Scotty Groupies

I just wanted to vent some frustrations I've been having as of late.

I've been a Scotty Cameron fan for quite some time. I've grown up on the golf course. I started playing since I was two years old. I've won 2 state championships, won college tournaments, and set school records. Across all levels I have played with, every top tier player seems to have one thing in common: playing a Scotty Cameron.

For this, I have no problem! Scotty Cameron has a standard of excellence that is amazing! This post is not about Scotty, or his marketing strategy, because it clearly works!! Props to him!

My problem is with the so called "fans."

I have been collecting Circle T head covers, the entire Master's collection of head covers, and other limited ones for the pure beauty of them. I love collecting. I've also owned 5 Scotty's. I display them in my rack in my man cave, and swap them out every so often when I feel like I need a change.

The main problem is the cost of these items. Because of Scotty's marketing strategy (brilliant I must add), the pure amount of limited items makes their value so high. His so called "fans" buy these items just to buy them and turn around and sell them on the black market, AKA eBay, for 2,3,4, sometimes 5x the value!! They are more interested in making a buck off his products then actually collecting them.

To me, that is wrong. To me, that is unfair to the real fans.

I understand that some people, and probably most won't agree with me. Some will tell me it's the price we pay. And I understand that. I simply wanted to call out the people who aren't serious fans and cause the prices of these items to be so high.

Save the items for a real fans, please.

However, just yesterday I saw a divot repair tool, I repeat, a divot repair tool on eBay for almost $2,000! I do realize it's a custom hand made item for the gallery...but was being sold for about $500 in the gallery. I also saw a circle T head cover for nearly $6,000! What is wrong with people??

These two events, along with seeing other head covers, bags, and putters go for well over 1,2,3 Thousand dollars, have turned me off from the Scotty Cameron brand.

I'm in the process of selling all of my head covers (which are in mint condition), along with my putter rack, head cover display rack, and my putters.

I've made the switch to Bettinardi, where some of my friends and fellow college alumni seem to be true fans and admire the beauty and craftsmanship of items, as well as purchase to keep...not just to turn them into a buck.

Feel free to post your replies and comments below. I know that some will be extremely frustrated and/or disagree with me, but this is my opinion, in which has been influenced by the behavior of many others.

Thanks for reading!

TC

You'll be selling your collection below cost so that REAL fans will be able to afford it, right?

Absolutely!

So you're upset because there's a markup in his custom or limited items?

I am bothered by the fact that when he sells a headcover for $75 online to club Cameron members, people turn around on eBay and sell it for personal gain for $500-600.

It's the fact that there is zero intention of people actually buying the original headcover to keep. They buy it to sell and make a profit, thus the real fans pay the price.

And every item is limited because he only makes a couple hundred. So that's not really an argument.

[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438873333' post='12089416']
I am bothered by the fact that when he sells a headcover for $75 online to club Cameron members, people turn around on eBay and sell it for personal gain for $500-600.

It's the fact that there is zero intention of people actually buying the original headcover to keep. They buy it to sell and make a profit, thus the real fans pay the price.
[/quote]

this is the same for any limited thing.... most recently with the Nike Rory. But I agree with you. The people trying to sell the Spieth for double isn't cool... but we can't stop it... we just have to collect what we want and go from there. Can't please everyone... that being said, I think scotty is one brand who really tries to keep it in the family, so to speak.

Same could be said for all the ugly Nike Jordan sneakers. Is what it is. People see an opportunity to profit, they will.

[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438873333' post='12089416']
I am bothered by the fact that when he sells a headcover for $75 online to club Cameron members, people turn around on eBay and sell it for personal gain for $500-600.

It's the fact that there is zero intention of people actually buying the original headcover to keep. They buy it to sell and make a profit, thus the real fans pay the price.
[/quote]

If you get one at $75 and keep it, why do you care if others sell them for a profit?

I don´t really get your anger. Be a Club Cameron member, so that you will be able to buy at reasonable prices.

You want exclusive ítems, then you have to pay the market price for them. I do not see the point complaining about that.

You do realize this is the way markets work don't you? Every business in every commodity works this way. I would like to Collect Ferraris but those darn people who keep wanting to pay so much for them keep me from being able to afford them.

i am a club Cameron member. But often items are sold out in 2 minutes.

And there is a difference in somone buying a $500,000 Ferrari and someone buying it just to sell it for 2 million.

[quote name='KMeloney' timestamp='1438874583' post='12089560']
[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438873333' post='12089416']
I am bothered by the fact that when he sells a headcover for $75 online to club Cameron members, people turn around on eBay and sell it for personal gain for $500-600.

It's the fact that there is zero intention of people actually buying the original headcover to keep. They buy it to sell and make a profit, thus the real fans pay the price.
[/quote]

If you get one at $75 and keep it, why do you care if others sell them for a profit?
[/quote]

It's often hard to come across them because they sell out so fast. I've seen many eBay members who have multiple headcovers (so they obviously have multiple club cam accounts).

I don't sit with my email open on my phone all day.




I'm simply trying to vent frustration of people's intentions. Not the prices.

I don't know if people are getting that from my post.

Intentions. Not prices.

[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438877447' post='12089894']
i am a club Cameron member. But often items are sold out in 2 minutes.[/quote]

Yes, correct. Because they are too limited for the existing demand.

You just answered yourself (Is this correct english?, well I hope...)

depending on the cover, they usually only flip them for an extra $50-$75 on the bay after.

Love my buttonback. I've made it known but a few years ago I quit being a Cameron Club member.

Even as a member you have a very small shot at getting the headcovers that are released. Then sometimes in you get caught in a frenzy and pickup something you didn't want anyways.

The thing that always got me is that the club memberships are paid for. It gives Scotty/Titleist whoever a number to work with no?

If you know you have 500 paid members and limit pickups to 1 per why can't you make enough? I appreciate the business plan and execution but I decided not to participate anymore. As consumers that is the only vote we can execute.

[quote name='wldchld22' timestamp='1438878206' post='12089964']
Love my buttonback. I've made it known but a few years ago I quit being a Cameron Club member.

Even as a member you have a very small shot at getting the headcovers that are released. Then sometimes in you get caught in a frenzy and pickup something you didn't want anyways.

The thing that always got me is that the club memberships are paid for. It gives Scotty/Titleist whoever a number to work with no?

If you know you have 500 paid members and limit pickups to 1 per why can't you make enough? I appreciate the business plan and execution but I decided not to participate anymore. As consumers that is the only vote we can execute.
[/quote]

100% agree! Couldn't have said it better!

Appreciate the positive thoughts and comments.

[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438877625' post='12089904']
[quote name='KMeloney' timestamp='1438874583' post='12089560']
[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438873333' post='12089416']
I am bothered by the fact that when he sells a headcover for $75 online to club Cameron members, people turn around on eBay and sell it for personal gain for $500-600.

It's the fact that there is zero intention of people actually buying the original headcover to keep. They buy it to sell and make a profit, thus the real fans pay the price.
[/quote]

If you get one at $75 and keep it, why do you care if others sell them for a profit?
[/quote]

It's often hard to come across them because they sell out so fast. I've seen many eBay members who have multiple headcovers (so they obviously have multiple club cam accounts).

I don't sit with my email open on my phone all day.




I'm simply trying to vent frustration of people's intentions. Not the prices.

I don't know if people are getting that from my post.

Intentions. Not prices.
[/quote]

I let my membership go because of similar frustration. I wasn't able to get in on the stuff that I thought was cool because it would sell out so fast. The money I saved I ended up putting toward the covers I liked. You're right...it is frustrating.

Assuming you follow Scotty on Twitter you should have no trouble getting most of the Club release items. If you don't, you should in fact be [i]happy[/i] that people are selling them secondhand because if everyone kept them you would have ZERO opportunity to buy them. Same goes for physical Gallery store items...if you don't live close by you should be happy people flip them because the markup is still probably cheaper than a plane ticket to SAN. The prices themselves are simply a function of the market, and frankly most of the items that aren't super limited typically settle somewhere near their original sale price (usually $76+shipping for HCs).

It sounds like what you're really upset about is that Scotty is becoming more and more popular.

Nice BST ad, wrong place though.

Come on "tjchamp", first you describe Scotty marketing strategy as "brilliant" and then you agreed 100% with "wldchld22" who is against that strategy...

[quote name='Orzowei' timestamp='1438879882' post='12090124']
Come on "tjchamp", first you describe Scotty marketing strategy as "brilliant" and then you agreed 100% with "wldchld22" who is against that strategy...
[/quote]

I'm not against it totally and I do say that Scotty is brilliant; both as a marketer and creator.

If I could make 10 divot tools and sell em for $300 rather than sell 100 for $30 I would do it all day. I'm fine with that.

I disagree with it when the market is controlled in such a way that it is totally advantageous to the resellers. I don't want to take it off track totally but it isn't unlike what is done by other companies. Create demand but...

If you are selling things, they sell out and then you see other people selling your things for more money you need to readjust.

You can make more or charge more. It's a win-win. You make more money and the resellers make less. True it's a guessing game but certain things have stayed the same for way too long.

The marketing strategy isn't wrong or bad. I'm not black or white here. Just in the gray/grey area.

What a joke...if you want to resolve this issue, the collectors as a whole needs to stop paying a premium.

[quote name='wldchld22' timestamp='1438881013' post='12090232']
[quote name='Orzowei' timestamp='1438879882' post='12090124']
Come on "tjchamp", first you describe Scotty marketing strategy as "brilliant" and then you agreed 100% with "wldchld22" who is against that strategy...
[/quote]

I'm not against it totally and I do say that Scotty is brilliant; both as a marketer and creator.

If I could make 10 divot tools and sell em for $300 rather than sell 100 for $30 I would do it all day. I'm fine with that.

I disagree with it when the market is controlled in such a way that it is totally advantageous to the resellers. I don't want to take it off track totally but it isn't unlike what is done by other companies. Create demand but...

If you are selling things, they sell out and then you see other people selling your things for more money you need to readjust.

You can make more or charge more. It's a win-win. You make more money and the resellers make less. True it's a guessing game but certain things have stayed the same for way too long.

The marketing strategy isn't wrong or bad. I'm not black or white here. Just in the gray/grey area.
[/quote]

Except if you charge more initially some people will not be able to afford to purchase them during the release (and therefore not at all). A secondary market allows for those die-hards but perhaps less financially flexible to get them direct from Scotty for a (relatively) reasonable price, and those who can afford it to still get whatever they want because there are always some available at a higher price after the fact.

The side effect of that "opportunity" is that opportunists show up and create the re-sale effect. That is what irks and turns people off.

Again my issue is with the Club Cameron program. They know how many members there are and they aren't producing or distributing it in a way that makes that membership beneficial to the majority of the group.

[quote name='wldchld22' timestamp='1438881746' post='12090314']
The side effect of that "opportunity" is that opportunists show up and create the re-sale effect. That is what irks and turns people off.

Again my issue is with the Club Cameron program. They know how many members there are and they aren't producing or distributing it in a way that makes that membership beneficial to the majority of the group.
[/quote]
It's smart practices though as they know they will not need to hold onto inventory.

You are getting manipulated by a company that knows it has you by the short and curlies, but you can't see that.

I didn't play golf for 20 years so I wasn't around when the whole custom putter thing started. Back when I was in college we didn't talk about putters or care what others used. Most people had PINGs and 8802 types. When I started playing again 2ish years ago I found it odd that people had a fanatical (=fan) following for something that doesn't even have a unique aesthetic or a higher level of craftsmanship. If you are buying a Ferrari, you are getting a [i]Ferrari[/i], but putters are just hunks of metal, and most of them are almost exactly the same in the end. Cameron just took Solheim's designs and put a little lipstick on them. There is nothing original design-wise in a Scotty Cameron. People have been convinced otherwise and that is why they can hose you. Cameronites live in fantasyland from what I can tell.

Ask yourself this one question- If Cameron really cared about his core "fans" enough to create Club Cameron, then why doesn't he guarantee that each club member gets an item? It is just another marketing ploy to take advantage of the market. Like the old adage says, there is a sucker born every minute.

[quote name='tjchamp' timestamp='1438877625' post='12089904']
I'm simply trying to vent frustration of people's intentions. Not the prices.

I don't know if people are getting that from my post.

Intentions. Not prices.
[/quote]

Being frustrated by the prices makes a lot more sense.

If everyone who bought up these head covers had the same passion for collecting that you have, what difference would it make? They'd hold on to them, and you wouldn't have any opportunity to get one. At least by folks buying and flipping them they're available for purchase.

[quote name='LittleLeftToRight' timestamp='1438885309' post='12090680']
You are getting manipulated by a company that knows it has you by the short and curlies, but you can't see that.

I didn't play golf for 20 years so I wasn't around when the whole custom putter thing started. Back when I was in college we didn't talk about putters or care what others used. Most people had PINGs and 8802 types. When I started playing again 2ish years ago I found it odd that people had a fanatical (=fan) following for something that doesn't even have a unique aesthetic or a higher level of craftsmanship. If you are buying a Ferrari, you are getting a [i]Ferrari[/i], but putters are just hunks of metal, and most of them are almost exactly the same in the end. Cameron just took Solheim's designs and put a little lipstick on them. There is nothing original design-wise in a Scotty Cameron. People have been convinced otherwise and that is why they can hose you. Cameronites live in fantasyland from what I can tell.

Ask yourself this one question- If Cameron really cared about his core "fans" enough to create Club Cameron, then why doesn't he guarantee that each club member gets an item? It is just another marketing ploy to take advantage of the market. Like the old adage says, there is a sucker born every minute.
[/quote]

tell us how you really feel.

[quote name='wldchld22' timestamp='1438881013' post='12090232']
If you are selling things, they sell out and then you see other people selling your things for more money you need to readjust.

You can make more or charge more. It's a win-win. You make more money and the resellers make less. True it's a guessing game but certain things have stayed the same for way too long.
[/quote]

Whoa whoa whoa... Who needs to adjust? SC? Why? He's created an empire by doing things the way he is.

The make-more-and-sell-more-for-less is a nice business model when you're making mid-level sedans. But I don't think SC has to do much of anything here -- except make sure he keeps creating demand.

Ironically, it's the "true" fan/collectors who have created this SC craziness.




edit: spelling