkward by its fairly small main handle. It also makes standing the bag up on end, as you'll likely need to if you ever ride public transport to the airport, tough unless you're able to balance it just so.

I've taken the Kube on short walks to my local bus stop, longer walks to tube stations, and through airport terminals. Yet I've never figured out a way to roll it along in a way that feels entirely comfortable. And if you ever need to move at pace, as I did one morning when racing to catch a flight at Heathrow, you'll find out quickly just how burdensome the Kube can be.

In fairness, this isn't an issue unique to the Sun Mountain. All collapsible travel covers are a bit of a pain to drag around by their very nature, and until someone figures out how to build a bag that folds up into a small package while also offering more support on the move, this will be an issue that continues to afflict every intrepid golfer. We can't pin the blame on Sun Mountain for that.

Should you buy the Sun Mountain Kube?

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Sun Mountain Kube Golf Travel Coverfrom £189.00 at amazon.uk

The Sun Mountain Kube is an incredibly clever piece of kit, and one that will save space-short golfers a serious headache if they plan on flying with their clubs. It's roomy, well-made, smartly engineered beyond just its cube-shaped shell and collapses into a package that's simply the most convenient in the industry.

Having used it extensively, however, I can say pretty safely that the Kube is a much wiser investment if the majority of your travel to and from the airport is done in a car. On public transport, where space is tight and walks from connection to connection are simply longer, it's just a bit too cumbersome to really enjoy using – even if it is a joy to pack away at the end of your trip.

This isn't to say you shouldn't buy the Kube. If you simply can't make space for a larger bag, this is among the most well-made collapsible travel covers you can buy. But if you plan on walking any lengthy distances with your clubs in transit, a model with extra wheels, like SunMountain's Club Glider Meridian, will make your life immeasurably more comfortable.

Shop now: $290 at Sun Mountain Sports