Category: Business
Golf is big business. The most recent figures shows that the golf economy comes to more than $60 billion. Compare that the movie industry’s $57 billion. That’s bigger than the Gross Domestic Product of Peru, Romania, Ukraine or Morocco. How big has golf become? In 1958, Arnold Palmer was the PGA Tour money leader, with $42,000 in winnings. In 2005, Vijay Singh won a little over a million in just two tournaments. This section is devoted to the business of golf.
A Look Inside The TaylorMade Adidas Ads
Brandweek has an intriguing article on the new TaylorMade-Adidas television and print ad campaigns:
It’s all about performance. That is the driving message behind TaylorMade-adidas Golf’s multifaceted $35 million-plus ad push teeing off this month. The largest spend in company history, ads tout the performance aspect of new products from all golf product divisions: clubs, balls, footwear and apparel.
The article tells you a lot about the new spots, what TaylorMade-Adidas is pushing and the sort of image that the company wants to project.
Tiger Takes On Slow Play
The Player Who Is Without Peer says that the pace of play on the PGA Tour is too slow:
In a recent newsletter, Tiger Woods said: “It’s been an ongoing problem on the PGA Tour for some time. I honestly believe the pace of play is faster in Europe and Japan.”
Woods’ comments may have been prompted after he played against JB Holmes, who is known as one of the slower players on the PGA Tour. These comments also come in the wake of media reports blaming the decline in the number of golf rounds played on slow play.
Beware Chinese Counterfeits
I frankly don’t know why the US government has through several administrations put up with the Chinese government’s tolerance—even encouragement—of massive counterfeiting of intellectual property. They steal software, music, movies, books (there actually was a Chinese Harry Potter counterfeit), and yes, golf equipment.
An article in GolfWorld puts the value of the counterfeit golf products at $240 million or so, but the actual cost is more. Companies suffer from damaged reputations, and have to expend piles of cash protecting their name.
Legitimate sellers also take a hit on these. When counterfeiting becomes prevalent enough, the second hand market will entirely come under suspicion and dry up.
If the problem were just in golf, I might be able to understand why the US government chooses to ignore it. But every industry has been hit by these (primarily Chinese) criminals. And the economic damage is probably incalculable. Someone in Washington needs to develop a backbone and start standing up against the Chinese for US companies and citizens.
GolfLocker.Com Opens Superstore
Our good friends at GolfLocker.Com have gone brick-and-mortar in opening a superstore in Tampa Florida. GolfLocker.Com carries a huge selection of shoes and apparel; the retail store will carry that, plus bags, rain gear, socks, balls,and other golf gear from brands like FootJoy, Titleist, Adidas and Greg Norman.
The press release follows:
TaylorMade Sells Maxfli To Dick’s Sporting Goods
An interesting turn of events: TaylorMade has sold its Maxfli brand name to Dick’s Sporting Goods.
TaylorMade will retain the Noodle name, and all the patents.
This isn’t the first partnership between Dicks’ and TaylorMade. TaylorMade also has designed and manufactured irons, hybrids and drivers exclusively for Dick’s under the R7 XL name.
You also can expect to see the Maxfli show up more prominently in Golf Galaxy stores; Dick’s owns those, too.
