Manufacturer sponsorship deals a thing of the past?

[dufferman]

I just read the article about Patrick Reed moving away from Callaway this year - I didn't even realise he had left them, I assumed he just signed a Nike clothing deal.

Very interesting to read about his swapping of clubs since January, he clearly is finding the best clubs for him. Including an 8 year old 3 wood.

I think that the days of a player being paid to play a certain brand is coming to an end. I guess this is because things like clothing and advertising deals are much more lucrative, there's no need to take a big paycheck from a manufacturer to play their clubs when Nike are giving you millions to wear their hat and shoes.

Is this a good thing? We'll finally start to see which driver, irons etc are popular with players because they good, rather than because they are being paid to play them.

Or, will there just be other incentives to play a brand on a club by club basis? E.G will Callaway just tempt players to play their irons with a "non official" sponsorship contract, making it LOOK like the player chose them off their own back?

Maybe I'm sceptical. Money makes the world go round and all that.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Research has shown that very few people actually purchase their clubs on the basis of player endorsement.

After all for some time Nike had the then top two players using their clubs but it made very little difference to their sales.

Many more factors enter into consideration when choosing new clubs other than the fact that Tiger, Rory, Ricky or whoever uses that particular brand.

 

[Dibby]

Research has shown that very few people actually purchase their clubs on the basis of player endorsement.

After all for some time Nike had the then top two players using their clubs but it made very little difference to their sales.

Many more factors enter into consideration when choosing new clubs other than the fact that Tiger, Rory, Ricky or whoever uses that particular brand.

Surely it raises awareness though. You may not have gone and bought Nike clubs because Tiger used them, but he certainly made you aware that they exist and so could be a consideration if you were purchasing.

Whether you actually purchase or not obviously would come down to whether they suited you, price, quality, etc...

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Surely it raises awareness though. You may not have gone and bought Nike clubs because Tiger used them, but he certainly made you aware that they exist and so could be a consideration if you were purchasing.

Whether you actually purchase or not obviously would come down to whether they suited you, price, quality, etc...

I accept that it should increase brand awareness but the costs involved are reportedly making a number of OEM's review their sponsorship policies.

There are less expensive methods of promoting a brand and possibly more effective.

We, as golfers, might find it hard to believe but to the giants of the sports equipment world like Nike and Adidas as well as the Private Equity firms who own some of the brands the golf market is pretty small.

 

[Yant]

I think it depends at what level of the game you are at. Someone who has been playing the game for a while and understands the intricacies of the right equipment to suit their swing and game wouldn't necessarily be swayed just because a certain tour player is endorsing a certain brand. They will tend to go for what is best suited to them.

Whereas those first starting out are probably going to opt for the gear that the best players use, because, well why wouldn't you if you didn't know any different?

For me, the reason i started using Mizuno and why i still use them today is;

a) because they sponsored my favorite player growing up (Faldo)
b) because they were a superb product
c) and they are still the best choice for me personally when i search for a new set of irons.

 

[GB72]

I would question how obvious it is to some which club a pro actually uses. Most have neutral head covers, the bag is sponsored by other companies, the clothing brand does not match and there are not that many close up shots of the club itself. Yes, it helps to have a picture of a pro using your clubs on the marketing material but unless you read or follow golf media, you are not going to see that material very often.

Once you got the other extreme, hardcore golfer will know to buy what suits best irrespective of brands and will also know that the clubs that the pros use bear little resemblance to what we buy off the shelves.

Also, in a world of fairly faceless golf pros, how many actually know what anyone except the elite few are actually using.

From my point of view, I can see the benefit of providing pros with all of the kit to use but I cannot see the benefit in paying substantial amounts on top of that.

 

[jim8flog]

Research has shown that very few people actually purchase their clubs on the basis of player endorsement.

After all for some time Nike had the then top two players using their clubs but it made very little difference to their sales.

Many more factors enter into consideration when choosing new clubs other than the fact that Tiger, Rory, Ricky or whoever uses that particular brand.

Nike were virtually unknown in the world of golf until they signed Tiger and David Duval to play and endorse their products and look where Nike went after that.

 

[Imurg]

They don't just get signed to play the clubs...
Staff players often have to participate in several corporate events throughout the year...giving clinics and being involved in things like Kings of Distance.
I don't think there's many that have gone it alone at the moment.
That may increase but I doubt player/manufacturer tie-ups are dying yet.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

Nike were virtually unknown in the world of golf until they signed Tiger and David Duval to play and endorse their products and look where Nike went after that.

Out of the market!

Clothing and footwear are far more profitable.

Already players like Casey, Koepka, Reed and Finau are effectively freelance and more may follow as current deals come up for renewal.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Seems a bit of a jump to a conclusion based on one player ?

Players who have recently signed big multi million pins contracts are Garcia and Rory , even Woods , Poulter among others have recently signed deals to use a specific brand

I don’t see anything changing at all - the only thing that has changed recently it Nike signing lots of players on clothing only contracts

 

[Deleted member 18588]

The deals being signed now by players other than the very elite are generally not at the level of previous deals.

Mrs are realising that they no longer represent value.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Don't think it's a thing of the past. The top players generally have deals, but there does seem to be a trend for these deals not to be a whole bag and players are getting a chance to put other drivers, putters etc. I'm not sure clothing deals have matched the clubs. Faldo was a Pringle ambassador (before Fragger) and others inclide Donald and Ralph Lauren. Some like Rose and Garcia use Adidas which was was the TM clothing arm so it does happen.

To be honest, it's the clothing that I pay more attention to and if I see a nice polo being used by a top player I may consider buying one. I wouldn't buy a set of clubs, driver or putter just because one of my favourite players uses them. At best, it may pique my interest enough to try it but I'll buy on what I think works best for my game