ORLANDO, FL—The year 2016 marks the 100th anniversary of the creation of the Professional Golfer’s Association of America (PGA) and the kick-off for its centennial year commenced with the 63rd Merchandise Show held at the Orange County Convention Center. The show in Orlando centers around all of the many companies that tie themselves to the broader golf industry. In short, think of a modern version of a grand Moroccan bazaar. Big and small companies pushing their wares with all the trappings of a Broadway show with lights aglow and music pulsating at times linked to a robust dose of salesmanship that would make P.T. Barnum blush for its outright exuberance—let alone stretching of the truth at times.
The centennial year for the PGA—the largest sports organization in the world, with roughly 28,000+ members—provides a clear distinction from 1954 when the first merchandise show took place with vendors simply selling from the trunks of their cars. More than 40,000 people attended and over 1,000 companies were on hand for the four day event over the last week in January.
Despite the inherent hoopla and buzz, this year’s show also showed how certain companies are positioning themselves for the year ahead. Nike, the sports company behemoth which grew rapidly through its involvement with a golfer by the name of Tiger Woods, opted to remain away from Orlando. It’s famed motto of “just do it” showed the Oregon-based company believes doing it still matters—just not in Orlando. The same be said of Mizuno—a much smaller sized company—specializing in the creation of quality irons among its various product offerings.
