Laundering white golf shirts

[ChaosTheory]

Any proven laundry tips for getting more mileage out of white golf shirts?  I need white for the Texas summer.  But between sunscreen stains and just plain discoloration, it’s not worth buying good ones.

 

Can they be whitened with a laundry product?

 

edit to add:  I have recently switched to mineral sunscreen on my neck to help with this problem.  But the shirts get dingy anyway.

Edited July 12 by ChaosTheory

[WesternRacing]

Try a one of those non-chlorine bleach whitening adds.  If that doesn’t work a leeeetle bit of bleach usually does the trick, but gotta be careful.  Anytime you use bleach in a washing machine, the machine somehow adds a colored piece of clothing it had hidden somewhere in it’s bowels and turns all your clothes a lovely pale shade of that colored piece…

[MattM97]

Yellow is also great for keeping cool in the sun, reflects just as much as white. 

 

As for cleaning white I think I've seen some dry cleaning tricks. It's a bit of a several step soaking process. 

[ChaosTheory]

1 hour ago, MattM97 said:

Yellow is also great for keeping cool in the sun, reflects just as much as white.

Yes, and I like yellow shirts.  The market doesn’t seem to agree lately though.

[st1800e]

Spray N Wash for the ring around the collar and Oxyclean in with the detergent.  

[PJE]

White is my favorite color. 100% cotton is susceptible to dinginess but the “performance fabrics” stand up a little better. 
Here are some steps that work, sort of: 
1) Naptha Fels bar rubbing pre wash. 
Note: Naptha Fels has been reformulated and it no longer contains naptha, for better or worse, but it’s still  helps on white shirts. 
2) Oxy Clean pre wash soak in a little tub 

You can try Oxy Clean with the wash cycle too. I’m not sure it’s that effective in the wash. 
But I still end up buying new shirts annually. 

 

[MattM97]

20 minutes ago, ChaosTheory said:

Yes, and I like yellow shirts.  The market doesn’t seem to agree lately though.

 

Oh I know i only have 1 from Adidas and the colour was listed as white on the tags. 

[DrDon]

Stay away from the sunscreens that have avobenzone, which discolors white golf shirts.

 

Instead, use sunscreens with zinc oxide as the active ingredient.   You won’t get those nasty orange stains on the collars of your white golf shirts.

[Yoshifan151]

2 hours ago, DrDon said:

Stay away from the sunscreens that have avobenzone, which discolors white golf shirts.

 

Instead, use sunscreens with zinc oxide as the active ingredient.   You won’t get those nasty orange stains on the collars of your white golf shirts.

This is the answer

[ChaosTheory]

12 minutes ago, Yoshifan151 said:

This is the answer

Thanks.  In my case I am using the right sunscreen.  So I’m not getting the orange collars.  I’m talking more about slight graying or yellowing of the overall shirt.

[Yoshifan151]

1 hour ago, ChaosTheory said:

Thanks.  In my case I am using the right sunscreen.  So I’m not getting the orange collars.  I’m talking more about slight graying or yellowing of the overall shirt.

Hmm not sure then, never had that issue with my white shirts.

[NBowling11]

On 7/12/2025 at 10:23 PM, st1800e said:

Spray N Wash for the ring around the collar and Oxyclean in with the detergent.  

This is my go to.  I sweat more than the average human, so this is a must.  As soon as I get home from golfing I spray on the bad spots and sometimes will mix a little Oxyclean into those spots.

[Warrick]

Oxyclean spray, and whitener pods in wash cycle. I live in white, must tend to these immediately after wear to keep them looking good. It can be a hassle at times, but required with whites.

[ck800]

Soak in a bucket with OxiClean and warm water overnight every once and a while. Adding it to the washer does basically nothing because the active ingredient needs time to work

[hammergolf]

5 minutes ago, ck800 said:

Soak in a bucket with OxiClean and warm water overnight every once in a while. Adding it to the washer does basically nothing because the active ingredient needs time to work

What he said, spray the stain area with stain remover and let it sit for a few hours, then soak in  and hot for a few hours. Then wash. This is what football teams do to keep white unis clean.

[mshills]

On 7/12/2025 at 10:23 PM, st1800e said:

Spray N Wash for the ring around the collar and Oxyclean in with the detergent.  

I use Oxyclean spray gel around the collar. It’s acceptable, but white golf shirts end up more trouble than they are worth for this reason. 

[ChaosTheory]

1 hour ago, mshills said:

white golf shirts end up more trouble than they are worth for this reason. 

I’m coming to the same conclusion.  I’m going to take the advice of @MattM97 and channel my inner Jack Nicklaus.  Yellow shirts for next summer.  Studies say yellow is about as good as white at rejecting the sun’s heat.

 

Maybe there is a market opportunity.  Yellow shirts with untucked lengths.

 

I did get a nicely patterned yellow Walter Hagen shirt this spring from Dick’s.  It looks sharp.

[alittleoverpar]

Oxyclean makes a liquid that you pour in with the wash.  It works great for overall whitening.

 

I use Dawn Powerwash dishwashing soap on my collars.  Nothing works better for taking the stain out.

[st1800e]

1 hour ago, mshills said:

white golf shirts end up more trouble than they are worth

 

16 minutes ago, ChaosTheory said:

I’m coming to the same conclusion

In the past when I lived (in a major city) in the prairies the water supply came out of lakes. When I would fill the bathtub, the water had a distinct brown tinge to it. And I had trouble with white golf shirts.  After moving near the mountains, where the water supply originates in the mountains there’s a blue tinge when I fill the tub.  No problem keeping shirts white here. Only need spray and wash for the collar. 
 

Next time you fill your bathtub, check out the colour.  
 

[st1800e]

1 hour ago, mshills said:

Oxyclean spray gel

Lots of negative reviews online about the gel.  Takes everything out for you?

[mshills]

6 minutes ago, st1800e said:

Lots of negative reviews online about the gel.  Takes everything out for you?

It’s helpful I’ve found, but imperfect. The issue I find is sunscreen and my nasty-azz sweaty funk around the collar. 

[MattM97]

46 minutes ago, ChaosTheory said:

I’m coming to the same conclusion.  I’m going to take the advice of @MattM97 and channel my inner Jack Nicklaus.  Yellow shirts for next summer.  Studies say yellow is about as good as white at rejecting the sun’s heat.

 

Maybe there is a market opportunity.  Yellow shirts with untucked lengths.

 

I did get a nicely patterned yellow Walter Hagen shirt this spring from Dick’s.  It looks sharp.

 

Pretty good idea of what colours reflect what. I should stop wearing so much blue in the sun.

 

[Poor Mans Ty Webb]

I wash my white polos on a hot wash cycle, never use liquid fabric softener, and never put them in the dryer.  I also try to wash them right away after wearing, even if it's a load that doesn't have much else in it.

[grochol17]

44 minutes ago, ChaosTheory said:

I’m coming to the same conclusion.  I’m going to take the advice of @MattM97 and channel my inner Jack Nicklaus.  Yellow shirts for next summer.  Studies say yellow is about as good as white at rejecting the sun’s heat.

 

Maybe there is a market opportunity.  Yellow shirts with untucked lengths.

 

I did get a nicely patterned yellow Walter Hagen shirt this spring from Dick’s.  It looks sharp.

 

If you're thinking about color from the "reflects sunlight" standpoint, look for colors that are bright... safety orange, neon green/yellow are all bright to the eyes because they reflect a lot of light.  In the graphic @MattM97just shared, the yellow is kinda along the lines of what I'm talking about and you can see that it is not too far off from white.

[ChaosTheory]

2 hours ago, st1800e said:

 

In the past when I lived (in a major city) in the prairies the water supply came out of lakes. When I would fill the bathtub, the water had a distinct brown tinge to it. And I had trouble with white golf shirts.  After moving near the mountains, where the water supply originates in the mountains there’s a blue tinge when I fill the tub.  No problem keeping shirts white here. Only need spray and wash for the collar. 
 

Next time you fill your bathtub, check out the colour.  
 

 

Sometimes our water is coming from a big lake which is fed by a bunch of muddy creeks.  And sometimes from wells.  I can always tell when it's lake water by the softness.  I haven't noticed it being off color but it could be a factor.

[klbcec]

On 7/13/2025 at 2:00 PM, DrDon said:

Stay away from the sunscreens that have avobenzone, which discolors white golf shirts.

 

Instead, use sunscreens with zinc oxide as the active ingredient.   You won’t get those nasty orange stains on the collars of your white golf shirts.

This x100.  Makes a huge difference even if you just use the zinc sunscreen on you neck and chemical sunscreen everywhere else.