Golf’s popularity has skyrocketed in recent years among younger generations.
Five years ago, the sport was one of the few ways to get out of the house during COVID. And as beginners took lessons and hit the range, businesses jumped at the opportunity.
Justin Faiber is Captain Morgan’s brand director, and he saw the tide changing on the links.
“One of the things I’ve seen, I have been around sports marketing and brand marketing for a while. The barrier for entry for golf has certainly changed, which I think is something that we really want to lean into from a brand perspective and also where I’ve seen it personally,” Faiber said in a recent interview with FOX Business.
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“It’s not, ‘Hey, you got to go to the golf course. You got to go to the driving range.’ But, obviously, you’re seeing the proliferation of not only, like TopGolf or TGL, Five Irons, the casual divine meets golf setting. The stigma of golf has kind of eroded a bit, where golf lifestyle is coming to a forefront of merch where golf course meets streetwear meets everyday lifestyle wear.
“Obviously, COVID, where people wanted to get outside, allowed golf to be super accessible. So, I do think that all of that combined was an interesting way for us to look at the game. And as a casual golfer, it’s not so much suited and booted, which is our style. You’re starting to see different ways people are playing the game. I remember scooter golf carts, mega-sized holes. The lines are being blurred in the game, which has allowed for more participation.”
Faiber also credited professional golf for getting with the times. Jason Day has had his fair share of eye-popping outfits.
“What some of the majors have done with being more inviting. LIV has opened that up a bit. The Ryder Cup is such a fervent fan event, a lot less traditional. It is madness out there. All of that led to golf becoming hot. We love it, and, for us as a brand, we’re growing. And, for us, it was a partnership that we felt would be super strong for us,” Faiber added.
Faiber and Captain Morgan recently introduced the Play the Slice campaign, which gets new-coming golfers to embrace their likely wayward tee shots with new Captain Morgan Sliced drinks.
“No round of golf is a bad round of golf. So, for us, it was very much tying into the fact that variety is the spice of the golf game, and the variety is the spice of really what we do on the Captain Morgan’s Slice brand. You know, we have eight different variants that are available right now. So, there’s no wrong right to enjoy a Captain Morgan Slice.
“And, for us, it was very much to be tied into knowing that 99.99% of the people that pick up a golf club are gonna wind up in the trees or on the cart path, and that’s OK. I’m guilty of that, too. But we want to really embrace that. We felt like that was a really fun way in for the brand. And it was very much in the Captain Morgan Slice world of how we would approach things in that we believe slice is better.”
The drinks have brought a new merchandise partnership with Pluto Golf, where, as Faiber said, golf wear meets streetwear.
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“The guys of Pluto have been really amazing to work with. We feel like they were a really great collaboration for us to pair with. We’re creating a capsule collection with them, everything from shoes to hoodies, jackets to outerwear to hats,” Faiber said. “They really embrace a lot of what we like, the whole ‘slice is better’ idea where it doesn’t have to just be one way. It doesn’t have to be traditional. Their whole mantra of taking that sharp design, being able to be on course and in the street with the same pair of shoes, we felt that was a really nice way in for us.”
It should come as no surprise that Faiber “loves” the new era of golf, both casual and professional.
“I’m a really firm believer in you either evolve or become nascent. And, so, I think that it’s really important for the game, for players, for really just the entire ecosystem. If you’re not meeting the consumer where they are and really embracing that this is how people want to consume the game, the game and the rules of the game traditionally are not going to change, right?” Faiber said.
“You’re always going to have birdies, bogeys, eagles, hole-in-ones. The whole goal is to get the ball into the hole as quickly as possible with (the) least strokes as possible, right? So, that, from a baseline of perspective, should probably never change, probably won’t never change.
“What I think is the important part is, as the face of the game changes, as the consumers that are playing the game are changing, it’s an evolving world of participation. I think if you’re stuck in, ‘I have to look and act and feel a certain way,’ the game will never evolve into attracting more people into it.
“I think it’s really good for everybody. Raises all tides, allows brands like ours to go play in a space that is super fun. It gives capability for the game to be consumed to more eyeballs to really get attracted to what’s happening out on the course, or in the simulator, or in a TopGolf, or who knows, in their backyard.”
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