It was at the start of a recent round that Stinky Golfer Greg and I were poking a little fun at the foursome in front us. “Hey, who do you think is winning, the red team or blue team?” I asked Greg this referring to the foursome in front of us in which two were wearing red shirts and two were in blue. Greg responded that his money was on the blue team.
This brought up further joking regarding how, several times, one member of our foursome would have to head back inside their house and change their shirt so we don’t show up to the course looking like we’re on a team. It’s actually almost come to the point where we’ll have to be on the phone with each other before our round like a couple of school girls – “What color shirt are you wearing today?” “I’m going to wear the red one so wear a different color.” It’s pathetic really.
But further conversation regarding our shirts lead to a simple comment regarding a common stereotype of the sport. On the subject of the shirts, Greg mentions to me that he paid only $20 or so for his moisture-wicking Champion polo. I tell him that I paid the same for the Reebok shirt I was wearing at the time. He then tells me; “If this same shirt had a Nike logo on it, it would cost $50.” I agreed with him, and that led to his comment – “See, that’s why some people think golf is a rich man’s sport and don’t take it up to begin with.” I gotta say, he’s got a good point.
Every golf publication, and most golf products advertised, are for the priciest apparel and products available. Think about it. When was the last time you saw a review on a new set of $150 golf clubs? When was the last time you saw a feature on the season’s newest golf apparel, and in it was a $15 polo?
For further proof, I’ve just popped open a recent issue of Golf Magazine. Of the first ten advertisements, six of them are for golf equipment. Of the six, three of the ads are for drivers costing between $400-$500, a $700 set of clubs, a $200 fairway wood and another driver costing $300. As a matter of fact, it isn’t until you are 90-plus pages in before an “affordable” set of clubs is advertised.
Do you see what I mean? What is someone new to the sport, or just getting involved supposed to do? They are bombarded with the idea that they have to pay a lot of money to play this sport. And all you have to do to for proof of this is pick up a golf magazine.
Thankfully, my buddies who got me involved in this sport years ago had steered me in the right direction. I paid $150 for my first set of golf clubs, woods included! And I carried them for twelve or thirteen years. Now that may sound ridiculous to many of you, but even more ridiculous is that I still carry one of the clubs from that set! And it’s quite possibly the most consistent club in my bag!
I don’t think I’ve ever purchased a polo specifically for golf, and I don’t recall any of them having been one of those $50-$60 type. Had it not been for my buddies, I may have been one of those that was sucked in by the ads. And that makes me wonder how many golfers do get sucked in and feel they need to have that Tiger Woods or Ashworth polo. How many golfers go out buy a $600 set of irons, a $300 driver and $100 putter when they’re just taking up the game and aren’t even sure if they like it or not yet?
Even worse, and the real question that fuels the stereotype is, how many people never take up the game because everything they see is so damn expensive? The clubs, the apparel, the courses…everything highlighted by the golf publications (both magazines and television) is the most expensive of what’s available. It makes potential players feel that if they don’t spend more money, they will be using inferior equipment, wearing the wrong apparel and playing poor courses. But in reality, nothing could be further from the truth.
In my opinion, this is just another problem facing the golf industry. Not only is there very little going on for the average hack like myself and my golfing buddies, but there is also very little for beginners. How do you expect to attract new players to the game, when you price most of them out of it right from the start?
I hope that anyone who may be new to the game is being guided by friends like mine. Because honestly, if I had to rely on the golf publications and fell victim to the “rich man’s sport” stereotype, I would have quit the game long ago. And that’s if I ever took it up to begin with.
Swing ’til you’re happy…you can afford to if you do it right!
good blog topic, enjoyed it. when i started, i was lucky to find a golf partner who gave me his old clubs, and he coached and nurtured my game too. he should be sainted.
too bad there’s not a system for ecxperienced golf mentors who do the same for other beginners.
Great article butbas far as apparel, you can get great deals on Ashworth on eBay and pick up great golf name brand shirts at a discount store like Marshalls, TJ Max or Ross. The bargains are out there. My motto “Never pay retail”
The way I see it is if you are serious about golf you will get yourself all the necessary equipment to compete.
With golf being more accessible than ever there is no excuses!
I live in Augusta Georgia -the golf capital of the US (if not the world) and I am an avid golfer. One would think that I was living in the ideal place for golfers, but I found that it was a challenge to find a course here that was available to the public that was affordable and a good course. It took me a few years to find the one or two high value venues here—the places where regular folks can enjoy a quality round on a well-cared for course without breaking the family budget.
A consistent question about the game one hears or reads on golf blogs and other industry outlets, is how to popularize and grow the sport. To date these efforts have concentrated on teaching youth the game and showing wealthy and/or famous people playing on TV. Watching Donald Trump get a couple of celebrities together to play a match on one of his courses does little to popularize the game beyond the aspirational aspect. Reviews on line, in magazines or on cable shows of spectacular venues that cost hundreds per round do not make the game more accessible or popular. It only perpetuates the stereotype that golf is an elitist sport. There is a vacuum in the golf entertainment arena: it lacks an appeal to regular folks getting out and playing the game. As a result, more golf courses have closed in this country than have opened for the last few years. The voices of golf bemoan the shrinking demographic. Addressing the elitist face of golf must be done to save the game. Ignoring it risks a further decline in popularity of the game.
I propose a travelling foursome, or threesome with a ‘guest’ fourth arriving in a city and determining the best available golf experience for the least money. Finding great public or municipal courses and detailing the search and the round/s played would be entertaining for folks in that particular town and around the country. The exclusive nature of the game could be downplayed or perhaps mocked. There could be a segment about the most exclusive/expensive course in town and comparing it to the muni/public course. This could be called the “watching the rich people eat ice cream” segment (this was a phrase my great grandfather coined and used). Segments could include showing the local First Tee course and getting the area information from the First Tee Pro, describing the city or town and the length of the golf season, profiling a local avid average golfer etc.
Potential guests for the fourth position could include local golf pros or former caddies who went on to other lines of work (think Bill Murray).
It is important that the foursome not be great golfers-rather it is important that they be ‘everyman’ sorts who appeal to a broad spectrum of people to show that anyone can enjoy this game: you don’t have to be good to have fun. I would say that the elite of the game need not apply. From an eight to a twenty handicap range seems about right. Some market research here could determine the most appealing foursome in terms of ethnicity, socio economic status, gender, age and so on.
I see selection of cities to be visited as a marketing decision- that could be conveyed as a blind dart throw at a map of the United States.
Sponsors potentially could include the PGA and the USGA as this should, indeed, make the game more accessible and expand the number of participants. The Golf Course Superintendent’s Association, the Golf Club Managers Association and any number of equipment suppliers might sponsor as well. The two largest golf car manufacturers are located here in the Augusta area. I would expect they would take an interest in this approach as well.
Hey Tony,
You pretty much hit the sentiments of golfstinks right on the head! We have talked about the topics you’ve mentioned in your comment on more than one occasion. For example, check these two posts out:
http://golfstinks.blogspot.com/2010/02/open-letterpitch-to-golf-channel.html
and
http://golfstinks.blogspot.com/2010/04/golf-channels-newest-offering-is-really.html
It blows our minds how the golf industry as a whole is so out of touch with the average recreational golfer who, by the way, makes up about 90% of the golfers out there today! Yet, we have celebrities, private clubs, outrageously priced courses and equally outrageously priced merchadise pushed on us from every angle. And all the while the industry as a whole suffers increasingly more every year!
And everyone in the industry wonders why fewer and fewer people take up the game, and fewer and fewer rounds are being played every year. It really isn’t that hard to figure out!
Thanks for the comments everyone!
of course the adverts are for expensive drivers. You would have to sell a lot more of $150 clubs to pay for an $5000 advert, and the number of golfers is limited.
I tried golf at a bachelor party 10 years ago, had a good time but didn’t continue because it was too expensive. Last year I went to a retirement golf party, and had a blast. I was for sure going to play again, and again. I went and got a used set for $100 including irons, hybrids, woods, and a driver. Now to look the part, I go to thrift stores in really nice areas with golf courses. I have almost 30 ping, nike, callaway, addidas,and ashword shirts and pullovers. most of those I got for under $5. They guy I golf with is “the guy” that has all the new expensive stuff and guess what we only have a 2 stroke difference between us.
Good info!! Your blog feature much of the same content that I have come to expect here.
Really helpful post! Golf apparels are specially designed for golf. They are different varieties and prices.
Golf is one of the most popular major sports around the world today, for professional players and amateurs alike.