Who Cares Who These Jordan 1 Mules Are For — They're Amazing
Welp, now we’ve seen it all. Though Nike has dabbled with mule looks before, the new Air Jordan 1 Mule Golf is something else entirely, though it doesn’t seem to entirely know what it truly wants to be.
That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because the idea of an AJ1 mule is itself quite amazing as a sheer design feat, though devoted Jordan stans might have something to say about it.
The Jordan 1 Mule Golf's first hurdle isn't even necessarily the potentially blasphemous act of hacking off the heel of a Bred-colored AJ1 snaker — it's the design philosophy. “Mules for golf?” is how one Insta commenter put it.
Yes, the Air Jordan Mule Golf is also a straight-up mule with no heel and no laces.
It’s basically just a slip-on Air Jordan 1 sneaker down to the OG black, red, and white colorway. The Jumpman logo is on the tongue, with "GOLF" to denominate the shoe's purpose. It’s all a choice, whether you slide these AJ1 mules on to hit 18 holes or run to the grocery store.
But before you do, remember that Nike says that its AJ1 mule is a golf shoe, which it most certainly could be, given its ridged outer sole, though there are Nike golf sneakers with more curb, er, putting green appeal out there, like those Travis Scott AJ1.
Other Nike mule looks vary in levels of “huh,” usually depending on how closely they resemble an actual sneaker.
Martine Rose's Nike mule collab was a lot to behold, as they looked like regular Nike Shox running shoes with their backs cut off, an added heel, and extra-pointy toe.
The Jordan Hex mules are on the other side of the "Things that make you go 'Huh'" spectrum, in that they hardly reference the Jumpman at all, resulting in a more classic mule look altogether.
But, of course, the Air Jordan 1 Mule Golf could resemble a classic mule all day but the fact that it's effectively a mutant AJ1 makes it a tough sell to many Jordan fans.
One Instagram commenter called the shoes “disrespectful” while another sagely asked who really asked for these. Another called for “someone to put a stop to this.”
Still, others had more constructive critiques. "Trying to figure out the purpose of these, would love an AJ1 low mule, but more interested in them throwing cleats on a pair of 1s or even the GORE-TEX Elements for an awesome poor-weather high-top with cleats,” one sneakerhead said.
Still, among the angry and/or cry face emoji flooding social media, some people were drawn to the sneaker. “Nice,” someone dared offer. Hey, we're with you — at least it's different, vibing off of Nike's other forthcoming mules.
Much like there is supposedly someone out there for everyone, there’s someone for every sneaker mule out there.
Perhaps there will be enough demand for the AJ1 Mule Golf when they release for $110 on February 2 that Nike will be moved to release more colorways. Slip-on Chicagos, anyone?
