Playing golf through the winter is a great way to keep your skills sharp for the following summer season, and take full advantage of quieter courses. However, the wet, cold and windy British weather means you’ll need good-quality kit to make the most of the experience.
While warm gloves and clothing are vital, one area that often gets overlooked is footwear. A great pair of winter golf shoes can make a bigger difference than you think: not only can they help keep your feet warm and dry, but they can also give you grip and stability that’s vital for a solid and consistent swing.
In this blog, we’ll highlight the key things to look out for when investing in winter golf shoes, and pick out some of our favourites that are currently on the market.
Our pick of winter golf shoes
There are lots of things to consider when evaluating winter golf shoes, and which ones are most important to you will come down to personal preference. You’ll need to consider the quality of the waterproofing in keeping the rain out; and the colour of them, because darker colours won’t show muddy stains up so much.
You’ll also have to take into account whether they’re spiked or spikeless. Although spiked winter golf shoes will generally give you more grip, technological advances have improved the capabilities of spikeless shoes substantially in recent years.
Here’s a selection of the top winter golf shoes you can buy right now:
Under Armour Hovr Tour SL
Under Armour has put plenty of research effort into its latest spikeless shoe, to the point that it comes extremely close to offering the same grip levels of a spiked equivalent. It’s a full-knit shoe specially designed to support the foot in areas where golfers need it most, at every stage of the swing. It also comes with a sleek, smooth design that means you tick all the boxes in terms of grip, style and comfort.
Footjoy Tour Alpha
These shoes from Footjoy come with plenty of padding around the underfoot and the ankle, helping you feel like your feet are both comfortable and supported as you swing. This shoe comes in sizes all the way up to US 14 (which is a UK size 13), so is a stand-out choice for golfers with particularly large feet. And while they look pretty hefty at first glance, they feel much lighter when worn.
Stuburt PCT II
These are very much at the budget end of the market for winter golf shoes, but represent one of the best options around in terms of value for money. They’re designed to feel lightweight, and come with a 12-month warranty for waterproofing, giving you a winning combination of comfort and resilience while playing in poor weather.
Ecco S-Three
These spikeless shoes are almost trainer-esque in their design, but don’t be fooled: they give a lot more grip and weather protection than it looks. They deliver excellent comfort straight out of the box, with a non-slip outsole ensuring that the comfort is delivered without any compromise around foot stability. This is a shoe that does a great job of combining form and function, while keeping your feet snug, warm and dry.
Adidas Tour360 22
The Adidas brand always has a style appeal to a wide range of golfers, and this newly-released spiked model is no exception. The upper is made of fully waterproof leather that does a superb job of keeping the rain out, while cleats injected into the shoe base make for a remarkably low profile for a spiked shoe. You’ll also be helping the environment by buying a show that relies heavily on recycled materials throughout.
Get golf insurance with SportsCover Direct
Whichever winter golf shoes you choose to buy, they represent a significant investment into your golfing kit. Just like your clubs, you’ll want to make sure they’re protected against loss or theft, and that’s where good-quality golf insurance cover can be so beneficial.
At SportsCover Direct, our golf insurance policies include cover for your equipment, so that you don’t lose out financially if you need to source replacements for reasons beyond your control. Cover for personal accident, public liability, and travel disruption if you’re on a golf trip also help you play with peace of mind, all year round.
Find out more about our competitively priced golf insurance policies.