Equipment
Puma takes crown for lightest shoe with Faas Lite Mesh
There’s a new champ in the race to have the lightest golf shoe on the market.
Starting in June, Puma Golf’s newest shoe, the 6.5-ounce Faas Lite Mesh, will be available for purchase. The launch date for these shoes — which will be sold for $90 — is June 5, and they will be the lightest footwear option on the market.
“The new, spikeless footwear style is designed to take you from the street to the course in lightweight, maximum comfort and trend-setting style,” said Tom Manthe, global marketing manager for Puma Golf.
The Faas Lite Mesh embraces the barefoot movement, something that has been a driving force in a number of releases in 2013. It got started back in January with Adidas announcing its 10.6-ounce adiZero shoe (full review can be found here) and continued later that month with Oakley’s 9.2-ounce Cipher 2 (full story can be found here).
Since then, barefoot golf shoe originator True linskwear released its new PROTO (full story can be found here) and FootJoy went minimal with its M:Project golf shoe (Full story can be found here).
Puma will also start selling its slightly heavier, but still incredibly light, Faas Lite waterproof shoes which check in at 8.7 ounces. The waterproof versions contain all the same barefoot benefits as the Mesh version and will sell for $100.
The benefits of a barefoot shoe include a zero-degree drop from the heel to the toe, keeping the foot level in the shoe. That is supposed to give a more natural stride and promote better posture while swinging.
Puma is also promoting its use of corrugated flex grooves that move with the foot for a more natural movement, provide optimal flexibility and more ground contact while swinging.
There will be a women’s version of Faas Lite Mesh ($80) and the Faas Lite waterproof ($90) starting June 5 as well.
A new Puma release wouldn’t seem complete without a Rickie Fowler-inspired edition, and the Faas Lite comes through with one. Taking inspiration from Fowler’s 2010 “Golf Art,” a special-edition shoe, the Faas Lite Splatter ($110), will feature a paint splatter design on a white outsole with an orange (no surprise there) foam stripe.
Cameron Young’s WITB from his win at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. Cameron is a Titleist staff player but his bag is definitely filled with some unique clubs. Here are the clubs he used to secure his first PGA Tour win!
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K White 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus HB Black VeloCore+ 10 X
Irons: Titleist T200 (4), Titleist T100 (5), Titleist 631.CY Prototype (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7 (4-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F, 52-12F, 56-14F @57), WedgeWorks (60-K* @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X7
Putter: Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet Cord
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Prototype
- Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here.
Driver: Titleist GT3 (10 degrees, C2 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Project X Denali Blue 60 TX
3-wood: Titleist GT3 (15 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 7 X
7-wood: Titleist GT2 (21 degrees, D1 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus TR Blue 8 X
Irons: Titleist T150 (4, 5), Titleist T100 (6-9)
Shafts: True Temper AMT Tour White X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM10 (48-10F @47, 52-12F, 56-08M @57, 60-04T @62)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
Putter: Scotty Cameron Studio Style Fastback 1.5 Tour Prototype
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Ball: Titleist Pro V1x Yellow
We’re proud to once again partner with 2nd Swing Golf to bring you GolfWRX Members Choice 2025! 2nd Swing has more than 150,000 new and pre-swung golf clubs available in six store locations and online. Check them out here.
What is the best driver in 2025? At GolfWRX, we take great pride in our online community and the cumulative knowledge and experience of our members. When it comes to the best driver of 2025, we want to know what our forum faithful think.
Since our founding in 2005, the bedrock of GolfWRX.com has been the community of passionate and knowledgeable golfers in our forums, and we put endless trust in the opinions of our GolfWRX members — the most knowledgeable community of golfers on the internet. No other group of golfers in the world tests golf clubs as frequently or as extensively, nor is armed with such in-depth information about the latest technology.
Below are the results of GolfWRX member voting for the 2025 best driver, along with the vote percentage for each club.
Best driver of 2025: The top 5
5. Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond: 6.02%
Callaway’s pitch: “For golfers looking for a fast, forgiving, yet workable driver, the Elyte Triple Diamond features a tour-inspired shape and is the preferred model by most Callaway tour players.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond here.
4. Ping G440 Max: 6.86%
Ping’s pitch: “The most forgiving G440 model, MAX has a hotter face to generate speed and distance, and a lighter overall system weight with a longer shaft (46″) for faster clubhead speed, higher launch and longer carries. The Free Hosel and Carbonfly Wrap crown save weight to create our lowest CG ever and increase forgiveness while contributing to a more muted, pleasing sound.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 Max here.
3. Ping G440 LST: 9.53%
Ping’s pitch: “LST is an especially good fit for faster swings, offering less spin and more control with a penetrating trajectory. A hotter face, lighter overall system weight and longer shaft (46″) deliver more speed and distance while maintaining tight dispersion.”
@phizzy30: “Not a fan of Ping drivers in general, but 440 LST takes the cake. It’s super forgiving across the face for a low spin head, looks and sounds good and the ability to make it play neutral or slightly fade biased through the hosel settings is very appealing.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Ping G440 LST here.
2. Titleist GT3: 16.55%
Titleist’s pitch: “The GT3 Driver offers Titleist’s boldest combination of power and personalization through adjustable performance. Dial in the CG Track to your frequent contact location to make your biggest drives even bigger while taking total control over flight and shaping.”
@mrmikeac: “I’ve been Anti-Titleist for years and years and years (outside of Vokey, of course). With that being said, HOLY BEGEEZUS the GT3 driver is an absolute NUCLEAR MONSTER! This thing blew my G430 10K Max out of the water in every single category. Forgiveness is the biggest thing that stands out of me, the 3 model has always been one of the less forgiving models in the past but this GT3 can take bad shot after bad shot and still end up in the fairway, I think a ton of that has to do with the adjustability, it’s actually effective. Feel and sound is perfect, that solid crack is so addicting to hear and when you hit it out the screws this thing can absolutely bomb it. Titleist, I’m sorry for doubting you. You have converted me.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT3 here.
1. Titleist GT2: 22.91%
Titleist’s pitch: “Delivering impressive distance from any impact point, the Titleist GT2 Driver extracts maximum performance through a forgiving design. Get the stability and added confidence of a high-MOI driver without sacrificing speed.”
@DTorres: “The Titleist GT2 has proven to be the best driver of the year. Packaged in a classic profile, GT2 perfectly balances performance and forgiveness while consistently being a high performer across all categories.”
You can read what other golfers are saying about the driver in the GolfWRX forums, and see our launch piece here. Shop the Titleist GT2 here.
Other drivers receiving >2% of the vote
| Driver | Vote percentage (%) |
|---|---|
| Cobra DS Adapt Max K | 4.85% |
| Ping G430 Max 10K | 3.85% |
| Callaway Elyte Triple Diamond | 3.68% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 | 3.51% |
| Callaway Elyte | 3.18% |
| Cobra DS Adapt X | 2.34% |
| Cobra DS Adapt LS | 2.17% |
| TaylorMade Qi35 LS | 2.17% |
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Peter Malnati WITB 2025 (August)
Peter Malnati what’s in the bag accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. More photos from the event here. Driver: Titleist...
Cameron Young’s winning WITB: 2025 Wyndham Championship
Driver: Titleist GT2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting) Buy here. Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Pro Orange 70 TX 3-wood: Titleist...
Camilo Villegas WITB 2025 (July)
Camilo Villegas WITB accurate as of the Wyndham Championship. Villegas was undecided on a 3-wood when we shot his bag. ...
WITB Time Machine: Brandt Snedeker’s winning WITB, 2018 Wyndham Championship
Brandt Snedeker fired a final-round 65 at the 2018 Wyndham Championship to outlast Webb Simpson and C.T. Pan. His 5-under...
Dustyn
Sep 4, 2013 at 10:13 pm
There light and comfy till you swing, No protection on the front of toes and no grip!!
Santiago
Aug 5, 2013 at 1:03 am
These shoes are awful. I love how confortable they are but durability is a big issue. I am on my second pair and both lasted 3 rounds until the sole separates from the shoe in the left side of left foot (right handed golfer), exactly where they get most do the stress. My second pair lasted a week and is going back to the store tomorrow. Really bad quality!!!!!
Chad
May 28, 2013 at 8:05 pm
I run in Puma Faas shoes and they are the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn. So much so that I bought a few pairs for running and a few for casual wear. Puma already has a Faas golf shoe, I believe, but it was leather and only came in white/black and black/orange. These new ones may make it into my lineup, depending on the color selection.
Eagle006
May 28, 2013 at 4:45 am
Golf shoes are now running shoes. The two things have essentially merged and are barely indistinguishable from each other. If someone had suggested this 15 years ago, they’d have been rightly ridiculed.
I welcome increasing comfort and decreasing weight in golf shoes, but it seems to be being done at the expense of grip. Sorry, but a few small knobbles on the sole isn’t really going to cut it. Surely it’s not beyond these companies to produce a light shoe which still offers exceptional grip and traction? Either way it’s a far cry from Hogan ordering shoes with extra metal spikes, because he gripped the ground so much through his swing.
Justin Quirke
May 20, 2013 at 11:30 am
This article deserves a good proof reading before it got publicized. In graph 3, barefoot movement got started by adidas? then the next sentence says barefoot originator True Linkswear? Which is it, was the barefoot movement originated by the adidas or by the true? And Faas Lite waterproof are listed as $100, then $90? University of Richmond must not have taiught how to outline a story. This is awful.
Zak Kozuchowski
May 20, 2013 at 2:15 pm
Justin,
Adidas launched its adizero shoe in January 2013, which was extremely light and had barefoot elements. Then we learned of Oakley’s Cipher at the 2013 PGA Merchandise show, which was even lighter.
Now Puma has gotten into the mix with its Faas Lite Mesh, which is even lighter than that. But the first company to bring barefoot to golf was True, which is why they are mentioned.
The mesh version of the Faas Lite (6.5 ounces) is $90, while 8.7-ounce waterproof version of it is $100. In women’s, the prices are $80 and $90, as Andrew states in the ninth paragraph.
It’s not Andrew’s fault, or the fault of his university, that you chose not to comprehend the information he provided.
– Zak