Lopez sat down with Golfweek during the PGA Show this week.
ORLANDO, Fla. — Nancy Lopez has never been one to do anything half-heartedly.
When she realized her game was good enough to compete with the pros, Lopez left the University of Tulsa, and she won nine times in her rookie year on the LPGA, including an incredible stretch of five straight victories in May and June of 1978.
She finished her career with 51 professional wins, including three majors, in 25 full-time seasons on the tour. On one of women’s golf’s biggest stages, the Solheim Cup, Lopez helped the U.S. win the first Cup in 1990. She later captained the team to victory in 2005.
Now she’s joined forces with Lt. Dan Rooney and Folds of Honor, a non-profit organization that provides educational scholarships for children and spouses of fallen or disabled military service members and first responders.
Since the foundation started, it has granted 51,000 scholarships or about $240 million worth of education.
Rooney, the group’s CEO and founder, and Mike Arbour, who is the chairman of the board of directors, recently asked Lopez to become part of the board. She accepted.
“We never dreamed, especially 16 years ago when I was above my garage, that Nancy Lopez would say yes to joining our national board,” Rooney said. “I just think it’s a testament to the mission that brings people together, and that’s taking care of our military and first responders. In a world where you have to pick red or blue, this is red, white and blue. And I think people are starving for common ground.”
Lopez sat down with Golfweek during the PGA Show this week at the Orange County Convention Center to discuss why she became part of the organization, what she thinks of phenom Rose Zhang and what the Americans need to do to recapture the Solheim Cup.
Organizers from the PGA of America say exhibitors from 25 countries are on hand this year.
ORLANDO — It wasn’t long ago that many were wondering whether or not the PGA Show at Orange County Convention Center was losing its fastball.
The 2024 edition of the annual trade show, however, is proving definitively the lasting power of the show — and perhaps how important it’s become in the wake of remote working quarters and increased travel.
According to organizers from the PGA of America, more than 1,000 exhibitors from 25 countries are on hand this year, and the event still includes a robust series of speakers and prominent guests, like 2022 U.S. Open champ Matthew Fitzpatrick and 8-time major champ Tom Watson. Attendees from 80 different countries registered for the event.
Also, while most guests come from the United States or Europe, many of the exhibitors come from China, Korea and Canada. A handful of the major golf club manufacturers still haven’t returned to the show, but many have and the floor has been an endless stream of activity.
“The PGA of America is actively sourcing more opportunities to partner with like-minded organizations, golf facilities and mission-driven individuals across Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa,” said Sean D. Thornberry, Director of Global Development at the PGA of America.
Golf shoes are an essential piece of equipment for any golfer, providing comfort, stability, and traction on the course.
The 2023 PGA Show in Orlando highlighted a number of different golf shoes on the event’s massive floor. Golf shoes are an essential piece of equipment for any golfer, providing comfort, stability, and traction on the course.
There are many different styles and brands of golf shoes, but Golfweek gathered the top five from this year’s show.
Averee Dovsek chatted with each brand to get all the juicy details on the new releases from your favorite brands such as FootJoy, Under Armour, Ecco, Puma and G/FORE.
Check out the video from the PGA Show on the top men’s shoes and learn more below.
For more shoes, check out Golfweek’s list for 2023: MEN’S | WOMEN’S
The PGA Show is an annual event that showcases the latest and greatest products in the golf industry held in Orlando, Florida. The show brings in brands from all over the world to showcase their hot new products.
While there were tons of amazing products across the convention center, Averee Dovsek sat down with the brands to find out a little bit more on what makes their technology special.
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Watch and check out below for the coolest things we saw this year.
ORLANDO — It feels like old times at the Orange County Convention Center as the crowds and many of the vendors have returned to make the annual PGA Show a vibrant gathering in the Sunshine State.
The annual Demo Day was held at Orange County National on Tuesday and a week of exhibits and education runs through Friday at the convention center.
The event, which was held virtually in 2021 and in a smaller form in 2022, typically attracts more than 40,000 PGA of America professionals, manufacturers, media members and golf industry insiders.
A pandemic might have changed the way the U.S. Ryder Cup team chooses players, but success is keeping the new system intact.
ORLANDO — A pandemic might have changed the way the United States Ryder Cup team chooses players for its side, but success is keeping the new system intact.
PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh and current president John Lindert said definitively this week during the annual PGA Show that current U.S. captain Zach Johnson will have six captain’s picks as the Americans look to end a 30-year drought on foreign soil in the 44th edition of the biennial matches against Europe at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome, Italy. And it’s unlikely the system will ever revert to its pre-pandemic ways.
Prior to 2008, captains were only given two captain’s selections with the other 10 picks chosen by automatic qualification through a points system. That jumped to four captain’s picks under Paul Azinger in ’08, then was bumped to six for captain Steve Stricker in 2021 due to COVID concerns.
The results spoke volumes: Stricker led the Americans to a 19-9 win at Whistling Straits, the largest margin of victory since all of Europe joined the Ryder Cup in 1979. After two decades of being pummeled by Europe, the U.S. has now won two of the last three matches.
And Lindert and Waugh said there’s no talk about ever going back to fewer captain’s picks.
“The feedback from last time’s Ryder Cup, it was a very positive influence to have the captain be allowed to have six captain’s picks for a variety of reasons and some that I didn’t even think about,” said Lindert, who is a member of the Ryder Cup committee along with Waugh. “When there were only two, the two who got picked somewhat didn’t feel inclusive because they were the two, right?
“With six, it’s a 50-50 field so it becomes a more inclusive team and it allows the captain to actually build a team.”
Julius Mason of the PGA of America, president John Lindert and CEO Seth Waugh speak at the PGA Show in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Tim Schmitt/Golfweek)
Johnson, 46, was officially named the captain of the 2023 Ryder Cup for Team USA last February. He played in the Ryder Cup five times (8-7-2 record) and the Presidents Cup four times (10-6-1) and was an assistant captain the past two editions of the Ryder Cup. He will be the 30th captain for Team USA.
Waugh added that the addition of extra selections makes the job more enticing for future captains.
“Really, the six started because of COVID. We don’t know how many people are going to play or how long the season would be. And so, to give the captain maximum flexibility of obviously putting the best team on the field. And they loved it,” he said. “If you talk to a lot of the captains, the hardest thing they have to do is tell the 13th person that they didn’t make the team. So by having six choices, you’re making six happy calls, when you might be making a bigger number of unhappy calls because you might have to call 13 through 15 or something.
“They absolutely are all competitors who want to win. And we think this gives them the best opportunity to do that — to put the best team out of field.”
As of Jan. 26, 2023, the six automatic qualifiers for the U.S. team are Scottie Scheffler, Will Zalatoris, Justin Thomas, Collin Morikawa, Cameron Young and Chris Kirk. It’s unknown if Dustin Johnson, currently seventh on the list, would be eligible for the event due to his ties with LIV Golf.
With COVID-19 infection rates lowering, equipment makers are announcing they plan to return to the PGA Show in January 2023.
In the days leading up to the 2022 PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Florida, the Omicron variant pushed positive tests for COVID-19 over 800,000 per day in the United States. That wave of infections forced most major golf equipment companies to pull out of the annual trade show held at the Orange County Convention Center and the pre-show Demo Day that takes place every year at Orange County National Golf Club in Winter Garden, Florida.
But with infection rates lowering, more people vaccinated and treatments for COVID-19 improving, brands are announcing they plan to return to the PGA Merchandise Show in January 2023.
Typically, there are thousands of people at the PGA Show’s Demo Day, but in 2022, only a few hundred people went. (David Dusek/Golfweek)
On September 15, Dunlop Brands — the parent company of Srixon, Cleveland Golf, XXIO and Asics — announced that its golf brands would be going back to the PGA Merchandise Show.
In a release, Mike Powell, the president and COO of Dunlop Sports Americas, said, “We are excited to return to the PGA Show in 2023 to show support for the PGA of America and the thousands of PGA Professionals who help make the business of golf what is it today. All of our staff looks forward to showcasing our brands in person, while highlighting the new and exciting things we have planned for the upcoming year.”
On Tuesday, the Acushnet Company’s Titleist and FootJoy announced that they would also be at both Demo Day and have a large presence on the floor at the PGA Show.
People listen as Julie Roberts sings the National Anthem during the opening of 2012 PGA Merchandise Show.
“We look forward to attending the 2023 PGA Show and reconnecting with our partners and the golf community,” said Acushnet senior vice president Peter Broome. “The PGA Show continues to evolve and provides our Titleist and FootJoy brands a forum to strengthen partner relationships, offer educational opportunities and showcase our exciting new products. The timing of this important industry gathering sets the tone for the year, and we look forward to returning to Orlando once again.”
Golfweek has spoken with executives and officials from several other golf equipment brands and nearly all of them said that while agreements and plans have not been officially finalized, they anticipate returning to the PGA Show in 2023.
The 69th PGA Show returned to an in-person event but it was a mere shadow of what it used to be.
ORLANDO – These are wonderful times to be part of the golf industry. Rounds played are up, equipment is selling like hotcakes, and teaching pros have never been busier. All it took was a global pandemic to make golf popular again.
It’s not a good time, however, to be in the convention and exhibition business. The 69th PGA Show, the largest annual gathering of PGA Members and the international golf industry, returned to an in-person show but it was a mere shadow of what it used to be.
None of the major equipment makers – Callaway, Cleveland/Srixon, Cobra, Ping, TaylorMade, Titleist – nor apparel companies – Polo, Summit Brands, Peter Millar, Travis Matthew, Ahead – decided to participate.
Instead of nearly 10 miles of exhibit aisles and roughly 1,000 exhibitors, the Orlando County Convention Center used a much smaller footprint for the 600 companies who signed up, and attendance on what is usually the biggest day of the Show resembled closing time on Friday. On the bright side, parking was easier and concession lines for lunch were non-existent. And the smaller footprint meant less wear and tear on the feet
The PGA Show, which began in the trunks of cars at a winter golf tournament in 1954, was doomed by a perfect storm. COVID-19, of course, was the main culprit. The Show’s timing, Jan. 25-28, couldn’t have been worse. Six months ago, it looked as if the country was through the worst of the global pandemic and the annual industry gathering would be all systems go. Then the Delta variant came along followed by Omicron. Experts predict that this could be the peak week for COVID. Companies that planned to participate dropped out as the date neared despite a willingness to be flexible by Reed Exhibitions that bordered on desperation.
The 69th PGA Show at the Orlando County Convention Center in Orlando, January 2022. (Photo: Jason Lusk/Golfweek)
The reality was too many companies were uncomfortable asking their employees to travel at what some perceive as a super-spreader event. As one executive at Titleist said, how could we ask our employees to travel to the PGA Show when our offices are still closed? It’s a sensible move in uncertain times.
The other contributing factor is that many of the leading companies are producing more than ever before, but are sold out of products and can’t manufacture new goods to sell fast enough. The combination of supply-chain issues being real and the fact that most companies are thriving during the pandemic made it easier to drop out.
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One of the few big players in the equipment space that did have a presence on the Show floor was Bridgestone, which had its employees drive in from Georgia. Dan Murphy, president and CEO of Bridgestone Golf, said it felt odd to be exhibiting in a hall without his competitors but enjoyed having many of his best customers in the 5,000 club pros who registered for the event essentially all to himself.
“It’s a time where people are going to stadiums to watch games and schools are back in session, so we think it is appropriate to be here and be careful about it and support the business and keep the good going,” he said. “We don’t mind zigging when everyone else zags.”
But Bill Hughes, longtime PGA professional and general manager of Country Club of the Rockies in Colorado, summed up the feeling of his brethren when he said, “I’m worried that these companies aren’t going to see the velocity on the return on investment. It’s kind of a fork in the road. Maybe there is a reckoning.”
Is this a one-year COVID blip? Or has COVID exposed the PGA Show’s fatal flaw: that a January gathering doesn’t align with product launches anymore. I asked one Show regular how does he measure whether he had a good show or not.
By alcohol level, of course, he cracked. This, after all, is a working vacation for many PGA pros, and for some a veritable spring break. (Apologies to all those pros from the Northeast who expected to work on their suntans and were greeted by rain and temps that barely cracked 50 degrees. The weather also turned Tuesday’s outdoor Demo and Fitting Day into a bust.)
National Golf Foundation’s Greg Nathan said he judges success by his dance card, which was packed with appointments with both clients and partners. Plenty of business and educational programming still will be conducted this week. The Show remains – alongside the Masters and British Open – among the best networking opportunities in golf.
But here’s the rub: if a golf company didn’t go to the Show this year, that means by the time the next one rolls around, it will be at least three years since its last attendance. It likely also will be three years in which the company has done financially better than when it last attended. Its reps and employees have figured out how to do Zoom calls and local shows. That’s three years where they have figured out how to work without the Show and now will be asked to pony up quite a bit of money.
The equipment makers pulling out this year suggests the industry has voted against an in-person Show during a global pandemic, but the fact that 13,000 pros registered suggests the industry still wants to get together. The elephant in the room is what happens next year. Will exhibitors want to have a big presence again and be willing to pay the price? Or has The Show outworn its relevance? Could this be the beginning of the end for the PGA Show?
We’ll have a better idea next year, but for now, the show must go on.
Marc Simon discusses the 69th PGA Show to be held January 25-28 in Orlando.
After conducting a virtual show last year, the PGA Show returns to Orlando from Jan. 25-28. The 69th annual gathering of the golf industry will look different in size and scope thanks to COVID-19 concerns, but the Show must go on and Golfweek spoke with Marc Simon, event vice president for PGA Golf Exhibitions, who explained what to expect.
GWK: Why are we having an in-person show this year?
MS: That’s a great question. After having a virtual event last year, while so much of the feedback was positive and the educational component was good, people missed being together, the networking component and seeing, touching and feeling product. The industry is ready to come back. We have over 600 brands, 13,000 people pre-registered and the Show is an important conduit to drive the business of golf forward, to address the issues of the day, and how do we retain all the new players coming in. There’s no better way to do that than to meet in person.
“The 2022 PGA Show will play an especially important role in helping the industry and PGA Professionals move forward from the pandemic.”
Like many things in early 2021, the annual PGA Merchandise Show was forced to go virtual because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In late January, the idea of encouraging 20,000-30,000 from all over the United States to travel and descend on Orlando to attend an indoor trade show wasn’t safe or feasible.
However, the PGA of America and Reed Exhibitions, the organizations that host the show, announced on Monday morning that the 2022 show will be an in-person gathering. It will take place January 25-28 at the Orange County Convention Center and Orange County National Golf Center and Lodge.
Jim Richerson, the president of the PGA of America, said, “The 2022 PGA Show will play an especially important role in helping the industry and PGA Professionals move forward from the pandemic, capitalizing on the growing interest in the sport and uncovering new tools to improve the grassroots golf experience.”
Richerson added that decreased attendance at the show is expected, with some PGA of America members, industry insiders and media members still electing not to travel. However, a recent survey of potential attendees found that 70 percent of PGA professionals and top buyers currently plan to attend the 2022 PGA Show, with another 19 percent planning to decide as the show’s date gets closer.
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“The 2022 PGA Show will continue to be the largest annual gathering of our membership with thousands of PGA Professionals and top buyers experiencing first-hand the innovative offerings from more than 650 golf brands,” Richerson said.
Coming on the heels of a historically good 2020 golf season, 2021 has been another fantastic year for the golf industry, which oddly is a double-edge sword of the PGA Show.
On the positive side, golf’s popularity is booming. People are taking lessons, tee time sheets are filled across the county and manufacturers are seeing record sales too.
However, several categories are struggling with supply chain issues, especially grips and some popular shafts. Orders that used to be fulfilled in a week or two now take months. For those reasons, as well the continued concern for the safety of their employees and the cost of traveling with scores of people, several major manufacturers have not yet committed to attending the 2022 PGA Merchandise Show. Final decisions from some of the largest brands are expected to be announced in the next week or two.
