Golf Industry Insights

The time and effort for due diligence prior to the launch of Prescription Putting has provided a number of insights to the golf industry. The following are some of the things that we learned and ones that help shape what we do here at Prescription Putting.

Over the last year, we have made an effort to learn the ins and outs and the pitfalls of this industry. The first caution was in the form of a joke. "Do you know how to make a small fortune in the golf industry?" The answer: "Start with a big one!"

Here are some of the facts.

There are more golf courses than ten years ago.

There are no more golfers than ten years ago.

There are fewer rounds of golf played than ten years ago.

The same number of golf clubs are sold each year.

Therefore the battle is for market share.

The profitability increase is related only to increase price of the club, i.e. cost of the drivers and putters up to $1000.00.

The industry is marketing (not market) driven.

New technology that makes a difference is not as frequent as advertised.

New technology does not always have foundation in fact.

New technology has little or no effect in reducing the average golf score over the years.

New technology may not have the benefit that is advertised.

The larger driver head has no larger sweet spot, just larger hitting area.

There can only be one optimal area by definition.

Independent testing is rarely permitted or publicized by companies.

Testing results always have the company's bias.

New technology is rapidly copied by other companies, majors and minors.

Metal woods.

Ping Anser? putters.

Ping? perimeter weighted irons.

Shafts changed from wood to metal to composites.

The secondary industry for knock off clubs is rampant, in spite of legal challenges.

The battle for market share is fierce.

The industry focuses on market share battles; not necessarily technology.

The industry is marketing driven with little scientific foundation.

Tour professional's endorsement sells the club.

A tour player winning one of the majors with use of club, sells the club.

Most of the designs are similar.

See 14 a, b, c above.

Most of the manufacturing is done by suppliers.

Most of the manufacturing is done off shore.

The retail industry depends upon the major companies to drive the market to them for taking the order.

The golf course professional expects the same marketing driven customer.

Retailers are rarely more than order takers.

The truly educational sale is almost non existent.

AT PRESCRIPTION PUTTING, WE DO IT DIFFERENT.

First and foremost: Made in U.S.A. assures attention to detail and confidence.

Second: Independent Testing. We want the truth. Don't you?

Third: Provide new performance driven, confirmed club designs.

Fourth: Enhance golfer's psychomotor skills.

Fifth: Bring enjoyment and success to our customer.

Prescription Putting was founded by Lanny L. Johnson, M.D. Dr. Johnson is an internationally recognized orthopedic surgeon, one of the pioneers in arthroscopic surgery. He is an inventor, holding over 40 U.S. and foreign patents related to surgery. The most notable was the co-invention of the motorized instrumentation used daily world wide, even now, more than 30 years later. The longevity of this invention is unprecedented in surgery.


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In The News:


Wall Street Journal

Chicago's golf tourney a hit in St. Louis
Chicago Tribune, United States - 3 hours ago
Do you know where your golf tournament is? It's here, at Bellerive Country Club, about 30 minutes west of the Arch downtown. A couple of years after the ...
Ordinary players scoff, but physical and mental exhaustion is a ... Wall Street Journal
This Week in Golf - September 4th through September 7th Sports Network
Aurora Golf & Country Club closed; will reopen as public course The Plain Dealer - cleveland.com
Salisbury Journal - St. Louis Post-Dispatchall 576 news articles

New York Daily News

Golf | LPGA backs away from English rule
Seattle Times, United States - 11 hours ago
By AP The policy has generated a storm of bad publicity since it was announced last month. LPGA Tour commissioner Carolyn Bivens said she would have a ...
LPGA Tour should have seen the fallout coming from English policy ... ESPN
LPGA bows to pressure, reverses course on English rule Los Angeles Times
Golf-LPGA changes stance on controversial English rule Reuters.uk
Newsday - ESPNall 625 news articles

TSN.ca

FedEx fails to deliver on promise
Globe and Mail, Canada - 10 hours ago
More points than in those events are allocated at major tournaments, the Players Championship and World Golf Championships events. ...
Golf buzz attracts golfers Fiji Daily Post
Time to fix the playoffs and here's where to start - Golf ESPN
Golf: Singh's PGA playoff lead nearly insurmountable National Post
PGA Tour - CBC.caall 161 news articles

Special Broadcasting Service

Dog has 13 golf balls removed during op
guardian.co.uk, UK - 8 hours ago
Unlucky for some: Oscar, the black labrador who had 13 golf balls removed from his stomach. Photograph: PA A dog had to have 13 golf balls removed from his ...
Golf ball-loving Labrador The Press Association
Black Lab swallows 13 golf balls United Press International
The sound puzzle Independent Online
Glasgow Daily Recordall 27 news articles

'Tiger Woods' tops this season's golf games
International Herald Tribune, France - Sep 4, 2008
AP WASHINGTON: If you're like most sports fans, you haven't watched that much golf since June, when Tiger Woods won the US Open — and then announced he was ...

CASA of Del Norte golf tourney set for Sept. 13
Daily Triplicate, CA - 1 hour ago
The 9th annual CASA of Del Norte Golf Tournament will take place on Saturday, Sept. 13. Registration begins at 8 am, and shotgun starts at 9 am The tourney ...
Golf tourney at DN Golf Course in Sept. Daily Triplicate
all 2 news articles

Men's Golf Postponed on Saturday
Tribe Athletics, VA - 56 minutes ago
The Maryland Intercollegiate is a 18-team tournament being played on the Chesapeake Golf Resort in Cambrigde, Maryland.

St. Paul mayor has hole in one on golf course
Fort Mills Times, SC - 4 hours ago
While the Republican National Convention got mixed reviews this week, St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman aced at least one test - on the golf course. ...
Mayor Coleman, just call him 'ace' Pioneer Press
all 13 news articles

Chamber reports Myrtle Beach, golf courses ready for business
South Carolina Now, South Carolina - 4 hours ago
“We’ve been in contact today with all the head pros at our Grand Strand area golf courses and have learned that everyone escaped with minimal damage,” said ...

BBC News

Balls found inside 'rattling' dog
BBC News, UK - Sep 5, 2008
A dog had to have 13 golf balls removed from its stomach after eating them on walks around a Fife course. Owner Chris Morrison had been taking five-year-old ...
golf - Google News
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