Welcome to The Show
For as long as I’ve been covering golf, the PGA Show in Orlando has been a happening.
On paper, it’s a trade show: exhibitors are there to sell their wares. In practice, it’s Golf Homecoming, an annual reunion not unlike the scene under the big oak tree at the Masters. Club pros, general managers, buyers, retailers, and others attached to the business of golf made the pilgrimage to the Orange County Convention Center to catch up with friends and engage in some commerce. Each year, the show got a little more extravagant as the powerhouse manufacturers competed to provide the coolest “experience.”
There were vehicles parked on the show floor. Lots of them. Double-decker buses, converted RV’s, motorcycles. One year there was a real armored tank. Clothing manufacturers, in particular, loved to attempt a nightclub vibe, with DJ’s spinning tunes and happy hours late in the day.
Golf Channel undoubtably had something to do with this. When the show was at its peak, we’d go live for several hours each day, typically with at least two full sets and all the bells and whistles — cameras that flew on wires above the floor, handhelds roaming the booths, and a crew of several dozen. The industry’s largest business gathering was literally down the street from our offices, so there was no reason not to blow it out.
Then, two things happened: the Golf Channel operation moved to Connecticut, and COVID. Right around the same time, actually.
The 2021 show was cancelled due to the pandemic. Last year, the show was dramatically scaled down, as companies didn’t feel right about sending their employees into a large group setting. Everybody wondered what 2023 would look like.
Having been there last week, I can report that it looked like The Show again.
Over eight hundred companies were represented, which is down from over 1,000 during the show’s peak, but the energy was palpable still. A reported 7,000 attendees from 86 countries traversed the one million square feet of space in the convention center’s West Concourse. Golf Channel was back, albeit with a smaller presence: one main stage and a couple of reporters stalking the aisles. But they were there, and the show went on.
The most significant takeaway for me was the sheer amount of business being done. For those unfamiliar, the PGA Show is crucial for retailers who need to re-stock their stores and pro shops each year. Everywhere you looked, there were PGA professionals and club representatives huddled with equipment and clothing sales reps, intently writing orders. Less nightclub, more boardroom. Less form, more function.
Coincidentally, two data and research firms presented their “World Golf Report 2023” during the exhibition, and the numbers were staggering: equipment and apparel sales in the US were up 43 percent since 2019, an increase of $1.6 billion. Overall, the global equipment and apparel industry is worth $20 billion annually, with roughly $11 billion of that being equipment sales.
I believe it. Titleist, Callaway, and Ping had enormous footprints at the convention center. XXIO, the Japanese brand that falls under the same corporate umbrella as Cleveland and Srixon, had a surprisingly large presence. Notably absent: TaylorMade and PXG.
The clothing side of the floor also showed signs of a roaring comeback. Most of the larger manufacturers built out full-sized pop-up stores, each one the size of a retail location in a mall. Ralph Lauren had a “hostess stand” where buyers could check in before they browsed. Lacoste and Peter Millar were also notable for the sheer size of their temporary Orlando operations.
The electronics aisles are always popular at the show, and some of the largest crowds were gathered to examine course management software systems. In particular, any product that would allow a club to manage its own operations internally and offer tee times online were drawing serious interest. I wonder if it’s pushback against larger tee time sites like GolfNow or TeeOff.
Launch monitors were also a hot ticket, especially those that could be had on a budget — in case you’re wondering, a new TrackMan goes for about $22,000, but there are handheld launch monitors that go for about 500 bucks that use your smartphone to display your numbers.
Of course, you can’t attend the show without checking out the New Product Zone, which is a mini Shark Tank for the golf world. This is where the little guy with a big idea puts it on display.
The show(s) go on in Orlando, by the way — in two weeks, the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America brings its Conference and Trade Show to the same Orange County Convention Center, and I’ll be there, too. Expect lawnmower photos.
