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YIKES, SPIKES! METAL CLEATS UNWELCOME AT MANY GOLF COURSES
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. ã The wrong kind of shoes could spike that big deal you hope to close on the links this afternoon. Golfers wearing metal golf spikes are banned from 1,600 golf courses nationwide, according to Kelly Elbin, vice president of marketing for Softspikes, the leading manufacturer of alternative spikes.
Zac Reicher, co-director of Purdue University's Turfgrass Diagnostic and Research Center, says that alternative or nonmetal spikes are a change that golfers are going to have to get used to. The reason is simple: Alternative spikes are good for golf turf.
"There is a substantial agronomic benefit to using alternative spikes," Reicher says. "They just don't rip up the turf as much. Traditional spikes not only jab a piece of metal into the plants, they get jagged from walking on concrete and gravel. These small burrs on the spikes tear grass leaves even faster."
Theoretically, using alternative spikes means that there is less need for chemicals to fight pests, so there is something of a general environmental benefit to using alternative spikes, too.
For golfers, the inconvenience of replacing metal spikes in golf shoes will be offset by improved course conditions, Reicher says. "Traditional golf shoes leave spike marks. Late in the day, the greens on any course are bumpy from all of the spikes. If you watch the television coverage of tournaments, even the Masters has spike marks on the greens at the end of the day," he says. "But at the end of the day at a course that doesn't allow metal spikes, the greens are still smooth."
Despite the advantages, many golfers have been reluctant to change to plastic cleats because of concerns about slipping during the golf swing. According to Reicher, this may have been a legitimate concern three or four years ago, but not now. "There have been dramatic advances in the quality of alternative spikes in the past three years," he says. "The new spikes last longer and are more stable to play on."
An independent research study funded by Softspikes found that the company's original cleat provided 72 percent of the traction of a metal spike during the golf swing, and that the company's latest offering, the Extra Performance cleat, provides 93 percent of the traction of metal spikes.
"But to be honest with you, if you are playing in the middle of the afternoon in the summer during dry weather, most golfers can get enough traction just by wearing tennis shoes," Reicher says. "But golfers should never wear softball or soccer rubber cleats on the course."
CONTACTS:
Reicher (765) 494-9737; e-mail, [email protected]
Elbin (800) 638-0075
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