Orange gunk on my shoes every time. How to prevent?

[m111]

Every time I play, I quickly get this orange gunk on my shoes. It wipes off with a wet towel. Is this from fertilizer?  Any way I can prevent this? 

[bcjim]

Weird. Is your area have a lot of clay in the soil?

[Curmudg3on]

It could be rust disease from the grass.   No real harm to your shoes but it is annoying. 

[m111]

I don’t think there’s clay - it’s South Florida. So strange that it happens basically right away too. I don’t notice it on other people’s shoes either. 

2 minutes ago, bcjim said:

Weird. Is your area have a lot of clay in the soil?

 

[tatertot]

Sure you (or your car) don't have a leak?

[st1800e]

Do you clean your shoes with some kind of cleaner? 

[smojgolf]

I had something like this, but on the face of my 3 wood, it looked like it rusted, but it wasn't rusty about 4 shots earlier. it wiped off easily and the face was as good as new and had no defects at all. strange one.

[IndyArcher]

On 8/26/2023 at 9:20 PM, Curmudg3on said:

It could be rust disease from the grass.   No real harm to your shoes but it is annoying. 

 

This almost has to be it. I would be curious to know what part of the country the OP is in. Starting to hit later summer and days are turning shorter. Lots of high dew points, so the growing conditions for rust could be perfect. My best friend was a course super for 20 years. I used to ride around with him in Indiana as he would look for places where rust was starting. On white shoes it looks hideous, but as you noted, no actual harm to the shoes, or typically to the grass for that matter. A huge presence can indicate some grass health issues though. 

[courcy75]

On 8/26/2023 at 9:23 PM, m111 said:

I don’t think there’s clay - it’s South Florida. So strange that it happens basically right away too. I don’t notice it on other people’s shoes either. 

 

What course? I am in south florida and would like to avoid this lol

[hammergolf]

On 8/26/2023 at 8:20 PM, Curmudg3on said:

It could be rust disease from the grass.   No real harm to your shoes but it is annoying. 

What he said…

[MattyO1984]

I wasn't sure what I was going to see when I clicked on this thread but that definitely was not it. Not sure there will be much you can do to stop it given that it seems to be a grass issue but I would maybe put some kind of water repellent spray on your shoes. It wouldn't stop the stains but might stop them from becoming ingrained.