Best Golf Shoes at the Rocket Mortgage Classic
One day when you look back on your life, what are some of the things you might regret? Don’t let wearing lame golf shoes be one of them.
Take this advice from yours truly: the perfect pair of golf shoes is the perfect compliment to your horrendous short game. Heck, if you’re playing with me, your trendy golf shoes may just mask your chipping woes to the point where I wouldn’t even notice.
You’re here because you need shoe help, and I’m glad you stopped by. Let’s discuss the best shoes I saw this week at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
Rickie Fowler in a Custom PUMA PROADAPT Alphacat
I know what you’re thinking; why am I writing about Rickie Fowler again? If I was funny I’d probably say something like “it’s because my favorite color is orange,” but in reality, Fowler’s shoe choice this week caught me off guard.
Because I’d just written about Fowler last week, I didn’t go into this week paying attention to his footwear at all. But as the days trundled on, I noticed that the shoes Fowler was wearing were unfamiliar to me, something that doesn’t happen often. A quick search of Puma’s website didn’t return any promising results, and I was left speculating whether this was a new, unreleased model of shoe.
However, that notion was quickly squashed. Thanks to a little Instagram sleuthing on my part, I was able to identify Fowler’s kicks. The shoes are actually a custom pair of the PROADAPT Alphacats, created by Nomad Customs. I will say when I think of custom shoes I generally think of wild designs and personal touches, but Nomad Customs did a fantastic job at sourcing up the Alphacat a little bit without taking away from its Puma DNA.
Solving the Rickie Fowler shoe mystery was the highlight of my week!
Wyatt Worthington II in an Unreleased Air Jordan 12 Low Golf Shoe
Now, THIS is the type of content I’m here for. Shoutout to a few Spy Kicks fans that send me some photos on Instagram. Wyatt Worthington II is an Eastside Golf staffer. You may remember Eastside from their massive collaboration with Jordan Brand on a sick Air Jordan 4 golf shoe. This week Worthington II was spotted in a never-before-seen Air Jordan 12 Low golf shoe, and man am I jealous.
Due to Worthington’s affiliation with Eastside Golf, we can infer that this may be an upcoming collaboration, but it very may well be a player edition (PE) that doesn’t see the light of day as far as retail. With that said, as soon as we hear more information, you know I’ll be the first to let you know.
Champ in the Nike Air Max 270 G
Nike staffer Cameron Champ has been wearing what I would call one of the least utilized Nike golf shoes on Tour. Of course, I have no objective evidence to back this claim up, but out of the mainstream Nike golf models, the Nike Air Max 270 G that Cam Champ has been wearing is not one on many people’s radars.
With the hype surrounding Nike’s flagship golf shoes (i.e. Zoom Infinity Tour NEXT%, Zoom Victory Tour 2), the gem of a shoe that is the Air Max 270 G has been mostly relegated to the clearance shelves. The ironic part of it is that the lifestyle iteration of the shoe, the Air Max 270, was and in large part still is an extremely popular casual sneaker. In my opinion, the giant Air Max unit in the heel is unmistakably Nike and incredibly comfortable.
Mediocre spikeless traction on the Air Max 270 G is a turn-off, but the shoe is the epitome of blurring the lines between fashion and function. I don’t know that you should trust my sense of fashion, but I think we can all agree that this is a good-looking shoe, right? I can already see you FootJoy fanboys hammering away at your keyboard in disgust.
Gary Woodland in the Puma Ignite Articulate Volition Edition
Try saying that three times fast! Puma is getting some extra shine this week thanks to the sweet-looking special-edition pair of the Ignite Articulate that Gary Woodland was spotted in. And as much as I love the red, white, and blue theme, I love the story behind them two times more. The shoe is a part of Puma’s Volition America Collection, which helps to “empower the families of our nation’s fallen heroes through educational scholarships.”
My favorite part is that the shoe does good and is good. Out of the new golf shoes I’ve worn this year, the Puma Ignite Articulate is definitely in my top 5, and I’d venture to say top 3 if I’m basing it on comfort alone.
Bonus points if you can count the number of American Flag graphics you see on the shoes!
Cam Davis in the Nike Zoom Victory Tour 2
The defending champion of the Rocket Mortgage Classic is taking no chances this week. Albeit a different color, Cam Davis is wearing the same shoe that helped him win last year’s tournament. If it ain’t broke…
I will say Rory does pull this silhouette off a little better than Davis, but I digress. The Air Zoom Victory Tour 2 is not my favorite-looking Nike golf shoe, but I do love what Nike’s done on this colorway with the oversized swoosh. Branding, but make it massive! Now everyone knows who you’re getting your gear from for free, just how Nike wants it to be.
After thinking about it for a bit, I finally narrowed down what shoe this reminds me of: the classic Nike Cortez. Such an iconic shoe, made famous by Forrest Gump, among others. Did you know that they made a Cortez golf shoe? The Nike Cortez G is a women’s exclusive I’d buy for my wife…I’ve got to bribe her to play golf with me in any way that I can…fellas; you know how it is!
Taylor Moore in the FootJoy Premiere Tarlow
The reason Taylor Moore made the Spy Kicks cut this week is similar to that of Rickie Fowler; I had a hard time identifying exactly what he was wearing. Look, I know the shoe is obviously the FootJoy Premiere Tarlow, but Moore’s specific colorway this week at the Rocket Mortgage Classic has me stumped.
Here is what I’m thinking: the shoe itself looks most similar to the special-edition Todd Snyder Premier Tarlow that launched in May, but unless my eyes deceive me, that shoe is white and navy, and Moore’s looks to be white and gray. For that reason, I’m going to go with my gut and say Moore got a custom pair (what the cool guys call MyJoys). The fact that FootJoy allows customers to make their own pair of golf shoes is never something to sleep on.
Taylor, can you give me a call and let me know? My ego needs to know if I’m right or wrong!
Noteworthy Finish
I wanted to finish this week’s recap with two insights I gathered while working in my little golf shoe bubble. First, I’m happy to report that after wearing the Air Max 90 G last week, Jason Day switched it up and went with the Jordan 1 Low G for this week. They grow up so fast, don’t they?
Secondly, each of Tony Finau’s first three wins has come in a different pair of shoes. Finau wore the Nike Lunar Vapor Control in Puerto Rico, the Nike Janoski G to win the Northern Trust, and the Air Jordan 1 Low G in his most recent victory last week at the 3M Open. Now that Finau’s won in back to back weeks in the Air Jordan 1 Low G…we have to ask: is it the shoes?
That’s all I have. Thanks for stopping by! Don’t forget to deodorize your golf shoes this week; they definitely need it.
The post Spy Kicks: Best Golf Shoes at the Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on MyGolfSpy.