TIGER WOODS, RORY McILROY & NIKE GOLF INTRODUCE THE NEW VAPOR IRON FRANCHISE
Detailed view of the Nike shoes, golf club putter and golf ball of PGA golfer Tiger Woods as he putts on the green during the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale.(Photo: Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports)
To great fanfare in the Middle East in an announcement featuring lasers, videos and music the second week of 2013, Rory McIlroy signed on with Nike. Six months later, Tiger Woods re-upped with Nike.
Now it looks like both have to start playing different equipment.
Nike, the largest maker of sporting goods in the world, announced Wednesday that its golf division will transition out of equipment golf clubs, b***s and bags and instead focus on expanding its golf footwear and apparel business.
Were committed to being the undisputed leader in golf footwear and apparel, Nike brand president Trevor Edwards said in a statement. We will achieve this by investing in performance innovation for athletes and delivering sustainable profitable growth for Nike Golf.
No timetable was given for the transition.
Nike Golf division sales fell 8.2% to $706 million in the fiscal year that ended in May. Its sales peaked in 2014 to just under $800 million.
The company, which first introduced clubs in 2002, has struggled to attain a solid portion of the market share with its golf equipment, with its sales far below those of competitors such as TaylorMade and Callaway.
"As a Nike athlete I am really sad to hear about this. I love a lot of their products and hope they will be back," Jhonattan Vegas tweeted.
Woods joined Nike in 1996 remember Hello, world and has played the ball and with 14 Nike clubs in his bag since 2010. But when and if he returns after missing the 2015-16 season as he rehabs his surgically repaired back, what will be in his bag?
Well certainly look at other equipment options, but that doesnt take away the fact hes been an iconic and enthusiastic figure for Nike Golf and h**l continue to be. That wont change at all, Mark Steinberg, Woods agent, said in a phone interview. But we have to be pro-active when it comes to equipment.
The future is unclear for McIlroy, too, as well as Brooks Koepka, Paul Casey, Tony Finau, Kevin Chappell, Michelle Wie, Suzann Pettersen and others on the playing staff for Nike. Each player has a contract with Nike, with specifics on the number of clubs they have to have in the bag and the apparel they have to wear.
But one former member of the Nike team, 2011 Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, has already moved on. He left the company in July and had Parsons Xtreme Golf equipment in his bag at the British Open.
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