At last month's PGA Merchandise Show, I bumped into veteran tour pro Ryan Moore, who is a member of golf's mythical Straight Hitters Hall-of-Fame. The five-time PGA Tour winner has been one of the straightest drivers of his generation with a homegrown swing, once hitting 40 consecutive fairways during the 2013 season.
Moore was on the show floor in Orlando promoting his company True Linkswear's new line of shoes. I asked him how he became such a consistent driver of the ball, and he dropped some gold advice:
Swing with your big muscles
"I was not taught golf as a mechanical thing. I was taught to be athletic, which mean having good footwork, and learning to use your lower body well … the more you can think of swinging the golf club with your legs, the better. The bigger the muscle that's controlling it, the better. They're going to be more consistent over time."
He continued:
"You watch PGA Tour players swing a golf club. That's how they all swing a golf club. It looks like we're doing a lot with our hands and arms, but we're not. Your biggest muscles, like your core and legs, are going to move the most consistently. They're the engine. The upper body just comes along for the ride. A lot of amateurs, there's a lot of hit with the hands and arms and wrists."
It's this idea that led to Moore developing his own line of golf shoes.
There's been an uptick of attention played to it on tour, too, which makes sense. After all, your shoes are in an elite club: Your golf ball, your grips, the clothes you're wearing, and your shoes are the only things you use on literally every shot.
The right shoes can help you move your body
Different shoes do different things well, and it comes down to what fits your needs the best.
Gabe Gallucci is the co-founder of Phantom Golf, a shoe company he founded after struggling to find a shoe stable enough to help him turn through the ball, and fix his golf swing's early extension problem. He paired with a designer with a background in cricket shoes, and together they added a stability wing on the side of each toe box to help golfers grip the ground better.
"What separates a pro versus an amateur is their ability to use the ground effectively, whether they're aware of it or not, that is their superpower," Gallucci says. "Amateurs especially need golf shoes that help and encourage us to move more like the pros do. Not aesthetic golf shoes, but shoes that are more fashion-function."
Justin Thomas has a similar story. He did some testing this offseason and landed in FootJoy's ultra-stable HyperFlex golf shoe. It helped him load more aggressively on the backswing, knowing the shoe will help prevent him from swaying off the ball.
Orlando Ramirez
"I joke that I'm a dad now and need dad golf shoes," Thomas said on the broadcast following his first round at the Genesis Invitational last week, "but we did some testing in the offseason and these do a lot of great things for my swing."
Tiger is an example of the opposite. His switch to FootJoy Premiers back in 2022, and now Sun Day Red shoes, place his foot flatter on the ground, which helps him move side-to-side easier.
Kevin C. Cox
Again, it all comes down to what you—and your golf swing—needs. So as you reboot ahead of this season, take a good look at your shoes and keep these things in mind:
4 golf swing shoe buying guide basics
- Ask yourself: Do you want more stability, or do you want more mobility?
- Bigger, heavier shoes will help you stay more centered in your golf swing. Good if you tend to sway and slide, less helpful if you struggle to transfer your weight enough.
- Lighter, flatter shoes help you move more side-to-side and around. Again, do you need more of that in your golf swing? Or do you have too much of it already?
- Shoe drop is when the heel is higher than the toe (the toe is "dropped"). More toe drop pitches you more into your toes. Less drop helps you get into your heels easier.