How the Embroidered Polo Shirts and Golf Shirts in Tampa FL Came to Be

Embroidered polo shirts, also sometimes called golf shirts or tee shirts, are popular promotional items not only in Tampa FL but in almost all cities around the world. Wholesale custom t shirts are sold and bought and embroidery is added depending on the company or institution they will be used for. T-shirts are common as uniforms and even as casual attire of men, women and children of all ages in Tampa FL and elsewhere.

The game called polo is very old and can be traced back to Persia in the 7th century. It spread to other countries and soon came to Britain from India. The name polo comes from the Tibetan word “pulu” which refers to the wooden ball used in the game. The earliest known “polo shirt” was originally a white long sleeved button down shirt with a collar, worn with white trousers. This was embroidered with the image of a polo player by Lewis Lacey in 1920. He was a Irish haberdasher in Buenos Aires who was also a polo player at the Hurlingham Polo Club.

Like polo players, tennis players used to wear white long sleeved button down shirts, too. These were worn with ties and white trousers, as well. The sleeves of the shirts were rolled up during a match.

In 1926, the French tennis player Rene Lacoste, who was a 7-time Grand Slam champion, adopted the long back tail of the polo shirt when he designed his own tennis shirt. It prevented the shirt from being easily pulled out from the trousers or shorts by the wearer’s movements. Lacoste’s tennis shirt was made of breathable knitted pique cotton, had more comfortable short cuffed sleeves, and had a soft flat collar with a buttoned placket. The collar provided additional protection from the sun when worn turned up against the nape. Unbuttoning the placket could also loosen the collar for more comfort. In 1927, Lacoste had the image of the crocodile embroidered on the left breast of his shirts It was a reference to his nickname in tennis, as “The Crocodile.”

Lacoste retired from tennis in 1933 and shifted his concentration to mass manufacturing and marketing his shirts with the help of Andre Giller. The Lacoste shirts were eventually sold widely around the world but they ironically came to be known more as “polo shirts” than “tennis shirts.” They have also been adapted for use in golf, giving rise to the term “golf shirts.”

Another factor that added to the polarity of the term “polo shirt” over the “tennis shirt” or the “golf shirt” though, was the entry of world renowned American designer Ralph Lauren in the fray. Ralph Lauren named his entire clothing line “Polo” and among his items of clothing in that line was the “polo shirt.” The polo shirt from Ralph Lauren is very similar to the Lacoste shirt, except that the polo shirt sports the image of a polo player instead of a crocodile on the breast.

Today, what is known as the “polo shirt,” “tennis shirt” or “golf shirt” is a short sleeved t-shirt with a soft collar and two to three buttons down the front, with or without a placket. There are times when a zipper is used instead of buttons.  The golf shirt usually does not have cuffed sleeves. A pocket is optional. The most common material used is still knitted cotton pique but synthetic blends may also be used, as well as merino wool or even silk.

This is how those embroidered polo shirts and golf shirts in Tampa FL and everywhere else came to be. These custom t shirts will surely be seen for generations to come.