Callaway Claims No Sales Hit From Good Good Driver Ad Controversy

Callaway did not suffer a significant sales hit after backlash to its controversial co-branded driver ad with Good Good Golf, the company said on its Q3 earnings call on Thursday. But the brand’s public image did take a noticeable hit, Callaway’s top executive admitted.

“Needless to say that that whole incident was a serious one for us. It was a tough two weeks for our team and our brand,” president and CEO Chip Brewer said on the earnings call. “Fortunately, we didn’t see a material financial impact. There were really no discernible changes in sales trends, even during the event.” 

Callaway ended its partnership with Good Good (which dated back to 2023) due to the ad, which was released online on Aug. 20—and then quickly deleted. The ad included a scene in which a co-founder of the content creator group, Garrett Clark, shoved colleague Alexis Miestowski to the ground. Callaway stopped selling the driver, which started at $650, on its website. But Good Good is still selling two editions of the Callaway driver on its online store. Major retailers, including Dick’s Sporting Goods, Golf Galaxy, and PGA Tour Superstore, all pulled Good Good merchandise from their stores but not any non-Good Good-affiliated Callaway products. At the time, Callaway said it was committing $1 million to “support organizations working to prevent violence against women.” 

Callaway’s sales were actually down 5.6% in Q3 (July 1–Sept. 30) and golf equipment sales specifically were down 7.9%. But the company said the dip was expected due to a delayed launch of a new collection of irons. Callaway raised its full-year outlook to an estimated $2.065 billion to $2.078 billion in net sales, up from $2.045 billion to $2.07 billion.

While Callaway said it did not feel a financial impact of the Good Good situation, the company’s image did temporarily suffer. “We do regularly monitor our brand rating and consumer sentiment online, and that did decline during the event,” Brewer said. “But it quickly recovered to the same strong levels it was prior.”

Callaway ultimately fired director of content and production Alex Upegui, who approved the driver ad on behalf of the company. Last month, Callaway hired a new senior VP and chief brand officer, Harry Arnett, who was previously the company’s head of global brand and marketing from 2012 to 2019.

“In the end, we made a mistake,” Brewer said of the Good Good saga. “We took the matter seriously. We took responsibility. We apologized. And then, more importantly, we addressed our internal deficiencies and updated our processes to make sure that doesn’t reoccur. As a company, a brand, I’m confident we’re going to come out of this even stronger. We’ve been a long-term leader in women’s golf, and we’re committed to continuing to be. And we appreciate everyone that supported us during that time, and we’ll work hard to earn that trust going forward.”

No other Callaway employees are known to have been fired because of the ad. Good Good’s CEO, Matt Kendrick, and president, Joe Flannery, eventually stepped down in the wake of the backlash. Now Good Good and Kendrick are being sued by the company’s former VP of brand and marketing, Jeffrey Lefkovits, who was fired in the ad’s aftermath. Lefkovits is seeking more than $1 million in the defamation suit.