Ashworth, Inc. appointed Winston E. Hickman as executive vice president and chief financial officer, effective February 23, 2006. In this role, Mr. Hickman will be a key member of Ashworth's Executive management team with responsibility for all finance, administrative and IT related functions. He will report directly to Randall L. Herrel, Sr., Ashworth's chairman, president and chief executive officer.

Mr. Herrel stated, “Winston is a highly regarded professional with a successful career that encompasses all facets of finance at public and private corporations across a broad range of industries, including apparel. He brings strong financial and operational skills to this position and I am confident that his extensive financial expertise and proven leadership capabilities will be invaluable as we continue to explore strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value and execute on our strategy to improve the company's operational and financial performance.”


Mr. Hickman most recently served as executive vice president and chief financial officer of REMEC, Inc., a NASDAQ-listed designer and manufacturer of advanced wireless subsystems used in commercial and defense communications applications. At REMEC, he served as a member of the executive management team and played an integral role in the successful strategic sale of the company via a series of asset sale transactions, the last of which occurred in September 2005. Mr. Hickman joined REMEC in 2003 from privately-held Paradigm Wireless System, Inc. where, beginning in 2000, he was an investor, chief financial officer and a member of the board of directors. He played a key role in the successful sale of the company to REMEC.


Mr. Hickman has also served as board member, chief financial officer, and financial advisor to a number of public and private companies. Mr. Hickman served as chief financial officer of Pacific Scientific Company, a NYSE-listed company with sales in excess of $300 million, where he provided the financial leadership for the company's financial turnaround and successful strategic sale following a hostile takeover bid. Prior to Pacific Scientific, he held senior financial positions at Rockwell International, Allied-Signal, and Vans, Inc. He currently serves as a member of the board of directors of SRS Labs, Inc., a NASDAQ-listed company, where he is Chairman of the Audit Committee.

Mr. Hickman, 63, holds an M.B.A. from the University of Southern California and a B.A. from California State University, Long Beach.

Also happening at Ashworth, The Knightspoint Group announced that it has filed a preliminary proxy statement with the SEC in connection with certain proposals and director nominations Knightspoint intends to make at Ashworth's next annual meeting. Among other things, Knightspoint proposes to expand the board to nine members and appoint six new directors. If and when elected, the Knightspoint nominees for director intend to implement an aggressive turnaround and value enhancement plan for the company as described in Knightspoint's preliminary proxy materials. Although Ashworth earlier communicated an intention to hold its annual meeting on March 22nd, Ashworth has not yet publicly announced when the annual meeting will occur.

As evidenced by its financial results for 2005, Knightspoint believes that the company's strategies have not been successful. According to the company's press release of December 22, 2005, notwithstanding substantially higher sales, the company's 2005 income from operations, excluding special items, declined to $1.5 million from $14.9 million in 2004, and the company's 2005 EPS, excluding special items, declined to a loss of ($0.05) from a profit of $0.66 in 2004.

With its Board nominees, Knightspoint intends to set a new course for the company. As a beneficial owner of approximately 7% of the common stock of Ashworth, Knightspoint's interests are aligned with Ashworth shareholders. Knightspoint's goal is to maximize shareholder value. To do this, Knightspoint believes Ashworth needs a more active board to address management voids, set new strategic and operational priorities, and establish more effective financial controls. Knightspoint agrees with Ashworth that it is appropriate to explore strategic sale options for Ashworth. However, Knightspoint is concerned that Ashworth's retention of an outside financial advisor for this purpose will not produce the desired results without a more engaged board or, perhaps also, a period of operational improvement. Knightspoint believes its nominees for director will bring to the board the judgment, experience, energy and objectivity needed both to oversee a strategic sale process as well as implement an overall improvement plan for Ashworth.

Knightspoint's nominees are:

  • Michael Glazer, who has been President of Team Neu, a private equity firm since August 2005. He was President and Chief Executive Officer of KB Toys from May 1996 until August 2005. He is also a director of Stage Stores.
  • Michael Hecht, who has been an advisor to businesses on product, marketing, distribution and sourcing strategies since 1999. Mr. Hecht currently serves as an advisor to the Board of Directors of Monrovia Nurseries and previously served on the Board of Directors of Carter Hawley Hale Stores, Inc., House of Fabrics, Edison Brothers Stores, Inc. and Applause, Inc. Mr. Hecht served as a director of Ashworth from 1999 to June 2005.
  • Michael S. Koeneke, who is a Managing Member of Knightspoint Partners LLC, an investment firm he co-founded in 2003. From 1997 through 2002, Mr. Koeneke was the co-head and then the Chairman of Global Mergers and Acquisitions at Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. Mr. Koeneke is a director of CPI Corp.
  • David M. Meyer, who is a Managing Member of Knightspoint Partners LLC, an investment firm he co-founded in 2003. Mr. Meyer has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of CPI Corp. since April 2004 and served as a member of its interim Office of the Chief Executive from October 2004 to August 2005. From 1995 to 2002, Mr. Meyer served in various capacities in the investment banking department of Credit Suisse First Boston, including as a director in the Mergers and Acquisitions and Global Industrial and Services Groups in the firm's U.S. and U.K. offices.
  • Peter M. Weil, who has served as a partner of Lighthouse Retail Group LLC since 2004. Mr. Weil served as Senior Vice President of Retail Forward from 2002 to 2004 and as Director of Management Consulting Services of Management Horizons/PriceWaterhouseCoopers from 1998 to 2002. Mr. Weil previously held Senior Vice President positions with Macy's, Marshalls and J Baker/Morse Shoe in merchandising and supply chain management.
  • Andrea Weiss, who has been the President and CEO of Retail Consulting, LLC, a retail consulting firm, since October 2002. She was President of dELiA*s Corp., a multichannel retailer to teenage girls and young women, from May 2001 to October 2002, and Executive Vice President and Chief Stores Officer of The Limited, Inc. and Intimate Brands, Inc., units of Limited Brands, Inc., a women's retailer, from May 1998 to February 2001. She is also a Director of CBRL Group, Inc. and eDiets.com, Inc.