The Week That Was, may 25, 2014

     A distressing decline in sales of golf equipment has pinched the bottom line at Dick’s Sporting Goods. The publicly traded company reports that sales at its 79 Golf Galaxy stores fell by 10.4 percent in the past quarter -- a “whopping” amount, according to Forbes -- and haven’t shown any signs of recovering in the current quarter. “We really don’t know what the bottom is in golf,” the company’s chief executive said in a comment published by Bloomberg Businessweek. “The industry has a real issue.” Dick’s also has an issue, because sales of golf and hunting goods constitute almost one-third of its annual revenues. Forbes reports that Dick’s expects its hunting sales to stabilize but “has no such hopes for its golf division.”

     When it comes to marketing appeal, golfers don’t compare to young, good-looking stars in tennis, soccer, auto racing, and other sports that induce sweat. At least that’s the view of SportsPro, which placed just three golfers -- Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth, and Rory McIlroy -- on its just-issued list of the world’s 50 most marketable athletes. The top 50 skews overwhelmingly toward athletes under 30 who appeal to international (particularly European) audiences, and everyone on the list is said to have immediate marketing potential. They have two things in common: Talent and, perhaps more importantly, talented agents. Before it names Scott, at #12, SportsPro lists an auto racer, a cricketer, an NFL quarterback, three professional soccer players, two tennis pros, a track-and-field star, a female swimmer, and an NBA power forward. Spieth checks in at #19, McIlroy at #24. Conspicuously absent, of course, are Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, who’ll presumably soon be serving as pitch men for laxatives and adult diapers.

     This hasn’t been a good year for Tiger Woods. His body has taken a beating, and now his bank account will too. A sports memorabilia company, Gotta Have It Golf, Inc., has won a $668,000 judgment against Woods, after persuading a jury in Florida that Woods failed to honor a licensing agreement. In an article for the National Law Review, lawyers from Proskauer Rose LLP note that “the award may move north of $1 million once interest has been factored in.” Funny thing about the article, though: It’s four paragraphs long, and it carries six bylines. Now you know why your legal bills are so high.

     Fred Funk, a 16-time winner on the PGA and Champions tours, will create his first “signature” design in Windsor, Colorado, at a 2,800-home community that aims to become a “resort destination for die-hard golfers.” Funk’s 18-hole track will be centerpiece of RainDance National Golf Club, a property being developed by Water Valley Land Company. “There truly is no limit for the potential of RainDance on the national stage now that we have teamed up with Mr. Funk and his talented crew,” Water Valley’s principal said in a press release. Funk’s crew mainly consists of Harrison Minchew, who’ll co-design the golf course. “This particular piece of land has got my attention,” Minchew told Golf Course Architecture, “and I don’t want to screw it up because it’s so good.” RainDance will take shape on property just a short drive from Water Valley Pelican Lakes community, which features a 27-hole, Ted Robinson-designed complex. Lind hasn’t yet set a date for the groundbreaking.

     One of Jack Nicklaus’ former colleagues has purchased his first golf property, and it comes with a pedigreed course. An affiliate of Michael Zmetrovich’s Z Golf Properties has paid an undisclosed amount for Briggs Ranch Golf Club, a 13-year-old venue in San Antonio, Texas. The club, which features a Tom Fazio-designed course, is part of a 2,200-acre community with some of the area’s pricier houses. “What attracted me to Briggs Ranch was the quality of the golf course,” Zmetrovich said in a comment published by the San Antonio Express-News. “It's a great golf experience in a growing marketplace with a year-round playing environment and a great group of members.” Zmetrovich, a former vice president of Nicklaus Companies, has since 2005 managed a Fazio-designed layout at Coral Creek Club in Placida, Florida. He bought Briggs Ranch from Gil Hodge, who continues to own the community’s defunct Golf Club of Texas. One of Hodge’s original partners, former British Open champion Bill Rogers, called the sale to Z Golf “a blessing for the club.”

     Troon Golf, which operates nearly 100 golf properties in 33 U.S. states, has signed its first contract in Alabama. The firm’s Troon Privé division has begun to manage Pine Tree Country Club, in Birmingham, a 46-year-old venue with an 18-hole, George Cobb-designed golf course. “Troon manages golf courses the right way and provides all club members and their guests with the ultimate lifestyle,” said the Pine Tree’s general manager, Don Shirey, a former player on the PGA Tour who’s worked for Troon for more than a decade. “I want to introduce our Troon concept and further elevate that perception.” Pine Tree, which lists an initiation fee of $5,000, describes itself as “one of the best secrets in Birmingham.” Troon describes it as “one of the South’s premier golf properties” and promises that “its stature will certainly be enhanced.”

     Martial law always seems to take the fun out of a nation’s golf business. The military coup in Thailand, for example, has ended all thoughts of staging this year’s Thailand Open, a $1 million event that was already postponed once. “It is our hope that the tournament will be staged next year,” one of the event’s organizers told an Indian news service. If you listen closely, you can also hear the air going out of Thailand's golf tourism business.