Some like to brand them 'the ultimate fashion item you'll never be seen in' but, like it or not, synthetic spikes are slowly but steadily taking over the greens and fairways - not forgetting the clubhouse where you can now saunter blissfully beyond those annoying 'No Nail' notices.

Meanwhile, purist golfers who bemoaned the limited traction and grip capabilities of the early alternatives to steel cleats can think again.

Even Tiger Woods, whose free-flowing power requires the very firmest of footholds, was spotted with softspikes at the Mercedes Championships, in January.

And then there's the pure comfort factor which drew legions of golfers in the Unirted States to them in the first place. The Softspikes company itself has a dozen different configurations of cleats which all broadly replace your 6mm steel tips with some 96 tiny spikes (8 goups of 12) in most existing models of golf shoes. And the Black Widow, with its outward-facing mini- crampon design - and claimed to have a full 50% more grip than its steel rival - would probably impress even Chris Bonnington.

Price: £9.50 per set
Contact: 0800 917 6428

Back to Part One of Great Gear for the New Season.