I. Executive Summary

The Products
• Eight Categories
• Golf Clubs
• Golf Balls
• Other Categories
The Market
• Market Size and Growth
• Factors in Future Growth
• Market Projections
• Table 1-1: Size and Growth of the U.S. Market for Golf
• Category Share
The Marketers
• The Top Golf Marketers
• Figure 1-1: Marketer Shares of the U.S. Golf Equipment/Accessories Market, 1995 (percent); Marketer: American Brands, Callaway Golf, Spalding Golf, Wilson, Maxfli/Dunlop, Taylor Made, Karsten, Northwestern/Pro Select, Other
• Top Marketers: Clubs, Balls, Apparel
• Competitive Trends
• Product Trends
• Advertising/Promotion
Distribution/Retail
• Distribution
• Retail
The Consumer
• General Golfer Profile
Methodology
• Report Based on Primary and Secondary Research

II. The Products

Overview
• Scope of Study
• Eight Categories
Golf Clubs
• Two Basic Types: Woods and Irons
• Woods: Classifications
• Metal Woods
• Specialty Woods
• Utility Woods
• Irons: Classifications
• Putters
• Wedges
• Specialty Irons
• Clubhead Sizes
• Club Set Makeup
• Continuous Sets
• Club Shafts
• Investment-Casting
• All Clubs Are Handmade
Golf Balls
• Featheries and Gutties
• Bounding Billies
• The Modern "Three-Piece" Golf Ball (Balata)
• The Modern "Two-Piece" Ball (Surlyn)
• Dimples
• Golf Ball Standards
Other Categories
• Golf Bags
• Golf Apparel
• Golf Shoes
• Golf Gloves
• Golf Cars
• Miscellaneous Accessories
• Note on Tees
• Note on Pull Carts
Golfer Classifications
• By Frequency, Age, Sex

III. The Market

• Figure 3-1: Estimated Size and Growth of the U.S. Market for Golf Equipment/Accessories, 1992—2001 (retail dollars)
Market Size and Growth
• "Ballpark" Figures
• Golf Market at $6.8 Billion
• Table 3-1: Estimated Size and Growth of the U.S. Market for Golf Equipment/Accessories, 1992—1996 (retail dollars)
Factors in Future Growth
• Golfer Population Stagnant
• Socioeconomic Factors
• Demographic Factors
• More Golf Courses/Facilities
• Public Relations
• Advancing Technology
• Industry Consolidation
• Environmental Backlash
• Military "Downsizing"
• Reaching Out to Minorities
• Golf is Suddenly "Hip"
Market Projections
• An $8 Billion Market by 2001
• Table 3-2: Projections of the U.S. Market for Golf Equipment/Accessories, 1996—2001 (retail dollars)
Market Composition
• Category Shares Difficult to Estimate
• Golf Clubs Top Sellers
• Figure 3-2: Share of U.S. Market for Golf Equipment/Accessories: By Category, 1995 (percent); Category: Clubs, Apparel, Balls, Footwear, Bags, Cars, Gloves, Miscellaneous
• Premium/Oversize Clubs Driving Sales
• Figure 3-3: Share of U.S. Wood Club Sales: By Club Size, 1995 (percent); Size: Oversizes, Midsizes, Standard
• Segmenting the Golfer Population: Core, Occasional, Juniors
• Table 3-3: Share of Golfers and Rounds Played: By Golfer Segment, 1995 (percent); Segment: Core, Occasional, Juniors
• Avid Core, Core, and Occasional Golfers
• Spending By Cores and Occasionals
• Table 3-4: Spending By Golfer Segment, 1994 (dollars and percent)
• Golfer versus Nongolfer Spending
• Men/Women Playing Ratio
• Women One-Third of Beginners
• Seniors and Middle Agers Major Core Golfers
• Number of Courses and Facilities
• Table 3-5: Number and Growth of Golf Courses/Facilities: By Type Course, 1970 versus 1995 (number); Types: Daily-Fee, Private, Municipal
• Retail Purchasing Patterns: By Category
• Regionality
• Table 3-6: Golf Popularity: By Region, 1996 (percent); Region: Midwest, West, Northeast, South
• California Has Most Golfers
• Table 3-7: Golfers by State: Top Ten States, 1995 (number); State: California, New York, Illinois, Ohio, Texas, Michigan, Florida, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota
• Seasonality

IV. The Marketers

The Marketers: Overview
• Number of Marketers
• Types of Marketers: Generalists/Specialists
• Ownership Variations
• American Brands Top Golf Marketer
• Callaway and Spalding Round Out Top Three
• Marketing Products Across Categories
• Table 4-1: Leading U.S. Golf Marketers and Their Brands, 1996 (listing); Marketer: American Brands, Antigua, Ashworth, Belding, Bridgestone, Bullet, Burton, Callaway, Daiwa, Datrek, Etonic, Fownes, Gear for Sports, Hogan, Izod Club, Karsten, LaMode, Lynx, Maxfli/Dunlop, Mizuno, Nicklaus, Nike, North- western/Pro Select, Polo/Ralph Lauren, Ram, Slazenger, Spalding, Sun Mountain, Taylor Made, U.S. Industries, Wilson
Marketer Shares
• Marketer Share: Overall Golf Market
• Table 4-2: Marketer Shares of the U.S. Overall Golf Equipment/Accessories Market, 1995 (percent); Marketer: American Brands, Callaway Golf, Spalding Golf, Wilson Golf, Cobra Golf, Maxfli/Dunlop, Taylor Made Golf, Karsten Manufacturing, North-western/Pro Select, Izod Club, Mizuno, Ashworth, U.S. Industries, Slazenger, Lynx, Etonic, Gear for Sports, Polo/Ralph Lauren, LaMode, Antigua, Belding, Others
• Category Shares: Golf Clubs
• Table 4-3: Share of U.S. Golf Clubs Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Callaway, Cobra, Taylor Made, Karsten Manufacturing, Wilson, Northwestern/Pro Select, Spalding, Titleist, U.S. Industries, Maxfli/Dunlop, Lynx, Mizuno, Other
• Significant Minor Marketers: Clubs
• Table 4-4: Significant Minors: Golf Club Category, 1995 (listing)
• Category Shares: Golf Apparel
• Table 4-5: Share of U.S. Golf Apparel Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Izod Club, Ashworth, Gear for Sports, Polo/Ralph Lauren, La Mode, Antigua, Greg Norman, Other
• Significant Minor Marketers: Apparel
• Table 4-6: Significant Minors: Golf Apparel Category, 1995 (listing)
• Other Minors: Apparel
• Table 4-7: Other Minors: Golf Apparel Category, 1995 (listing)
• Category Shares: Golf Balls
• Table 4-8: Share of U.S. Golf Balls Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Titleist, Spalding, Maxfli, Wilson, Other
• Category Share: Golf Footwear
• Table 4-9: Share of U.S. Golf Footwear Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Foot-Joy, Dexter, Etonic, Nike, Reebok, Mizuno, Other
• Category Share: Golf Bags
• Table 4-10: Share of U.S. Golf Bags Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Belding, Sun Mountain, Karsten, Datrek, Burton, Wilson, Callaway, Miller, Other
• Significant Minor Marketers: Golf Bags
• Table 4-11: Significant Minors: Golf Bag Category, 1995 (listing)
• Category Share: Golf Gloves
• Table 4-12: Share of U.S. Golf Gloves Category: By Marketer, 1995 (percent); Marketer: Titleist/Foot-Joy, Wilson, Slazenger, Other
• Significant Minor Marketers: Golf Gloves
• Table 4-13: Significant Minors: Golf Gloves Category
The Competitive Situation: Overview
• A Curious Market
• Golfer Psychology and the Nature of the Game
• Tradition, Prestige, Obsession Drive Competitive Dynamics
• No "Formal" Commodity Market
• Thus Upward Price Flexibility
• Golf Market at a Crossroads
• A Looming Shakeout
• Consider American Brands and Callaway
• The Refusal to Surrender
The Competitive Situation: Golf Clubs
• Intense Competitive Activity
• The Old Days: Chivalrous Competition
• The 1970s: A Turning Point
• The First Revolution: Ping Cavity-Backed Irons
• The Second Revolution: Taylor Made's Metal Woods
• The Third Revolution: Graphite Shafts
• The Fourth Revolution: Callaway's Oversized Driver
• Technological Breakthroughs Lead to Stiffer Competition
• A New Emphasis on Marketing
• Callaway's Shrewd Debut of Big Bertha
• Cobra's Success Tied to Mega-Marketing
• Multimillions Now Needed to Market Clubs
• Distribution, Positioning, and Tour Acceptance Also Necessary
• The Trade is Tightening Stocks
• Smaller Companies Feeling the Pressure
• Competing in Club Size, Materials, Designs, and Niches
• Oversizes Extremely Popular
• The Attraction of Oversizes: A Larger "Sweet Spot"
• Sweet Spots: The Perception and the Reality
• Borrowing From Tennis
• Defining the Sweet Spot
• Embracing and Eschewing Sweet Spot Positioning
• Marketers Now Also Fielding Oversize Irons
• Oversized Oversizes
• Countertrend: Midsizes
• Oversizes and Titanium
• The "Titanium Rush"
• "Ti" Lighter and Stronger
• Also More Expensive
• Pure versus Alloy Titanium
• Will United States Follow Japan in Ti Embrace?
• Major Drawback: High Pricetag
• An Optimistic, Yet Realistic Assessment
• Ti Dissenters
• Major Names in Titanium
• Table 4-14: Marketers of Titanium Clubs, 1996 (listing)
• Pursuing Niche Markets
• Targeting Women
• Callaway and Cobra
• Playing Up versus Playing Down Gender
• Daiwa's Approach
• Other Marketers Targeting Women
• Targeting Juniors
• La Jolla Club the Leader
• Other Marketers Targeting Juniors
• Competing in Components
• Golfsmith the Leader
• Custom-Fitting
• Custom versus OEM Clubs
• Components Marketers Threat to Bargain OEM Clubs
• Competing with Knockoffs
• Competing in Shafts
• Leader in Graphite: Aldila
• Leader in Steel: True Temper
• Proliferating Shaft Designs
• Table 4-15: Selected List of Golf Club Shaft Makers, 1996 (listing)
• Competing in Grips
The Competitive Situation: Golf Apparel
• Scores of Marketers in Apparel
• The Next Big Thing in Lifestyle Sportswear?
• Competing in Men's versus Women's Segments
• Competing On Quality Materials, Durability
• Major Competition Is in Realm of Fashion
• Competing on "Prestige" in Conservative Milieu
• Lower versus Higher Prestige
• Many Blend Transitional and Traditional
• Most Pursue Class, Not Mass, Retail Strategies
• Major Exception: LizGolf
• Deviations from Green-Grass Retail Strategies
• More Entrants Than Dropouts
• A Profusion of Designer Names
• Table 4-16: Golf Apparel: Recent Designer Entries, 1996 (listing)
• Licensing in Golf Apparel
• A New Breed of Generation X Apparel Marketers
The Competitive Situation: Golf Balls
• Top Four With Over 90% of Sales
• Worldwide Proliferation of Golf Ball Models
• Titleist versus Spalding
• Success Takes Major Investment in R&D and Marketing
• Also Requires Distribution Strength and Price Positioning
• Taking Advantage of Upward Price Flexibility
• Competing on Distance Claims
• Can Marketers Sell the New Generation of Golf Balls?
• The Senior Balls Niche
• Senior Ball Skeptics
• The Low-End Niche
• The "Black-Market" Niche
The Competitive Situation: Other Categories
• Special Note
• Competition: Footwear
• Competition: Golf Bags
• Competition: Golf Gloves
• Competition: Golf Cars
• Competition: Miscellaneous Accessories
Competitive Profile: American Brands (Titleist/Cobra/Foot-Joy/Pinnacle)
• Number One Golf Marketer
• Breakout by Golf Line
• Titleist
• Foot-Joy
• The Cobra Acquisition
• Cobra's Explosive Growth
• The King Cobra Line
• Strength in Marketing
• Potential Cobra/Titleist Synergies
• Industry Scuttlebutt
• The Outrageous Cobra PGA Booth
• Conflicts with Greg Norman Endorsements?
Competitive Profile: Callaway Golf Co.
• Top Club Maker on a Roll
• Ely Callaway: Mastermind Behind the Big Bertha
• Club Sales Breakout
• An Ambitious, Pioneering Approach
• Disbelievers on "The Street"
• Callaway Stymies Its Critics
• The Great Big Bertha Ti Driver
• On Top of Innovation
• A Heavy Advertiser
• Latest Move: Entering Golf Balls
Competitive Profile: Spalding Sports Worldwide, Inc.
• Number Three, with Strength in Golf Balls
• In-Your-Face Innovator, Challenger
• Foray into Women's Equipment
Competitive Profile: Wilson Sporting Goods Co.
• World Leader in Sporting Goods
• Historically Preeminent in Golf Clubs
• Too Many Owners, Managers
• The Invex Bungle
• Bad News in '95
• Establishing Management, Marketing Continuity
Competitive Profile: Dunlop Maxfli Sports Corp.
• A New Streamlined Competitor
• Subdividing Dunlop and Maxfli
• Maxfli Class, Dunlop Mass
• Maxfli's Makeover
Competitive Profile: Taylor Made Golf Co.
• 1995: A Stellar Year
• The Burner Bubble Breakthrough
• The Bubble Now Offered in Irons and Ti
• TM Doubling Its Marketing Budget
• Taylor Made: A Case Study of the Price You Pay for Success
• Copycats and Ripoffs
• TM Sues Retailers Selling Copies
• Battling Diversion: The Gray Market
Competitive Profile: Karsten Manufacturing
• Famous for Ping Irons
• Craftsmanship Yields Success...
• ...But It's Awfully Slow
• Entrenched Strengths
• Karsten Solheim Turns the Reins Over to Sons
Other Competitive Profiles
• Ashworth, Inc.
• U.S. Industries (Tommy Armour/Odyssey)
• Competitive Profile: Golfsmith
Product Trends
• Trends in Clubs
• Trends in Balls
• Trends in Apparel
• Trends in Footwear
• Trends in Golf Bags
• Trends in Miscellaneous Accessories
• Trends in High-Tech Accessories
Advertising Expenditures
• Overview
• Ad Spending Triples Since 1990
• A Shift to TV Advertising
• Network versus Cable TV
• For Most, Magazines Remain the Core Buy
• Current Expenditures: Spalding
• Callaway
• Cobra
• Taylor Made
• Ping
• Titleist/Foot-Joy
• Midrange Ad Spenders
Advertising Positioning
• Three Main Themes
• First Main Positioning: Product Superiority
• Subthemes: Product Focus
• Technical Explanations
• Product Performance
• Competitive Claims
• Second Main Positioning: Product Credibility
• Subthemes: Pro and Celebrity Endorsements
• Tour Success
• Leading-Product Claims
• Testimonials
• Third Main Positioning: Golfer Psychology
• Subthemes: The Game-Improvement Appeal
• The "Motivating-Coach" Appeal
• The "Revolutionary" Claim
• Humor/Irony
• Inspirational/Nostalgic
• A Note on TV Spots
Promotions
• A Large Variety of Consumer Promotions
• Contests/Sweepstakes
• Free Offers
• Sampling
• Money-Back Guarantees
• Golf-Specific Promotions
• New: Cross-Promotions with Nongolf Companies
• Novel Promotions Through the Media

V. Distribution/Retail

Distribution
• Limited Distribution the Rule
• Advantages of Limited Distribution
• Intermediary Distribution Arising
• The Gray Market
• An Example of Diversion
At the Retail Level
• On-Course versus Off-Course Outlets
• Off-Course Outlets with Disproportionate Share
• Retail Preferences By Categor
• Table 5-1: Most Popular Retail Outlets for Golf Product Purchase: By Category, 1994 (% First Choice); Category: Clubs, Balls, Bags, Apparel, Shoes, Gloves; Outlet: Golf Discount Retailer, General Discount Store, Sporting Goods Store, Pro Shop, Department Store, Mail Order, Other
• Discounters Primary Destinations
• Pro Shops
• Sporting Goods Stores
• Golf Specialty Discount Stores
• Are Discounters Moving On-Course?
• Department Stores
Retail Trends
• The Rise of Superstores
• In-Store Boutiques
• "Pure" Boutiques
• Offering More Custom-Fitting Services
• Trends in Retailer Attitudes: Concerned with Price Squeeze
• Are Some Retailers Selling Knockoffs or Counterfeits?
• The Quality of Salespeople

VI. The Consumer

The Golfer Population
• Number of Golfers
• Frequency of Play
• Where Golfers Play
• Factors in Golf Participation
• Table 6-1: Demographic Characteristics Favoring Golf Participation and Frequent Participation, 1996 (listing); Factor: Sex, Age, Education, Employment, Occupation, Marital Status, Race, Region, Household Income, Household Size, Children in Household
• Factors in Frequent Play
• Factors in Where Golfers Play
• Table 6-2: Demographic Characteristics Favoring Golf Participation: By Type of Course Played, 1996 (listing); Course: Country Club, Private Club, Daily Fee, Municipal; Factor: Sex, Age, Education, Employment, Occupation, Marital Status, Race, Region, Household Income, Household Size, Children in Household
Consumer Equipment Purchasing
• Number of Owners/Buyers
• Where Equipment is Purchased
• Factors in Owning/Buying Clubs
• Table 6-3: Demographic Characteristics Favoring Ownership/Purchase of Golf Clubs, 1996 (listing); Factor: Sex, Age, Education, Employment, Occupation, Marital Status, Race, Region, Household Income, Household Size, Children in Household
• Factors in Owning/Buying Golf Balls
• Table 6-4: Demographic Characteristics Favoring Ownership/Purchase of Golf Balls, 1996 (listing); Factor: Sex, Age, Education, Employment, Occupation, Marital Status, Race, Region, Household Income, Household Size, Children in Household
• Factors in Owning/Buying Golf Gloves
• Table 6-5: Demographic Characteristics Favoring Ownership/Purchase of Golf Gloves, 1996 (listing); Factor: Sex, Age, Education, Employment, Occupation, Marital Status, Race, Region, Household Income, Household Size, Children in Household

Appendix I: Examples of Advertising

Appendix II: Addresses of Selected Marketers