In 1857 Brockton, Massachusetts was the birthplace of the company that is today known throughout the world as FootJoy. Back then the company was simply the Burt and Packard Shoe Company.
By the 1920's the company, know known as Field and Flint, had developed a range of golf shoes called FootJoy. The shoes gradually became popular with the new breed of touring golf professionals. In 1927 the ringleader and trailblazer of that disparate band, Walter Hagen, chose FootJoy golf shoes as the official shoe of the team he was captaining in a new team event: FootJoy had become one of the first sponsors of the Ryder Cup.
Walter Hagen was, of course, almost as famous for his clothes and appearance as he was for any of his exploits on, or indeed off, the course. His endorsement was critical, soon more and more golfers were following his example and converting to FootJoy. By the time World War Two ended FootJoy had become the number one golf shoe on the PGA Tour, a position which it has held ever since.
FootJoy Golf Gloves
The humble New England shoe company has gone on to become the world leading manufacturer of golf shoes. In 1979 the company branched out and started to sell the Sta-Sof glove which quickly becomes the number one golf glove in the world: By 1996 50 million FootJoy golf gloves had been sold and within another seven years that figure had doubled again.
As the 20th century petered out FootJoy chose not to sit and dwell on its incredible company heritage but instead once more branched out. Within a few year of the launch of FootJoy's outerwear range the company had become one of the biggest players in that market.
Over 150 years after being founded FootJoy today enjoys a reputation for the classiest and most reliable golf equipment. FootJoy golf shoes continue to be the golf shoe of choice for professionals and amateurs alike.
More than 100 million FootJoy golf gloves have been sold and that figure continues to rise. Barely a decade after joining Footjoy Golf Equipmentthe market, FootJoy outerwear and FootJoy rainwear are leading players in the sector.
FootJoy might be one of American golf's most venerable names but the company shows no signs of slowing down or giving up its reputation for being the very best.