Cover Story – 2025 PGA Show
The area near the convention center was clean and nice, although it was a little tourist-trappy. There are multiple bars and restaurants along International Drive, offering any number of places to dine and drink. There is also Icon Park, which features an observation wheel. For some reason, there is a business that offers helicopter tours of Orlando, which I found to be a little odd … but I guess maybe people want to do a fly-over of Disney? Doesn’t seem like a tour that would be very exciting, but who knows?
Everywhere you look, you see people on foot with their PGA Show lanyards and badges, heading to and from the show. Every sidewalk along International Drive is flooded with people. It’s a neat scene. When I say the area is flooded with people, I mean a LOT of people. There were an estimated 33,000 attendees, including industry professionals and representatives from almost 100 countries. According to the PGA of America, this was the largest show in 15 years. Of those 33,000, there were over 1,000 media members, including members of NBC and The Golf Channel, which broadcast live from the show each day.
The whole thing is not only huge, but it’s a spectacle. On Wednesday morning, around 7:45 (doors officially opened at 8:30), there was a cover band playing in the main lobby near the entrance to the show, and there was even an artist speed painting a great golf-themed piece of artwork to watch as you prepared to head in. Around 8:00, ESPN’s Michael Collins took the stage as the emcee, introducing executives from the PGA of America, including new CEO Derek Sprague, who had some comments and then officially opened the show. There is a lot of pomp and circumstance, and there is a distinct buzz leading up to the start of the show.
At first sight, the number of booths is simply overwhelming. While it was basically what I was expecting, the sheer size of the exhibit hall is staggering, and knowing I would only be there for about eight hours, I hit the ground running.
The Good
The PGA Show isn’t just for scoping out new merch and trying the latest equipment, although you could spend the whole week doing that, should you choose. For me, I enjoyed that aspect of the show, but I also really enjoyed connecting with friends in the industry and meeting new people. Sure, there are executives from the PGA of America, bigwigs from almost every country club in the United States, CEOs and executives from every major manufacturer on Earth, but for me, I really enjoyed talking to the little guys. The startup business owners who developed their own products with sweat and capital. I met lots of those types who are simply trying to get their ideas off the ground, and some of the stories were great to hear. Meeting new folks is a big part of the whole adventure, but connecting with friends I have met over the last 10 years was great, too. I saw everyone from City of Arlington Golf, a few guys from Invited Clubs and Arcis, many fellow writers who I have been on press trips with, and I even caught up with an old friend who moved to St. Louis a decade ago and wound up in the golf industry up there.
One thing that becomes apparent very quickly at the PGA Show is the fact that golf is truly an international game. In just the first few minutes I was there, I heard people speaking Japanese, German, along with accents from Australia, the U.K. and Ireland. You will meet people from all over the world, and it’s pretty cool we all share the same passion for the game.
The PGA Show runs like a Swiss Watch. There are shuttles that run every 15 minutes and make a continuous loop around to local hotels and bus stops. You are never more than a couple minutes away from catching one, should you need to go back to your hotel or are looking to get to the convention center. Everything is easy to find, and since there is so much to see, each badge has a unique QR code that can be scanned. At the end of the day, you get an email detailing all the companies who scanned your badge and all the companies you scanned. It keeps things very organized and makes it easy to reach out to those you want to work on doing business with. It’s genius.
Speaking of the Orange County Convention Center, it is, without question, the largest I have ever seen. It offers 7,000,000 sq. ft. of total space and 2,100,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space. So, yeah, it’s MASSIVE. Despite that, there is plenty of signage and everything is very well organized, so it is easy to find your way around.
As far as products go, there were a few that I found very intriguing. Sure, every manufacturer is on hand, and you can demo as much as you please. But I was only at the show for a little over 24 hours, so I didn’t have much time to demo new products. Mainly, it was a quick look and then move on. Of the new major brand equipment, I found the new Srixon irons, the new Callaway drivers and some of the Titleist gear to be most interesting.
As I mentioned, the startup companies can be a goldmine for interesting additions to the golf equipment landscape. Of the new products I saw, there were a couple that stood out. I really enjoyed the Caddy Bar. This is a bracket system that attaches to your golf cart just above the dashboard and holds any number of accessories. You can have dual coolers, if you choose, a cooler and additional storage, a cooler and mobile device holder etc. For those who own their own cart, it would be perfect, and it would even be practical to attach to your cart before you play your local daily fee course.
This next one is very simple, but also genius. The Swing Scribe is a handy notebook that allows players to write down course notes, swing thoughts, yardages and other strategic thoughts when you play. If you play the same course quite a bit, having these thoughts organized could be a game-changer.
The Cadero golf grips are another product I found interesting. These grips originated in Tokyo by a company that also manufactured car tires. The grips are made with anti-slip materials, and incorporate a unique Pentagon Groove design that delivers exceptional feel and traction, as well as a multi-layer construction that promotes durability. They seem like they would be perfect for the hot Texas summers.
Speaking of those hot summers, there are two more products that would also fall into the category of surviving Texas during the triple-digit heat. One, called Cool Spray, is a menthol-based body spray that is supposed to offer an instant cooling sensation. I didn’t try it, because it was actually pretty chilly in Orlando the week of the show. I plan to buy some and give it a whirl once it warms up. I will report back if it’s worthy. The other item, one that I found was one of the top items I demoed while at the convention center, is the Chalkless Grip Enhancer. I sweat when I play, and during the summer, I sweat A LOT. I often have to rotate gloves every couple of holes to ensure I can even grip the club. Chalkless is a powder that you rub into your hands that enhances your grip by more than 50 percent. I tried their demo at the show, and it was incredible. I will definitely be buying some when the weather warms up.
Some of the major manufacturers have massive presences at the Show. Titleist, Callaway, Foot Joy, Cobra and TaylorMade have to spend hundreds of thousands on their setups, with huge signage, lots of representatives to answer questions, and the best new equipment. It is very interesting to see, and it can also be very overwhelming.
I did see quite a few celebrities while I was there. Derek Jeter was there promoting his clothing brand Greatness Wins, and there were a lot of professional players roaming around. I personally saw Jim Furyk, Rich Beem and Matt Fitzpatrick. And, at one point, I saw rapper Ja Rule, who is an investor in the Atlanta team for the TGL. Long Drive phenom Kyle Berkshire was also there, along with the current world number one-ranked WLD competitor, Colton Casto.
The Bad
One of the main reasons I went to this year’s show was to attend their Demo Day, which is the Tuesday before the show begins (the show itself runs Wednesday-Friday). Unfortunately, the weather was cold and rainy both Tuesday and Wednesday while I was in town. When I arrived, I went to collect my credential and immediately jumped on a shuttle to Orange County National, the venue for Demo Day. It took around 35 minutes to get there, but we did drive right through the heart of Disney World, so I got to see that. But once I arrived, I was a little disappointed in the turnout. Now, it was misty, overcast and the venue was muddy from the rains, so I am sure that was a major factor, but it did seem a little “meh.” Orange County National’s range is super cool, though, as it is a giant 500-yard circumference circle, meaning people are demoing clubs from all sides. I made a loop around, but I wasn’t looking to beat balls all afternoon and the weather was a mess, so it was a quick visit for me. I would definitely like to go back when the weather is nice, but this year was a wash. Also, most manufacturer tents were relatively small. I expected a bigger presence from Titleist, and TaylorMade wasn’t even there. Which I found to be odd.
If you have sensory issues or get claustrophobic, the PGA Show can be a lot. As I mentioned, I was one of the first through the doors when the show opened Wednesday morning, so the first couple hours were relatively tame. But by around noon, there were so many people, even walking around became a challenge. No matter what you do, you feel like Barry Sanders juking and spinning to avoid people. But no matter how light on your feet you are, you are still going to bump into plenty as you try to navigate your way around. At the end of the day, I felt like I had been in a street fight.
I was a little surprised at how few travel companies were there. As a writer, I am always angling to try to book my next golf adventure, but I was sad to see there weren’t a lot of resorts there to make contact with.
Being an industry show, there are a lot of booths that offer things for country clubs and golf courses. For example, tee markers, range equipment, point-of-sale technologies, even course weather systems and robotic range pickers. Now, I wouldn’t necessarily call this “bad” per se, but that meant there was a whole section I had to navigate that really wasn’t in my wheelhouse.
Again, labeling this as “bad” is probably not right, but there are a lot of products, especially in the new product section, that I would be shocked to see survive. I hate to say that, and I’m not going to name names, because oftentimes these people have a lot invested in their product; marketing and attending the PGA Show isn’t cheap. I would never wish failure on anyone (except the Philadelphia Eagles) but I can’t help but wonder what some of these people are thinking.
The Interesting
For the first time ever, the PGA Show offered credentials to content creators and influencers. There was a special section to sign up just for them. There were 200 creators and influencers from 22 countries there. It is funny the disconnect between the older generation of attendees and the younger generation in attendance. For example, our President, Craig Rosengarden, was wandering by one booth and heard someone say Rory McIlroy was just there. Craig, head on a swivel, began scanning the crowd for the four-time major champ. Actually, Rory McIlroy was not in attendance, it was Rory BlakIlroy, an African American social media sensation who boasts over 40,000 followers on Instagram. I couldn’t help but giggle seeing the confusion on Craig’s face. Over the course of just a couple of days, I saw several of these creators on site, from Rory BlakIlroy to the DOD King, a creator who is famous for hitting driver off the deck in his videos. I even saw where the brains behind Zire Golf were there, although I’m not exactly sure who runs that account. Point being, golf YouTubers, Instagram creators and TikTok stars are becoming very prominent in the industry.
The show isn’t just about connecting with those in the industry. It’s also a huge party. Bars and restaurants are packed in the evenings, as people cut loose with co-workers and clients. I regrettably didn’t get to stick around for this, but after the show closed Thursday evening there was a concert at the convention center featuring DJ Spencer Ludwig, Brian Vander Ark from The Verve Pipe, and Third Eye Blind. I love Third Eye Blind and would’ve loved to stick around for that. I may never forgive Craig for flying me home early.
Overall, the PGA Show is a heck of a good time. I was able to attend a couple pre-parties the night before the show started, have a few drinks and catch up with some great colleagues. That part alone was worth the trip. I would love to go try the Demo Day again with better weather, and the show itself, although it’s a lot like drinking from a firehose, walking the almost 10 miles of aisles in the convention center was a blast. I can’t wait to go back. Hopefully this time, it will be for more than 26 hours.