The Cool Backstory Behind Rickie Fowler’s Custom U.S. Open Shoes
Rickie Fowler broke the U.S. Open scoring record Thursday with an 8-under 62, and he did it while wearing a pair of Puma golf shoes that are literally one-of-a-kind.
Fowler teamed up with Troy Lee—the legendary action sports artist known for painting custom helmets for the world’s best racers—to create four pairs shoes inspired by racing, California, and the U.S. Open for his scripting this week at LACC.
This is Lee’s first project with Puma Golf, and golf in general, but he doesn’t think it will be his last, particularly if Fowler is involved.
The partnership made perfect sense because of his close relationship with the five-time PGA Tour winner and his father, who once raced motorcycles with Lee himself. Fowler’s background in motocross and passion for the sport had been well documented.
Lee’s business—Troy Lee Designs—had humble beginnings. Now it’s one of the most iconic design companies in the racing industry and even has his own race team.
“I started in my garage,” Lee says. “Just painting helmets and vacuum-forming visors in my mom's oven and racing motorcycles. I'd go to the track and deliver some helmets and race. And every time I got hurt I'd be back painting helmets, which I didn't think would turn into anything, but it's a dream come true and I'm still doing the same thing today.”
Despite Lee’s booming success in the racing world, he kept in touch with Fowler even after the golfer took a step back from the high-risk sport to focus on golf.
“I’ve always kept in touch with him. I pinstriped his little Mini Cooper and did a little logo with him,” Lee says. “We did some T-shirts for him and stuff to, so this partnership just felt like the right time.”
As for the shoes themselves, Lee explained that one pair included an American flag theme (seen below), which almost felt like painting a “mini helmet.”
Another pair is decorated with a handful of racing slogans, or names of famous tracks that Fowler sent over to Lee. As much as Southern California is a great destination for golf, it is also a haven for motocross racing: Murrieta and Corona, Calif., are particular hotspots.
“We used a whole bunch of slogans that we use in the motor world, and I’m super stoked that he’s taking it to golf,” says Lee.
Perhaps the coolest part of the collaboration between Puma, Fowler and Lee this week was the quick turnaround. The pair FaceTimed at the Memorial and brainstormed design ideas, prompting Lee to get to work right away.
Lee explained that Fowler’s shoes were driven over to Los Angeles from Corona just before the beginning of the championship.
“It's pretty funny because they're taking them and they're still wet, you know? Like, don't touch them together,” Lee said. “It was like they're coming fresh out of the oven or something.”
Fowler’s custom Troy Lee Design shoes weren’t the only creative project Puma worked on this week ahead of the U.S. Open. The brand collaborated with L.A. mural artist Jonas Never to create a mural featuring the PGA Tour’s three Puma athletes: Fowler, Gary Woodland and Justin Suh (see it below). It’s located just minutes away from LACC on the wall of the Roger Dunn store in Brentwood, L.A.
