Lydia Ko Leaves Callaway for Parsons Xtreme Golf
Parson Xtreme Golf has announced it signed four LPGA stars including World Number One Lydia Ko.
The two-time major winner is starting the New Year in much the same fashion as she finished up 2016 – by making changes. Last season saw Ko part ways with her caddie, coaches and now the company who first signed her, Callaway Golf. Despite all the changes the 19-year-old seems confident in her choices and is looking forward to joining the PXG Team for 2017.
“It was always my dream goal to become world number one,” Ko said in a statement earlier this week. “Now that I have reached that benchmark in my career, I am focused on consistently playing the best golf I can. When I first hit PXG’s clubs I was extremely impressed by how they felt. They felt solid and the performance was – wow!”
Ko will be hoping her new set of clubs help her add to an already remarkable 14 career wins on the LPGA Tour. Following the New Zealander to Bob Parson’s young golf brand this season is Cristina Kim, Brittany Lang and Ryan O’Toole. The four impressive female golfers will join the likes of Cristie Kerr, Alison Lee, Sadena Parks, Gerina Piller and Beatriz Recari who are already brand ambassadors for PXG.
The brainchild of Parsons, PXG was established in 2014 and strives to bring game-shattering designs to the golf world. Working without time or cost constraints Parsons has given his designers the freedom to research, explore and identify the exclusive technology and properties that will make PXG clubs perform unlike anything else.
These clubs are high-end and carry a high price tag, with a full set running up to about $5,000. Parsons makes no excuses for the cost of his clubs, he’s proud of them and what they represent. The brand focuses on quality and uniqueness refusing to release new equipment unless it is significantly better than what is already available. Something the brand’s CEO believes sets it apart from today’s top golf manufacturers.
“When you look at Callaway, PING, Nike, Cleveland, they’re all clawing each other’s eyes out,” Parsons explained to Forbes last summer. “It’s just not a healthy situation and it doesn’t make for good golf equipment.”
Adding, “That’s why when I came into this market I elected to only sell to the top end of the market. We don’t have an equipment cycle. Our equipment cycle is when we develop something that we believe is without a doubt superior. And when I do have that, I’m not discounting my prior stuff. We don’t discount. Period. Not for anybody. So this is a different kind of company.”
Taking a different approach seems to be working for the brand, who concentrated on signing only LPGA players for 2017.
“In 2016 we saw remarkable growth in international sales,” Parsons explained in a press release earlier this week. “But we recognize that we have only scratched the surface. Tour validation is important, and the ladies tour is wildly popular in many countries.”
With the World Number One and current Women’s U.S. Open winner among them we’d say PXG is off to a pretty good start this year. Looking forward to seeing how the ladies do on Tour this season!
