The arrival of the oldest Major on the PGA Tour pits the best golfers in the world sporting the finest clothes and equipment on the planet. While you can’t lay down a round of golf anything like you’ll see from up seen up in Scotland this week, you can literally walk a course in another better golfer’s shoes.
We’ve had a chance to try on some of the best golf shoes on the consumer market to serve up these quick overviews of four brands you will see on the links during the Open.
Pictured above, the latest edition of Nike’s Tiger Woods-inspired, top of the line golf shoes come in multiple color schemes to match Woods’ various traditional tour outfits. We he heads out to lay in Red and Black for the Open’s Sunday closing round, he’ll be wearing those shoes up there.
The TW 14s are a festival of spikes, with removable units combining with tread units to offer that maximum stability maneuvering on turf and twisting during the swing. Clearly inspired in shape and support like Nike’s cross trainers and other athletic shoes, the TW 14s are comfortable out of the box and hold up well under 18 holes of wear. They’re definitely the brutes of the pack here.
Probably the best looking of all the shoes here, these Adizeros use a microfiber design and leather upper to reduce weight and increase comfort throughout a long round. The perforated tongue offers breathability while an comfort Internal support layer looks after your arches during lateral movements.
There’s something I like about the old school vibe these shoes give off – aesthetically blending that classic golf shoe look with the three-striped modern Adidas athletic motif. Put on a pair of these with some light, bright golf pants, and you’re looking the part in style.
This is easily the lightest shoe here – in terms of weight and in terms of impact on your pocket book. It’s not an exaggeration to say that these Puma’s feel like you’re walking the fairways in slippers.
The Faas Lite Mesh combine coolCELL breathability with a high-tech material design to create what Puma says are “the lightest shoe in golf.” A minimal angle, zero heel-to-toe drop creates a flatter walking stride and posture during the swing (hinting back at the slipper motif).
The incredibly light design means this shoe might be for fitter, veteran golfers who are naturally more deft on their feet. Since playing in them feels almost as if you’re out barefooted weight-wise, they may not present the same feeling of locked down stability some hackers might need.
ECCO calls this shoe golf’s first and only performance hybrid model. Soft, breathable Tibetan Yak leather uppers are treated with Hydromax weather protection. Amongst my golf shoe collection these are the shows that are most comfortable when wearing just one pair on and then off the course. Their ample, but understated tread spikes serve the purpose on the grass without tearing up your car mats on the way home.
