What began as a singular vision surrounding a cashmere sweater over two decades ago, is now a flourishing luxury performance sportswear brand in the golf world, and beyond. And that’s Peter Millar.
From world-class resorts and bucket list golf destinations to the PGA Tour and some of golf’s biggest events, Peter Millar has remained a constant by focusing on a few basic philosophies: style and substance, innovative design, and world-class craftsmanship.
Here’s a quick look at how the brand started and why it's still going strong today.
Hello, Peter
The beginning of Peter Millar’s story starts around 2001 in Raleigh, N.C. when founder Chris Knott, a clothing retail veteran and Burberry rep, noticed a need for fairly priced cashmere sweaters in bright or “resort” colors. So he set out to create just that.
With that business model working, it wasn’t long before golf shirts were being made too using a subtle approach to luxury, with features like thicker buttons, nicer fabrics and unexpected color schemes. And thanks to a name found etched onto an old leather lawn bowling ball that was given to Knott by his mother, the name Peter Millar was born.
Since then, Peter Millar has been on the backs of the 2010 U.S. Ryder Cup and 2011 U.S. President’s Cup teams, along with FedEx Cup champions Brandt Snedeker and Bill Haas, not to mention current pros like Cameron Young and Thriston Lawrence – more on those two in a minute.
Peter’s Looks
For its luxury performance sportswear, the Peter Millar brand prides itself on using the finest raw materials and fabric innovations, along with the best yarn spinners, artisanal workshops and specialized factories.
That translated to golf attire means that the Perth Performance and Perth Sugar Stripe Performance Outerwear is made from things like French terry fabric with four-way stretch and moisture-wicking. Designed to keep you literally cool on the course, and figuratively cool when you head away from the course.
When it comes to polos, pieces like the Peter Millar Sandtrapped Performance Jersey and Mahi Mahi Performance Jersey Shirts include UV protection and odor control, not to mention some fun prints to help liven things up a bit.
You’ll find many of the same fabrics and benefits in the Cedar Performance or Jubilee Performance Shirts too, but with a bit more Millar-esque vibes when it comes to color options.
And made for easy pairing with any and all of the Peter Millar polos, are the Salem Performance Shorts in five different colors. Made from a soft performance fabric for ease of movement plus quick-dry and easy-care properties, these shorts are designed with that go-anywhere versatility.
Peter’s Pros
Current pros sporting the Peter Millar brand include Cameron Young, whose play and style have been leaving a mark on the PGA Tour the past few years. Keep an eye out for Young in the final major of the year at Royal Troon, where he’ll be sporting the Solid Performance Jersey Shirt in navy on Thursday.
Also teeing it up across the pond is South African golfer Thriston Lawrence, who will be favoring a variety of Performance Jersey polos for the tournament.
And who knows, now that Peter Millar has proven that it belongs on golf’s biggest stages, perhaps a Claret Jug is in the brand’s future.