Moore Goes From Sponsor-Free Golfer to Company Owner

Posted by scratch on 14-1-2010 4:17 pm - 0 comments

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Ryan Moore is taking a new approach to golf sponsorships after playing last season on the U.S. PGA Tour without a club-endorsement contract: He is becoming part owner in Scratch Golf.

The Chattanooga, Tennessee-based custom clubmaker has an agreement with the 26-year-old Moore, who will use its irons and wedges beginning with this week’s HSBC Champions event in China. Moore, the 2004 U.S. Amateur champion, is tied for second at the World Golf Championship tournament at 6-under-par 66.

With many large club companies, such as Adidas AG’s TaylorMade brand and Callaway Golf Co., cutting back endorsement expenses as consumers reduce spending on leisure activities, Moore’s agreement is unique among professional golfers.

“Ryan is going to end up owning a portion of our company,” Ari Techner, Scratch Golf’s chief executive officer, said in a telephone interview. “This kind of speaks to the type of person he is. He likes to do his own thing.”

Financial terms of the agreement are being worked out, Techner said. Moore also will have a chance to earn performance bonuses and additional payments.

“We’re obviously not in a position to be giving him millions of dollars,” Techner, 30, said. “We’re definitely looking at this as a long-term deal and hoping to have Ryan using our clubs for the rest of his career.”

The winner of last year’s Wyndham Championship on the U.S. Tour, Moore played this season without a club endorsement contract as he searched for equipment suited to his game. The Washington state native had spent most of his career using equipment made by Karsten Manufacturing’s Ping brand in an agreement that ended after the 2008 season.

Irons, Wedges

Closely held Scratch Golf was founded in Eugene, Oregon, in 2003 and makes high-end custom-forged clubs. Moore has been using the company’s SB-1 iron and 1018 series wedges for the past three weeks, Techner said.

Moore posted consecutive top-10 finishes using Scratch clubs in his previous two events, solidifying his decision to take an equity stake in the company, his father, Mike Moore, said in a telephone interview.

“He was pretty jazzed by them,” Mike Moore said. “Ryan has always had to believe in a product before he uses it. He’s not against sponsorships or being different just to be different.”

Last season, Ryan Moore tested about 10 different sets of clubs, his father said, before settling on a five-year-old set of Ping irons he used to win the U.S. Amateur title in 2004. He switched to Scratch clubs soon after winning the Wyndham Championship in August, his first PGA Tour title in 112 events.

Wide Tryout

“He tried virtually every club out there,” Mike Moore said. “He fell in love with the Scratch stuff, liked what they are doing and believed in the product.”

As for the unique business partnership, Moore is simply betting on his own success as a way to improve the company’s sales, his father said.

“He saw that they could help him and he believes that he can help these guys gain presence in the world of golf,” Mike Moore said. “Most folks have never heard of this company.”