Gateway PGA sale: Merchandise patterns

[WUTiger]

Went to the Gateway Chapter PGA merchandise sale at Missouri Athletic Club - West in St. Louis County.

This marketplace allows for the regional golf shops and country clubs to have a pre-Thanksgiving clearance. This allows the shops to unload hard and soft goods that haven't moved out during current retail activity. An area the size of a large basketball court was divided up about 2/3 apparel and gadgets and 1/3 golf clubs.

Several of the lighter name-brand stand bags were marked down to between $100 and $125. Good deals if you needed them.

Change this year: Very little haggling and bargaining on the golf clubs - price on the tag was what it would cost.

For irons, lots of new and slightly used Ping G30 iron sets on sale for around $400 to $500. Some Ping G sets also showed up, for slightly more. An assortment of Cobra and slightly used Mizuno irons also available, along with quite a few Titleist AP1 sets. Also some slightly used or new Callaway XR Steelheads - but the vendors wanted $650 or $700... might as well spend an extra $50 to $100 and get a custom fit.

The iron tables were more orderly than in the past. Sets put our about a foot apart. The different shop reps has inventory printouts and could tell what else they had in their vans outside the door. Basically sell a couple of sets, bring out a couple more. 

Among wedges, mainly Vokey SM6 and Cleveland RTX 2.0 mostly with cellophane still on the heads. New SM6 = $99, RTX = $75. Not much in Callaway or other that wasn't used. Curiously, I saw two new Callaway blue-dot Mac Daddy Forged in 50*/10 for $125; I tracked down the shop rep, and he said the 50*/10 versions simply didn't sell - not one! He said more shops are willing to unload new merchandise that nobody wants. Note: Most of the SW, 54* and 56* were low-bounce heads; not many high bouncers available. 

I picked up a new TM R Series Tour Grind EF Spin Groove LW, a 60/10 with a KBS Wedge shaft for $75. This pretty fills out the backup TaylorMade bag I've assembled the past year. I'm still looking for a decent used TM driver that isn't obscenely expensive.

For long clubs, the place had barrels of the original 2016 M1 and M2 drivers, FWs and hybrids. M2 models more plentiful. The prices roughly matched those of the TM online site. Quite a few Ping G30 and G items also. G30 drivers were  mainly the LTec version.

The apparel zone was a good place to pick up golf shirts from a big-name clubs or hot tournaments for $30 rather than $70. Great deals on shirts and the lighter pulllover shells, and golf hats. Not much of a markdown on rain gear.

Side note: Talked to the shop reps, and they reported the profit margin on wedges is low; golfers are replacing them more than in past to get new grooves, so the OEMs expect them to make it up in volume. Profit margin on golf balls reportedly is minimal. As one guy said, "If I sell five boxes of ProV.1s, I make about enough for a Big Mac meal."

Always good to talk the the reps, pros and fitters to find out what's afoot in the industry.
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Note: Reps report that the Callaway Epic long clubs and the Steelhead-XR FWs are going by the wayside. Coming to a golf shop near you is the replacement line called The Rogue. Reports have been out since October, but this was the first I had heard of it. I can't find any pix yet.
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Edited November 13, 2017 by WUTiger
Spelling.

[WUTiger]

19 hours ago, WUTiger said:

Note: Reps report that the Callaway Epic long clubs... are going by the wayside.

Caution: Another blog reports that the Epics will return for the 2018 cycle.