Harry Arnett leaving Callaway

[radiman]

You realize a publicly traded company has one job, that’s to make the shareholders money.


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Yes, I'm very familiar with capitalism and the concept of making shareholders money. But, as a golfer who likes the innovation and direction the company had been going, I can be a little concerned with the idea that they are going to monetize the company and potentially sell it off to make a buck. Don't care about the shareholders dividends as much as wanting them to remain innovative. Looking at this from a golf perspective.

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[mpeterson]

That’s absolutely true. Doesn’t mean it might not suck for golfers though sadly.

Or, potentially, long-term for the company.

 

[McLovin]

Or, potentially, long-term for the company.

i know this is all hypothetical, but let's say we do get a chop-job and the company we have come to know and love changes in a way that many of us deem to be worse. who will fill that void? callaway's lifestyle brand mentality is, to me, unrivaled by anyone else. no one is as cool. no one is as innovative. no one is as eager to connect with the everyday golfer. i personally see that as a huge loss if - and it's a big IF - the fears are realized.

 

[DG_1234]

You realize a publicly traded company has one job, that’s to make the shareholders money.


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Yes and no. It's usually a balancing act between generating near term revenues/profits and investing for the future health of the company.

 

[erock9174]

callaway's lifestyle brand mentality is, to me, unrivaled by anyone else. no one is as cool.

Interesting how brand image can differ from one person to the next.

The only people around my parts that I see sporting Cally gear are the old geezers at the driving range beating balls every day.

I am definitely more in tune with Cally than the avg Joe golfer given I lurk on forums and whatnot, and despite all their online and social media efforts I still feel they are an old man's brand.
While he is one of my favorite golfers, I think also having Phil as your most high profile golfer gives the old man image as well.

 

[Canadan]

I am most excited to see what his next move is -- Probably helps fill in the blanks on why the departure from what has become an absolute machine at Callaway.

 

[tomcat]

.....and despite all their online and social media efforts I still feel they are an old man's brand.

Of course, perception is subjective to each person. If you follow their social feeds and online marketing, with all of the cutting edge advances in their equipment recently, what about this screams "old man" to you? Is it primarily because of the lack of locals using their gear?

 

[DataDude]

You realize a publicly traded company has one job, that’s to make the shareholders money.


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We all realize that, but you can also do a lot to maximize short term shareholder gain that diminishes the future of the company. Oftentimes activist investors swoop in, make a quick buck by "cleaning" up the balance sheet and income statements, then sell their stake for a profit and leave the company in a mess.

 

[McLovin]

Interesting how brand image can differ from one person to the next.

The only people around my parts that I see sporting Cally gear are the old geezers at the driving range beating balls every day.

I am definitely more in tune with Cally than the avg Joe golfer given I lurk on forums and whatnot, and despite all their online and social media efforts I still feel they are an old man's brand.
While he is one of my favorite golfers, I think also having Phil as your most high profile golfer gives the old man image as well.

around me, i probably see callaway more than anything else. that could be my own bias, so i'll try to pay closer attention going forward.

i can't tell you how to perceive anything, but that is an odd take on calling callaway an old man's brand. their social media presence, and the type of celebrity they associate with would tell a much different story.

 

[DataDude]

Interesting how brand image can differ from one person to the next.

The only people around my parts that I see sporting Cally gear are the old geezers at the driving range beating balls every day.

I am definitely more in tune with Cally than the avg Joe golfer given I lurk on forums and whatnot, and despite all their online and social media efforts I still feel they are an old man's brand.
While he is one of my favorite golfers, I think also having Phil as your most high profile golfer gives the old man image as well.

Callaway as "old man" gear? Are you talking equipment?

 

[DG_1234]

Interesting how brand image can differ from one person to the next.

The only people around my parts that I see sporting Cally gear are the old geezers at the driving range beating balls every day.

I am definitely more in tune with Cally than the avg Joe golfer given I lurk on forums and whatnot, and despite all their online and social media efforts I still feel they are an old man's brand.
While he is one of my favorite golfers, I think also having Phil as your most high profile golfer gives the old man image as well.

I think Callaway's "image" was born about 30 years ago, when the company's products became known as the golf industry's most forgiving and user friendly. And this was at a time when "forgiving clubs" had a bit of a stigma. But company founder Ely Callaway recognized 99% of the world's players were hackers, and he wanted to provide the large head metal woods and large head irons that might help them get more enjoyment from the game.

 

[Greg Kulbick]

This is the first I've ever heard of Callaway referred to as old man's gear.

 

[billyh]

I am most excited to see what his next move is -- Probably helps fill in the blanks on why the departure from what has become an absolute machine at Callaway.

I’m interested in where he goes as well as who he takes with him.

 

[fupresti]

This is the first I've ever heard of Callaway referred to as old man's gear.

That’s because someone has an axe to grind.

 

[erock9174]

That’s because someone has an axe to grind.

Assuming you are referring to me and my comments above.
Was that really needed?

I simply stated that when I think of Callaway the first thing that comes to mind is older folk. It never fails on the range and course every time I see 60-75 yrs old guy, he has his new shiny Steelhead or XR irons.

My comments are no different than when I see young high school/college golfer dude, about 6'2" and 140 lbs with their Titleist equipment shooting at or better than par or loud obnoxious guy who thinks they are better than they are with their latest TM driver shooting a 105 and playing from the other fairway.

Heck I game a Callaway wedge and just ordered a Flash (for the 2nd time off of Globals U try it program) to test.
No axe to grind here. It was simply my observation around where I live. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion or viewpoint. It's the same thing as a car. I drive a Honda Accord Sport. To some this is about as boring as it gets in terms of car choice. For me its matter of reliability + a mix of decent looks.

 

[mpeterson]

Assuming you are referring to me and my comments above.
Was that really needed?

I simply stated that when I think of Callaway the first thing that comes to mind is older folk. It never fails on the range and course every time I see 60-75 yrs old guy, he has his new shiny Steelhead or XR irons.

My comments are no different than when I see young high school/college golfer dude, about 6'2" and 140 lbs with their Titleist equipment shooting at or better than par or loud obnoxious guy who thinks they are better than they are with their latest TM driver shooting a 105 and playing from the other fairway.

Heck I game a Callaway wedge and just ordered a Flash (for the 2nd time off of Globals U try it program) to test.
No axe to grind here. It was simply my observation around where I live. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion or viewpoint. It's the same thing as a car. I drive a Honda Accord Sport. To some this is about as boring as it gets in terms of car choice. For me its matter of reliability + a mix of decent looks.

I think historically, I'd agree that's how it's been around me. I've seen more Callaway stuff in younger folks bags as of late (even taking THPers, etc out of the equation), so I do think the perception is changing/has changed. See a lot more Callaway pro shops around here as well.

 

[McLovin]

Assuming you are referring to me and my comments above.
Was that really needed?

I simply stated that when I think of Callaway the first thing that comes to mind is older folk. It never fails on the range and course every time I see 60-75 yrs old guy, he has his new shiny Steelhead or XR irons.

My comments are no different than when I see young high school/college golfer dude, about 6'2" and 140 lbs with their Titleist equipment shooting at or better than par or loud obnoxious guy who thinks they are better than they are with their latest TM driver shooting a 105 and playing from the other fairway.

Heck I game a Callaway wedge and just ordered a Flash (for the 2nd time off of Globals U try it program) to test.
No axe to grind here. It was simply my observation around where I live. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion or viewpoint. It's the same thing as a car. I drive a Honda Accord Sport. To some this is about as boring as it gets in terms of car choice. For me its matter of reliability + a mix of decent looks.

i think you're spot on with everything here, except the callaway thing haha

granted, most of the older guys i play with do all have callaway clubs. i wonder if callaway had a donut effect. maybe a few generations ago when they came out with the original big bertha and other innovative technology, the guys who are in their 60s and 70s now were in their 30s and 40s then, in prime golf peak in their life cycle. but then succeeding generations succumbed to the tiger influence and went nike, or the tm craze. and now we have a re-branded callaway speaking to those of us in our 30s and 40s again.

 

[erock9174]

i think you're spot on with everything here, except the callaway thing haha

granted, most of the older guys i play with do all have callaway clubs.

touche'

You bring up a valid point about the old Bertha name effect.

 

[myspinonit]

Assuming you are referring to me and my comments above.
Was that really needed?

I simply stated that when I think of Callaway the first thing that comes to mind is older folk. It never fails on the range and course every time I see 60-75 yrs old guy, he has his new shiny Steelhead or XR irons.

My comments are no different than when I see young high school/college golfer dude, about 6'2" and 140 lbs with their Titleist equipment shooting at or better than par or loud obnoxious guy who thinks they are better than they are with their latest TM driver shooting a 105 and playing from the other fairway.

Heck I game a Callaway wedge and just ordered a Flash (for the 2nd time off of Globals U try it program) to test.
No axe to grind here. It was simply my observation around where I live. I don't expect everyone to have the same opinion or viewpoint. It's the same thing as a car. I drive a Honda Accord Sport. To some this is about as boring as it gets in terms of car choice. For me its matter of reliability + a mix of decent looks.

Yes.

I expect a fair number of those same seniors may also be utilizing Callaway Preowned which is a great bang for your buck option for the average (common) consumer that isn't all geeked out on specs, or having the newest and greatest. I've used CPO several times myself on "as new" product and even with shipping to Canada and a 30 percent exchange rate I saved dough over the big-box retailer here for almost current models. More $ savings sending it to a cross-border PO box delivery depot. Plus, one is more likely to get other shaft options on CPO than easily available here in Canada, certainly for non-current models or without a special order.

One more thought- and I'm 68 years young- the Callaway shafts in my view have generally played softer than one might expect from stated flex on the shaft . They're not alone in that of course, and I realize there often now are several other shaft options offered by Callaway. So perhaps a lot of those seniors are keeping egos intact and are more open to using their credit card to buy and and play Callaway labelled stock "regular" "senior" etc. shafts that are a better fit for them. (Though they haven't been a good fit for this senior in several tries the past few years.)

 

[JB]

i think you're spot on with everything here, except the callaway thing haha

granted, most of the older guys i play with do all have callaway clubs. i wonder if callaway had a donut effect. maybe a few generations ago when they came out with the original big bertha and other innovative technology, the guys who are in their 60s and 70s now were in their 30s and 40s then, in prime golf peak in their life cycle. but then succeeding generations succumbed to the tiger influence and went nike, or the tm craze. and now we have a re-branded callaway speaking to those of us in our 30s and 40s again.

Another area that is often overlooked is if a brand owns a quarter of the golf market of all hard goods sold, odds are the largest segment of golfers, which is older golfers, will be part of that user base.
Demographics show that they are one of the youngest brands in terms of overall use though. That goes hand in hand with their social media.

 

[HarryArnettCG]

I had coffee with Rhiona Sullivan (many of you know her. She and I used to work together at Callaway) this morning and as we were chatting, she told me how nice the THP thread was about my departure from Callaway. She told me she had heard about the thread from her mom, who lurks after meeting so many THP people at the Granddaddy years ago. Is that the most Callaway-THP thing ever? So she sent me the link and I decided to check it out.

First of all, thank you all for the kindness and well wishes. It's no secret you all have a special place in my heart as well as in all of the hearts of our marketing group.

For those of you speculating why I'm leaving, the truth isn't nearly as newsworthy as some have said. No, I'm not going to another golf company. I already had a pretty important job at the best golf company in the industry. No, I was not asked to leave by investors (our business has essentially doubled since I've been CMO, our brand rating shows we are on the top of the industry after being a distant fourth or fifth when I started at Callaway, and our market shares continue to grow in virtually every category. So any investor asking me to leave is kind of silly, to be perfectly honest).

It has been an incredible run at Callaway. I have been fortunate to have worked under the leadership, mentorship, and personal friendship of the very best CEO in golf, Chip Brewer. He is also, more importantly, an incredible human being. I have also had the fortune of working side by side with some of the best humans on the planet--people who are not only incredibly dedicated, passionate, and talented, but care as much about others as they do themselves. That has made the last 7 years not only professionally rewarding, but more importantly, personally fulfilling.

I haven't said this publicly, but two years I was diagnosed with a fairly serious, genetic medical condition (thanks, Dad!). Over the last 24+ months I have struggled to get it under control and get back to feeling 100%. I am now. Better than ever, actually. And that really had me start thinking about what I really wanted to dedicate my life doing for as long as I'm vertical.

In short, I really just started to feel that God put me on this planet for something different. Something else. And though Ive had a blast and loved what I have been doing, I knew deep down I would regret not trying to align my talents, passion, ambition, and purpose more fully in a much more integrated way.

So that's why I decided to leave. I'm not running from anything or moving away from Callaway. I'm going towards something. Something that ultimately will be more important to my becoming the best version of myself and to reach my full potential. Even as I get close to..ahem..50, I know the journey of personal development is the most important journey of all. I'm not trying to be intentionally vague, but the concreteness of what that is has changed significantly even over the past few months. And changed in such magnificently wonderful ways I almost cant believe its happening to me. And I can't wait to share once it's finalized. But it's something on my own, with people I love, doing work I love. And it's not golf related (I will become a golf civilian, starting on 9/1, so maybe I need to become a member of the forum!).

One thing you all have right is that remaining at Callaway is an incredible group of people dedicated to doing their jobs well and continuing to make golf fun and exciting for golfers everywhere. To that end, I know with certainty that the best for Callaway is in front of it, just like I know the best for me is most certainly yet to come.

Thank you all for the incredible support and friendship over the past 7 years. You all know JB and I are good friends. He's got a massive heart and always tries to do what's best for the people on this site. That also won't change and I'm looking forward to seeing you all somewhere down the line, either in person or on the internet. No, that's not weird!

 

[mancest]

I had coffee with Rhiona Sullivan (many of you know her. She and I used to work together at Callaway) this morning and as we were chatting, she told me how nice the THP thread was about my departure from Callaway. She told me she had heard about the thread from her mom, who lurks after meeting so many THP people at the Granddaddy years ago. Is that the most Callaway-THP thing ever? So she sent me the link and I decided to check it out.

First of all, thank you all for the kindness and well wishes. It's no secret you all have a special place in my heart as well as in all of the hearts of our marketing group.

For those of you speculating why I'm leaving, the truth isn't nearly as newsworthy as some have said. No, I'm not going to another golf company. I already had a pretty important job at the best golf company in the industry. No, I was not asked to leave by investors (our business has essentially doubled since I've been CMO, our brand rating shows we are on the top of the industry after being a distant fourth or fifth when I started at Callaway, and our market shares continue to grow in virtually every category. So any investor asking me to leave is kind of silly, to be perfectly honest).

It has been an incredible run at Callaway. I have been fortunate to have worked under the leadership, mentorship, and personal friendship of the very best CEO in golf, Chip Brewer. He is also, more importantly, an incredible human being. I have also had the fortune of working side by side with some of the best humans on the planet--people who are not only incredibly dedicated, passionate, and talented, but care as much about others as they do themselves. That has made the last 7 years not only professionally rewarding, but more importantly, personally fulfilling.

I haven't said this publicly, but two years I was diagnosed with a fairly serious, genetic medical condition (thanks, Dad!). Over the last 24+ months I have struggled to get it under control and get back to feeling 100%. I am now. Better than ever, actually. And that really had me start thinking about what I really wanted to dedicate my life doing for as long as I'm vertical.

In short, I really just started to feel that God put me on this planet for something different. Something else. And though Ive had a blast and loved what I have been doing, I knew deep down I would regret not trying to align my talents, passion, ambition, and purpose more fully in a much more integrated way.

So that's why I decided to leave. I'm not running from anything or moving away from Callaway. I'm going towards something. Something that ultimately will be more important to my becoming the best version of myself and to reach my full potential. Even as I get close to..ahem..50, I know the journey of personal development is the most important journey of all. I'm not trying to be intentionally vague, but the concreteness of what that is has changed significantly even over the past few months. And changed in such magnificently wonderful ways I almost cant believe its happening to me. And I can't wait to share once it's finalized. But it's something on my own, with people I love, doing work I love. And it's not golf related (I will become a golf civilian, starting on 9/1, so maybe I need to become a member of the forum!).

One thing you all have right is that remaining at Callaway is an incredible group of people dedicated to doing their jobs well and continuing to make golf fun and exciting for golfers everywhere. To that end, I know with certainty that the best for Callaway is in front of it, just like I know the best for me is most certainly yet to come.

Thank you all for the incredible support and friendship over the past 7 years. You all know JB and I are good friends. He's got a massive heart and always tries to do what's best for the people on this site. That also won't change and I'm looking forward to seeing you all somewhere down the line, either in person or on the internet. No, that's not weird!

And another example of why Harry Arnett is the man. Best of luck in whatever direction you go, I know you will do amazing things just like you did at Callaway. Thanks for so many hours of entertainment (been listening to Callaway pods since the solid 35) and the place/people Callaway has right now.

 

[Tenputt]

I had coffee with Rhiona Sullivan (many of you know her. She and I used to work together at Callaway) this morning and as we were chatting, she told me how nice the THP thread was about my departure from Callaway. She told me she had heard about the thread from her mom, who lurks after meeting so many THP people at the Granddaddy years ago. Is that the most Callaway-THP thing ever? So she sent me the link and I decided to check it out.

First of all, thank you all for the kindness and well wishes. It's no secret you all have a special place in my heart as well as in all of the hearts of our marketing group.

For those of you speculating why I'm leaving, the truth isn't nearly as newsworthy as some have said. No, I'm not going to another golf company. I already had a pretty important job at the best golf company in the industry. No, I was not asked to leave by investors (our business has essentially doubled since I've been CMO, our brand rating shows we are on the top of the industry after being a distant fourth or fifth when I started at Callaway, and our market shares continue to grow in virtually every category. So any investor asking me to leave is kind of silly, to be perfectly honest).

It has been an incredible run at Callaway. I have been fortunate to have worked under the leadership, mentorship, and personal friendship of the very best CEO in golf, Chip Brewer. He is also, more importantly, an incredible human being. I have also had the fortune of working side by side with some of the best humans on the planet--people who are not only incredibly dedicated, passionate, and talented, but care as much about others as they do themselves. That has made the last 7 years not only professionally rewarding, but more importantly, personally fulfilling.

I haven't said this publicly, but two years I was diagnosed with a fairly serious, genetic medical condition (thanks, Dad!). Over the last 24+ months I have struggled to get it under control and get back to feeling 100%. I am now. Better than ever, actually. And that really had me start thinking about what I really wanted to dedicate my life doing for as long as I'm vertical.

In short, I really just started to feel that God put me on this planet for something different. Something else. And though Ive had a blast and loved what I have been doing, I knew deep down I would regret not trying to align my talents, passion, ambition, and purpose more fully in a much more integrated way.

So that's why I decided to leave. I'm not running from anything or moving away from Callaway. I'm going towards something. Something that ultimately will be more important to my becoming the best version of myself and to reach my full potential. Even as I get close to..ahem..50, I know the journey of personal development is the most important journey of all. I'm not trying to be intentionally vague, but the concreteness of what that is has changed significantly even over the past few months. And changed in such magnificently wonderful ways I almost cant believe its happening to me. And I can't wait to share once it's finalized. But it's something on my own, with people I love, doing work I love. And it's not golf related (I will become a golf civilian, starting on 9/1, so maybe I need to become a member of the forum!).

One thing you all have right is that remaining at Callaway is an incredible group of people dedicated to doing their jobs well and continuing to make golf fun and exciting for golfers everywhere. To that end, I know with certainty that the best for Callaway is in front of it, just like I know the best for me is most certainly yet to come.

Thank you all for the incredible support and friendship over the past 7 years. You all know JB and I are good friends. He's got a massive heart and always tries to do what's best for the people on this site. That also won't change and I'm looking forward to seeing you all somewhere down the line, either in person or on the internet. No, that's not weird!

That is very nice of you to post some of your thoughts and motivations here in this thread. We all wish you the very best in your future endeavors. One thing that you have grasped onto that is so important and true is that life passes by much too quickly and wise is the person who wants to seize each moment available.

 

[fuffle master]

Mr. Arnett, You probably hear this so many times from these great people here and outside THP, but I want to say thank you for all the work you have done to help bring Callaway on this resurgence. You have done a wonderful job in helping lead the Callaway team to be much more engaged and listen to the everyday golfer. At the same time, have pushed not only Callaway to live up to Ely’s quote of being “demonstrably superior, pleasingly different”, but have also help push all of the other companies in this market to change for the better.

Congratulations on your health and best wishes on the opportunity you will be moving to. Passion breathes success. Godspeed and again thank you for all you have done in the golfing world.


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[DG_1234]

It has been an incredible run at Callaway. I have been fortunate to have worked under the leadership, mentorship, and personal friendship of the very best CEO in golf, Chip Brewer. He is also, more importantly, an incredible human being. I have also had the fortune of working side by side with some of the best humans on the planet--people who are not only incredibly dedicated, passionate, and talented, but care as much about others as they do themselves. That has made the last 7 years not only professionally rewarding, but more importantly, personally fulfilling.

I haven't said this publicly, but two years I was diagnosed with a fairly serious, genetic medical condition (thanks, Dad!). Over the last 24+ months I have struggled to get it under control and get back to feeling 100%. I am now. Better than ever, actually. And that really had me start thinking about what I really wanted to dedicate my life doing for as long as I'm vertical.



!

Awesome post (and a wise decision, best wishes to you).