Welcome to Spotted on Tour, where we’ll highlight buzzy apparel, gear, gadgets and more that caught our eye over the weekend. Better yet, we’ll help you get your hands on your own.
I hate running. Despise it. Resent it. Avoid it. You name it — I feel it. I’ve always felt it. In my mind, there are few feelings in this world worse than the one that joins the midway point of a long run; the moment where you’re far from the beginning, and yet somehow still miles from the end. I’d rather walk, or bike, or perhaps strap a jetpack to my back and fly to my ultimate destination.
But here’s the rub: I’m addicted to it. In the gym-adjacent reality of my last 18 months, I’ve begun running nearly every day. I have a regular route, people with whom I share waves of encouragement, dogs I’ve grown accustomed to seeing, and most ominously, a pair of shoes I lace up every day. In fact, in these last 18 months, I’ve owned three pairs of these exact shoes, and I’m sitting on the precipice of purchasing a fourth.
They are Asics’ Gel Kayanos, and for a flat-footed over-pronator like myself (words I begrudgingly understand the meaning of), they’re something of a miracle cure. These shoes offer impossibly good support, enhanced gel cushioning, and the sort of light, poppy feeling that makes an afternoon run feel occasionally less awful.
So, you can imagine my surprise when, in the flurry of action surrounding Hideki Matsuyama’s victory at the Zozo Championship on Sunday, I spotted him wearing a pair of golf shoes looking eerily like the running shoes I wear everywhere. After some research, I found my premonition true: Matsuyama wore Asics golf shoes — part of a split deal between the footwear giant and golf retailer Srixon.
The shoes feature many of Asics’ most beloved technologies to runners, including Gel heel support and a lightweight “Flytefoam” midsole. According to Asics, their golf shoes also have a unique spike pattern to offer enhanced grip and stability throughout the swing. The shoes come in three colors, including a stylish white that serves as a near-identical match to my daily running shoes.
As for whether they’re capable of helping your golf game — well, that’s for you to decide. But make no mistake about it, your inner-runner won’t regret it.
