Puma Golf Monolite Shoes
It is full-on winter here. Two more inches of snow on the ground this morning. I have a lot of golf gear to review, but I’m afraid any real rounds of golf here are going to be a month or two away. Maybe we’ll get lucky and a heat wave will come. Come on global warming…
In for review are some sweet Puma Monoite hybrid golf shoes. Hybrid means they’re wearable on the course or off the course. The only testing I’ve managed with these so far is wearing them to the office and around town. So far great results. No golf swings yet. Stay tuned for my full Puma Golf Monolite golf shoe review when the weather breaks.
Nice treads…
Until then you check the HOG image gallery for a few more Puma Golf Monolite golf shoe photos.
Back on my 2011 trip to St. Andrews I brought with me a pair of standard “dress” style golf shoes. That was a mistake. While the shoe performed fine, the impact on my body over time was hard. On that trip I played 36/day for about a week. After a couple of days I could barely walk in the mornings. My joints and feet were so sore from the combination of the very hard ground and the dressy golf shoes not providing any cushion. For the 2nd half of the week I switched to wearing my running shoes to save on some of the impact.
Puma Faas Lite Mesh Golf Shoes – click for more images
This time around (last week in fact) on my 2nd trip to St. Andrews, I brought with me different shoes, none of which were the dress style. I brought softer and lighter shoes without the platform to house golf spikes. Right out of the gate I sported the Puma Faas Lite Mesh golf shoes. What a huge difference on my enjoyment of walking around the Home of Golf. The impact on my body was minimal and the shoes, the lightest in the golf industry right now, helped me truly enjoy golf’s greatest walk.
Faas Lite Sole – click to zoom
Faas Lite Features
Puma’s Faas Lite’s are a single layer mesh shoe which is very breathable. Because of the breathability and mesh, they’re not waterproof. Not a problem for me. I have plenty of waterproof shoes.
When I’m sporting the Faas Lites it is because I need to keep cool in the hot summer. Puma’s “coolCELL” technology takes care of that.
The flexibility of the shoe is possibly the highest of any golf shoe I’ve ever worn. Once they’re on your feet, they bend with your feet.
The sole of the shoe is a hybrid design with no screw-in spikes. Even though there aren’t spikes, Puma’s “SmartQull” pattern and corrugated flex grooves ensure traction and stability in the golf swing.
Speaking of the sole, these shoes may have the thinnest sole of any shoe I’ve ever worn, golf or not. The “heel to toe drop” of the shoe is zero. For the golfer, that means comfort, better posture and a more natural walking stride.
At 6.5 ounces this shoe is light. Lightweight foam and rubber advancements help make this shoe the lightest in golf.
Despite the light foams and thin sole, the shoe is very durable due to Puma’s “EverTrack” carbon rubber in the forefoot and heel.
Colors
The Faas Lite Mesh shoe is available in two colors: Vibrant, Rickie Fowler Orange, and white-black. I don’t dress in all orange like Mr. Fowler, so I chose the white-black model since it will match just about any outfit I own.
Toe View – Puma Faas Lite Mesh Golf Shoe – click to zoom
On The Course
I’ve walked some very hilly courses at home in 100+ degree temperatures. The shoes don’t weigh me down. They breath very well and help me keep as cool as possible.
I’ve found the traction and stability to be fantastic with the Faas Lites. No problems with slippage.
One thing I had to get used to was the thin sole. Most golf shoes have quite a thick platform to accommodate spike receptacles. With the super-thin soles and no spikes, I’m closer to the ground. Simply being aware of that in the swing is important to prevent chunking shots (hitting the ground with the club too much).
Editor’s Note
The Faas Lite Mesh is a slightly different and lighter shoe than Puma’s Faas Lite.
Conclusion
At only $90 retail, the Puma Faas Lite Mesh golf shoe is light on the wallet as well as light on the foot. The Faas Lite Mesh golf shoe is NOT light on style, comfort or performance.
Related Links
Puma Faas Lite Photos
One of my favorite companies is Puma. Their gear is so cool looking and it is very high performance. My Swing GTX shoes are awesome but now they have to share my foot time with my new Puma Cell Fusion golf shoes.
Cell Fusion Features
Puma’s Cell Fusion shoes are high performance waterproof leather golf shoes. They have Smart Quill spikes similar to the Swing GTX’s, but now there are some removable and “configurable” ones as well. The quills can be locked into varying positions to provide extra solid traction from the most crucial angles.
Looks
The hot golf babes see my Cell Fusions and they’re all over me, just like Puma player Rickie Fowler. Well, at least they dig my shoes. Seriously, these shoes are very sharp and stylish and in Puma fashion, they’re unique and trendy. They don’t look like every other golf shoe.
Feel and comfort
Like my other Puma golf shoes, these are so light and comfortable that sometimes I don’t feel like I even have shoes on. The Cell Fusions were comfortable right out of the box and still are, after a good 30+ rounds logged.
Part of the comfort is due to the Puma “iCell” technology. I guess Apple Computer didn’t register that name so Puma snagged it? Anyway, the cells provide cushioning and padding but without sacrificing traction or performance.
Performance
Speaking of performance, I have superior traction on the course with my Cell Fusions. In fact, I had to get used to having virtually no slippage in my stance, especially in my left foot. The first few shots with the Cell Fusions on my feet resulted in hard pulls left as my left foot did not give way or slip open. My body ended up turning around my stance rather than sliding with my feet. Now that I’m used to the traction, my iron shots are very solid and my distance is improved.
The toes of the shoes even have great traction. There’s a pattern of mini traction Quills around the inside of each toe.
Conclusion
I have a tough choice to make when I pick out which golf shoes to wear. My Cell Fusions are currently in the #1 spot out of a at least a dozen pairs. The Puma Cell Fusions are super cool looking and the on-course performance is 2nd to none.
Related Links
My Puma Swing GTX golf shoe review.
My Puma Image Gallery.
My Puma Invisibonding golf polo review.
Wow this is big. Acushnet (parent company to Titleist, FootJoy, Cobra and Pinnacle) has agreed to sell the Cobra brand and all intellectual property to Puma. This is a big wow.
Press release below:
(more…)
If you’ve thought that Geoff Ogilvy looks stylin’ and you’re not sure why, it is probably because he’s wearing Puma threads. I’m like Geoff because I’m a happy owner of the new Puma Invisibonding Polo. Unfortunately I’m not like Geoff in the golf swing department. He’s got me beat by a factor of about a billion.
Invisibonding? What the…?
Funny that I used the word threads in the previous paragraph. I really didn’t plan this, but the threads, or lack thereof are the story with this golf shirt. Puma doesn’t actually use threads in the seams to put this thing together. They actually use a form of fabric welding. Thus the term “invisibonding.”
Now let me be clear. You can’t see threads, because there aren’t any. The seams however are visible unlike the term implies. The crispness and low profile of the seams gives the shirt a very unique look.
On the course
When I first got my Invisibond Polo there was still snow on the ground. I had to wait on the review for the right conditions. This isn’t a winter garment by any means. It is well ventilated and very light on my skin, and not something I’d wear to insulate me and keep me warm.
Now that I’ve been wearing this baby in temps in the 80’s and 90’s I’m a happy camper golfer. The fabric feels very soft and smooth. My swing is not restricted at all which is very important for me as a serious golfer.
The classy yet hip syle of this polo make me look good at the 19th hole too, which is good.
Sizes and colors
This $80 Puma Invisibonding Golf Polo is available in small, medium, large, x-large and xx-large. My unit is the white (obviously from the photos) but there is a black version and an orange one called “flame orange.”
Conclusion
This is one of my all time favorites in my vast collection of golf polos. I really like wearing the Invisibonding Polo. I’ll be working on picking up the other two available colors soon.
Critiques
I have no critiques for this great golf polo. I DO however have critiques about the Puma web site. There is way too much fancy Adobe Flash content. Too many animations, bells and whistles. I don’t want to watch things fly around my screen doing flips and loops. Get me to the stuff I want to see now!
Related links
Click here for my Puma photo gallery.
Click here for my review of the great Puma Swing GTX golf shoes.
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