Putting the best foot forward
Golf shoes along with grips are probably the most abused and vitally important part of your equipment . Particularly with the vagaries of British weather and course conditions your condition and suitability of your shoes can start to ruin the best of rounds so when you look at Tour Players, the most pampered and accommodated of golfers, its no surprise that they even custom fit their shoes. Look out on the PGA tour and you’ll see Langer still wearing the older adidas torsion models, Tiger always wearing ceramic spiked Nike’s and various players having Air Jordan basketball shoes adapted for play. So how would you get fitted for shoes ?
Fit To Last
All shoes are made to a last or model foot shape with the design working around that hence why certain players will find a shoe they stick to year after year but lasts change. Human anatomy has evolved so shoe lasts are generally a narrower profile around the heel and wider into the arch and toe box although again there is a variety across the brands. Its always worth getting your feet measured on a device like a brannock to see what the length and width of both feet come out at to point you in the right direction especially as many brand’s believe golfers don’t often wear the right size shoes
On an Even Keel
Golf shoes evolution came from a need for stability and traction during a very dynamic movement across relatively uneven terrain and with todays modern often man made manicured course’s the aim is still the same. However there is a pay off whichever way you go be it moulded or removable cleats. Stay with removable cleats and even with modern rubber cleats your are adding weight and usually stiffness to the sole especially if you are putting metal spikes in, go with a moulded sole and you gain a reduction in weight and stiffness to allow for natural foot movement but many of the sole units are not as durable and in fact many of the ‘spikeless, shoes on the market are designed for transitional appeal rather performance. Again its about assessing your game and its needs hence why Tiger still insists on spikes yet Mcilroy has always been spikeless
Be Who You Are
Much of golf performance is tied in with belief and ownership of concepts and confidence in their ability. Think of Tiger’s Sunday red, Seve’s navy and white for a major final round or Ricky’s orange obsession these are expressions of the players personality and help them to perform and you could say that the formality of traditional clothing may stifle a players confidence. For a player like David Duval being neutral was part of his way of feeling unnoticed so he could get on with what he’s doing whereas Sergio or John Rahm like being noticed and saying I’m here watch me play. Your golf shoes will help reflect the person you, even subconsciously, present to others whether it’s a traditional looking golfer or the modern golfer as an athlete type. Browse a wide range of shoes here
With any of this they key often is tailoring to yourself and the situation a bit like wedges so a good tip is look at a PGA coach. Just like the wedges in their bag they’ll have a wide choice to swap in and out, spiked heavy duty in winter months, lighter premium spikeless when its still wet but playing/walking more and finally a mega light spikeless pair for that one afternoon when its dry and sunny in July!! Some will be variety of formal designs for others modern trainer style but in helps them gain those incremental gains which make us all better
