My car trunk is full of golf shoes. Like, 25 pairs, maybe 30. My buddies laugh, but write a lot about golf shoes. And I like to match my shoes with my outfit for the day. Because I walk most rounds, I like to rotate shoes to cut down on potential blister hot spots or sore feet. My clubs and pushcart still fit, so lay off!
I will admit, though, that several pairs of shoes get picked out of the pile more than any others these days – my five pairs of TRUE Linkswear golf shoes. Never heard of TRUE Linkswear? Well, you’re missing out. This relatively new golf shoe and apparel company, founded in 2009, has come up with a unique approach to building the best shoes, and they keep coming out with hit after hit. Now they have several lines of apparel, too.
What’s makes TRUE unique? A few core, foundational features are the bedrock of every TRUE shoe model.
First is a Zero Drop Footbed. Most golf shoes have heels in them, making your feet unlevel. The TRUE philosophy is that golf shoes should feel like you’re playing barefoot, so your toes, ball, and heel should all be on the same level. According to TRUE, this improves stability, balance, and posture. All I know is that after walking 18 holes in any of my pairs of TRUE, my feet feel completely unstressed and totally fresh.
Second is a versatile tread that provides traction on the course but feels just as natural off the course. TRUE did just unveil their first soft-spike spiked shoes, the Lux2 Player (MSRP $219) and the Lux2 Maven (MSRP $319), but I’ve never felt a need for more traction than the standard spikeless soles on other models provide.
Fourth is incredibly lightweight design. Every single pair I own feels about half the weight of what I would expect looking at them.
Fifth, and for me, most important, is a natural width toe box. Most golf shoes narrow towards the toe, squishing your piggies together like Vienna sausages in a can. The most painful, least enjoyable rounds of my life have been those few times when an overly snug toe box has pushed my toes into a position where one toenail digs into the side of another toe. Don’t spend too much time imagining that – it’s not a pretty sight, and it’s even a worse feeling. The toe boxes of every one of my TRUE shoes allow my toes to breathe and bend naturally and comfortably.
Beyond these core principles, there are a number of other great details TRUE builds into various models. She laces are textured, so they don’t come untied. Some laces have metal aglets, which I just think look cool. Souls often have big T or even “TRUE” formed into them somewhere, which, again, just looks cool. There’s always a sturdy heel tab to help pull them on. And each pair comes with its own shoe caddy bag, which is very useful when traveling (keeps dirt and grass from from getting on your clothes in your suitcase).
In the past couple of years, TRUE Linkswear has branched out beyond golf shoes, adding slides, caps, quarter-zips, hoodies, T-shirts, polos, shorts, pants, gloves, socks, etc., etc. to their website. There are frequent sales, as well as limited-edition packs for holidays and other special events. My TRUE Linkwear shoes and apparel are not only my favorites, but they even stand up to the scrutiny of my 21-year-old son, who has been eyeing at least one pair of my TRUE shoes to take back to college with him. As soon as he reads this article, I have a feeling I know what will be on his Christmas
Midwestern Golf 
2 thoughts on “TRUE Linkswear: More than snazzy golf shoes”