Beaverton, United States: The desire of golfers to express themselves on and off the golf course is the ethos behind the new Nike Golf Club apparel collection ‘for the modern golf athlete’.
“There’s nothing wrong with all the wonderful traditions around golf, but for so long we let rules dictate what people should wear,” said Kelly Tweeden, Vice President/Category Creative Director of Golf.
Golfers, just like other athletes who blend training and life, want to express themselves on and off the course. “The idea of putting on a costume to play golf is an old idea,” Tweeden said. “You train in the gym, you go to the course, you practice, and then you come home and hang out. Why should you have to change five times?”
The Nike Golf Club Collection is one in which performance and personal style go hand-in-hand.
A roster of Nike Golf Athletes, including Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Thorbjorn Olesen, Michelle Wie and Cheyenne Woods, epitomise the contemporary spirit of golf in a new-look book.
“The style of golf has definitely changed over the past 20 years, when it was big baggy polo shirts and pants,” said world number one McIlroy.
“It’s become much more relaxed, it’s not as stuffy. I love having clothes that can work on the golf course but also off the golf course, especially when travelling all over the world.”
The Nike Golf Club Collection offers key items for mixing and matching to express personal style. One of the hallmarks is the Nike Swing Movement Polo, which has a tailored fit and a retrofitted Nike Golf logo.
“We wanted the logo to be a signal that we’re going to push the boundaries,” Tweeden said.
The Nike Dot Shorts are a radical departure from traditional golf pants, but with fresh polka dots as a pattern, they still playfully nod to golf’s history of graphic pants.
“I’m pretty sure that most guys would say that it takes some pretty bad weather to make them put on pants,” Tweeden said. “You want to wear what feels right to you, what makes you feel like yourself, and the pant is not that defining style anymore.”
The bulk of the Nike Golf Club apparel collection is made with Dri-FIT technology, to keep players cool on and off the course.
“Innovation is the thing that always improves performance,” said Tweeden. “Dri-FIT transfers moisture from the skin to the surface of the material, so it keeps you feeling drier than regular fabrics like cotton.
Even headwear, like the Nike Golf AW84 Adjustable Hat, is made with Dri-FIT material.
Nike Golf is a Full Business Member of the Asian Golf Industry Federation.