"Rule 35" and Other Finds from the PGA Merchandise Show
Keith Frankland of the Woodridge Park District heads to Orlando every January to see what's hot in golf merchandise.

BY KEITH FRANKLAND

The PGA Merchandise Show represents pain. The Orlando Convention Center—where it's held every January—holds 1,505 exhibitors in 6,701,696 square feet of exhibit space (that's 43 ball fields end to end), and 53,500 golf industry professionals. Your job is to find the best deals for the products you sell at your course before your feet and back wear out.

They actually have vendors there who can work on your body aches with aspirin and therapeutic devices to help get through the days. There's even a page on show survival tips in the daily 70-page full-color magazine about the day's happenings. Aspirin, throat lozenges, and cushioned insoles are at the top of the list.

For the benefit of those who don't go through all this, here are some finds I discovered at the 2000 show.

Rule 35
My theory of golf has changed over the years (out of necessity to explain my erratic play). My longest held belief is that every golf course is designed to play a specific brand of golf balls. That's why there are so many different kinds of golf balls. The kind of ball played can change depending on the weather, how short the grass is cut, or whether I had been out the night before.

As a result, I have to carry many different kinds of balls in my bag. If I start with Titleist and find I'm not playing well, I change to a Top-Flite. From there I might go a to a Wilson, and at times I find I might not have the right ball in my bag so I will have to come back and try that course again with other varieties. Any excuse will work for me. I can rationalize anything.

Well, Callaway apparently heard my theory and spent $170,000,000 and three years in research to disprove it.

While I was worrying about whether to buy high-spin, distance, soft-feel, accuracy, titanium core, wound core, liquid core, more feel (all in either a 90 or 100 compression), Callaway says you shouldn't have to concern yourself with that many choices. The sales rep I spoke with said they were invoking "Rule 35" of golf.

Simply put, Rule 35 means "enjoy the game." They took the thinking out of golf ball selection and said golf

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After you've walked a mile at this show, you know the value of a good pair of shoes.

is becoming too complicated. They are marketing the new Callaway Rule 35 golf balls in either "Firmfeel" or "Softfeel." No thinking necessary past that.

There are no compression choices, no core choices, no issues on durability. Just go out and hit the ball and enjoy the game. Don't worry about the technical mumbo jumbo.

Now, mind you, the sales rep didn't give me any to try. If he had, I would have felt the difference in my aerodynamically crafted, peripheral weighted, combo graphite/titanium, multifaceted irons.

This is a unique marketing campaign. Sort of like the KISS theory, "Keep It Short and Simple," and I'm sure it will help the 80 percent who fit that category. For me, it means two more balls to carry in my bag.

3-D Score Cards
Plain old score cards with squares to put your scores in aren't good enough any more. A company called the HoleView has created a new three-dimensional card that gives the golfer a view of the hole from a helicopter perspective. This allows us to see the dangers lurking in front of us so we can avoid them.

Yeah, right. Like we can actually consistently hit our ball where we're aiming. Instead, give me a golf ball with a homing device for when I bury it in the woods 50 yards off target.

The Internet Effect
The Internet and computers have had such a tremendous impact on the world today, and its implications for the golf world are just as dramatic. Vendors of electronic media increased from 15 to 55 at this year's show.

A remarkable new company called e2e Golf Solutions has put together an astounding program to streamline course operations. Besides golf shop management software, it brings wholesale golf merchandising online and puts tee time scheduling in the consumer's home. You no longer need to call the golf shop for a tee time. Just log on and do it yourself. This is the "Golf Shop of the Future."

Kids, Kids, Kids
The golf game for kids has taken a explosive turn. The golf hardware industry has matched the PGA's quest to heighten awareness and interest in golf nationwide including this age bracket. At the show I saw kid's golf clubs and pint-size bags in abundance, all covered in Snoopy and other cartoon characters.

Golf courses with shorter holes and fewer hazards are being developed specifically as teaching courses for younger children. Golf instructional programs aimed at disadvantaged youth were available in numbers. This rapid spread of interest by kids has been promoted and sustained by something they called the "Tiger Sensation." I don't understand the relationship between cats and golf but somewhere there must be one.

Walk a Mile in These Shoes
After you've walked a mile at this show, you know the value of a good pair of shoes. Florsheim introduced the next in their series of shoes with magnets in the soles. The outlawing of hard spikes on most courses has provided an opportunity for creativity in sole design. The new soles on Florsheim Magnaforce shoes have a molded groove and tread design for traction and stability while providing a cushioned comfort that felt sooooo good, I acquired a pair and wore them the rest of the day. If your feet ever hurt after a round of golf, try this shoe.

The show held countless more innovations, but I'm out of space. I'm going to take my new "Jellyhead" tees which are supposed to give me nine extra yards per drive and see if I can get a tee time on one of those kid's courses. 

KEITH FRANKLAND
is the director of the Woodridge Park District, which manages the Village Greens Golf Course in Woodridge. His handicap will vary between 15 and 20 depending upon who where he's playing. Frankland has attended the PGA Show every January for the past five years.

36* Illinois Parks and Recreation* March/April 2000