CARLSBAD, Calif., July 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Callaway Golf (NYSE: ELY) today
announced that golf legend Gary Player has joined the Company's team of staff
professionals. Player, 65, has signed a long-term endorsement contract to
play Callaway Golf(R) clubs and balls and to carry a bag with the Company's
logo. When Player competes in his record 47th consecutive British Open this
week, he will be using a Big Bertha(R) ERC(R) II Forged Titanium Driver,
Steelhead Plus(TM) Fairway Woods, Steelhead(TM) X-14(R) Pro Series Irons and
the Rule 35(R) golf ball.
"For years I played and had to watch Callaway Golf staff members drive the
ball farther than me and hit their irons better than me," said Player, a
three-time British Open champion. "I always thought, 'Wow, I would sure like
to be able to hit those clubs.' Now I am and it's like a new lease on life
for me. I'm almost two clubs longer with my irons, and my drives are the best
I've ever hit. That's peaches and cream.
"I can also tell you that the Rule 35 ball is unbelievable," Player
continued. "I switched from the ball I had been playing for several years
because I saw the performance of the Rule 35 and I wanted to play the best.
Then I visited the Callaway Golf factory and saw the quality of the products
and the brilliance of the scientific method being employed, which I found so
impressive. I'm convinced the Rule 35 is the best ball in the history of
golf.
"I will be using the ERC II at the British Open, and I very much hope that
the day will come when I can use this great driver in tournaments in the
U.S.," Player added. "Hopefully, that day will come, when the USGA will
recognize that the R&A have it right and the two ruling bodies will agree on
this issue."
Player, recognized as the Black Knight and International Ambassador of
Golf, has won more than 160 tournaments worldwide over the course of nearly 50
years of professional golf, including nine major championship wins. He is one
of only five men who have won each of the four tournaments that comprise
golf's modern Grand Slam, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and
Tiger Woods in that elite fraternity. Player was elected into the World Golf
Hall of Fame in 1974, and became a member of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club
of St. Andrews in 1994. Player is the only modern day player to win the
British Open in three different decades.
"We are all very pleased and proud that Gary Player has joined our team of
great staff professionals," said Ron Drapeau, President and CEO of Callaway
Golf. "Gary has been one of golf's greatest worldwide ambassadors throughout
his career. Now he joins international Callaway Golf stars like Arnold
Palmer, Seve Ballesteros, Annika Sorenstam, Jesper Parnevik, Colin Montgomerie
and other great champions to help give Callaway Golf the strongest
international lineup in the game."
Added Patrice Hutin, the Managing Director of Callaway Golf Europe, Ltd.,
"We welcome Gary's contagious enthusiasm and his great energy and we very much
look forward to working with him to spread the message about Callaway Golf."
"Other than completing the professional Grand Slam, becoming a part of
Callaway Golf is one of the most exciting things to happen in my entire
career," Player said. "I can now go around the world and tell people about
the tremendous enjoyment I get from using Callaway Golf clubs and balls.
Having traveled all over the world, whether I'm in China, Africa, Asia, Europe
or the Americas, I see golfers out using Callaway Golf equipment. And those
people are happy to get out and play the game, and they are enjoying
themselves. That's improving the human condition."
"I've dedicated my life to getting people to make their lives better by
working out, staying in shape and improving themselves. This is exactly what
Callaway Golf has done. They have improved life for so many people by making
golf more fun. They have raised the bar for other companies in design and
performance."
Callaway Golf Company makes and sells Big Bertha(R) Metal Woods and Irons,
including Big Bertha ERC(R) II Forged Titanium Drivers, Big Bertha Hawk Eye(R)
VFT(TM) and Big Bertha Hawk Eye VFT Pro Series Titanium Drivers and Fairway
Woods, Big Bertha Steelhead Plus(TM) Stainless Steel Drivers and Fairway
Woods, Hawk Eye Tungsten Injected(TM) Titanium Irons, Steelhead(TM) X-14(R)
and Steelhead X-14 Pro Series Stainless Steel Irons. Callaway Golf Company
also makes and sells Odyssey(R) Putters, including White Hot(R), TriHot(TM),
and Dual Force(R) Putters. Callaway Golf Company makes and sells the Callaway
Golf(R) "Rule 35(R)" Firmfeel(TM) and Softfeel(TM) golf balls, and the CB1(TM)
Red and CB1 Blue golf balls. For more information about Callaway Golf
Company, please visit our Web sites at http://www.callawaygolf.com and
http://www.odysseygolf.com.
SOURCE Callaway Golf Company
 back to top
Related links:
http://www.callawaygolf.com
CONTACT:
Larry Dorman, Mike Galeski, or Millie Speirs,
all of Callaway Golf Company, 760-931-1771
|
