Club revival

A once-proud franchise hits the comeback trail

The first time Lee Janzen tried out MacGregor's new V-Cavity driver, he was pounding drives 15 to 20 yards further than he was used to, and loving it. After eight or 10 longer-than-usual shots, Janzen joked, "I'm going to have to start practicing my wedges."

MAILBAG I am thinking of switching drivers and I note that you were impressed with the Callaway C4, but that you considered the new MacGregor driver the longest you had hit. Based on the combination of feel, accuracy and distance, which would you choose and why? I am a 6 handicap and I average about 270 yards with my best drives. —Stephen Palmer, Alameda, Calif. I saw so many intriguing drivers at the merchandise show, Stephen, I'm overwhelmed. I haven't hit either of the two clubs you mentioned enough to make a decision yet. I hit the MacGregor last fall when I'd been playing a lot, but the C4 was a few weeks ago, after I'd had a month off and my swing was even crappier than usual. Call me cheap (OK, you're cheap) but I seldom buy a club unless I'm sure I like it. Guessing can get expensive. Check the ranges in your area or some of the daily fee courses, lots of them have demo days when you can try various companies' equipment. Or play out of your rich buddy's bag and try his new stuff. I'm planning a trip to Hilton Head, S.C. Which are the most challenging fun courses to play that are open to the public. We already have tee times at Harbour Town. —Doug Friedfeld, East Rockaway, N.Y. Readers, how about some help for Doug? What do you think of Big John Daly lately? He seems bigger than ever (literally), but he seems to be playing pretty well. I say Tiger wins one major, at most, this year. Agree or disagree? Who do you think might have a breakout year on the PGA Tour -- either by winning his first tournament and/or winning his first major (allowing Garcia and Mickelson to sneak onto your list)? —Kevin Humphreys, Ridgeland, Miss. I watched Daly at Torrey Pines, Kev, and he's close to playing the best golf of his career. I don't know if he's matured, but he is clearly relaxed, happy and into his golf at the moment. He could be a factor in a major, but not the U.S. Open, which he despises. Breakout year, Garcia and Mickelson will be stalking majors. So, too, will Jerry Kelly. Don't laugh. Tiger will win at least one major this year. I'm thinking two, actually. Don't you think the media hype for Ty Tryon is a bit over the top? I read something on the Internet the other day saying that only Charles Howell or Ty have a chance to do what Tiger did between 1999 and 2000. In my mind Ty's biggest claim to fame to date is that he led the B.C. Open after the first round last year. Shouldn't hype be only for those who have earned it? —John Sinclair, Stillwater, Okla. John, you're not grasping the concept. Hype is only for those who haven't earned it -- that's why it's called hype. No, I don't think Ty Tryon is going to do what Tiger did. Not this year. He may even have a Justin Rose- type down period for a few years, but mark this down: Tryon is the real deal. He can really, really play. I wouldn't be surprised if he stayed in contention on a Sunday in some PGA Tour event this year.

It is hardly a surprise, then, that the two-time U.S. Open champion is now on the MacGregor staff and playing their equipment on the PGA Tour. What is a surprise, however, is that MacGregor Golf is still alive and kicking. A decade ago, the venerable company had one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel after going through a succession of owners and making a series of bad business decisions, such as producing a line of cheaper, inferior clubs to be sold in stores. Imagine Mercedes, the perceived king of luxury and quality in the auto business, manufacturing and selling the equivalent of a Yugo. MacGregor was THE brand name in golf for more than 90 years and came to be identified with, and later owned by, Jack Nicklaus, the game's greatest player. How can you screw that up? After Nicklaus parted ways with MacGregor in the '90s, the company dropped off the radar screen while while newcomers such as Callaway and TaylorMade blew past golf's traditional powers. "I had a vision it could be made beautiful again," said MacGregor CEO Barry Schneider, part of an investing group that took over the company three years ago. "It's a global brand with a 95 percent brand recognition -- that's Nike-esque. And I loved the brand as a child. It was an emotional connection. When I was 15, I remember when I got MacGregor irons. I felt like I couldn't believe I really owned them, and how it was like 'nobody touch them' when they were in my bag."

MacGregor has a simple plan in its quest to remain a player in the golf industry. In business, you've got to be first, best or cheapest to succeed. MacGregor has set its sights on being the best, while realizing that it is probably not going to be one of the big three or four clubmakers in golf. "Sometimes you have to get smaller to get better," Schneider said. "We're still a mid-sized company. The consumer today is smart. You may fool him the first and second time and feed him hype for a short period, but golfers are educated and they know what really helps their game. We're going to make great products and not compromise. At the end of the day, the consumer will figure that out. That's a hard stance to take if you're just about profit and loss statements, but if you're driven by what's good for your company, it's an easy decision."

What went wrong at MacGregor, besides too many owners and a sea change in golf technology and marketing, essentially came down to a mandate to make more money. For MacGregor, known for its quality clubs for good players, that meant making cheap clubs for the masses -- which undermined its product during the same era in which Callaway redefined marketing and advertising. "MacGregor always had a great brand, but there was tremendous pressure to generate volume," said MacGregor president John McNulty . "Barry has changed our financial formula. We don't have to generate the revenues we did in the past. We have no aspirations to be the biggest golf company. We just want to be the best."

Will MacGregor's comeback succeed? Its attempt coincides with arrival into the golf market of Nike, whose ad campaigns will no doubt be enormously effective. Though the timing provides a challenge, MacGregor does have some good products. I've hit their V-Foil forged irons, the VIP Tourneys, and they're good. They're traditional-looking blades, which is what I like best about them. I'm even more enthused about their V-Cavity woods. I tested them on the company's range in Albany. I was flying the driver over a golf cart parked at 275 yards and trust me, I don't normally hit it anywhere close to that far. I also tried the 13-degree 3-woods, and blistered them nearly out to my usual driver length. Most impressive was that I was able to smoke the 3-wood right off the grass, without a tee, and it was long. And it didn't hurt last weekend when Jose Maria Olazabal, a MacGregor staff player, won the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines.

Does that mean MacGregor will make it? Who knows? Schneider, however, will win you over with his honest enthusiasm. "I think the industry is ripe for our strategy," he said. "How many $600 drivers can you buy and be told it's magical for your game and then, six months later, have that club be obsoleted? I think consumers want to be told the truth."

It'll be interesting to see whether the truth sells or the truth hurts.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Gary Van Sickle writes for the magazine's Golf Plus section and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment.

 

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