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The Glod Story<\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

2020 and 2021 were as interesting years as I ever could have imagined when it comes to watching the golf industry change. We went into this thing as masters of knowing when to work the back-end of a product cycle with close out clubs and how to get the inventory down on the older lines compared to the new stuff we\u2019re launching.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

While some of that still exists, it really has shifted the past two years. Now it\u2019s a question of how much can we produce and deliver when we are at peak demand like this.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Our pre-book orders went up drastically as all of our partners wanted to get in line to receive their product. Now it\u2019s an entirely new set of problems, but a tradeoff that we will take!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

I am not sure if any other factor could have kick started golf like we have seen. It has been an amazing development that still doesn\u2019t have any end in sight.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

How do you see the 2022 golf season playing out for Tour Edge?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This will no doubt be our best year ever in terms of sales, following up six straight years of record sales for us. The golf boom caused by the pandemic is still in full swing and it has led to a major influx of new golfers coming to the game. We were positioned very well to service all these new golfers as we offer a golf club for every player and budget, from tour player to beginner.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Not every golf club manufacturer can say that, but we take pride in making sure every different player type in the golf spectrum is covered with our lineup.\u00a0As far as tech and performance, the 722 and 522 product we have launched is far and away the most advanced clubs we have ever produced.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Our commitment and focus on the advancement of our R&D the past few years is really paying off. We\u00a0have clubs that will hang with or perform better than anything out there, and this is all done with our \u201cpound for pound, nothing comes close\u201d mantra that we live by.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Plenty of companies either have or still are facing supply side issues. Has that happened at Tour Edge and how well have you managed on that front?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

It has certainly become a major challenge in our industry, but we have taken as many steps as possible to ease the burdens that exist. Some things are just out of our control, but I would say that we are 90% of the way there as far as mitigating any delays that are occurring due to the supply chain being choked up due to all this demand we are seeing.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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What key lessons have you learned about the golf equipment industry now from when you first started Tour Edge?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

I think the biggest thing I\u2019ve learned about today\u2019s game is the importance of fitting and really understanding the different player types that exist. In 2022, we needed to expand our fitting matrix to offer clubs that benefit all of the different types of swings and player preferences.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

That is why we have launched two sides to each of our Exotics 722 line and our Hot Launch 522 line. We are really covering the vast majority of needs out there with this approach. That is why we are asking, \u2018Are you an E or a C?\u2019 in our new 722 campaign.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The C (Competition Spec) player wants more adjustability and more compact designs that produce hotter and lower spinning flights, while the E (Extreme Spec) player wants high M.O.I. for increased accuracy, ease of launch and overall playability.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Given the dominance of the major equipment companies — what marketing initiatives are you planning this year to get more people aware of what you’re doing as a company?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

We\u2019ve really planted our flag into the PGA TOUR Champions and the majority of our marketing efforts are streamlined around this activation. You will see that in our\u00a0TV spots we are airing feature all eight of our legendary staff players and we are trying to bring some lightheartedness to introducing our tech with the guys.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

We also include Bo Jackson in this year\u2019s spots, so that has been a lot of fun to work with such a renowned superstar athlete who loves our golf clubs. We are the presenting sponsor of all PGA TOUR Champions on the Golf Channel and the Champions Learning Center show, where we are able to have our staff players discuss the Tour Edge product they are playing.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Our visibility to the end consumer has grown 20-fold over the last 5 years due to this strategy. It\u2019s been huge for us.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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From a sales perspective — what’s the percentage breakdown of your ’21 results via online efforts, brick and mortar retail outlets and green grass shops?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

We had our biggest year ever in 2021 with online sales, but the vast majority of our sales still come through brick-and-mortar retail partners. That is where our bread is buttered, but we saw a huge jump in online sales over the past two years, something we see continuing into the future. Custom fitting has seen a 350% jump for us over the past five years, so we have become a major player in that arena as well.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The USGA and R&A came out with a report in ’21 outlining a clear concern on the distances elite players are achieving. No definitive action has been taken — yet. Even though Tour Edge does not produce golf balls — what’s your take on the topic and do you see corrective action being needed?<\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

It\u2019s a slippery slope, but the bifurcation of rules when it comes to golf balls certainly has some steam. That being said, depending on how you look at the data, it could support both views. On the Champions Tour, our staff player Bernhard Langer is still dominating at 64 years of age without being long off the tee.\u00a0<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

There\u2019s a lot more that goes into winning than distance. I think you could run into some weird happenings if things are rolled back — how do you test the golf ball to see if it has the all the proper restrictions? It could be a logistical nightmare, but I am sure they will figure all that out in the years to come as things continue to progress on this front.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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