At first glance, South African golfer Erik van Rooyen doesn't appear to fit the profile of an athlete who would land a signature shoe deal with a major brand. He finished the season 131st in the FedEx Cup standings and is currently perched at 211th in the official world rankings.

But it doesn’t take much digging to see why the 33-year-old University of Minnesota product who has accrued four professional wins on four continents, including his maiden PGA Tour victory at the Barracuda Championships in 2021 merited have his name emblazoned on the leather of an Ecco Biom H4. A marketer’s dream, he is a fairway fashionista who jumpstarted the jogger pant craze four years back and commands outsized attention for his meticulously fussed over facial hair. His formidable upper lip game may be golf’s finest since back when Craig “The Walrus” Stadler was still jarring birdies on tour.

“Erik is a very unique golfer with a very unique look. We love his personality and his energy. He loves to express his personality through his shoes and apparel. He was just the perfect fit for Ecco,” Jason Bonenberger, the sales director for Ecco Golf USA said.

Van Rooyen also has an uncanny knack for standing out from the crowd, a trait that garners consistent attention and headlines—a winning quality for a pitchman. There was the Mexico Open when he deftly hit the deck and instructed his befuddled playing partners to duck and take cover as well to avoid an incoming swarm of bees. Then there was the incident when Phil Mickelson insulted fellow jogger pants wearer Sam Ryder for 'showing 4 inches of ankle'. Van Rooyen came to Ryder’s defense tweeting a pic of Mickelson playing golf in a button-down shirt, coyly executing a ‘kettle-black’ takedown. The most recent one, when his caddie and former Golden Gopher teammate Alex Gaugert competed alongside van Rooyen in this past summer’s 3M Open after he Monday qualified for the event felt like it was fresh out of a Hallmark movie.

“For us at Ecco, we were very proud to see both him and his caddie compete together in an event. It was a happy moment for all of us,” Bonenberger said.

The newly released Golf Biom H4 (Erik van Rooyen edition) is van Rooyen’s second signature shoe since he signed on as an Ecco ambassador three years ago and his penchant for moustaches, joggers and guitars feature large in the design with doodles showcasing his interests and a colorful outsole inspired by a South African sunset. Ecco’s ambassador roster also includes Doc Redman, Freddy Schott, Thomas Bjorn, Lydia Ko and Henrik Stenson—the latter pair have also had signature shoes.

According to Bonenberger, Ecco’s player edition shoes outsell regular models, capitalizing on a sizable cohort of amateurs who closely follow the sartorial choices of their favorite golfers on tour and choose to emulate their style. He expressed confidence that a third successive van Rooyen signature shoe is likely to receive the green light next year. Additionally, he credits the design collaborations with players for generating valuable feedback that keeps Ecco Golf on their toes, propelling their innovation cycle.

“Going forward we will continue to drive innovation, come up with new inventions to maximize the golf game and make it more enjoyable. The last thing any golfer wants to do is worry about their feet. You need to focus on the game and that’s what Ecco is all about—it is more than a game for Ecco,” he said.

Ecco, currently carried in 2,500 stores globally, is ranked sixth on the on the golf shoe sales leaderboard that is topped by Footjoy. Four years ago they were in the sixth position, so have been able to increase marketshare despite a raft of emerging brands including Payntr and Goatlane breaking onto the scene in the past few years.

Bonenberger believes the overall pie is growing and Ecco is well positioned to capitalize on the sport’s growth spurt by focusing on their core strengths in fit and comfort driven technology.

“We want to make footwear more and more comfortable and longer lasting, that’s where Ecco separates itself. Ecco is a total vertical company, we own the whole supply chain. We manufacture, we make our own leathers and we can take it all the way to the consumer level directly from our stores and D2C channels—from cowhide to consumer,” he added.