July 14, 2009
I’m probably the last person who needs to be told sporting events today are about WAY more than what’s happening on the field.
Tiger Woods at Congressional Golf Course in Bethesda, Md.I never thought I would see this phrase in an article about Tiger Woods and other top golfers: “...he will undoubtedly wear white pants and a blue shirt with a white piping stripe, according to the clothing script provided to him...”
Ugh. I expect this from tennis. But golf? It’s pants and a polo, for crying out loud!
Fashion’s not my thing — but can I appreciate marketers seizing an opportunity and milking it for all it’s worth? Absolutely. And apparently, that is what’s going on with the PGA Tour and golfers Woods, Sergio Garcia, Lucas Glover and Kenny Perry.
With these guys on television for hours, their apparel sponsors have started telling them what to wear and coordinating the timing with new clothing releases in their retail stores.
“What Woods wears each day at every major championship this year has been scripted for him by his sponsor Nike since last summer,” wrote the New York Times. “To ensure that retailers have a new design or color modeled by Woods on their shelves this weekend, Nike had its first meetings about Woods’s 2009 British Open wardrobe 17 months ago.”
Click here to access rest of post from "On the Record."