Partnering with industry brands

Golf clubs and equipment brands are increasingly forming partnerships with each other so that golfers can now be offered exceptional custom fitting experiences when they visit the club.

Several golf clubs have partnered with industry brands to offer outstanding custom fitting sessions in the last few months, in a bid to capitalise on the participation boom.

For example, this summer the American Golf store at Liverpool Golf Centre reopened following a £400,000 investment.

The high tech retail space boasts a bespoke short game area on a new additional floor with a flat putting green to deliver world-class fittings, as well as a contoured putting area that replicates authentic scenarios golfers experience on an actual course, meaning visitors can fully test out their equipment to be on top of their game before heading onto the range.

Players can take advantage of free custom fit sessions in the upgraded custom fitting studio, complete with launch monitor technology with ultra-high-speed cameras that measure each customer’s swing to the sub-millimetre.

Also available are putter and ball fittings, ‘new starter experiences’, equipment trade-ins and repairs and club checks.

Additional golf apparel and equipment brands including Golfino, Galvin Green, as well as Tour Edge and Honma are now stocked, alongside the existing comprehensive range.

Adam Mahar, owner, Liverpool Golf Centre, added: “As Liverpool’s leading golf centre and driving range, our constantly expanding facilities are perfect for pros, beginners and families alike. The exciting additions to the new store, such as the state-of-the-art custom fit service and newly-listed fashion brands, will strengthen our offering even further – we’re excited to see our customers experiencing it for themselves.”

Gary Favell, CEO, American Golf says: “Liverpool Golf Centre is very popular, attracting social players, pros and even local celebrities. We’re really pleased to have revamped our retail offering, providing everything for all types of golfer so they can improve and enjoy their game.”

Not too far away, Hartford Golf Club in Cheshire has announced the opening of its new Centre of Excellence in partnership with Srixon, which it describes as offering the most comprehensive Srixon, Cleveland Golf and XXIO custom fitting experience in the country.

“We are thrilled to welcome Srixon Sports Europe to Hartford Golf Club and work in partnership with them on the launch of such a fantastic initiative,” said Tim Barnes, owner of Hartford Golf Club. “The Centre of Excellence will not only allow our members to receive the best fitting experience in the game, it will undoubtedly attract more people to the club seeking to take advantage of the best custom fitting experience in the region. We are proud to be the first Centre of Excellence to open in the UK and look forward to harnessing the opportunities a facility like this will naturally bring to our business.”

Joe Miller, Srixon Sports Europe’s European product manager commented: “The Centre of Excellence at Hartford Golf Club is truly one of a kind and its launch will allow us to get closer to the end consumer, as well as provide our retailer partners with a facility that they can bring their customers to receive the ultimate fitting experience. In our fitting room we have 38 wood, iron and wedge heads complimented by 210 wood, iron and wedge shafts delivering thousands of combinations to accommodate every type of golfer. It really is an Aladdin’s cave of golf components and technology which anyone can utilise to take their game to the next level with the best equipment on the market, fitted by specially trained PGA professionals.”

It also sees the launch of Cleveland Golf’s 3D Augmented Reality wedge fitting experience, pioneering a short game training experience never seen before. The system, which includes short game tips from former European Tour professional, Christian Cévaër, gives players 24/7 access to short game tips in augmented reality.

Srixon says two more facilities will open later in the year with one in the south of England and the other in Paris. It then plans to open more in the UK and Europe in 2022.

And SIK Golf is making its putting technology available on a nationwide scale after the opening of its national performance centre at Silvermere Golf and Leisure in Surrey.

The purpose-built venue features the newly installed Quintic Ball Roll putting analysis system and a SIK fitting component bag. Unique in the golf industry and found at each SIK fitting centre, the component bag holds each style of putter head, a selection of shafts, hosels and components needed to go through the 138 different options involved in the fitting process.

Terry Sims, managing director at Silvermere, said: “We are delighted to partner with YUMAX Golf (UK distributors of SIK Golf putters) in bringing SIK putters to our customer base in a premium style and service. Watching Bryson Dechambeau with his unique style, endorsing and adding credibility to the brand in both product innovation and style makes it a great brand to be involved with.

“Adding market-leading putter-analysis software to our service here will not only give the golfer a great fitting experience, but it will send them away with a club that they know could not be more suited to their individual game.”