Spieth on Spieth 3: I wanted to combine golf shoes and trainers
By Alex Perry
Mike, tell us about the Spieth 3 shoe…
The Spieth 3 is the third generation of our signature model for Jordan Spieth and we feel it is the best yet.
Starting with the upper of the shoe, we’ve got a smartly woven jacquard in the forefoot. This is a textile combination of polyester and TPU thread that runs across the vamp and across the heel to give support but not add a lot of weight. The fact that it’s a textile makes it super flexible and light.
The rest of the upper is a microfibre that is water-resistant and breathable and it also has a Gore-Tex membrane for excellent waterproofness and breathability. It allows perspiration to pass through the membrane from inside to out.
One of the biggest details that we have improved upon for this year is our traction. When we introduced the Spieth 1, we talked about traction in the horizontal position or traction to prevent the golfer’s foot from rotating when they are loading up.
And even when they are coming back through impact, preventing the lateral forefoot and the medial heel from slipping out from under the golfer.
Our work with JJ Rivet at the European Tour Performance Institute allowed us to look at the action in the vertical position. So, the modern golf swing is based on using the ground as leverage.
JJ had us focus on was where the weight moves throughout the entire golf swing. So, what we want to offer the golfer is lateral stability, that’s why we’ve got a carbon plate in this TPU outsole. And then, we’ve medial flexibility.
Lateral stability so that when you load up, go through impact and in the finish position, you have good stability. Medial flexibility so that your foot stays down on the ground for as long as possible. So, instead of having a stiff outsole that levers off the ground, you’re actually staying down on the ground as long as possible and pushing that vertical force down into the ground and getting that back in return.
The rotational resistance spike is proprietary, and we have improved upon that for this year in that it is lower in profile, it will do less damage to greens but there’s no sacrifice in traction.
So, the other thing that we looked at when developing lateral stability and medial flexibility is that we want to mirror everything that is going on outside of the shoe to the inside of the shoe. So, the material is actually a little softer on the medial side and harder on the lateral.
We then score the insole board to mirror what we are doing on the outsole as well, so, we talk about this being traction from the ground up and enhancing what the foot is doing naturally in that lateral stability, medial flexibility.
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Alex Perry
Alex has been the editor of National Club Golfer since 2017. A Devonian who enjoys wittering on about his south west roots, Alex moved north to join NCG after more than a decade in London, the last five of which were with ESPN. Away from golf, Alex follows Torquay United and spends too much time playing his PlayStation or his guitar and not enough time practising his short game.
