Tiger and Nike golf to separate after PNC? (*** MERGED ***)

[mat562]

11 hours ago, Ferguson said:

With less than 200 posts...

 

[TurboFade]

12 hours ago, PeterHenric said:

It was weird to me that Nike couldn't/wouldn't make a knockoff FJ shoe for Tiger. IMO, it was kind of telling. He's one of, if not their biggest name so for him to just not use their shoe was surprising.

Exactly this.  I was thinking the same thing.  Like, we're going on almost 2 years since Tiger switched to FJ and Nike has done nothing. Where there's smoke there's fire. 

[bscinstnct]

3 hours ago, mat562 said:

 

[bcjim]

I agree that it's been a weird path Nike has taken.  I never thought the specific TW branding was a good idea.  It's way too easy to look like a giant poser. I mean, you just don't roll up in a red shirt and black pants.  Right? Nobody does that.  Same with any TW stuff to some extent. 

They should have just put him in quality, attractive gear and left it at that. 

It's weird to me that the Jordan line is still a thing though too.  It's poser city too, I've never bought one Jordan item while I have bought untold Nike garments in general. Golf and other. 

 

[Ferguson]

3 hours ago, mat562 said:

 

 

Yes, but I was referring to his effort. 

[deadsolid...shank]

2 hours ago, TurboFade said:

Exactly this.  I was thinking the same thing.  Like, we're going on almost 2 years since Tiger switched to FJ and Nike has done nothing. Where there's smoke there's fire. 

I remember hearing or reading this way back. And I can’t speak to the validity of it. So take it for what it worth. 

Years ago when Bill Walton played for UCLA, UCLA had a shoe contract with one of the big makers. Apparently Walton couldn’t wear their shoes, didn’t fit his feet right or something. So they took the shoes he could wear and sewed the marking (Addidas stripes, Converse Star and chevron, etc) on the shoe he could wear. Let him have a shoe that fit, but still wore the company brand. 

If it’s true, it was probably fairly simple to pull off at that time.  No social media and no up close, high definition cameras. Don’t know if Nike could have put a swoosh on a FJ shoe or not. Probably be a lawsuit now. 

[BlackDiamondPar5]

12 hours ago, 00steven said:

Because I’m a Tiger Woods fan and Nike Stan, pretty simple guy.

So now you have to give up one? You can be a fan of both so I don't understand the "god I hope not" comment. 

[hammersia]

Apparently Nike were unhappy with the amount of airtime Tiger was given in Bermuda.

[Scotty1140]

1 hour ago, deadsolid...shank said:

I remember hearing or reading this way back. And I can’t speak to the validity of it. So take it for what it worth. 

Years ago when Bill Walton played for UCLA, UCLA had a shoe contract with one of the big makers. Apparently Walton couldn’t wear their shoes, didn’t fit his feet right or something. So they took the shoes he could wear and sewed the marking (Addidas stripes, Converse Star and chevron, etc) on the shoe he could wear. Let him have a shoe that fit, but still wore the company brand. 

If it’s true, it was probably fairly simple to pull off at that time.  No social media and no up close, high definition cameras. Don’t know if Nike could have put a swoosh on a FJ shoe or not. Probably be a lawsuit now. 

 

That thought takes me back to the classic rumor of Tiger's Nike irons actually being Muira's with swoosh's on them haha

[BCC1898]

Doesn't matter to me what TW wears, but Greyson seems like an odd fit.

[grm24]

25 minutes ago, hammersia said:

Apparently Nike were unhappy with the amount of airtime Tiger was given in Bermuda.

When did Tiger play in Bermuda? 😝

[RobS]

1 hour ago, bcjim said:

I agree that it's been a weird path Nike has taken.  I never thought the specific TW branding was a good idea.  It's way too easy to look like a giant poser. I mean, you just don't roll up in a red shirt and black pants.  Right? Nobody does that.  Same with any TW stuff to some extent. 

They should have just put him in quality, attractive gear and left it at that. 

It's weird to me that the Jordan line is still a thing though too.  It's poser city too, I've never bought one Jordan item while I have bought untold Nike garments in general. Golf and other. 

 

The Jordan brand is a phenomenon.  It did over $5b in revenue last year. To put that in perspective, the entire global golf shoe and apparel market was $3b last year.  Nike's market share in golf shoes and apparel is a little under 5%.  Tiger is an icon but it's probably difficult for Nike to justify the kind of money I assume he commands relative to the revenue that Nike generates from that market.

[Maine Golfer]

If Tiger doesn't have a Nike shirt on i'm not supporting him anymore 😉 

[doc52]

28 minutes ago, RobS said:

The Jordan brand is a phenomenon.  It did over $5b in revenue last year. To put that in perspective, the entire global golf shoe and apparel market was $3b last year.  Nike's market share in golf shoes and apparel is a little under 5%.  Tiger is an icon but it's probably difficult for Nike to justify the kind of money I assume he commands relative to the revenue that Nike generates from that market.

I've also heard that Nike's push for Jordan Golf and lack of effort on the TW line pissed off Tiger.

 

Nike is losing footwear market share fast to smaller running brands like Hoka and On Running. It seems like folding Nike Golf and TW all together would align with a restructure to be more innovative/profitable in other departments.

[Cellis]

46 minutes ago, BCC1898 said:

Doesn't matter to me what TW wears, but Greyson seems like an odd fit.

I think that is exactly why it may be a good fit? Just putting on my tin foil hat. Tigers best friend JT is with Greyson, Charlie wears Greyson quite a lot it seems, and being a part of Greyson would be a perfect opportunity to get equity in brand increasing in popularity. I have also heard that Tiger did not like how Jordan golf brand was growing more popular than his TW brand so why not be "Top Dog" again? None the less, it all is odd but I would personally love the move.

 

[dfeldss]

Nike golf stuff has always been so "meh" to me. It's either downright ugly or boring. The only Nike golfer that ever looks decent to me is Rory, and i feel like the stuff he wears isn't even available to us. Boring is fine in a Peter Millar kind of classic way, but Nike just misses the mark for whatever reason.

 

I do wonder how many TW shoes they even still sell too. I never see them. I don't mind them, but at the price point they sell them, at I'd rather go for some FJ classics or a True or something. 

 

All of this dumb rambling to say, wonder if NIke is just not renewing his contract and potentially leaving golf for good - maybe with the exception of footwear? I think the Jordan stuff does well

Edited December 6, 2023 by dfeldss

[imakaveli]

15 hours ago, Valtiel said:

Prediction or threat? 😅

Business! 😄

[j.b.newton]

2 hours ago, deadsolid...shank said:

I remember hearing or reading this way back. And I can’t speak to the validity of it. So take it for what it worth. 

Years ago when Bill Walton played for UCLA, UCLA had a shoe contract with one of the big makers. Apparently Walton couldn’t wear their shoes, didn’t fit his feet right or something. So they took the shoes he could wear and sewed the marking (Addidas stripes, Converse Star and chevron, etc) on the shoe he could wear. Let him have a shoe that fit, but still wore the company brand. 

If it’s true, it was probably fairly simple to pull off at that time.  No social media and no up close, high definition cameras. Don’t know if Nike could have put a swoosh on a FJ shoe or not. Probably be a lawsuit now. 

Auburn athletics did this the first year or so they signed with Under Armour.  They used New Balance or And1 depending on the sport and either taped over or sticker some UA logos... its possible, but like you said - with todays HD, it would be tough to look good enough to cause even more bad press.

[j.b.newton]

11 minutes ago, Cellis said:

I think that is exactly why it may be a good fit? Just putting on my tin foil hat. Tigers best friend JT is with Greyson, Charlie wears Greyson quite a lot it seems, and being a part of Greyson would be a perfect opportunity to get equity in brand increasing in popularity. I have also heard that Tiger did not like how Jordan golf brand was growing more popular than his TW brand so why not be "Top Dog" again? None the less, it all is odd but I would personally love the move.

 

Nice pun! with the top dog.     Can you put a tiger and a wolf in the same cage?

[Cellis]

4 minutes ago, j.b.newton said:

Nice pun! with the top dog.     Can you put a tiger and a wolf in the same cage?

You should probably delete that before Greyson puts that in their intro campaign 🤣

[Holy Moses]

2 hours ago, deadsolid...shank said:

I remember hearing or reading this way back. And I can’t speak to the validity of it. So take it for what it worth. 

Years ago when Bill Walton played for UCLA, UCLA had a shoe contract with one of the big makers. Apparently Walton couldn’t wear their shoes, didn’t fit his feet right or something. So they took the shoes he could wear and sewed the marking (Addidas stripes, Converse Star and chevron, etc) on the shoe he could wear. Let him have a shoe that fit, but still wore the company brand. 

If it’s true, it was probably fairly simple to pull off at that time.  No social media and no up close, high definition cameras. Don’t know if Nike could have put a swoosh on a FJ shoe or not. Probably be a lawsuit now. 

Tiger’s pants aren’t really Nike right? I think there is some precedent there even though it’s harder to do with shoes.

[Holy Moses]

1 hour ago, grm24 said:

When did Tiger play in Bermuda? 😝

I would be mad at that amount of airtime too!

[snagy2000]

Greyson is a big risk for TW, has he not seen how JT has been playing....

[idrive]

17 minutes ago, j.b.newton said:

Nice pun! with the top dog.     Can you put a tiger and a wolf in the same cage?

 

12 minutes ago, Cellis said:

You should probably delete that before Greyson puts that in their intro campaign 🤣

 

Or hurry and license it...

[j.b.newton]

17 minutes ago, Cellis said:

You should probably delete that before Greyson puts that in their intro campaign 🤣

No deleting... evidence of IP. 🤣

[00steven]

2 hours ago, BlackDiamondPar5 said:

So now you have to give up one? You can be a fan of both so I don't understand the "god I hope not" comment. 

Nope and don’t care what you understand.

[RobS]

19 minutes ago, dfeldss said:

Nike golf stuff has always been so "meh" to me. It's either downright ugly or boring. The only Nike golfer that ever looks decent to me is Rory, and i feel like the stuff he wears isn't even available to us. Boring is fine in a Peter Millar kind of classic way, but Nike just misses the mark for whatever reason.

 

I do wonder how many TW shoes they even still sell too. I never see them. I don't mind them, but at the price point they sell them, at I'd rather go for some FJ classics or a True or something. 

 

All of this dumb rambling to say, wonder if NIke is just not renewing his contract and potentially leaving golf for good?

Nike isn't going to exit the golf shoe and apparel business but similar to their other sports and the rest of the industry, they are moving away from the individual mega contracts, with a few exceptions.  More 'athletes' but at modest deals and an overall lower cost.   The golf apparel industry projects pretty decent market growth over the next few years and it's predicted to be driven by the female market.  I'd expect to see more Nike on the bigger name LPGA players and more Nike on the PGA TOUR players that won't command significant contracts.  In general, Nike is cutting cost in every corner of their business.

[HenryReardon]

Just got off the phone with Phil Knight, he said Tiger is out

[Peak]

I’ll agree with most here that Nike Golf apparel is uninspired and the fit and fabrics are not good. And I say that as a bit of a Nike stan, though not to the extent I was in my younger years.

 

Always felt like the TW branding also has that risk of looking like a poser like someone mentioned. Not in shoes necessarily but clothing. Same with Jordan Golf for me.

 

What I disagree with is that there is anyone that could replace TW for Nike. Not Rory, not Ludvig, not anyone. The difference in brand recognition is exponential. I also don’t think Nelly’s contract is big enough to stay in golf for just that. It’s a sunk cost, though I’m skeptical of them leaving completely.

I could see them making Nike Golf their ”more affordable” line with Jordan Golf as the premium branded option. But saying that, it just doesn’t sound right with Jordan not being a golf first brand.

 

Greyson signing Tiger feels like a chihuahua flirting with a mastiff. I doubt they even have the distribution to make that deal potentially make sense. TM clothing line or Footjoy makes more sense to me.

 

What I’d like to see is the same fits J. Lindeberg gives to Hovland on Tiger. That would turn some heads.

Edited December 5, 2023 by Peak

[PlatinumNike]