Skechers GO GOLF Max vs FootJoy FJ Flex for women: the waterproof Skechers is the winter shoe, the mesh Flex waits for spring

The first tee is dry. It usually is, because somebody has swept it. The trouble starts on the walk to your ball, through grass that has been holding the night's dew since six, and by the time you reach the second green you know exactly which shoes you put on that morning. In summer the walk does not matter. From October it is most of the round.

That is the whole difference between the Skechers Women's GO GOLF Max Arch Fit and the FootJoy Women's FJ Flex. On paper they answer the same brief. Both are spikeless, both are built on a women's fit rather than a shrunk men's shoe, both put comfort ahead of everything else, and at $100 and $90 they cost almost the same. We used both to make the case that women's footwear is where the engineering is real in what is actually engineered for women golfers. This is the narrower question: which one do you want on your feet between now and March.

The upper is the winter question

Start with the FJ Flex, because it is the simpler answer. Its upper is lightweight performance mesh, and mesh does what mesh does: it breathes beautifully and it lets water through. FootJoy makes no waterproof claim for the standard Flex, and Golf Monthly's review of the women's version says plainly that it is not fully waterproof and points wet-weather buyers to FootJoy's separate Flex XP, which is the waterproof model. That is not a flaw in the Flex. It is a summer shoe, and an honest one.

The Skechers takes the other side of the trade. Skechers sells the Arch Fit GO GOLF Max with a synthetic upper and waterproof protection backed by a one-year waterproof warranty. A warranty is the detail to look for, because water resistant on a golf shoe can mean almost anything, while a warranty means the maker is prepared to replace the shoe if it lets water in during the first year.

Here is the point most winter shoe advice misses. On a damp autumn morning the water is not coming from the sky. It comes from the grass, through the toe box and the forefoot flex point, every step for four miles. A mesh upper that would shrug off a light shower in July is soaked through on a dew-heavy fairway in November without a drop of rain falling. If you play early, or on a parkland course that holds water, that is the deciding fact, and it points one way.

Traction: the limit they share

Neither of these is a winter traction shoe, and neither maker claims it is. Skechers describes a spikeless, durable-grip TPU outsole. FootJoy's VersaTrax outsole uses multiple traction zones designed to work on the course and on pavement, and Golf Monthly's reviewer rated the traction highly. Both are good on a flat, firm lie. Neither is designed for a soaked, steep bank, and a spikeless sole always gives up something there.

There is a quieter problem too, which we covered in why spikeless grip goes before the shoes look worn: the lugs round off long before the upper shows its age. If either of these is your shoe from last season, check the outsole before you blame your swing for the first slip of the winter.

For a comfort-first golfer with a balanced, moderate swing on reasonably flat ground, spikeless is fine all year. If your course is hilly and wet, or you swing hard enough to feel your lead foot move, the honest answer is a spiked waterproof shoe, not either of these. Our waterproof golf shoe guide has the spiked options, and we made the case for changing shoes when the ground changes in why waterproof is the wrong first question.

Comfort: different routes to the same place

This is where the two shoes are closest, and where your feet should decide. The Skechers is built around its Arch Fit insole, which Skechers describes as podiatrist-certified and developed from 20 years of data and 120,000 unweighted foot scans. It is removable, so a custom orthotic can go in its place, and it sits on Skechers' ULTRA FLIGHT cushioning. If you have a pronounced arch, or your feet ache after eighteen holes on foot, that structured support is the reason to choose it.

The FJ Flex takes the running-shoe route. A StratoLite foam midsole gives it a soft, bouncy feel, and Golf Monthly's reviewer found it supportive for a sneaker-style shoe, comfortable straight out of the box and true to size. The one complaint was that lighter colours mark easily, which matters more in a muddy winter than a dusty summer. It is the shoe that looks least like a golf shoe, and for a lot of women that is the point: one pair for the range, the course and the rest of the day.

Who should buy which

Buy the Skechers if you are buying one pair now and playing through the winter. It is waterproof with a warranty behind it, the Arch Fit insole suits walking golfers who feel it in their feet by the back nine, and it is the more practical shoe for the next six months. The trade-off is looks: it is a sporty sneaker, and traditionalists will not love it.

Buy the FJ Flex if you are buying for spring, if you mostly play in the dry, or if you want a shoe you will wear off the course as often as on it. It breathes better than anything waterproof can, it is the more versatile shoe, and in summer it is the one I would rather have on. Just do not ask it to do a November morning. If you love the Flex and want it in winter, FootJoy's own answer is the Flex XP, the waterproof version.

Buy neither if you play a wet, hilly course through the winter or your swing pushes hard off the lead side. Spikeless comfort shoes are the right answer for most rounds and the wrong one for that one, and a spiked waterproof shoe is the better winter buy. If you already own a pair of FJ Flex, the sensible move is not to replace them. Keep them for April and add the Skechers for the dark months, because shoes last longer when they are not doing a job they were never designed for.