MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK - caytoo
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BRIEFING PACK
MEN'S GOLF
C
caytooMEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 2 Taking a swing at Men's Golf Shirt, cap, and competition title naming rights are just a few of the options available to the brands sponsoring men’s golf, a sport watched by millions each year. Within the UK there are a wide range of players at different levels of the professional game who are well followed and successful. The best players can earn millions through their performances in competitions and through sponsorship deals. Golf has a global footprint with growth in the East-Asia Pacific region expected to continue into the near future. In their report ‘Golf around the world 2017’, The R&A reported that there are 33,161 golf facilities in 208 of the world’s 245 countries. However, 74% of courses are located in the top 10 golfing nations: the United States, Canada, Japan, England, Australia, Germany, France, Scotland, Sweden and South Africa (The R&A, 2017). Within England there are are over 1900 courses (England Golf). From a brand’s perspective, men’s golf has the potential to enhance their image, increase exposure, and provide big financial returns. Participation Men make up around 67% of the golfing population in Europe according to KPMG (2017), who recognise England as the largest golfing nation in the continent. It is assumed that the majority of those playing golf are of a middle or upper-class background due to the price of kit and membership involved in participating. The sport has been criticised in the UK for having a low representation from ethnic- minority backgrounds. Sport England’s Active Lives Survey for November 2016-2017 shows that 3.7% of England’s male population participate in golf, which is around half the % of racket sports but 1.2% higher than combat sports. In short, there is certainly an ample, but select, number of men in the UK who play golf. However, it should be noted that participation has been reported to be declining in the UK. In 2017, The BBC revealed a fall in participation from 1.5 million to 1.1 million in a recent 7 year period. The reason for this fall may be changing lifestyles and gender roles, with men supposedly less likely to disappear for the day to play golf than in the past. Hence there has been a rise of shorter, and perhaps more inclusive, forms of the sport. Which begs the question: is golf adapting to the contemporary climate? Topgolf, a driving range based golfing experience, and 9-hole courses are two alternatives to the 18-hole format that are reportedly rising in popularity. England Golf has reported a 50% increase in nine hole competitive scores returned between 2014 and 2017, for example. So, a shift is taking place in the way golf is played and we could actually see this shift encouraged in order combat falling participation.
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 3 The Fans: Viewership and Attendance On the other hand, there is evidence of increased popularity in attendance and viewership of the sport. Held in the UK annually, The Open, one of the four majors in men’s professional golf, had a record breaking crowd of 172,000 in 2018. The 2018 edition also earnt its highest TV rating since 2000. These are positive signs for the golfing world. However, since Sky has had the rights to broadcast golf ahead of the BBC, viewership numbers are said to have dropped drastically. Sky bought the rights to show The Open for £10 million in 2015. The greatest coverage Sky received was 992,000 for the final day of 2016 edition, whilst the BBC reached 4.7 million in their coverage of The Open’s final day the year prior. In 2017, The Guardian reported on the decline in viewership and participation in the UK, explaining that golf must ‘attract a younger, more diverse audience.’ MarketWatch, in the same year, produced a piece entitled ‘Death watch: How much longer can golf survive?’, making the point that golf is ‘boring viewers and refusing to change its ways’. Various innovations have been introduced to combat golf’s viewership conundrum: • ‘GolfSixes’ (a more succinct form of the sport likened to the ‘T20’ form of cricket, part of the European Tour and won by Ireland in the 2018 event at St Albans, UK) • Mixed gender tournament (European Golf Team Championships in August 2018 at Perthshire, UK, featured a mixed gender team tournament; won by Iceland) • Shot Clock (the Shot Clock Masters 2018 in Austria was won by Mikko Korhonen which gave him €166,660) If viewing figures drop, there is always going to be a response, it will be fascinating to see if golf can turn things around and how they continue go about doing so. Nevertheless, we should consider the superstar male golfers who will surely continue to draw many avid golf fans to the various competitions in which they feature. As of 05/09/18, the current top five ranked male golfers have a combined following of 2.3 million on Instagram alone. U.S golfer Tiger Woods has 6.3 million Twitter followers at the time of writing- this is a fan base that fills the equivalent of 70 Wembley stadiums. There are numerous reports of Woods boosting viewership and TV ratings of golf competitions; he has been credited with driving a 73% growth in viewership for the final-round for the PGA Championship in 2018 from 2017, for instance. Powerful golfers like Tiger Woods clearly have the ability to draw in crowds and generate enormous fanfare; they could be a vital resource for the future health of golf and for those looking to capitalise on the sport.
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 4
Athletes
The Official Golf World Rankings are ever changing. Nonetheless, this is the most
direct way to capture an idea of who the top performers are in the world right
now. The current top ten are as follows:
Global Top Ten
Dustin Johnson Francesco Molinari
1. 6.
730k 789k 162.1k 154k 50.7k 20.2k
Brooks Koepka Bryson DeChambeau
2. 7.
116k 294k 12.3k 46.6k 153k -
Justin Thomas Rory McIlroy
3. 8.
254k 635k - 3.2m 1.6m 1.2m
Justin Rose Rickie Fowler
4. 9.
875k 512k - 1.6m 1.5m 144.9k
Jon Rahm Jordan Spieth
5. 10.
59.1k 120k 10.4k 1.9m 1.5m 458k
source: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. Data correct as of 05/09/18.
Interestingly, the top ten is dominated by the USA (6/10) and European
nations make up the rest. Justin Rose (4) and Rory McIlroy (8) are the only
representatives from the UK. In fact, of the top 20 golfers over 50% are
from the USA and the remaining places go to European golfers, bar one
representative each for Asia and Oceania. The first sight of a representative
from Africa is Louis Oosthuizen, of South Africa, at number 35.MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 5
England is well represented in men’s professional golf based on the current
rankings:
• 6 English golfers ranked in the top 40
• 10 English golfers ranked in top 100
• Over 80 English golfers ranked in the top 996
Top Ten English Golfers
Justin Rose Matthew Fitzpatrick
1. 6.
875k 512k - 63.9k 60.9k -
Tommy Fleetwood Matt Wallace
2. 7.
70.4k 62.3k - 7k 9.3k 0.2k
Paul Casey Ross Fisher
3. 8.
171k 59.7k 16.6k 11.1k 1.4k -
Tyrrell Hatton Eddie Pepperell
4. 9.
35.2k 34.1k - 51.6k - -
Ian Poulter Chris Wood
5. 10.
2.3m 305k 122.9k 48.7k 23.5k -
source: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. Data correct as of 05/09/18.
These golfers are well followed on social media which is an indicator of popularity:
• Top 5 English golfers have a combined Twitter following of almost 3.5 million
• Ian Poulter has over 2 million followers on Twitter
• Twitter follower range of the top ten is 7k-2.3m
There are British golfers at almost all levels of the rankings: there are superstars,
rising stars, fading stars, and everything in between. All of these athletes have
the potential to get coverage in the media through moments of brilliance and
major achievements. They all have an image, story, and reputation unique to them.MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 6
2018 Majors Results
Major Winner Best Brits
Justin Rose &
The Open Rory McIlroy
Francesco Molinari (tied 2nd)
Tommy Fleetwood
US Open
Brooks Koepka (tied 2nd)
Rory McIlroy
The Masters
Patrick Reed (tied 5th)
Tyrell Hatton
PGA Championship (tied 10th)
Brooks Koepka
The last Briton to win a Major was Danny Willett who won The Masters in 2016.
Willett was ranked 51st before entering the 2015 Masters, he found himself at 12th
before the event in 2016; winning moved him into the top 10. Danny is number 296 at
the time of writing. This may be evidence of the fickle nature of the sport and its
ranking system; something that brands interested in player sponsorship should consider.MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 7
Financials
The best professional golfers can earn millions each year. The PGA Tour provides a
list of the official earnings of golfers. This data gives us an idea of just how much the
current pros are earning, the top ten for 2017 can be seen below. Of the British
athletes, Justin Rose came out on top at number 15. Rose is listed as earning
$4,245,308 from just 18 events in 2017, with an average of $235,850.44 per event.
According to the data, the total earnings of the top ten in 2017 was $63,192,747,
with an average of $6,319,274.70 per athlete.
Golfer Victories Events Official Earnings Avg. Event Earnings
5 25 $9,921,560 $396,862.40
Justin Thomas
3 23 $9,433,033 $410,131.87
Jordan Spieth
4 20 $8,732,193 $436,609.65
Dustin Johnson
3 22 $8,380,570 $380,935
Hideki Matsuyama
1 23 $6,123,248 $266,228.17
John Rahm
1 21 $6,083,197 $289,676.05
Rickie Fowler
2 25 $5,866,391 $234,655.64
Marc Leishman
1 24 $5,612,397 $233,849.88
Brooks Koepka
1 28 $4,766,936 $170,247.71
Kevin Kisner
1 30 $4,396,470 $146,549
Brian HarmanMEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 8 Year Highest Individual Earnings Total Earnings - Top Ten Avg. Earnings - Top Ten 2017 $9,921,560 $63,192,747 $6,319,274.70 2015 $12,030,465 $63,997,385 $6,399,738.50 2010 $4,910,477 $41,220,359 $4,122,035.90 2005 $10,628,024 $49,688,667 $4,968,866.70 2000 $9,188,321 $34,970,974 $3,497,097.40 1995 $1,654,959 $12,348,687 $1,234,868.70 1990 $1,165,477 $8,970,358 $897,035.80 1985 $542,321 $3,907,618 $390,761.80 1980 $530,808 $2,743,555 $274,355.50 There has been a colossal increase in the prize money in men’s golf since 1980, the highest earner in 2017 is earning almost 20x more than that of 1980. Moreover, the 152nd highest earner in 2017 earnt more than 1980’s number one. This last point also highlights that there is a big gap between golf’s top performers and those lower down the ranks. Based on the 2017 PGA Tour data, the highest earner earnt more than 402x that of number 232, who played in two more tournaments than the number one. Of course, the data above does not cover the full earnings of these athletes. For example, the sponsorship or ‘off course’ income of the golfers, which can dwarf their income from event performances, is not included. Forbes (2018) reported Rory McIlroy’s earnings at $3.7 million from salary/winnings and $34 million from endorsements. There are clearly brands willing to heavily invest in golf’s superstars.
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 9 An insight into the cost of these investments was given by the Star Telegram (2017): • A logo on the front of a golfer’s hat or on the left breast of his shirt could cost between $250,000 and $2 million annually. • $25,000-$50,000 for players on Web.com Tour (a developmental tour). • Title sponsors for PGA tournaments generally pay between $8 million to $13 million annually for naming rights, and usually have to pay extra to ensure the name of the course is not included in the tournament title. Notably, it is not just the golfers who profit financially from the sport. A golfer’s caddy can also earn millions each year. Forbes (2017) reported that J.P. Fitzgerald, McIlroy’s caddy from 2008-2017, earned $1.65 million in a recent 12-month period. The brands sponsoring golf may also be profiting massively. The Star-Telegram (2017) stated that ‘if the brand is marketing itself effectively, it sees returns on its golf investment several times over what it initially put in’. This is based on the research of Kevin Chung, Timothy P. Derdenger and Kannan Srinivasan who discovered the following: “from 2000-2010, the Nike golf ball division reaped an additional profit of $103 million through the acquisition of $9.9 million in sales from Tiger Woods’ endorsement. Moreover, his endorsement led to a price premium of roughly 2.5 percent. As a result, approximately 57 percent of Nike’s investment in Woods’ $181 endorsement deal was recovered just in U.S. golf ball sales alone.” Furthermore, Jordan Spieth is said to have brought Under Armour ‘$4.85 million in brand exposure during the final round of the 2017 Masters’, and the company got ‘$1.725 million in brand exposure during the final round of the British Open, when two golfers who wore Under Armour were televised’ (Star-Telegram, 2017). Golf sponsorship could be a major win for both parties. The sales of golf equipment is another area of the sport that companies can profit from. The global golf equipment market is expected to reach $9.6 million by 2023 (Allied Market Research, 2018). The same source reports that Japan and China accounted for more than half of the total Asia-Pacific golf equipment market in 2016 and the specialty store segment made up more than 45% of the total market. Above average growth is expected in China and the Asia-Pacific region from 2017-2023 also. It is surely no coincidence that massive middle-class growth is ongoing in China and the Asia-Pacific region (Deloitte, 2017). Another aspect of golf’s financial climate is club membership. Key points on UK club membership are: • ‘Over 70% believe membership of their local golf club is not good value for money’ • Across 18 UK cities average membership price range is: £651-£1086.40 • There are different types of clubs and different membership options
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 10 Sponsoring Men's Golf - who and why? Evidently, sponsoring men’s golf can bring fruitful financial rewards. Sponsoring a competition or a golfer quite simply means more exposure for a brand, and if the golfing audience fits your target market then this move makes perfect sense. We should consider the elite image of men’s golf which seemingly attracts brands aiming to tap into a more corporate audience. The following brands might have had this in mind when they decided to sponsor some of biggest tournaments in men’s golf: • Mercedes-Benz (The Masters 2018 & The Open 2018) • Rolex (The Open 2018, US Open 2018, & Ryder Cup 2018) • Omega (PGA Championship 2018) • AT&T (The Masters 2018) • HSBC (The Open 2018) • Mastercard (The Open 2018) • BMW (British PGA Championship 2018 & Ryder Cup 2018) • Emirates (Ryder Cup 2018) • Aberdeen Standard Investments (Ryder Cup 2018) A number of these brands might be considered to fit well with the qualities of elite men’s golf, sponsoring the sport strengthens this image. There may also be cases of brands aiming to transform their image, perhaps in line with a strategic shift towards a more high-end client base. Of course, on a more basic level, sponsoring an elite competition or an elite golfer quite simply means more exposure for a brand, and if the golfing audience fits your target market then this move makes perfect sense.
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 11 It is possible to gain a further understanding of who exactly sponsors men’s golf. The key sponsors of the men’s Majors in 2018 and their sectors can be seen below: From this infographic we can see that there are a fair share of industries represented in sponsoring the men’s Majors. Notably, there are: • 3 banking/financial services brands • 2 watch brands • 2 automotive brands
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 12 Similarly, in an IEG Sponsorship Report from 2014, it was discovered that automobile companies were 4.4 times more likely to sponsor golf than the average of all sponsors, banks were at 3.4, and watches and jewellery at 2.0. It appears there are some industries that are more represented than others in sponsoring men’s golf. This provides an opportunity for a brave brand to step in, stand out, and reap the rewards. There are various ways in which such a brand can use men’s golf as a platform for success: Competition sponsorship Naming rights or being listed as an official partner is a sure way to become closely associated with the sport and to gain brand awareness. It is important to remember that there are large global tournaments as well as smaller local tournaments that a brand could get involved in. Player sponsorship Players may bear a brand’s logo on their clothes and on their personal website, a brand may even get a thank you on social media after a successful competition. Justin Rose, 2016 Olympic gold medallist and a majors winner, has featured the logo of insurance brand Zurich on his sleeve in the past. Another example is Matt Wallace whose sponsor, watch brand Audemars Piguet, was seen on his sleeve by thousands after he posted images of his win at Made in Denmark in 2018. Golf club sponsorship Sponsoring a club where pros and amateurs play and train is another guaranteed method of gaining awareness and association for a brand. This may be a less expensive method of sponsoring and highly suitable for SMEs, a deal of this nature was reported by the Lancashire Telegraph (2018) to cost £4,000. Social media endorsements Brands can utilise the social media followings of golfers by striking a deal with them to promote their products to their followers. There is the potential for golfers to be willing to endorse in return for a discount, free supplies, or for financial income. Paid advertising during tournaments and beyond A potentially expensive option, but with major tournaments still capable of reaching a large and targeted audience it could be highly effective. Utilising an athlete within an advert is another method that could be used. For example, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy have featured in Nike adverts in the past.
MEN'S GOLF BRIEFING PACK 13
5 Reasons to Sponsor Men's Golf
1. MEN'S GOLF IS EXCITING
Evidence Explanation
At Tokyo 2020. New formats of golf and it's appearance in the
upcoming Olympics combined with high profile
athletes make golf and exciting prospect.
2. MEN'S GOLF GIVES YOU PLENTY OF SPONSORSHIP OPTIONS
Evidence Explanation
• over 1,900 golf clubs in England There are a plethora of golfers, tournaments,
• over 2,000 men's golfers listed on the and clubs of all shapes and sizes that a brand
Official World Golf Ranking could partner with. This gives a brand options
and the ability to find the sponsorship route
that works best for them.
3. THE TARGET AUDIENCE
Evidence Explanation
Brands associated with top level Golf Men’s golf has a particular image that we could
such as Rolex, HSBC and Mercedes Benz describe as ‘elite’. If a brand desires this image
tap into a wealthier demographic. then associating with golf could be a wise move.
4. THE MEDIA REACH OF MEN'S GOLF
Evidence Explanation
Top 5 English golfers have a combined TV coverage of major events and the social
Twitter following of almost 3.5 million. media of the leading players. Whilst it also has
The Open was viewed by millions. the ability to reach a more select, targeted
group through local club sponsorship.
5. THE OPPORTUNITY TO HELP MEN'S GOLF
Evidence Explanation
BBC reported falling participation, as well as A fantastic opportunity to support the growth
falling viewership in the UK after Sky bought of men’s golf at a grass roots level, to expand
the broadcast rights. participation demographic, to market and
innovate the sport.C
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