heh, I have a permanent golf sock tan and wear flops all the time so it really stands out...I developed a left hand tan but started taking my glove off for anything less than a full swing due to how self conscious I was...
I caddy and work outside service so usually (more with the outside service, i have a full jumper on while caddying--ala Augusta) I have a huge golf tan from being out in the sun for 8 hours a day...
For some reason when you play with strangers or someone you haven't played with for a long time they will tell you that they have not played for a long time. Last week a guy on the 1st tee told me that this was his first game in two years. Trouble was, he had a dark tan and when he removed his glove to putt the top of his left hand was whiter Ivory soap! I didn't say anything but kinda got a chuckle out of his failed subterfuge. I thought for sure during the round he would want to make or bet but he didn't.
illbred hybrid
My tan is basically about the same as it has been for years. I'm a former whitewater kayaker, current scuba diver, and in both sports, the wet suit booties and shorty wetsuit that you wear leave a very similar sort of tan to a golfer's shorts and socks tan. I don't wear a glove, so that isn't an issue. I do wear my watch, so on the rare occasions when I take it off, I always have a white wrist band.
I have a very pale complexion, and don't tan much anyways (mostly just freckle). But when I was playing a lot, especially back in high school, my ankles and forehead would be noticeably whiter than the rest of me. I notice a lot of the pros have the forehead thing going on, haha. Because of the tan lines, I have taken to wearing sandals on most of my walks around the neighborhood to keep it even. Self tanners all look way too orange or fake on me, so they aren't an option, but some people might get good results from them to even out a golf tan.