Equipment sponsorship changing emphasis

Billy Mayfair and Ping have always been a good fit.

Mayfair has lived in the Phoenix area all his life. He was an All-American at Arizona State, won the U.S. Amateur and his five PGA Tour titles include the Tour Championship at Southern Hills and a playoff victory over Tiger Woods at the Nissan Open.

His success has come while using Ping equipment manufactured not far from his home. Some have described him as a ``lifer'' with Ping.

But when Mayfair strung together four rounds in the 60s at the Phoenix Open to tie for 18th, the familiar black-and-white Ping bag was replaced by a blank, black one.

Mayfair is no longer under contract, through no choice of his own.

Ping decided this year to require all of its PGA Tour players under contract to play its driver. Previously, the company required its staff professionals to carry 12 clubs, and only the putter was mandatory.

Mayfair, hard as he tried, couldn't find a driver that suited him. So when the 2002 season began, his 15-year relationship with Ping took a hiatus.

``It was all driver-related,'' Mayfair said. ``I understand from their business standpoint. I left them because I felt more comfortable with the TaylorMade driver. I tried. I tried so many drivers, it was getting to the point where I was getting frustrated.''

Therein lies the rub.

With PGA Tour purses at a record high and poised to climb even more, the only loyalty a player can afford to have is to his score.

``Playing golf is the bottom line,'' Tim Herron. ``It's not just about money, but attitude and confidence.''

Herron is another player who had been with Ping from the time he joined the tour in 1996 and won the Honda Classic as a rookie. He still carries 12 clubs made by Ping, but his bag has a corporate logo because he no longer is under contract with the Phoenix-based company.

``I had a little bit of an issue with the driver,'' Herron said. ``They make a great driver, I just couldn't get comfortable with it.''

The Ping TiSI is doing just fine. Ping has 11 tour players under contract, and yet 17 players used the driver during the Phoenix Open. Ping is one of the few companies that does not offer tee-up money -- $1,000 or more just for using the driver.

David Toms has used the Ping driver during his recent run of success that started with winning the International in 1999 and includes his victory in the PGA Championship.

Tour players under contract with Ping include Chris DiMarco, who won his third tournament in as many seasons at the Phoenix Open; and Rory Sabbatini, Kevin Sutherland and Jeff Maggert, who each tied for eighth.

Maggert had no problem with Ping's decision to require drivers in the bag.

``It makes a company look silly when Ping is paying you all this money and you're using a TaylorMade or a Callaway or a Titleist,'' he said.

The reason companies like Ping pay players to use its equipment, and other companies offer tee-up money for their clubs, is exposure. There are no better players than on the PGA Tour to promote a driver, irons, wedges, putters or golf balls.

``It validates your equipment,'' Ping tour representative Cricket Musch said. ``It tells people that it does perform, that's important to us.''

The success shows up in a weekly survey that has become known simply as ``The Count.'' Each week, the Darrell Survey takes inventory of every piece of equipment in the players' bags, from drivers to wedges, irons to putters, even shafts and grips.

Titleist had the most drivers in play on the PGA Tour in 2000, but TaylorMade took over the top spot last year, according to the Darrell Survey's yearly almanac. TaylorMade also led the count on the Senior Tour last year, replacing Callaway Golf.

``I've never seen so many dramatic swings in the driver count,'' said Susan Naylor, who runs the Darrell Survey with her brother, John Minkley. ``It used to be when you were on top, you stayed there five years.''

The swift changes indicate how competitive the market has become, and also reflects the money companies are offering to pay their clubs.

Last year, TaylorMade offered $1,000 to any player who used their driver last year.

Titleist responded with a bonus pool that, according to several players, pays $1,000 for players to use their driver, plus $1,000 to make the cut. And Callaway is offering $50,000 for players who win with its driver.

``The goal for us is to win the count -- drivers, fairway woods, irons,'' Joe Moses, TaylorMade's senior director of global sports marketing told Golf World magazine. ``The way you get the count, like Titleist did with the ball, is through tee-up money.

``Next to the product being great, it's probably the biggest influence on the rejuvenation of TaylorMade.''

But is the tee-up money really worth it?

For some of the younger players who have struggled to keep their cards or are just starting out, it can certainly help with expenses. Paul Azinger recalls having to find seven or eight people to pony up $3,000 to sponsor him when he was a rookie.

Now, a player can cover his travel expenses through tee-up money available from drivers, putters and golf balls.

For established players, it's a different game.

``I'm not getting paid for playing Mizuno irons,'' Azinger said. ``I'm part of a $60,000 bonus pool, but big deal. I can get that much for a corporate outing.''

It goes back to what club a player thinks will give him the best chance to win, especially with most tournaments offering $4 million in prize money.

``You're going to see more and more people playing their 14 best friends,'' Musch said. ``The challenge we have as manufacturers is to build them for them.''

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