💰 Inside the Deal Shaping Golf’s Next Era

August, 1996 — Tiger Woods signed a $40 million Nike contract, redefining athlete branding forever.

Golf’s fastest-growing media company isn’t a TV network, a tour, or a legacy publisher. It’s a YouTube-born creator empire that spotted something the industry missed: the next generation of golfers doesn’t watch traditional broadcasts. They follow creators online. More than 70% of golfers under 35 now say they consume more golf on YouTube and TikTok than on TV, and Good Good Golf sits at the centre of that shift.

Founded by Matt Kendrick, Good Good has scaled from backyard challenges to a multi-vertical business with 2+ million subscribers, a $45 million raise, retail distribution in more than 800 Dick’s Sporting Goods stores and a PGA TOUR event debuting in 2026. Their audience is enormous and intensely loyal, generating roughly 25 to 35 million monthly views across the Good Good ecosystem and powering one of the most successful content-to-commerce models in modern sport.

Their secret is fan-led strategy. The Good Good x Callaway driver sold out twice because fans demanded it, and their Australian expansion followed the same blueprint. Nearly 5% of their global viewership comes from Australia, making the move not a gamble but a data-backed inevitability.

Now the empire is expanding again with Good Good Girls, a female-led creator group designed to meet the rapidly rising women’s segment of the game. With female participation climbing more than 25% in the last five years, the opportunity is obvious.

Good Good isn’t just redefining golf media. They’re building the blueprint for how the next generation discovers, plays and engages with the sport.

What started as a search for a better glove has become one of golf’s most genuine new success stories.

Its founder, Tyler Nguyen, now 26, works three jobs - a full-time role at Silicon Valley Bank, a Sunday shift in a pro shop and every other waking hour building a glove brand that has quietly become one of the most talked-about newcomer stories in golf. His journey carries the spirit of a classic entrepreneurial rise - a hands-on, heart-first climb that feels rare today, yet Tyler embodies it.

Tyler’s parents arrived in the U.S. as Vietnamese war refugees in the 1970s. Their grit - construction work, craft businesses, starting again from nothing, shaped him. “If I’m not passionate about what I’m selling, the drive isn’t there,” he says. That realisation came early, after experimenting with drop-shipping and later launching ForeGolfLinks as a clothing brand. It didn’t stick.

The idea found him behind the counter of his local course. Gloves were the second-most purchased product after balls. Consumable. High repeat rate. Crucially, a product he actually cared about. But when Tyler ordered the standard white-label gloves most start-ups settle for, they felt “like my mom’s gardening gloves.”

So he did the unthinkable: he booked a solo trip to Indonesia, the heartland of cabretta leather manufacturing. He walked factory floors, felt leather samples with his fingertips and worked with a family-owned tannery to recreate the feeling of the Titleist Players glove he grew up loving but with more durability. He pitched a Spider-Man analogy (“it should feel like Peter Parker’s black suit”) and the manufacturer understood instantly. That partnership still holds today.

The result is Cabsoft: a slightly thicker (0.50mm), second-skin cabretta glove that lasts longer than most competitors. It’s the kind of product born from obsession, not guesswork.

What changed everything, however, was Tyler stepping in front of the camera. The honesty. The transparency. The willingness to show his first terrible prototype. Then came the full-circle purpose: $2 from every glove goes to Youth On Course, the organisation that once helped him play for $5 as a junior.

When MyGolfSpy featured the brand, Tyler woke to a buzzing phone he thought was his alarm. It wasn’t. It was orders - dozens, then hundreds. ForeGolfLinks now sells 20–30 gloves a day, with batches of thousands regularly selling out.

Through it all, Tyler has stayed grounded in the same values that built the brand: quality, humility, transparency and a genuine love for the game.

“Golf gave me so much,” he says. “This is my way of giving back.”

ForeGolfLinks isn’t just a glove company.
It’s a vote for the kind of world golf could be - one built by people who care.

Shop the glove built with purpose - and built to last.

Patrick Mahomes is already the face of the NFL, a three-time Super Bowl champion, and one of the most marketable athletes on the planet. With his new multi-year extension with adidas, and the announcement that he’ll be launching his own signature adidas collection that includes a dedicated golf apparel and footwear line - Mahomes is making a move that feels bigger than a product drop.

It feels like a signal.
A signal that golf is entering a new era. One where the most influential athletes in the world aren’t just playing the sport - they’re building businesses inside it.

We’ve seen this playbook before.

Jordan did it with basketball.
Mahomes may be about to do it with golf.

The Jordan Playbook, Rewritten for the Fairways

Michael Jordan didn’t just sell sneakers - he reshaped an industry, turning athletic shoes into cultural currency and creating sport’s first true athlete-led mega-brand. Every company since has hunted for “the next Jordan.” Very few athletes even qualify for the conversation.

Mahomes does.

But what makes this moment fascinating is where adidas is positioning him.
They’re not trying to build their Jordan in basketball -
they’re starting with golf.

Because golf today isn’t just a sport.
It’s lifestyle. It’s media. It’s fashion. It’s business.
It’s booming.

Why Golf? Because That’s Where the Modern Consumer Is

A perfect storm is pushing golf into the cultural spotlight:

Against that backdrop, adidas aligning Mahomes with a new golf range makes perfect strategic sense. He’s not just an ambassador - he’s the kind of star who can reshape an entire category.

Is This the Start of an Athlete-Led Golf Boom?

Mahomes isn’t walking into an empty room. He’s joining a movement.

In the past three years:

Golf has become the sport where athletes expand their personal brands - not at the end of their careers, but right in the middle of them.

So the question becomes:
If Mahomes is adidas’ Jordan for this generation… who’s next?

A Benchmark Moment for Golf

Mahomes launching a golf line with adidas is more than a headline.
It signals that golf is entering its athlete-powered era - one where global superstars use the sport to build brands, shape culture, and unlock commercial value.

In 1985, Nike had no idea Jordan would become a $6B empire.
In 2025, adidas might be wondering whether they’ve just planted the first flag in theirs.

Most people think Q-School is only pressure-packed for the players. The truth? It’s every bit as intense for the caddies - and in some ways, even more. I’ve been around this game long enough to know one thing for sure: Q-School is one of the best places in golf to get hired.

You won’t find it on TV. You won’t hear it on the broadcast. Honestly, most fans don’t even know it’s happening.

You see it the minute you get to Mobile. Parking lot conversations. Coaches lurking. Players eyeing potential caddies like they’re scouting a fantasy draft. Half the time, you’re walking to the first tee and someone you’ve never met asks, “Hey, you working next season?”

Down here, introductions happen everywhere. Players size up potential loopers on the putting green. Caddies wander the range, chatting to coaches, agents, anyone who looks like they might need a bag. Mid-round “interviews” unfold in real time: a player asks where you’re from, how long you’ve been doing this, and next thing you know you’re talking through your work history while wrestling a yardage book in a crosswind.

It works both ways. A good week for a player might earn her status. A good week for a caddie might earn him a job. I’ve watched partnerships spark on a Thursday and turn into full careers.

I’ve watched guys show up with no plan, carry a bag for a stranger and leave with a career.

But if you want to break into this world?
Don’t wait for a phone call.

Get yourself to Q-School and stand in the parking lot.

Catch Drew on My Side of The Bag.

Las Vegas has secured the newest expansion franchise in the Grass League - the high-stakes, par-3 team golf competition that is rapidly emerging as one of the sport’s most commercially intriguing formats. The franchise, officially named the Las Vegas Action, was acquired for $1 million by The Sports Group Endeavors, marking a pivotal step in the league’s long-term expansion plan.

The ownership group reflects the Grass League’s strategy of blending sports pedigree with operational expertise. The Las Vegas Action will be led by:

The news lands as the league heads into its GL Championship on December 5–6, capping a season of rising viewership, broader media distribution, and surging franchise demand after a $2.75M funding round. The Grass League is also weighing Las Vegas home-course options, including the closed Las Vegas Golf Centre and Cloud 9 at Angel Park for its signature nighttime format.

With the capacity to grow to 24 franchises, future U.S. markets include Boston, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Austin, Houston, and Miami, with South Korea, Tokyo, and Mexico City under consideration internationally.

For Las Vegas, a city that has added major sports properties at unmatched speed - the acquisition underscores growing confidence in par-3 golf as a standalone, entertainment-driven asset in the modern sports economy.

For years, London and its commuter belt have dominated English golf - Surrey, Berkshire, Hertfordshire, the so-called Golden Triangle. New data from Top 100 Golf Courses shows the landscape is shifting faster than expected.

England’s South West is experiencing standout growth.

According to Top 100’s platform analytics, Devon (+41.8%), Cornwall (+34.2%), and Somerset (+36.6%) lead all English counties in growth - triple the rate of London’s traditional golf heartland. As a region, the South West surged 31.2%, easily outpacing the 17.0% growth recorded across the South East.

Is this a one-off spike? To me, it signals a behavioural and trend shift.

Top 100 Golf Courses is tracking 92,000 annual searches for South West courses, signalling a clear move toward destination golf over drive-time golf. Golfers are choosing coastlines over convenience; immersive, resort-style rounds over quick Friday loops near the office.

Yes, Surrey still dominates in absolute volume, capturing 16.5% of all English county traffic. The momentum? It’s all drifting west.

This momentum mirrors broader UK behaviour: golfers are prioritising scenery, availability and value - three factors that increasingly tilt the scales toward the South West over London.

For insights from Top 100 Golf Courses - head to their website.

Cape Cornwall Club is officially for sale - a 23-room boutique resort with spa, indoor pool and a breathtaking clifftop golf course overlooking the Atlantic. A once-in-a-lifetime chance to own a coastal estate in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty for £1.6m.

Tiger Woods all but confirmed what insiders have whispered for months: the PGA Tour is preparing for its most dramatic overhaul in decades and the clock is ticking toward 2027.

Speaking at the Hero World Challenge, Woods - now chair of the Future Competitions Committee - announced that the tour must “create the best product possible” for fans and players. Strip it back and it means: fewer events, bigger moments and a schedule that stops pretending it can compete with the NFL. Among the models on the table: a 20-event season, a start date tied to the Super Bowl, scrapping Hawaii, a two-tier system and deeper alignment with the DP World Tour.

Why now? New CEO Brian Rolapp is pushing scarcity. Private-equity partners want returns. With Saudi PIF dollars no longer guaranteed, the tour needs a structure that sells. Tiger says the financial upside could be “fantastic for everyone.”

However the process won’t be painless. “There are going to be some eggs that are spilled… and broken,” Woods admitted, as sponsors, media partners, and players jockey for position in the new hierarchy.

Still, Tiger’s motive is clear: “This is an opportunity to make an impact for future generations.”

The modern PGA Tour, as we know it, is nearing its back nine.

Golf doesn’t often give you the chance to play inside history. Next April, St Andrews will do exactly that.

The St Andrews Links Trust has confirmed that Old Course Reversed Week - the wildly popular clockwise version of the Old Course - is returning for 2026, offering golfers a rare opportunity to play the world’s most famous layout as it was first played in the 1400s.

For 362 days a year, the Old Course moves anticlockwise. For just three days, it doesn’t.

Demand is already sky-high.

When the event debuted in 2024, it went viral. The 2025 edition drew nearly 600 golfers, some travelling from as far as Indonesia just to walk the routing that shaped the foundations of modern golf. Now, in 2026, the Trust is bringing the experience back - opening applications for a 48-hour window from December 8 to December 10. Demand will be off the charts.

A Routing Straight Out of the 15th Century

Long before the Old Course became the anticlockwise icon we know, golfers played it in both directions. The 5,807-yard “Reversed” routing - a zig-zag from 1 to 17, 18 to 16 and beyond - reshapes every angle and bunker, leaving even regulars feeling like they’re seeing the Old Course for the first time. The special ticket-holder day returns April 18, with the course closing again on the 19th as tradition dictates.

How to Get One of the Golden Tee Times

Priced at £800. The Trust is offering several paths in but all of them competitive:

Laurie Watson, director of engagement at St Andrews Links Trust, summed it up perfectly:

In an era obsessed with tech, distance, and modernisation, the Reversed Week is a celebration of something deeper: heritage, quirk and the roots of the sport itself.

The Nedbank Golf Challenge returns to Sun City with its familiar mix of heat, altitude and precision golf - a demanding early-season marker of form on one of the DP World Tour’s toughest layouts.

📆 Date: 4-7 December 2025
📍 Location: Gary Player CC, Sun City, South Africa
⛳ Par / Yardage: Par 72 / 7,885 yards
💰 Prize Money: $6,000,000
🏆 Defending Champion: Johannes Veerman

Tournament Odds (Bet365)

Follow the tournament this week.

📖 Read: “Links From The Road” - a captivating collection of short stories and stunning golf photography from 100+ courses across the U.S., offering a rare, soul-stirring glimpse into the game’s most scenic and storied landscapes.

🎥 Watch: “Round Four Highlights“ - Catch all of the best shots and moments from Round 4 of the 2025 Australian PGA Championship, with David Puig, Min Woo Lee and Marc Leishman headlining the competition.

🎧 Listen: No Laying Up Podcast sits down with Justin Thomas to discuss all things 2025 Ryder Cup and the lessons learned from the defeat at Bethpage.

📊 Trending Stat: The average male club golfer swings the driver at 93 mph - 26% slower than the PGA Tour average.

Most doubles start with the belief you can pull off something you never practice.

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