EL SEGUNDO, CA – JUNE 15: A sea of golf balls blanket the range at the Southlands new Topgolf on … [+]
Topgolf gets top billing in Callaway’s just announced corporate name change as the 40-year-old sports equipment manufacturer rebrands to reflect the torrid growth of their gamified entertainment ranges. That business segment accounted for over $403 million of the $1.12 billion in revenue they posted in their most recent quarter. With same venue sales rising in the high single digits and expansion continuing at a rapid clip, Topgolf will be driving the company’s growth for the foreseeable future.
“We are excited to introduce Topgolf Callaway Brands, which better acknowledges our long-term strategic path forward, while emphasizing our unique and dominant leadership in the Modern Golf space,” Chip Brewer, the company’s president and CEO, said.
“With the change, our new corporate identity will reinforce the opportunities that are anchored in our strong heritage business and at the same time build important awareness for our strategic shift towards exciting new ventures in the modern golf and active lifestyle segments,” he added.
The company name change is expected to take effect September 6th and the NYSE listed stock ticker is also being refreshed to reflect the rebranding. They will be going from ‘ELY’ to ‘MODG’, which they see as more indicative of their leadership position in the modern golf world.
A rendering of TGL’s venue
The modernization of golf trend also sees TMRW Sports, a company founded by Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Mike McCarley, a former president of the Golf Channel, teaming up to kickstart the TGL in partnership with the PGA Tour. The league which Tiger Woods dubs the “next evolution within professional golf” will pit teams of three golfers against each other in a newfangled “tech-infused” venue where drives are hit into giant simulator screens with the action then pivoting to a stadium-like short game environment to complete each hole.
“We all know what it’s like to be in a football stadium or a basketball arena where you can watch every play, every minute of action unfold right in front of you. It’s something that inherently isn’t possible in traditional golf — and an aspect of TGL that will set it apart and appeal to a new generation of fans,” Woods said in a statement.
Are you ready for Monday night golf? The two-hour matches will air on a to be determined network during primetime starting in January of 2024. The inaugural regular season will feature a 15-week schedule with each team competing five times followed up by playoffs and then a finals.
“TGL will tap into the appeal of team golf within an exciting, fan-friendly environment, comparable to sitting courtside at an NBA game. TGL will widen the appeal of golf to younger and more diverse fans and serve as another avenue to introduce people to the game I love,” McIlroy added.
TGL is also a new offensive by the PGA Tour in the battle against LIV golf, borrowing the Saudi-backed league’s team format but adding even greater brevity with every shot of the competition hit in just two hours.
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