Everyone always talks about “the eye of the tiger,” but this month the talk could turn to the “shoe of the Tiger,” as in the new Nike prototype shoe for Tiger Woods, who has been working with one of the directors of Nike’s Innovation Kitchen. Tiger Woods and Tobie Hatfield, along with Nike Golf, have created a Nike Free prototype shoe that the golfer will wear during this week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational (August 3-7, 2011).
Developed in 2004 by a group led by Hatfield, the Nike Free provided “natural motion” technology that mimics and conforms to the natural motion of the wearer’s foot, while providing the protection and traction of a lightweight performance shoe. The Free-inspired elements in the new prototype model allow for greater movement for the front of the foot, while increasing stability with mobility.
“This will help give Tiger greater stability as he addresses the ball,” says Hatfield. “The freedom of movement that natural motion technology delivers will also allow more power to be released through the swing rather than through the body, which can happen when your feet are too static.”
The majority of the upper consists of a polyurethane coated stretch fabric, also seen within the construction of NIKE Basketball’s Hyperfuse 2011. Part of the heel is created from recycled NIKE Air Max units melted into thread and then woven together to create a strong, breathable textile material. The FREE-inspired outsole is directly taken from NIKE Sportswear’s Special Field Boot designed for first-responders. This model also has a half heel counter in both shoes to give more stability on the lateral side, particularly in follow through. The shoe also incorporates NIKE Flywire (first introduced in Beijing in 2008) attached to each lace loop, which when pulled tight envelope the foot for maximum comfort and stability.