Just days after signing world No.1 Jason Day to a head-to-toe – but minus the clubs – contract, Nike Golf has announced six new players who will be representing the brand in similar fashion on the European Tour.
The most significant signings are eight-time European Tour winner Alex Noren and European Ryder Cup star Thomas Pieters, who will be wearing Nike shoes and clothing, while Frenchman Alexander Levy and Sweden’s Kristoffer Broberg, also both winners on tour, will be kitted out in Nike shoes, clothing and hats.
They are joined by rising stars Alexander Knappe, who qualified for European Tour in 2017 via the Challenge Tour rankings, and Spain’s Pep Angles, who also graduated from the second tier tour after finishing 14th in the Road to Oman standings.
All six players will be donning Swoosh-branded apparel and footwear, after working with Nike in the off-season to ascertain which products best suit their game.
Noren, who is currently 10th in the world rankings, resumes his 2017 season after a stunning run of results in the second half of 2016, which brought wins at the Scottish Open, European Masters, British Masters and the Nedbank Golf Challenge.
“I had five great months on tour in 2016, but I want to use the best possible product and keep improving,” said Noren. “I was excited to learn about the new innovations that Nike were working on in both apparel and footwear.”
Belgian Pieters, already well known in Europe, made a considerable impression on the wider golfing world during last year’s Ryder Cup, winning four of his five matches – the first European rookie ever to do so. Like Levy, he is a three-time European Tour winner, the last of his victories coming at last year’s Made in Denmark tournament, where he left such a strong impression when playing with Ryder Cup captain Darren Clarke, that he was made on of the Northern Irishman’s captain’s picks for Hazeltine.
Pieters, Noren, Levy, Broberg and Knappe will all be competing in this week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.