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That's why we're here today to look at the durability, and I suppose the longevity or lifespan of one of the most popular products among the MyGolfSpy Staff; The TRUE linkswear Tour Shoe. While the other spies (Matt, Dave, and Tim...I'm looking at you, you bastards) all got either new True Stealth or True Tours to test, yours truly got left out, and so I've had to wear last years' model continuously (Oh the Horror! I'm supposed to be the trendy, stylish one).
As you may recall from my original review of the True linkswear Tour shoe, I received them in late 2010...mostly after the golf season had ended (it mostly ended early because my wife decided to shoot out my daughter before the snow fell...damn her too), so the first few months I wore my True Tours during my shifts at Tark's Indoor Golf. Their comfort has never been in doubt.
I put them into play last May (day two of our annual ABCD Draft Tournament), and with the exception of a few rounds with the True phx, and a few with my old Nike shoes (I wanted to see what a traditional shoe was like after a year of Truelinks), the Tours have been on my feet constantly. I'm ball-parking a bit here, but I think +/- 75 rounds is probably a reasonable guess. So how have the held up? Let's go to the photos.
In the bigger picture things look pretty good. There's some scuffing on the toes. I scuff the toes on all of my shoes...and when I'm barefoot, I just scuff my actual toes, so they look how I'd expect any pair of shoes I own to look. What has almost surprised me is how well the seams have held up. Not a loose thread anywhere.
On the inside of the right shoe, the sole is starting to separate from the upper. It's been like this since very early in the season (at least that's when I noticed it). So far we haven't gone full breach, and no doubt when it does, that'll be the end of things. As long as my feet aren't submerged (tall wet heather, or a misstep near a creek), they still do a very good job of keeping my feet dry.
There are also signs that the upper and sole are considering parting ways along the outer edge of the toebox. Again...this is also limited to the right shoe.
Although you can't really tell what you're looking at in the above picture, the foam heal cushion (also right foot) has lost its shape a little bit so once I've got my foot in place, I sometimes have to push it around a bit to get it to sit right. It's a minor annoyance, but it hasn't caused any problems or made the shoes noticeably any less comfortable.
Let's talk about the tread, shall well. I know those of you coming from big spikes have always worried about the traction offered by True linkswear shoes. What I would say is that apart from the wettest of conditions, they grip the ground as well as anything out there. Simply put, traction has always been the least of my concerns. Of course, when you're talking about a relatively soft rubber sole, it's certainly going to wear over time. I've done a decent job of minimizing contact with hard ground (I try and stay off the pavement when ever I possibly can), but there are definitely signs of wear starting to show.
What's interesting about the wear is that although True links essentially splits its tread pattern into distinct blocks, only the 2nd section (counting from the toe) shows any real wear and tear. The rest of the sole is basically like new, which really illustrates how your feet behave when they're able to move more naturally. As you can see from the pics below, the worst of the wear is limited to only 6 of the little nubs that provide traction. Worth mentioning is that the wear pattern is basically identical for both feet, which flies in the face of some modern golf shoe design paradigms that suggest that the left and right feet behave very differently in the golf swing.
Finally, as you can see from this final picture, one there is some cracking, and what appears to be separation as one of the nubs looks like it's trying to break free from the sole. As with the separating upper, this no doubt would represent a critical failure, and the end of life for these True tours.
All off the above is likely part of the reason why TRUE linkswear features a new tread pattern in their 2012 models.
Overall I'm generally satisfied with the durability of the original TRUE linkswear tour. In the past my expectation was that I'd get two full seasons out of a golf shoe (and that's when I was playing a lot less), so it's not unreasonable to think I might not quite get two full years out of these. Yeah...they're basically reaching terminal stage, but I'm not ready to let go, so I'll wear them as long as I possibly can, and only say goodbye when I'm forced to do so.
*What can't be seen in the photos is the smell. I took a big misstep late last season and went shins deep into a swamp...a real one, complete with that lovely decomposing swamp smell. I've tried everything to get the stench out. I've failed, but it doesn't stop me from wearing the shoes.
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