Comfort and innovation are the two basic principles every ECCO GOLF shoe is based on. But how do you apply those attributes to something as seemingly trivial as shoe laces? Of course laces perform a very important role, but are innovations in that particular field really possible? Gary Hammerslag asked himself that very question when he moved from his home state California to Colorado in 2001 to fulfil his dream of snowboarding as much as possible. Dissatisfied with the fit and performance of snowboard lacing systems he started applying elements of his learnings in the medical device field, his former occupation, to start improving the performance of his boots: "Shoelaces were a really poor way for closing snowboard boots. You couldn't get them tight enough and you couldn't adjust them. It was kind of frustrating." Together with his wife he built a first prototype in the backroom of a bookstore using wires and an adjustment-wheel to close his snowboard boots.

Inspired by the bicycle industry, Gary developed a business plan to sell his closure system to snowboard boots manufacturers and was able to land Vans and K2 as his first clients. "They could see the value the system was adding and just said 'yeah, let's do this.'"

Today, 20 years later, BOA is featured on all different kinds of high-performance sports shoes. Bike shoes, running shoes and of course golf shoes benefit from the BOA® Fit System the same way much chunkier snowboard boots already did when BOA was invented. While BOA started as a closure system, they have come a long way since then. Today, they work hand in hand with brand partners to create a performance fit that shapes the industry, developing new configurations to revolutionise traditional shoe upper construction and improve athlete performance. With the recent acquisition by Compass Diversified Holdings, BOA will further be strengthening the investment into innovation, seeking to redefine the future of fit together with partners like ECCO.

For the designers and product developers at ECCO GOLF, the perfect and secure fit the BOA laceless closure system provides was only one of the reasons to rely on a technology developed by a third party. Not only can any golfer dial into the shoes effortlessly and precisely to play all day with confidence, the BOA® Fit System also delivers performance without compromising on comfort that's consistent from the driving range to the 18th hole. Providing stability and a better connection to a shoe's traction, the BOA® Fit System gives golfers of all ability levels the control and power to push their performance further. On top of that, the lightweight, waterproof, and ultra-durable BOA® Fit System with 49 strands of stainless steel wrapped in nylon to withstand abrasion to shed dirt, debris, and water is engineered to perform in even the most challenging playing conditions.

Today, around 20 million consumers trust in the BOA® Fit System. From hiking in the Himalayas to the most brutal stages of the Tour de France or the stress of a Sunday at a major championship - Gary Hammerslag's vision and drive to innovate created a technology that revolutionised the way shoes are tied.

www.boafit.com