Tiger Woods is changing up his shoes at this year’s Masters.
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Welcome to Play Smart, a game-improvement column that drops every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from Game Improvement Editor Luke Kerr-Dineen (who you can follow on Twitter right here).
AUGUSTA, Ga. — It’s hard to imagine how the sight of Tiger Woods roaming the fairways of Augusta National, less than 14 months after a car crash that almost led to an amputation of his right leg, could get any more surprising.
And yet, as he often does, he found a way — courtesy of his golf shoes.
Tiger Woods, the man who has been the face of Nike’s golf brand since arriving on Tour, took to Augusta National on Sunday wearing FootJoy golf shoes. Was it a mistake? Some wondered. Did he forget his shoes? Then on Monday, he donned a white pair. Tuesday, too.
Tiger’s shoes on Sunday and Monday at the Masters
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So what’s going on here?
Tiger’s due to speak to the media on Tuesday and may address it, but it’s hard to see how a notoriously guarded superstar will go deep on a sensitive topic concerning one of his sponsors. But taking a more general view after speaking with multiple coaches on Tour: The design of golf shoes can have a noticeable effect on the way your body moves as you swing and could potentially be playing a role in Tiger’s decision here.
Avid runners think about this a lot, but a lot of modern, sneaker-style shoes that have made their way into golf tend to have more padding under the heel of the shoes — that’s the “drop” of the shoe. This tends to make them comfortable, but it can often also pitch your foot up slightly, which shifts your weight more onto your toes when you’re standing.
On the left, Tiger Woods and his shoes in 1997; on the right, in 2018.
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When golfers start with too much weight on their toes, they can often struggle to make a full hip turn deep into their right hip on the backswing, and corresponding rotation through into their left hip on the way through.
Like everything, different shoe designs are better or worse for different people. But the theory goes that golfers who struggle with lower body mobility could potentially benefit from reducing the “drop” of their shoe, which effectively means your foot is flatter on the ground. A bit like you’re swinging barefoot.
Getty Images
The design of your shoes can effect the way you move too: Studies have shown that people will respond to the extra padding under their heel by actually landing more on their heel as they walk and run — and there’s some evidence to suggest this can increase stiffness in your legs.
Of course, there could be something else going on here with Tiger specifically, so I’m not trying to draw any sweeping conclusions on that front. Merely underlining that golf shoes have a subtle, but real, effect on your golf swing. So pay attention to them, and find the best ones for you.
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