Nike Course Classic: A Golf Shoe Inspired by The Iconic Nike Tennis Classic

(RELEASE) - When the Nike Golf design team set out to create its newest offering, the fashion-forward Nike Course Classic, wearable both on and off the course, the group made a special visit to the Nike archives to get first-hand exposure to a Nike icon – the Nike Tennis Classic.

“This season we wanted to bring something special into our lineup. We wanted a shoe that would be clean, modern, and would work with anyone’s style or taste level. We felt the Nike Tennis Classic was a perfect match,” said footwear design director James Arizumi. “Golf and tennis are similar in many ways with regards to time honored tradition, sportsmanship, heritage, as well as being classic in every way.”

“In designing the shoe, we focused on how it would perform for the needs of golfers, while at the same time adding obsessive details that would make it modern, bold, and, most of all, distinctly ours,” Arizumi said. “We kept the clean topline on the sidewall but re-engineered a new spikeless outsole, that would provide traction on and off the course.”

The outsole’s unique geometry was created in partnership with new technology created for Nike footwear designers. The team input years of pressure map data into the system which then provided the designers with multiple iterations of an outsole shape that would provide both the superlative high points of the shoe and map for both comfort and traction.

The Course Classic utilizes a combination of real and synthetic leather on the upper and military-grade webbing to create the large pull tab. A full-length Phylon midsole provides lightweight comfort and support.

The Course Classic is available now at nike.com for both men and women and at select retailers.