Callaway Golf has been "capturing particularly innovative and unique photos on social media since the 2013 PGA Championship, when it integrated GoPro into its social media tool belt," according to Stephen App of SPORTTECHIE.com. Now Callaway has added a "remote controlled quadcopter drone." Callaway Social Media Manager Chad Coleman said that the drone, which "comes with a housing system for GoPro’s line of Hero cameras, opens up several new doors for capturing exclusive content." He added, "Right now we’ve still got our training wheels on and I’m just trying not to crash the thing again." Coleman credits the GoPro team with "introducing him into the idea of combining his GoPro with a drone," and Callaway Senior VP/Marketing Harry Arnett for "being immediately receptive to the idea." What they got was the Phantom 2 drone from DJI, which "offers the ability to view GoPro footage from the ground on a monitor in real time as well as the ability to program a flight path from an iPad." While Callaway "strategizes ways to make the most of its new machine," execs have been "tinkering at their Ely Performance Center." However, Callaway Golf "isn’t the only sports brand experimenting with drones." The Nationals "made headlines early in spring training when pictures surfaced from a drone they were using for Instagram and video scoreboard material." The Marlins also are "using drones in spring training, although their drone is being used for baseball purposes rather than marketing" (SPORTTECHIE.com, 3/17).
