True Linkswear TL-01

True Linkswear has been a brand that has always intrigued me, though I never owned a pair of their shoes until this year. Earlier in the year, I tried a pair of the Outsiders, and while I liked the look, the feel was just a bit off for me. Fortunately, Three Guys gave me a pair of True Linkswear TL-01s to try out and review.

The TL-01 is billed as “a shoe created to seamlessly transition from the office to the links and everywhere in between.” The TL-01 is very lightweight coming in at a whopping 8.7 ounces and like most True’s, they are zero drop to provide natural balance and stability. Worth noting, unlike most True Linkswear models, they are “Weather Ready” (water resistant) rather than waterproof. 

First Impressions

I literally put these shoes on for the first time in the golf course parking lot so when I say, first impression, it mean it.  With just a few steps, I instantly loved the feel (which was slipper like). There was no pinching, no abrasion on the heel, or anything else that might cause discomfort. That first round in the new True Linkswear TL-01 was a hot one. Unfortunately, my game was not. Frankly, the shoes were the highlight. Traction was good and there were no issues with the shoes. Did I mention how comfortable they are? 

The quality of the shoe is very apparent when you first see them up close. The full grain Nappa leather upper looks and feels like a high-quality shoe. The shoes have held up to a good bit of walking without any of the creasing in the toe area you see in lower quality shoes. As my wife said, they are “fancy sneakers” that are just as comfortable in an office environment as on the golf course.  Without question, they are the best-looking pair of shoes that I own.  

One feature that I really love is that the tongue does not slide, I’ve never owned a shoe with this feature and I really like it. The minor drawback that I found was that if I wore socks that were a bit loose, they sometimes bunched up, but that was an issue with the socks being stretched out and not really with the shoe. My preference with them is to wear them with no socks, they do fit like slippers after all. Unlike other True Linkswear models, the toe area is not overly wide, it is closer to the standard toe width you see in most other shoes, but still wider looking than any pair of Foot Joys I have owned. 

Over the past few weeks, I have worn these shoes a few times a week, often to work. While I work in an office, there is a paved path around our campus that is just under 2 miles, and I try to do a lap every day. During this time, there were several days where I was on my feet for the better part of 8 hours. As I discovered when I first put them on, they are super comfortable, and I experienced no foot discomfort, which is remarkable considering the amount of time standing on thin carpet overtop of concrete. One item that I noticed was some minor wear on the heel of the sole, which may be due to my walking style, (I’ve been known to drag my feet from time to time).  

I have had the opportunity to wear them in the rain and there were no issues with water getting into the shoe. Granted, this was during one of my lunchtime walks and not on the course. For a shoe that is best for an unexpected round or an emergency range session, this is more than adequate. 

On the course, I found the performance to be good if not great. I chalk this up to 2 things, first these are not meant to be performance shoes, they are built to be worn everywhere including the golf course. Secondly, I am an overpronator, particularly with my left foot, so they were not as stable as I was accustomed to. For reference, I was fit for running shoes a few years back (where they have you run and check your gait) and ended up with a pair of stability shoes plus inserts that kept my arches from rolling inward. I’ve been wearing them without an insert to get the Zero Drop experience, and I love the comfort, though I could use a little more support. Over the last week, I have noticed some collapsing in the left shoe around the arch, which is not unusual for me. I have walked a couple 18-hole rounds in them, and I did not notice them at all other than a few swings where I felt my arch could have used some support. My foot shape is unusual, unless you have the same issues that I do with overpronation, they will likely perform better on the course for you than they did for me.

Bottom Line

These are great everyday shoes business casual shoes, perfect for range sessions, a quick round after work, or an informal round with friends. They truly are at home in the office, at the course, and anywhere in between. Your feet will thank you due to how comfortable they are. If you are in the market for shoes, I would recommend checking them out.