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We Tried It: FootJoy Fuel

Monday, 07 February 2022

There is a lot of cool gear in the golf equipment world that doesn’t always fit neatly into Most Wanted Tests or Buyer’s Guides. You still want to know how it performs. In our We Tried It series, we put gear to the test and let you know if it works as advertised.

WHAT WE TRIED

The FootJoy Fuel golf shoe.

THE TESTER

My name is Adam Beach, owner of MyGolfSpy. I have a passion for the golfer. If you are going to spend your hard-earned money on something, I want to test it for you. I don’t want you spending a dollar unless it improves on what you already own.

WHY ARE WE TRYING IT?

Because, dammit, they look good! But let’s find out if the performance matches up. The FootJoy Fuel is the first FJ shoe I have seen in a long time that I might actually wear.

WHAT IS THE FOOTJOY FUEL?

It’s FootJoy’s latest attempt to get more “modern” or, as the kids say, have that “drip.”

When you think of golf shoes, you probably think of FootJoy. Rightfully so because they have owned the space not only on Tour but on shelves for what seems like forever. It has been the No. 1 shoe at every tournament on the PGA TOUR since 1945. That’s a crazy stat. Like Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hit streak type of crazy. But, let’s face it, FootJoy could benefit from getting a little younger in the looks department.

A lot has changed in the world of golf shoes. Close your eyes (namaste) and take yourself back to what your golf shop used to look like. Are you there? What can you see? Probably a sea of TaylorMade R7 SuperQuad drivers. But also a wall full of DryJoy, GreenJoy, SoftJoy and whatever other “Joys” that brought happiness to your feet. Those were the good ‘ol days. That time has come and gone, folks. It’s 2022 and people don’t walk into stores much anymore. Nowadays, there is something called Amazon Prime.

And adidas and Jordan’s are what all the cool kids are wearing.

Not so fast, says FJ. Introducing the FootJoy Fuel, a more sneaker-like FJ with a little less “bowling for a perfect game 300” kind of look.

TESTING THE FOOTJOY FUEL

They nailed it.

It should have been called the FJ Goldilocks. It’s not too soft but just comfy enough for 36. Not too light but lighter than they look. It’s not the most stable FJ but stable in all the right places. Overall, it’s just a really well thought-out design from sole to laces (or BOA for those who think laces are for suckers). Will it win the Most Wanted Spikeless Shoe in 2022? I think it will perform well against the competition.

How did they get there? With a lot of what they have already learned from their other shoes. For example, the FootJoy Fuel’s outsole design borrows some things from the FootJoy PRO SL. It’s what they call an “infinity design” or what you might call a figure-eight pattern. For all the golf gearheads, it has 89 points of traction and 17 percent more surface area in the heel. In Most Wanted Spikeless testing in 2021 a similar design received top-five honors for stability.

WEARING THE FOOTJOY FUEL

What about comfort? No matter how good a shoe looks, an uncomfortable golf shoe might as well be a worthless shoe. No problems here with the FootJoy Fuel. While it’s not the softest in the FJ lineup, it was pleasantly comfortable. Those who are familiar with the StratoFoam from the FootJoy Hyperflex might recognize a similar platform in the Fuel called StratoLite. It’s designed to absorb shock for walking comfort and to maximize energy return to reduce walking fatigue. Not as comfy and cushy as that Boost material from adidas but it will do.

The molded spikeless design is also borrowed from the popular PRO SL. The “nubs” or spikes were strategically placed for both stability and traction and perform near the top of the class. There was also a good amount of thought on where not to place the spikes to avoid clogging, which can be just as key.

The golf swing is unique and so is a shoe properly designed for that unique movement. The FootJoy Fuel handles that job with class.

A few things you might want to be aware of are that they fit a half-size size larger and the heel padding is a little thin. That said, it did not affect comfort during testing. They offer a one-year waterproof warranty.

TAKEAWAY

FootJoy did it. They finally nailed the athletic golf shoe that you can take from the course to wherever the hell else you want to go. FootJoy needed to get younger. This shoe does that.

FootJoy does a lot of things well—designing shoes for the younger demographic was not one of them. In the past, I felt FootJoy overreacted to the competition to try and “look” younger and be cool. But, as we all know, trying to be cool and being cool are two totally different things.

This time around, it seems to be different. They created a golf shoe that I think a lot of golfers will want to wear and, after testing them, I believe the majority will not be disappointed.