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Inside the Leather They bear one of the toughest jobs in footwear: look elegant enough for the Old Course at St. Andrews, yet stay strong and flexible on all manner of terrain. Regardless of where your good walks are spoiled, these six shoes combine the best in golf fashion with technology to boost your game. September/October 2007 , Page 102
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Inside the Leather, pg 2
3. Pity the golfer of yesteryear, confined to footwear that was essentially a pair of dress shoes with tiny metal spikes screwed to the bottoms — spikes that remained decidedly verboten indoors, lest one’s carpet fall victim to a wolverine-style shredding. The soft-spike revolution, of course, solved all that, blessing golfers with footwear that strode both fairways and hallways with ease (and lack of attendant property destruction). And now high-fashion designs like these J. Lindeberg JL Classics offer loafer-style, full-grain leather uppers that make seamless transitions to the most elegant of indoors. Indeed, avoid kicking your feet up on the nearest ottoman, and no one will ever need know you’re wearing golf shoes.
4. Soft spikes, while convenient, also possess a bit of a dirty underside: They simply offer less grip on certain kinds of turf, threatening your stability when you need it most. (Thus why many PGA Tour players insist on wearing metal spikes during competition.) But unlike the pros, you don’t have a choice; almost every public course now bans metal spikes. The Adidas TOUR360 II shoes offer a high-tech solution to this cruel enigma: The bottom of the shoe boasts integrated Z-shaped lugs that — combined with the standard seven soft spikes — provide both lateral and linear grip. Add a lightweight EVA midsole, and these well-sharpened claws feel as feathery on your feet as a pair of slippers.
5. Given the immense, and often opposing, forces involved in the act of hitting a drive, it’s a wonder that golf shoes hold up as long as they do; all the torque and twisting would simply shred flimsier footwear. Good thing, then, that calfskin, besides being squeezably soft, is highly durable, allowing these HX Tour Callaway golf shoes to withstand the abuse inflicted upon them by even the most obsessive golfer (hey, we understand; a guy can close a lot of deals on the back nine). Better yet, Callaway shoes allow the wearer to adjust the footbed of each shoe for an individual fit, sparing your feet from the shifting and sliding that can ruin an otherwise majestic follow-through. Big Bertha Spikes, lightweight but large, provide lateral traction on all manner of slopes.
6. One glance at the list of technologies that went into the full-grain leather body of the Nike SP-8 Tour Saddle golf shoe, and one might surmise that more scientists worked on developing this piece of footwear than participated in the Manhattan Project: During the swing, a medial push plate on the SP-8 flexes separately from the outsole, keeping more of your rear foot planted on the turf. An engineered heel plate further boosts traction while walking. A Poron sock liner aids in shock absorption, while a Visible Encapsulated Air-Sole Unit cushions your feet throughout your weight transfer. Consider that back in the day, Arnold Palmer, to promote a balanced swing, used to wedge golf balls under his rear foot while practicing. Drop a few Benjamins on these high-tech soles, and save yourself the trouble.
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