Spalding has signed Hal Sutton to a five-year contract
extension to play its Ben Hogan irons, Strata golf balls,
and wear the Etonic shoe and glove (Spalding).
TIGER'S NIKE STAKE? BRANDWEEK's Terry Lefton reports
that Nike "is close" to re-signing Tiger Woods to a new
long-term deal that "insiders said will dwarf his existing"
$40M deal and "may include some equity provisions."
Meanwhile, the SAG strike "continues to delay a number of
scheduled Tiger ad shoots," including ones for Buick, Nike
and Wheaties (BRANDWEEK, 6/26 issue). The AP's Doug
Ferguson reported that while Nike is "experiencing a bounce"
in sales due to Woods' victory at the U.S. Open, Nike Golf
President Bob Wood said that he is "not sure how to measure
the impact a players' endorsement -- even a megastar like
Tiger -- has on consumers." Wood: "Unless you're talking to
a 12-year-old, nobody ever says they're influenced by an
athlete. They want to appear more intelligent than that."
Callaway Golf Founder & CEO Ely Callaway said, "We've had a
lot of players using our products. Promotionally, that's
what we've emphasized. But the reason the company has grown
the way it has, and has been profitable, is primarily due to
the merit of the product." Callaway said Woods will help
Nike "sell some golf balls. But the thing that sells golf
balls is if we or Titleist or anyone else makes golf balls
better than anyone else" (AP, 6/27).
