Just bought a pair of the Edge Glove shoes last week...
...they list for $110 new (clearance+REI dividend=$70 for me). I bought them on the recommendation of a good friend of mine who wears them primarily for disc golf.
So I never realized what a big difference a shoe makes in playing disc golf until I wore these for a couple of rounds. I now understand that the entire goal of most shoe makers is to isolate you from the ground so that you can't feel it or connect with it, but in disc golf it is far better to have shoes that actually better connect you to the ground (the ground is your friend). These shoes accomplish that goal amazingly well, and they also look better (and inspire less curious stares and questions) than the 5-fingers from Vibram. (Note: I usually wear size 9.5, but these fit well in size 9 (like a glove) with little pressure or initial discomfort.)
I also examined the construction. There doesn't seem to be much of anything that could go wrong with these minimalist type of shoes. The sole is very nicely integrated into the shoe itself, and there doesn't seem to be much chance of separation of any pieces. The tread is fantastic, but it isn't very deep and so I suspect that they will wear out the tread before anything else.
The seude gloves are versatile and look good enough to wear with business casual.
One downside to these shoes is that they're not water-proof. Merrell does indeed offer a GORE-TEX version, however, they are listed at $170. :shock:
Anyways, I just thought I would share this revelation here. If anything happens with them, I'll post the review here, but so far, so good.
In terms of playing, I noticed the biggest difference while putting on rugged terrain. The vibram soles have superb grip, and my feet feel molded to the ground more naturally. This makes assuming a balanced stance dramatically easier than wearing a bouncy-cushiony type of shoe (running, tennis, etc.). And since my score depends dramatically more upon my putting, this take priority over driving. Driving with these is also nice, but I'm not yet used to driving with a shoe that offers so much grip and great feel, so it will take a little time to adjust...I can see that it will be easier to feel and push off the ground in order to get more strength into the throw, but the pivot foot is going to be the tricky adjustment, at least for me.
...they list for $110 new (clearance+REI dividend=$70 for me). I bought them on the recommendation of a good friend of mine who wears them primarily for disc golf.
So I never realized what a big difference a shoe makes in playing disc golf until I wore these for a couple of rounds. I now understand that the entire goal of most shoe makers is to isolate you from the ground so that you can't feel it or connect with it, but in disc golf it is far better to have shoes that actually better connect you to the ground (the ground is your friend). These shoes accomplish that goal amazingly well, and they also look better (and inspire less curious stares and questions) than the 5-fingers from Vibram. (Note: I usually wear size 9.5, but these fit well in size 9 (like a glove) with little pressure or initial discomfort.)
I also examined the construction. There doesn't seem to be much of anything that could go wrong with these minimalist type of shoes. The sole is very nicely integrated into the shoe itself, and there doesn't seem to be much chance of separation of any pieces. The tread is fantastic, but it isn't very deep and so I suspect that they will wear out the tread before anything else.
The seude gloves are versatile and look good enough to wear with business casual.
One downside to these shoes is that they're not water-proof. Merrell does indeed offer a GORE-TEX version, however, they are listed at $170. :shock:
Anyways, I just thought I would share this revelation here. If anything happens with them, I'll post the review here, but so far, so good.
In terms of playing, I noticed the biggest difference while putting on rugged terrain. The vibram soles have superb grip, and my feet feel molded to the ground more naturally. This makes assuming a balanced stance dramatically easier than wearing a bouncy-cushiony type of shoe (running, tennis, etc.). And since my score depends dramatically more upon my putting, this take priority over driving. Driving with these is also nice, but I'm not yet used to driving with a shoe that offers so much grip and great feel, so it will take a little time to adjust...I can see that it will be easier to feel and push off the ground in order to get more strength into the throw, but the pivot foot is going to be the tricky adjustment, at least for me.