The $250-plus price points we saw in Drivers with the introductions of the Callaway FT-I, Nike Sumo Sasquatch SQ and similar products appear to be a thing of the past, or at least of last season. With the deteriorating economic situation and the lack of any meaningful technological innovations that appeal to the wider player base, growth in Driver sales have come back down to earth somewhat. Where last years season saw heavy growth in the $200 to $250 price range in Drivers, this year, that same range has experienced double-digit declines. However, the $150 to $199 range has picked up the slack, according to data compiled by retail point-of-sale service SportScanINFO.
Though the SportScanINFO data focuses more heavily on big box, chain retailers, the trend seems also to be occurring at specialty retail.
“There's no question the economy is hampering driver sales,” commented Dino Volpi, general manager and lead hardgoods buyer for Golfdom in King of Prussia, PA. “Between that and the lack of any real new technologies out there, price points have definitely come down from the $200-$250 range we saw before.”
The decreasing price point trend also appears to be hitting green grass, albeit at a higher ASP.
“Drivers have come down a little in terms of price, probably as some of the manufacturers have started to realize that $300 plus is a little too high” said Tom Davidson, director of golf at Circling Raven Golf Club, part of the Coeur DAlene Casino in Couer DAlene, ID. Davidson should know, his club was named resort merchandiser of the year for the inland empire for four years running. “For us, the $250 to $279 range is really our bread and butter with TaylorMade Burner and Ping G10 both doing very well.”
