2009 PGA Show Report
by Joe Davidson
Editor of Different Strokes Golf Newsletter at GolfHelp.com

I’ve been going to the PGA Merchandise Show every year since 1990 however this year was the first time I ever considered not going. I was concerned that it just might not be worthwhile. A lot of other golf industry friends that I talked to before the show expressed the same concern and a good number of them who normally go every year decided not to attend this year.

In the end this year’s PGA Show turned out to be a really good show for most of the attendees and most of the exhibitors, at least the small to medium sized companies that I talked to. The Orlando PGA Merchandise Show is the one place every year where pretty much everyone actively involved in golf is under one roof for three days. I went to meet people and the majority of people I wanted to see not only were there but they were easier to get to see than at any previous show. Some vendors said their total number of leads were down 25%+/- from past years. However, despite the smaller crowds, the vendors did say the quality of the leads they did get were high.

There were fewer vendors and there were certainly fewer attendees but there was still plenty of action at the show. The show is divided into two sections, the golf section and the fashion section. For the last ten years or more the fashion section has been growing and the golf section has been shrinking. I can remember when the golf section used to extend to around aisle 10,000 but now it was pretty much over just past aisle 5,000. The exhibition company that runs the show (Reed Exhibitions) did a good job making the aisles a little wider and using all the tricks in the book to stretch out the exhibitors so the place didn’t look as empty as it really was. There were a lot of big open spaces mixed in among the booths, places in years past that were filled with booths.

One interesting little section they always have is the new product section. This year they put the new product section way up at the very end of the fashion section. I doubt very many people every saw the new product section at all. When I visited it there were only 5 or 6 people in the whole section. I guess the intention was to get the golf section people to walk through the fashion section to see the new product area. I talked to a bunch of people who just weren’t going to bother to walk to the other end of the show just to see the new product section this year. Actually some of them were a little ticked off about that. I hope they don’t do that next year.

Around town the cab drivers were complaining and restaurants were slow. There weren’t any more long lines to get a table for dinner. You could pretty much walk in and get seated at most restaurants. In past years you had to call to get a reservation or you’d find yourself dining well after 9:00 PM or later. 

There did seem to be fewer new companies this year. Missing were those startups and garage inventors that always gave vitality to the show in years past. That does not bode well for the future of golf.

I did go to one very good seminar on the state of the industry. It was produced by a well respected none PGA research company (Pellucid) and the information was much more honest and real than the usual “sunshine only reports” from the PGA types. I’d say the bottom line is that golf still isn’t attracting young people or non-whites. Golf remains pretty much a game for rich white men.

At the show the PGA seemed to be bragging about how good a job they were doing for the game but the numbers I’m seeing tells me that golf is in big trouble. The PGA has their “Play Golf America” and their new “Get Golf Ready” programs but to me they seem to be make work programs for PGA pro’s to get them lessons instead of programs to really grow the game.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying golf is going to die tomorrow. Many of us won’t notice many big changes for the next decade or two. (Little changes are all around us.)  I’m just saying all the numbers the experts are coming up with say things are going to be flat at best and more likely shrinking a few percentage points each year for as far as the eye can see.

Following are some pictures of the show. I’ll write up some more specifics about the new products I saw for next weeks issue.

Joe Davidson

Publisher of Different Strokes Golf Newsletter

GolfHelp.com

 Pictures from 2009 PGA Show

 The main aisle was quite busy
Courtesy of the PGA of America

There were a good number of celebrities around promoting
all kinds products . Here's Dotie Pepper at a grip booth.
Courtesy of the PGA of America

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