It was with great sadness that I read the Footjoy blog by President Jim Connor who was explaining the closing of the company’s Brockton, MA plant that produces the Footjoy Classic golf shoe. Sighting disadvantages in materials, weight, water resistance and cost as the primary reasons for the demise of the Classic golf shoe, Connor also stated that 103 factory workers would be losing their jobs as part of the closure.
Personally the Footjoy Classic golf shoe has and always will be an institution of what a golf shoe was meant to be. I had my first pair around the age of 16 or 17 and couldn’t have been prouder as I walked the links in my solid white pebble grain Classics. I remember at the time that they did by far exceed the weight of any other golf shoe I had ever worn due to the leather construction from the sole through the upper. However, I have to admit as the years have gone on I have converted, like many others, to a lighter more water proof shoe (particularly since moving the the damper climate of British Columbia). While I have stayed primarily loyal to Footjoy and own 3 or 4 pairs of the Dryjoy golf shoe, I have strayed and will admit to having some Nike and Adidas golf shoes among my current 8 pair collection. Footjoy continues to maintain their position as the number 1 shoe in golf as evidenced by the 2009 PGA Tour Statistic which has Footjoy with 64%, while the nearest competitor has 16%, of the total shoe count on Tour this year.
I’m sorry to see the end of an era, and may just have to make a few phone calls tomorrow and see if I can secure one last pair of Classics in a 10.5 D before the end is here!
Click here to read Jim Connor’s blog about the end of the Classics or here to take one final look at at the shoe.
Comments about this post, email jeff AT ckgolfsolutions.ca
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