Endorsements: Are you Swayed?

[Conrad1953]

Having a presence on the PGA Tour obviously works but is it

really about individual players or more about the brand in general.

 

I'll say one thing.....that #1 driver on tour shite really works. I see

more TM drivers on courses than any other and if you ask people

they say they believe TM makes the best drivers.

 

The same goes for Pro V balls being #1 on tour. People really eat

that up from what I've seen.

 

But I've never heard anyone say they play something because of

a specific player.......never.

[RVAUSMC]

While I do love seeing what's on tour, I tend to play the equipment that fits my eye and feel test.

 

Irons: always either Titleist, Mizuno, or Callaway

Woods: Titleist or Callaway

Putters: Scotty's or Odyssey

Wedges: Vokeys, Cleveland, or Callaway

 

I tend to go back to brands I have always played well with. Clothing, I have always been either Nike or Adidas guy, same for shoes. However, FJ has made a strong showing for me lately as they tend to both fit better and feel great.

[justwellsy]

Advertisers aren't stupid. The research shows that a very small percentage of people are directly influenced by marketing that they see or hear. But, they're planting a seed in your mind. You may not think you are influenced by a certain campaign because you are directly thinking about it, but your mind has the ability to pull the smallest memories out when the time comes. Again, you may choose to buy a certain brand because it fits and looks good, but when you are truly making a choice between 2 or more similar items, the deep marketing brain cells kick in

[gvogel]

Having a presence on the PGA Tour obviously works but is it

really about individual players or more about the brand in general.

 

I'll say one thing.....that #1 driver on tour shite really works. I see

more TM drivers on courses than any other and if you ask people

they say they believe TM makes the best drivers.

 

The same goes for Pro V balls being #1 on tour. People really eat

that up from what I've seen.

 

But I've never heard anyone say they play something because of

a specific player.......never.

 

I bought a new Ping driver with a 48" shaft, just like the one that Brooke Henderson uses! And, it works!

[The Chicken Connoisseur]

For clubs I would say I'm not tremendously swayed by what a pro might play. Clothing however, I think I'm a little more swayed by. If I see something a pro is wearing on TV and I like the look, or the color combinations, I think that gets logged into the memory banks for the next time I'm in the pro shop buying.

 

Yes, but you are not buying it because a pro is wearing it but because you like the look/color.

Isn't that the point though? You bought it because of the endorsement. If you had not seen it you would not have wanted it. We develop a sense of "this brand is quality" or "this brand has colors I like" based on what we see the endorsers do or wear.

 

Yeah but you can't compare clothes with clubs.

 

Clothes have hundreds of companies and thousands of models.

 

If I'm shopping for new wedges, I can go online and within 5 minutes see all the offerings from the major manufacturers. I don't need to randomly discover them

[Shilgy]

Like justwellsy said above a few posts we can argue all we want BUT we are swayed by ads. Subliminally or not the products we look at are largely influenced by what you see advertised. Walk into your local golf shop and you are not going to immediately go to the off brand racks. Even at a Ross or Marshall you are likely looking for "bargains" on brands like Polo or UA rather than a lower price on a brand you are not familiar with.

For clubs I would say I'm not tremendously swayed by what a pro might play. Clothing however, I think I'm a little more swayed by. If I see something a pro is wearing on TV and I like the look, or the color combinations, I think that gets logged into the memory banks for the next time I'm in the pro shop buying.

 

Yes, but you are not buying it because a pro is wearing it but because you like the look/color.

Isn't that the point though? You bought it because of the endorsement. If you had not seen it you would not have wanted it. We develop a sense of "this brand is quality" or "this brand has colors I like" based on what we see the endorsers do or wear.

 

Yeah but you can't compare clothes with clubs.

 

Clothes have hundreds of companies and thousands of models.

 

If I'm shopping for new wedges, I can go online and within 5 minutes see all the offerings from the major manufacturers. I don't need to randomly discover them

How can you shop for a golf club online? Without seeing it in person and hitting it or at least waggling the dang thing how can you possibly decide you like it if not for some preconcieved notion about what is good?

[The Chicken Connoisseur]

Like justwellsy said above a few posts we can argue all we want BUT we are swayed by ads. Subliminally or not the products we look at are largely influenced by what you see advertised. Walk into your local golf shop and you are not going to immediately go to the off brand racks. Even at a Ross or Marshall you are likely looking for "bargains" on brands like Polo or UA rather than a lower price on a brand you are not familiar with.

For clubs I would say I'm not tremendously swayed by what a pro might play. Clothing however, I think I'm a little more swayed by. If I see something a pro is wearing on TV and I like the look, or the color combinations, I think that gets logged into the memory banks for the next time I'm in the pro shop buying.

 

Yes, but you are not buying it because a pro is wearing it but because you like the look/color.

Isn't that the point though? You bought it because of the endorsement. If you had not seen it you would not have wanted it. We develop a sense of "this brand is quality" or "this brand has colors I like" based on what we see the endorsers do or wear.

 

Yeah but you can't compare clothes with clubs.

 

Clothes have hundreds of companies and thousands of models.

 

If I'm shopping for new wedges, I can go online and within 5 minutes see all the offerings from the major manufacturers. I don't need to randomly discover them

How can you shop for a golf club online? Without seeing it in person and hitting it or at least waggling the dang thing how can you possibly decide you like it if not for some preconcieved notion about what is good?

 

1) For woods, I know where companies rough have their CG and what works for me in terms of spin and forgiveness. I don't need to go to a store and try drivers I know will spin too high or be less forgiving than I want

 

2) Looks are very important to me, especially in irons and wedges. If I don't like the shape at address I won't consider buying them.

 

I know all of this information before walking into a store

[Conrad1953]

Having a presence on the PGA Tour obviously works but is it

really about individual players or more about the brand in general.

 

I'll say one thing.....that #1 driver on tour shite really works. I see

more TM drivers on courses than any other and if you ask people

they say they believe TM makes the best drivers.

 

The same goes for Pro V balls being #1 on tour. People really eat

that up from what I've seen.

 

But I've never heard anyone say they play something because of

a specific player.......never.

 

I bought a new Ping driver with a 48" shaft, just like the one that Brooke Henderson uses! And, it works!

 

LOL, I like the lady Ping Staffers and must confess that I wanted my bag

to be just like Lorena's.....well, not really.....maybe....but for awhile her and

I had virtually the same set up throughout the bag.....she played/plays with

manly clubs....haha.

 

When I bought a set of i20s in 2013 I was happy to see Asahara put a set

in her bag too.

 

Geez, maybe they do have an influence......I copy the ladies!

 

I still remember Lorena's bag......OG Rapture driver, G10 3 wood, Rapture V2

20 hybrid, S57 irons 4-P and Tour W wedges 52,56 and 60!

 

Wow, what a sucker I am for a ladies bag!

[taporsnap17]

Hell yes I am.

 

I damn straight want to try whatever it is Spieth, JDay, Rory, Scott, DJ et al are hitting and wearing.

 

Whether I'll pull the trigger on a purchase is a completely different story. At the end of the day, the equipment still has to work for me and the clothes have to be comfortable and fit and look good (in my eyes) on me.

 

Then there's the cost factor. Is it worth it and am I getting it at a good price. If they don't stack up, it goes back on the rack/tab is closed. I might revisit my decision in a few weeks/months and see if the prices have dropped sufficiently. unfortunately on the hardware front, if prices have dropped it usually means there's a new latest and greatest... the vicious circle continues.

[taporsnap17]

I don't wear jogger's and high tops, not because of Rickie Fowler. I don't wear them because the pencil neck kid next door, who likes to ask us 30 something neighbors to buy him beer, wears them.

 

The fastest way to get him to stop wearing them is to wear them yourself

[taporsnap17]

My basement is packed with cases and cases of Musclepharm whey powder.

 

Thanks a lot, Tiger!

 

I like Musclepharm! Send them my way.. Unless you have that gawd awful orange flavour. ugh, they should've paid me (endorsements) to take that stuff off them

[rockinar]

Look at the equipment forum. Its full of "what shafts is Phil using?" type questions. Do you think people would be hot melting their clubs if they did not hear about Tour X Pro doing it? It works.

[Sean2]

Look at the equipment forum. Its full of "what shafts is Phil using?" type questions. Do you think people would be hot melting their clubs if they did not hear about Tour X Pro doing it? It works.

 

I agree. If the endorsements did not work, companies wouldn't be doing them.

[TollBros]

All Tour play of a product is to me, is validation that it's acceptable for the best players in the world. Maybe I'll give it a look if a player similar to myself is gaming it.

[umassgolfer]

There are two ways people can be affected by sponsorships:

- Low handicaps/avid looking for validation of the equipment as top-performing (this forum, generally) and wanting those exact specs

- Repeated brand impressions...see TM and Cally enough on players' hats, in their bags, etc. and when you look to make a purchase you (hopefully) gravitate to those brands.

 

That's one reason why Wilson has been struggling (IMHO) - Everyone who tries their clubs seems to like them, especially their irons the past few year. But not enough people play them. And, their TOUR presence is nowhere near the top 3.

[wombat_vortex]

The only time I ever bought anything just because it was played or endorsed by a tour pro were Edel wedges. Bryson D played those before signing with Cobra. I liked the look and decided to try them out, awesome wedges with great performance.

[drbob28]

Now that Goldsmith is bankrupt, I guess I'll have to go without Snake Eyes apparel. Seriously, I like a lot of their clothing. Unpretentious and relatively free of "look at me" logos.

[EKELLY]

I like Ford, Suzuki, blondes, and Titleist.......I've sampled them all (competitors), they all felt good, and I keep going back to the "Big 4".......

[Sactogolfer1234]

I'm pretty much on the Nike bandwagon as far as apparel and shoes go. I tell myself that it's just because I like the way it looks, but that probably just means that I fell for the marketing hype a long time ago.

 

With clubs and balls I've always tested as much as I can before committing. I'm sure marketing plays a role in what I'm willing to demo but performance always wins over endorsements.

[Sean2]

There are two ways people can be affected by sponsorships:

- Low handicaps/avid looking for validation of the equipment as top-performing (this forum, generally) and wanting those exact specs

- Repeated brand impressions...see TM and Cally enough on players' hats, in their bags, etc. and when you look to make a purchase you (hopefully) gravitate to those brands.

 

That's one reason why Wilson has been struggling (IMHO) - Everyone who tries their clubs seems to like them, especially their irons the past few year. But not enough people play them. And, their TOUR presence is nowhere near the top 3.

 

I imagine if they paid enough they might have more players. All the OEM's make good equipment, it's not like if a pro switches to Wilson he will miss out.

[2ball]

There are two ways people can be affected by sponsorships:

- Low handicaps/avid looking for validation of the equipment as top-performing (this forum, generally) and wanting those exact specs

- Repeated brand impressions...see TM and Cally enough on players' hats, in their bags, etc. and when you look to make a purchase you (hopefully) gravitate to those brands.

 

That's one reason why Wilson has been struggling (IMHO) - Everyone who tries their clubs seems to like them, especially their irons the past few year. But not enough people play them. And, their TOUR presence is nowhere near the top 3.

 

umass golfer you hit the nail on the head. You can thank an old President of Wilson for that snaffu. and they never recovered from it. The said president was GM of the Tennis division before he became president. His grass roots approach in Tennis (very successful) did not work in Golf. He put the money into the club pro's not the touring pro's. But no one asks the club pro whats in their bag. But the teaching tennis pro has a racket in his hand everyday.

[2ball]

There are two ways people can be affected by sponsorships:

- Low handicaps/avid looking for validation of the equipment as top-performing (this forum, generally) and wanting those exact specs

- Repeated brand impressions...see TM and Cally enough on players' hats, in their bags, etc. and when you look to make a purchase you (hopefully) gravitate to those brands.

 

That's one reason why Wilson has been struggling (IMHO) - Everyone who tries their clubs seems to like them, especially their irons the past few year. But not enough people play them. And, their TOUR presence is nowhere near the top 3.

 

I imagine if they paid enough they might have more players. All the OEM's make good equipment, it's not like if a pro switches to Wilson he will miss out.

 

What they should be doing is sponsoring the up and coming golfers who will win on tour at least one event the next few years. Get 12-15 red tour bags on tour every weekend. Merrit, Streelman and Harrington are good endorsements. Wilson missed a big opportunity with Beau Hossler

[2ball]

Remember when golfwrx was just a forum with no advertising??!?!?!

of course it sways the consumer.

[ExTrumpet]

I bought a PM grind Cally wedge because I knew it would make me hit lobs like Phil.

 

And I never bought a Nike driver because I figured if the best player in the world couldn't hit it, what chance did I have?!?!

[Sean2]

There are two ways people can be affected by sponsorships:

- Low handicaps/avid looking for validation of the equipment as top-performing (this forum, generally) and wanting those exact specs

- Repeated brand impressions...see TM and Cally enough on players' hats, in their bags, etc. and when you look to make a purchase you (hopefully) gravitate to those brands.

 

That's one reason why Wilson has been struggling (IMHO) - Everyone who tries their clubs seems to like them, especially their irons the past few year. But not enough people play them. And, their TOUR presence is nowhere near the top 3.

 

I imagine if they paid enough they might have more players. All the OEM's make good equipment, it's not like if a pro switches to Wilson he will miss out.

 

What they should be doing is sponsoring the up and coming golfers who will win on tour at least one event the next few years. Get 12-15 red tour bags on tour every weekend. Merrit, Streelman and Harrington are good endorsements. Wilson missed a big opportunity with Beau Hossler

 

That's a good idea.

[Greenie]

I always go with what works for me as far as equipment goes. I maybe then will root for a player that plays the same stuff. The last thing to sway me is what a PGA pro plays. As far as clothing goes I wear what is comfortable to me. If I can find it at a bargain price I'll buy it.

[dogleg0425]

My initial thought was that I am not swayed by endorsements. However, I then remembered that about 11 years ago I bought my first Buick automobile. I bought that car because I liked it but also in great part to the fact that Buick at that time sponsored about 5 golf tournaments. As an avid golfer I almost felt obliged to reward Buick with my business. I also half-joked with my friends that Tiger told me to go Buick! Aside: best car ever owned and have bought two more since.

[OldBridge]

Endorsements don't really matter to me for clubs or balls. I just play whatever I feel like and have gotten the best use out of. When I picked up the game as a kid the guy that taught me played with Titleist stuff so I've been loyal to that brand.

 

For clothing, I like the stuff Greg Norman puts out so I get a few items a year.