The 'perfect' PGA Tour playing stat that could have an impact on your own game
Only one golf brand has had a five out of five start on Tour this season, and it might not be the one you think.
With spikeless golf shoes coming on leaps and bounds in recent years, especially at the amateur level, it would be reasonable to think that maybe even some pros are turning towards less aggressive traction platforms in the pursuit of a more natural feel underfoot.
However you'd be wrong, as spiked golf shoes remain overwhelmingly the trusted choice of PGA Tour winners, many of whom play specially modified variants of ostensibly spikeless models.
The case and point of this came at the weekend's Pebble Beach Pro-Am, where winner Collin Morikawa prevailed wearing a modified pair of adidas Adizero ZG shoes – a model that's only available spikeless to the public but fitted with SoftSpikes Thintech PINS hybrid metal spikes to Morikawa's specification.
This continues a perfect run of form for SoftSpikes on tour this year, and indeed the Tennessee-based cleat manufacturer stands clear as the only brand in golf to have been put into play by every one of the five winners on the PGA Tour so far this year.
, said: “Five wins from five to start the PGA Tour season is an incredible statement," says Softspikes President Joe Henderson. "The best players in the world understand that traction directly impacts performance. When nearly every player at the top of the leaderboard is wearing replaceable spikes, it reinforces just how critical that connection to the ground really is.”
Chris Gotterup prevailed at both the Phoenix Open and the Sony Open in Nike Victory Pro 4s fitted with SoftSpikes Tour Flex Pro, while Justin Rose's Farmers Insurance-winning Payntr shoes also had Softspikes Tour Flex Pro fitted.
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Looking further down the leaderboard at each tournament, it's clear that replaceable spikes are here to stay well into the foreseeable future. 49 of the top 51 finishers at Pebble Beach wore replaceable spikes, meaning that while spikeless shoes might be well and good for everyday hackers, spikes are still very much where the pros lean when it comes to the crunch – as should every golfer in the pursuit of top-tier traction and stability.
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Brad Nash is Reviews Editor at GolfMagic, having joined the team in June 2025 to look after all things reviews, soft goods testing and equipment alongside Equipment Editor Georgina. Primarily a writer, you may see him pop up in videos or on the GolfMagic socials from time to time.
