Industry News

Industry Notes: Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Acushnet Holdings acquires Club Glove; PGA of America names Craig Kessler as COO; Ryder inks Sam Ryder to sponsorship agreement; CME Group makes aces pledge to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

G/Fore: Luxury lifestyle and golf footwear brand opens G/Fore Supply Scottsdale, a monochromatic retail storefront in the Scottsdale Quarter of the Arizona city. The store features limited-edition styles that customers could previously only explore online and select international locations.

Acushnet Holdings Corp.: Purchases the Club Glove golf travel product brand from West Coast Trends Inc. Acushnet acquires all relevant Club Glove trademarks, domains and products. West Coast Trends will continue to operate and service the Club Glove brand out of its headquarters in Huntington Beach, California.

CME Group: Pledges to donate $20,000 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for each hole in one scored during the 2023 LPGA Tour season as part of the Score 1 for St. Jude campaign. The program, started in 2018, has raised $3.2 million, including $1 million in 2022.

PGA of America: Names Craig Kessler chief operating officer of the PGA of America. Kessler, who begins on March 6, will report to PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh. Kessler served as COO and head of emerging concepts at Topgolf from 2016-21 and, most recently, served as chief executive officer of Buff City Soap, an experiential retail company based in Dallas.

USGA: Launches GS3, a state-of-the-art golf technology tool that calculates putting green speed, firmness, smoothness and trueness. A rechargeable smart ball that is the same size and weight as a standard golf ball and has sensors that collect over 15,000 data points, GS3 creates measurable agronomic benchmarks that superintendents can use to facilitate change more effectively on their course.

PGA National Club Championship: Announces that Troon North Golf Club and The Westin Kierland Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, will host the event in December. The PGA National Club Championship features amateur club champions from facilities with a PGA Professional. The championship comprises six divisions, each competing over 54 holes — the women, Dec. 12-14; the men, Dec. 17-19. The divisions for women and men include: Open (any age), Senior (50+ years old) and Champion (60+ years old).

Ryder System: Launches a multimillion-dollar sponsorship and advertising campaign with Sam Ryder, now in his sixth season on the PGA Tour, to promote the company that provides supply chain, dedicated transportation and fleet management solutions. The brand-awareness campaign puts the Ryder corporate logo on Sam Ryder’s golf shirt as he plays on Tour over the next two seasons. It also includes a series of humorous television, print and digital ads that follow Sam Ryder as he explores why the logistics company has taken an interest in him.

Kaulig Companies Championship, PGA Tour Champions, Northern Ohio Golf Charities Foundation: Names NBA champion Stephen Curry as the 2023 recipient of the Ambassador of Golf Award. Curry will be recognized on July 8. The award honors a person who has fostered the game on an international level and whose concerns for others extends beyond the golf course. Also, the PGA Tour Champions has partnered with Underrated Golf, founded by Curry, to host a junior golf event at Firestone Country Club's South Course, July 6-8, prior to the start of the PGA Tour Champions' Kaulig Companies Championship.


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