[PingManKMB]

Phana24JG, on 30 April 2010 - 09:29 AM, said:

Hoosier, unfortunately, Dick's does have the cash to pull this off. They have basically absorbed Golf Galaxy with relatively little long-term debt, and could easily toss 500 million in cash at Callaway, and up to a billion if necessary. I am not an analyst, but it looks like they pared inventory and staff to pay for it. However, it would surprise me if they went this route. Dick's appears to be trying to private label as many products as possible. If so, I would expect them to acquire a lower cost operation. If they were to take over Callaway and try to finance it with cutbacks, the value of Callaway would sharply decline, and Dick's would then be in some trouble. The only scenario that makes sense is if Dick's were to buy Callaway to facilitate their entry into the international market. That would be a very costly undertaking and well-beyond the numbers Dick's presently has. Unless Dick's has an angel or a really ambitious plan to raise serious money, this really does not make a whole lot of sense.

Dick's DEFINITELY does have the cash to make this happen.

[PingManKMB]

MSaternus, on 28 April 2010 - 05:50 AM, said:

I am quite aware of that, I was working at Dick's when they bought GG. My work experience there is the reason for my bold, capitalized, exclamation pointed hatred of that place. Your point is well taken though, it's possible that Dick's could own something and not ruin it (ie Golf Galaxy...so far), but my natural assumption is that Dick's will do their best to ruin things.

You are right... Dick's is slowly changing what were formerly Golf Galaxy policies.... Soon to be, if not already, Dick's policies.

[PingManKMB]

Addicted2Golf, on 28 April 2010 - 04:17 AM, said:

That's true but they haven't turned them into a bunch of Dick's yet (if you know what I mean).

To be determined..............

[JohnBarry]

Just because a company looks like on the outside to be doing great, doesn't mean it's true. Even if it is, a buy out maybe the something the investors see as a long term and short term winfall for the stock holders.

[Sprinklerhead]

Interesting thread...I don't have a strong feeling towards Callaway, but going the Dick's route would seem to be a mistake. Taking a premium brand and putting them in a department store is going to alienate the folks who want the cache of a premium brand. Maxfli is now under Dick's ownership and my initial impression is that they are going "spreadsheet". The balls I've seen are not anything I'd be tempted to play. It will only take one season of ownership to see which direction Dick's would take Callaway. If they go further towards mass market, they will kill the brand IMO.

[NGage]

Here's why I hope to all things good that this "Dick's buying Callaway" rumor is never true:

So a last fall I won a putting contest and got a $60 gift card to Dick's. Everything in that place is so ridiculously over-priced, I figured I'd wait till they got grips in for this season and buy some grips for re-gripping my main set. I go in today, and make my way to the repair section. No attendant around, so I walk behind the semi-counter that's kinda out in the middle of the floor and start looking through the grips. I'm looking for Tour Velvets, and they've got a ton. Regular, Jumbo, Midsize, regular women's, pink women's, 58's, and some 60's. Of course, they are all mixed in together and hardly any of them (much less any other kind of grips) are in the spots they are tagged at on the bins.

So finally old man golf station employee comes moseying over, and asks if I need any help. I let him know what I need, and he says "yeah, we got lots of them right here." Then he proceeds to tell me the kinds they've got -- as he randomly pulls each kind out. He clearly didn't know there were necessarily different ones.

Then things got funny. He didn't know there are different sizes to them, or that some could be round and some ribbed. When I told him what kind of clubs/shafts I had and asked if he knew what kind I needed to keep them standard, he looked at me like I was talking Chinese arithmetic. He had no clue what I was talking about. I didn't remember which way it went, but I tried to explain to him that to keep things standard that a .58 grip needed to be on a .58 butt shaft, and .60 on .60....and that to mix them up would make it over- or under-sized.

He again looked at me like I was speaking the language from planet Zoltan. He then preceded to tell me that they'd never had a problem with their grips not fitting on shafts. And he was kind enough to let me know that you put tape on under the grips and that could make some feel bigger. He went over and pulled off a club like mine with the same shaft, and as I tried to peel the grip back to see the number on the inside he gave me this nugget of info: "see....the grips stretch to go over the shaft...they stretch".

Seeing who I was dealing with, I kindly asked if he had the info in a Callaway product book or if they had internet so he could look up Callaway cust. service. He walked away as I began to look through the bunches of random Tour Velvets....trying to separate them into like kinds. He comes back after not being able to find any books.....so I ask him if he can just look it up.

Next I got to watch the "old man trying to use computer" comedy show. Finally, I guided him to the customer service tab, and I called Callaway to get the info I needed. I was able to cull 9 Tour Velvets .60 round at $3.49/ea. As I thanked him for his help, he asked me if I put them on myself. I told him "yes"....but left off that it was because of all the idiots like him that work in golf shops and know almost nothing about equipment or golf repair.


Dick's has no business being in the golf business with the way they run things --- not to mention that their prices are crazy. I saw a nice pair of golf shorts....only $65.

[JohnBarry]

Dicks holds retail, that's their policy, most stores do, but the smaller non chain stores are willing to wheel and deal more.

[cwbrion]

I wonder how this owuld affect all their tour staff. I would imagine many of these pros do not want DICK's SPORTING GOODS all over their bags, but they are signed into contracts. I can also imagine that Dick's does not want the overhead of having to pay to play all these tour professionals. I will wait and see what happens. I think this would be a good business move for the current owners of Callaways (to get out while there is still value), but terrible for golf in general. Customer service is king and Dick's has a severe lack of it.

[jarnol18]

Ngage is completely correct in his assessment of Dick's as A WHOLE. no one really knows how to handle golf equipment properly and their knowledge of the product is absolutely ridiculous. i work at a privately owned golf shop and the buying out of Callaway would be an awful thing for us. Dick's would destroy the brand, like they did to Walter Hagen etc..., and turn it into a complete mockery. Callaway as a company is still revered as one of the best in the business and their new line of equipment this year has been flying off the shelves. The economy is still obviously in a tough place, but the buying out of the company from Dick's has huge consequences.

[HoosierGolfer]

My stomach hurts everytime I read this thread. I agree that Dicks has no customer service and I rarely shop there. If this sale happens, and I hear nothing new to indicate it is, I will jump ship for sure and play something other than Callaway. It would be the death of what has been a very good brand.

[JohnBarry]

I agree, a brand down the tubes. I love how they have Walter Haggan Apparel at full price when I can get the same stuff on TGW.com for 30-40% off.

[jamo]

NGage, on 17 May 2010 - 04:55 PM, said:

Here's why I hope to all things good that this "Dick's buying Callaway" rumor is never true:

First of all, those semi-counter things in front of the grips. One employee got all on my case for being behind one looking at grips one time.

Second, I heard another grips related horror story from Dick's on another forum. The employee took the Cameron Cord grip off the guy's Scotty, then puts the Golf Pride Tour Classic on instead of the Tour Tradition. They are both very similar looking, but they are also labelled, so there is really no excuse. So the guys asks the employee to put the other one on, which of course they don't have in red, which the guy wanted. So in the end the guy walks out with nothing but his Scotty, now without a grip.

[JohnBarry]

OUCH!!

[nicsherman]

jamo, on 24 May 2010 - 02:45 PM, said:

First of all, those semi-counter things in front of the grips. One employee got all on my case for being behind one looking at grips one time.

Second, I heard another grips related horror story from Dick's on another forum. The employee took the Cameron Cord grip off the guy's Scotty, then puts the Golf Pride Tour Classic on instead of the Tour Tradition. They are both very similar looking, but they are also labelled, so there is really no excuse. So the guys asks the employee to put the other one on, which of course they don't have in red, which the guy wanted. So in the end the guy walks out with nothing but his Scotty, now without a grip.

sounds like a "Dick" move.....

[BalataMan]

jamo, on 24 May 2010 - 02:45 PM, said:

First of all, those semi-counter things in front of the grips. One employee got all on my case for being behind one looking at grips one time.

Second, I heard another grips related horror story from Dick's on another forum. The employee took the Cameron Cord grip off the guy's Scotty, then puts the Golf Pride Tour Classic on instead of the Tour Tradition. They are both very similar looking, but they are also labelled, so there is really no excuse. So the guys asks the employee to put the other one on, which of course they don't have in red, which the guy wanted. So in the end the guy walks out with nothing but his Scotty, now without a grip.

nicsherman, on 25 May 2010 - 08:25 AM, said:

sounds like a "Dick" move.....

http://instantrimshot.com/