Costco's Latest Foray Into The Golf Business Fizzles Fast

MyGolfSpy made Costco’s original “K-Sig” ball a hit, insanity then ensued, lawsuits even happened and the new ball briefly put a dent in Titleist’s business until it became apparent Costco was selling a one-off run of Taylor Mades.

Now MyGolfSpy has exposed the latest version of Costco’s inexpensive ball as, uh, not up to snuff. Or being struck by modern equipment.

Costco is now refunding customers based on the MyGolfSpy testing. The Tweets and link to their latest pod discussing their findings.

Is the NEW Kirkland Signature Performance One the modern day Balata?

FIND OUT ON EPISODE 16 of #NoPuttsGiven

WATCH NOW👉https://t.co/t0RLRoaZmm pic.twitter.com/0v6DkE9ua0

— MyGolfSpy (@MyGolfSpy) September 23, 2019

pic.twitter.com/MtHH7MhGiT

— MyGolfSpy (@MyGolfSpy) September 24, 2019

Dunhill Links Trots Out Stellar Field But Will Slow Play Keep The Scots Away?

Rarely have I seen anyone project a tournament struggling to attract fans due to slow play, but as Martin Dempster writes for The Scotsman, this week’s Dunhill Links at St. Andrews-Kingsbarns-Carnoustie features a strong field, some A-list celebrities and players happy to be there (like Rory McIlroy teaming with his dad).

Still, as Dempster notes, the tournament can lack in Scottish support due to dodgy weather and 6-hour rounds.

Put it this way, more non-golfers are likely to take in this event, especially when they can take advantage of a free admission offer on the first three days, than have attended any other golf tournament held so far this year in Scotland and the game can surely only gain from that.

The Irish would be all over an event like the Dunhill Links like a rash and Scottish golf fans should certainly be giving this week’s event the support it deserves.

Playing the Irish card! Bold. But maybe helpful.

Still, it’s fascinating to see the length of the day possibly factoring into decisions about whether to attend even when admission is free. That’s a big deal if the Scots are ahead of the curve when it comes to attendance and pace of play.

European Tour "Brand Refresh" Includes Yet Another Unnecessary Slogan

The PGA Tour Lives Under Par and no one knows what that means, still. The LPGA is going to Drive On and probably just keep pumping out Nike ads, circa 2002, and now the European Tour brass undoubtedly survived many meetings to unveil “Driving Golf Further” as part of a brand “refresh”.

That replenishment includes a wildly uninspired logo but another crack at updating the website that has already undergone a relaunch so unsuccessful, it was scrapped and we were returned to the old, gasp, mobile unfriendly site. The new “beta” site (what a concept!) is live and looks infinitely improved over the last relaunch effort.

As for the “Driving Golf Further” slogan, Chief Executive Keith Pelley once again matched his glasses with the backdrop to perfection. And here is the full explanation of the new scheme.

The European Tour has launched a creative new brand strategy, with the aim of broadening the Tour’s appeal to new and existing fans and commercial partners.

Golf’s global tour has unveiled its new identity, which includes a modern, fresh logo alongside a new website and App, all underpinned by the Tour’s guiding principles of Innovation, Inclusivity and Globality.

Saudi Arabia, here we come!

BTW, why Globality is capitalized, I have no idea.

The brand refresh focuses on ‘Driving Golf Further’, the strapline which features underneath the new logo, as the Tour seeks to build on its strong, established reputation for award-winning content, innovative tournament formats and immersive technology.

I see.

The European Tour’s new identity was unveiled at the Tour’s recently refurbished, state-of-the-art headquarters during the BMW PGA Championship, the fourth event in the Tour’s Rolex Series – an alliance of its eight premium events. It will be rolled out on October 1, coinciding with the launch of the Tour’s revamped website and App.

Designed to stand out from the rest of the busy golfing category whilst retaining its golf context, the bold, simple aesthetic is modern and flexible, suitable to be used across all platforms. It comprises a suite of assets, with a new logo, avatar and a range of graphic devices.

Or it’s just very boring, to put it another way.

Keith Pelley, Chief Executive of the European Tour, said: “It is an exciting time for us to unveil our new brand strategy. While we continue to celebrate our traditions and our core audience, the Tour has a strong desire to innovate and broaden the appeal of our sport.”

Max Hamilton, Head of Commercial Partnerships said, “Golf remains the sport of business, with 90% of CEOs playing our sport, however we believe golf has to modernise and appeal to everyone to thrive. We hope our bold new creative and brand strategy will attract new partners who align with our new brand ideals.”

Yes, the new logo and Globality of it all will make the difference.

But here’s the good news: they used further instead of farther. So at least the European Tour stayed out of teh distance debate with their new slogan.

European Tour's Crackdown On Slow Play Gets Off To A Slow Start

At least in Matthew Fitzpatrick’s eyes, after having his and ever other player’s bag bugged for electronic time posting, only to still take too long.

The four-point plan debuted this week at the BMW PGA and despite some nice additions to the list of slow play remedies, we know the players aren’t always to blame. Even with the overrated field size reduction to 132, there is the pesky matter of modern distances on any course under 8,000 yards. That means waits, more waits and almost no chance of getting around in the time par of 4:30 or so.

His Tweets:

Just under 5 hours, embarrassing https://t.co/7J7xfY2vNH

— Matt Fitzpatrick (@MattFitz94) September 19, 2019

Oh and pace of play 😴 waited on the majority of shots on the front 9 yet somehow were 2 mins ahead of time. Work that one out, long way to go to fix this problem.

— Matt Fitzpatrick (@MattFitz94) September 19, 2019

asfd

"Somewhere in the last three years, we’ve crossed the transom from being a sports industry to being a media industry"

As part of their “Sports Visionaries” series, the New York Times’ Ken Belson talked to sports psychologist Rich Luker about the world of sports and his polling company that works with “professional sports leagues and teams.”

He’s not wild about what he’s seeing in sports as leagues, teams and individuals soak up the numbers while distancing themselves from the core tenets of their “product”.

First off, this…

I do all I can to encourage sports to continue to be sports in the same way classic rock is classic rock. It was something that was part of the definition of the times, and it stood the test of time regardless of how things have changed. Sports in America, particularly the traditional sports, should be the same. Be the classic sports and provide the social context that is being lost on the internet.

Yeah, but Jack Nicklaus didn’t live under par dude! Sorry, go on to the really good stuff that may ring a bell, or not…

The people who run the sports are business people. They love their sports. But they are looking at what’s going on and see people developing new technologies that surpassed things in their own sports, so the logical temptation is instead of trying to beat them to join them.

If they dedicated 5 percent of their time, energy, effort and resources to the heart of their games, as well as doing the technology, they’d be just fine. My fear is that somewhere in the last three years, we’ve crossed the transom from being a sports industry to being a media industry. They are focusing more on the technology and the media than the sport itself.

But chicks dig the long ball, so we’re told without any actual spike in audience numbers to prove it.

What obstacles do you face in your field?

It’s something every social scientist faces. Some people are in research in sports who are only collecting behaviors and they do that using machines — Nielsen boxes and clicks on web pages and so on. There’s no interaction with human beings, they’re only collecting outcomes without knowing why. The biggest obstacle we face is that the research I do has always been about why you do what you do, it’s never been just what you do. It’s about understanding the motivations and your fulfillment and what detracts from your fulfillment.

If only Dr. Luker could get his hands on golf executives…

Putting The (Miniscule) New Skins Game Purse Into Perspective

Just a few weeks ago, the FedExCup’s $15 million first prize reached a level of excess that appeared to not resonate with fans as expected.

The original Skins Game, a really important event for many years as a the dreaded “grow the game” staple, but also simply as good entertainment. Don’t forget, in the 1984 Skins, Jack Nicklaus made a putt for $240,000 and threw his putter to the sky.

“Even old unemotional Jack got excited,” a smiling Nicklaus said. “I threw my putter high in the air because . . . well, it was exciting.”

While purse strength is rarely of interest to fans, dollar figures are vital in Skins because the amounts can add up. That builds tension and the entire point of Skins is to have carry overs and big putts for big dollars. The format also ends up having players take different rooting interests in the name of friendly competition.

In other words, Skins is dependent on a purse that gets the attention of players. This is no easy task in today’s game and likely why the annual Thanksgiving weekend event stopped attracting top stars.

So it was a little strange to read that the first real stab at Skins from “GolfTV Powered By The PGA Tour” will feature a lower purse than the 1983 Skins Game. Given that the “golf Netflix” international streaming channel has committed to a multi-billion investment in distributing the PGA Tour internationally, the Tiger-Rory-Jason-Hideki launch event is their first high profile property in eight countries. Playing for $350,000 over 18 holes is modest, at best. With the last hole worth $100,000, that leaves only $10,000 per hole for the first six.

A $360,000 purse—the first Skins bankroll-is just under $1 million in 2019 dollars.

Not surprisingly, the paltry purse went unmentioned in GOLFTV Powered By The PGA Tour’s press release and was only reported on by AP’s Doug Ferguson.

FYI, last place at this year’s Tour Championship was $395,000.

Furthermore, the head man at Discovery, purveyor of GOLFTV Powered By The PGA Tour, enjoyed a compensation package valued at $129.4 million in 2017. That means David Zaslav made more per-day in 2018 than the four players will compete for in this new Skins.

Zaslav’s 2017 compensation totaled $42.4 million in cash and stock options, meaning his pay every three days is the same amount as GOLFTV Powered By The PGA Tour’s initial Skins Game purse.

Tiger is there as part of his GOLFTV Powered By The PGA Tour deal. The other players are undoubtedly earning some nice appearance money, but GOLFTV Powered by the PGA Tour will not be televising movement of that money from their coffers to the players. Nor do we tune in to watch a wire transfer.

When it’s a Skins Game, we want to see them facing putts that prompt putter tosses and excitement.

Rory: If Tennis Can Hand Out Penalties For Slow Play, So Can Golf

The Rory McIlroy news from Wentworth has, so far, been mixed: he’s retaining his European Tour card after some negotiation with Chief Executive Keith Pelley (good), he opened the BMW PGA with a 76 (bad).

But as Rex Hoggard reports for GolfChannel.com, his comments on slow play add to the list of strong remarks by top players advocating penalty strokes for slow pokes. While that may not seem earth-shattering, the recent shift of players advocating penalty strokes is a change from years of players protecting slow pokes and muttering nonsense about field size.

The U.S. Open’s recent penalty of a lost point after a third violation by Rafa Nadal, got McIlroy’s attention:

Like many Tour players, McIlroy sees a reluctance to penalize players in high-profile situations and used last month’s U.S. Open in tennis and Rafael Nadal’s timing violation during a match as an example of what golf needs to embrace.

“Rafa got a time clock violation on a really big serve like at the end of the final of the U.S. Open, so if they can do it then, there's no reason why we can't do it in our tournaments, either,” McIlroy said. “It's just a matter of enforcing it and being consistent with it.”

Flashback: Remember When "Flogton" Was A Thing To Save The Game?

Actually, I forgot about this doozy of a grow-the-game program, too.

Al was hatched in high-profile fashion eight years ago when former CEO Scott McNealy and friends appeared at the PGA Show, followed by a media tour to promote this game savior—including a lively episode of Talkin’ Golf with Rod Morri and yours truly debating McNealy.

I’d blissfully forgotten about this grow-the-game initiative until seeing it mentioned in this Golfweek item on McNealy hosting a President Trump fundraiser.

The group behind Flogton (Notgolf backwards) wanted to sell you non-conforming equipment to make the game more accessible. They believed excessive regulation by the USGA was stifling growth.

Some of their ideas sound incredibly absurd just eight years later and in a world more open-minded to distance regulation:

Probably the best aid right now is a low-friction face, created by either lubricating the face of the club and ball or by applying a stick-on face to the driver. By simply reducing the face/ball friction, you can reduce slices and hooks by over 50 percent.

Ah, a lubricant. Why didn’t I think of that?

Flogton has test wedges that increase spin 100 percent, just by improving the grooves and adding friction-inducing surfaces. With new, soft-but-durable-skin balls, we believe we can give “the rest of us” the ability to stop a well-hit ball on the green just like the pros.

The entire push faded fast. Which should be an important reminder for the governing bodies this fall when issuing their distance report: golfers want to play a version of the game in line with the traditional golf as we know it. The majority value rules to protect a reward for skill.

Flogton failed because the founders were attempting to profit off the game and blow a hole in the rules for a buck. Golfers, or aspiring ones, were not attracted to a dumbed-down, Al Czervik-friendly version of the sport.

It’s heartening to know something so short-sighted was a failure. It’s even more heartening that just eight years later, the array of “solutions” praised at the time no longer seem welcome now that so many more realize the game’s issues have more to do with time and cost than with ease of play.

So where is McNealy’s in 2019?

When you want to read about flogton from the AltGolf.org site it has vanished. Even the domain is now available, however, given the rise of the Alt Right, here’s guessing no one is in a hurry to claim this URL:

GOLFTV's Tiger-Rory-Jason-Hideki Skins Game Is On, Golf Channel To Air In U.S.

Originally mentioned as part of Tiger’s exclusive GOLFTV deal was this skins competition, which has finally been announced for October 21, 2019. Finishing under the lights sounds fun, though the absence of a dollar figure in the press release for the skins stands out (“high stakes”).

There was a good reason. Doug Ferguson’s AP story has the dollars and it would seem the appearance fees didn’t leave much left for the “skins”:

Players need to win a hole outright, or it carries over to the next hole. Total prize money is $350,000 -- $10,000 per skin for the opening six holes, $20,000 for the next six holes, $20,000 through the 17th hole and $100,000 for the 18th. There also will be charitable component.

In the original 1983 Skins Game, the dollar figures were:

$10,000 is at stake on each of the first six holes, $20,000 on each of the next six and $30,000 on each of the last six.

Granted, it would take astrologically silly dollar figures to get the attention of these four, so perhaps the $350,000 should just be for charities. The four of them getting to Japan with their “team” will spend more on travel to Japan than they are playing for.

Anyway, For Immediate Release:

TIGER WOODS TO GO HEAD TO HEAD WITH RORY MCILROY, JASON DAY AND HIDEKI MATSUYAMA IN GOLFTV’s “THE CHALLENGE: JAPAN SKINS”

• New skins competition presented by GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR

• The unique event will be available exclusively live and on demand for free* by registering with GOLFTV around the globe (U.S. fans can watch the live simulcast on Golf Channel)

• Woods: “After discussing The Challenge with Discovery and GOLFTV, I wanted to be a part of it.”

NEW YORK, LONDON, TOKYO - 19 September: GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR has today announced an upcoming high-profile, live competition featuring global golf icon Tiger Woods. The Challenge: Japan Skins will see Woods go head to head with reigning FedExCup champion and PGA TOUR Player of the Year Rory McIlroy and multiple-time PGA TOUR winners Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama in a globally-televised skins game.

The high-stakes exhibition event kicks off the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP week, sponsored by ZOZO, Inc. – the first-ever official PGA TOUR event to be played in Japan. Both events will be played at the Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Chiba, Japan, during the week of October 21, 2019. The Challenge: Japan Skins marks the first in a series of annual Challenge events that are set to become a thrilling addition to the global golf calendar, and tees off at 13:00 p.m.** local time on October 21.

Endorsed by the PGA TOUR and produced in partnership with Excel Sports Management, The Challenge: Japan Skins unites four of the top players in the world from separate continents, who will also participate in the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP, in an exciting competition format that’s sure to thrill audiences around the globe.

Alongside special in-match challenges and surprises, and finishing under floodlights, each hole will be assigned an increasing monetary value as the competition plays out. Players need to win a hole outright to take a “skin” (tied holes result in a “push” of the skin to the next hole), so golf fans can expect to see aggressive play from start to finish.

Alex Kaplan, President and General Manager of Discovery Golf, commented: “The Challenge: Japan Skins is a unique experience that no golf fan will want to miss and will be an exciting way to begin ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP week. GOLFTV powered by PGA TOUR is growing to become the one-stop-shop for all the best in golf, and The Challenge is another significant step in that direction.

“To be able to bring many of golf’s biggest names to GOLFTV screens for our customers is hugely exciting for everyone involved. On October 21, fans will be able to see a totally new competition join the golf calendar, supporting some fantastic charities and showcasing the very best golf has to offer in the most fun, exhilarating and unpredictable way.”

Promising a new global moment for golf, fans around the world can watch the inaugural event live and on demand for free* exclusively on Discovery’s GOLFTV, the new digital home of golf for the global fan community, by registering for the service. The Challenge: Japan Skins will be produced in Japanese and English, and covered by a stellar lineup of leading presenters, commentators and on-course reporters.

In the U.S., The Challenge: Japan Skins can be viewed live on Golf Channel starting at 11 p.m. EDT/8 p.m. PDT on October 20. 

Cameron Champ Returns To Scene Of His Breakthrough Win Humbled, Healthy Again

Cameron Champ

A year ago the longest driver in professional won the Sanderson Farms and returns this week having struggled most of the time since due to back issues and a balky short game.

GolfDigest.com’s Brian Wacker profiles Cameron Champ, who has plenty of interesting things to say about his experience since being the breakout player of fall 2018.

Rarely is the road so smooth for seasoned players used to navigating it, never mind a rookie suddenly thrust into the spotlight while still trying to learn new courses each week not to mention the rigors of treating a game like the job it had become. Over his next 19 starts after a T-11 at the limited-field event Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua, Champ missed the cut 10 times and withdrew once.

“Expectations,” Champ says when asked as he gets set to defend his title this week in Mississippi what the most difficult thing was for him in his first year. “Whether you realize it or not, they’re always going to be there.

“Once you get to a certain point—and Matt and Collin are going through this now—it’s all new. You’re suddenly playing in featured groups, have a lot of people following you, you’re dealing with crowds and comments. It’s not anything I ever played in.”

Don't Tell Brooks: 2019 PGA Championship Merch at Firesale Prices For A Good Cause

Not only was he snubbed by his peers, but now Brooks Koepka’s win at Bethpage does not appear to have been commemorated with a big rush of post-championship sales despite discounts. Or, perhaps, the original pricing was a tad aggressive in a market that has had plenty of majors with more on the way.

Thanks to all of the PGA pros who sent this Met PGA notice on prices up to 65% off 2019 PGA Championship merchandise, with code REACH giving you an additional 35% off.

Now, I know I’m not great at match, but I feel like that adds up to 100% off.

Anyway, this isn’t just a sale of XXXXL Greg Norman Collection polos, but a nice array of all items in all sizes from all of the major brands, including Adidas, Polo, Nike, Ahead, Tervis, Puma, Cutter and Buck, Under Armour, Footjoy, Vineyard Vines, New Era and 47 Brand. Even better, the Met PGA is putting an unspecified return of the sale proceeds into their junior golf foundation.

Here is the link to the sale, while supplies last! And remember code REACH.

17-Year-Old Akshay Bhatia To Test Boundaries Of Pro Golf's Youth Movement

While he has picked the third weakest PGA Tour field of 2019 with only four world top 50 players and no one inside the top 40, Akshay Bhatia is still moving into bold territory leaping from junior golf to professional play.

The 17-year-old turns up fresh off a Walker Cup appearance to debut in the PGA Tour’s Sanderson Farms. He’s got a new Callaway deal, new woods, maybe a new putter and high expectations for a player jumping from the junior circuit to a PGA Tour event.

“Akshay is one of the most prolific amateurs the golf world has seen in a long time, and we’re thrilled to have him join our Professional TOUR Staff,” said Tim Reed, Senior Vice President of Global Sports Marketing at Callaway Golf, in a press release.

Bhatia has one previous appearance in a Tour event and one Korn Ferry Tour cut made as an amateur, but has long targeted a pro debut in lieu of college golf.

Bhatia generates plenty of speed:

View this post on Instagram

@akshaybhatia_1 getting ready for pro debut this week 💦💦💦

A post shared by George Gankas (@georgegankasgolf) on Sep 17, 2019 at 4:55pm PDT

I would agree with Morning Drive’s Damon Hack that too many cautionary tales are getting lost in the rush to push players into cashing checks at a young age.

View this post on Instagram

Too much too soon? @damonhackgc gives his take on young PGA pros, let us know what you think!

A post shared by Golf Channel's Morning Drive (@gcmorningdrive) on Sep 17, 2019 at 8:15am PDT

Hank Haney Is Back, This Time As A Podcaster

At the PGA Tour’s instruction Hank Haney was suspended from SiriusXM’s PGA Tour Network in May for comments deemed insensitive.

As I explain here for Golfweek, Haney is returning as part of iHeartRadio’s move into golf. Haney spoke to me exclusively to update on his new show, the reaction he’s gotten to his comments and what he has in store for his large following of listeners.

The new show debuts September 23rd and is already listed for subscription in some podcast outlets, but not the iTunes store just yet.

Not Surprisingly, Michelle Wie's Got A Future In TV

As compelling as the Solheim Cup final day was, the week was also marked by Michelle Wie’s start in television.

I would agree with the Forecaddie that it’s not a huge shock given her Stanford degree and communications experience since the age of 12 or so, but it’s still another thing to be thrown onto a set with bright lights and captain’s decisions to dissect. Wie not only did that smoothly, but had not problem questioning Juli Inkster’s Sunday singles lineup.

Rory Hoping This Rivalry Is Finally The One

There is plenty of great stuff from the latest Rory McIlroy podcast with Carson Daly in the latest installment of his Golfpass contributions.

Golfweek’s Roxanna Scott highlights his comments on creating a rivalry to raise his game at the 2019 Tour Championship.

Finally, it seems maybe McIlroy has met his rivalry match after years of flirtations.

“Brooks has been undoubtedly the best player in the world for the last couple years. I’ve been lucky that my career and my consistency level has been good for the last 10,” McIlroy said. “I feel like they’ve tried to create a rivalry between myself and Tiger, myself and Jordan (Spieth), myself and Dustin (Johnson), myself and Brooks, myself and Jason Day.

“It’s nice there’s a common denominator and it’s usually me, which means that I’m doing something right.”

As for the rivalry mindset, this was interesting:

“I needed that mentality going into East Lake because, you know, there was a little bit of revenge in there. He talked about trying to be the dominant player in the game and that was said to me in the media and I said, ‘He’s going to have to go through me first.’

“If that’s both of our mentalities going forward, I think that’s good for the game.”

Daly responded, “I love that. That’s what you should say. If you didn’t say that, you’ve got a problem. As a fan, that’s what you want to see.”

You can listen to the Rory & Carson podcast wherever fine pods are given away for free. Here is the iTunes store link.