When Completely happy Gilmore was first launched, even the individuals who produce golf gear for Callaway admit it was a stuffier, stodgier time for his or her sport.
Almost 30 years later, as Netflix prepares to debut Completely happy Gilmore 2 on July 25 and Callaway brings a reinvented model of the unique movie’s hockey-stick putter to the plenty, golf has discovered its pleased place.
Adam Sandler’s golf comedy initially made its option to theaters in February 1996, six months earlier than Tiger Woods started his skilled profession and greater than a yr earlier than he’d win his first match. There have been solely 24.4 million golfers, and so they have been generally outlined by the rounds they performed on conventional programs, almost a 3rd of which have been personal.
It was an setting that would plausibly create villainous golfers who’d purchase a hockey participant’s grandmother’s home out from beneath her and eat horrible issues for breakfast simply to take care of the established order.
“If you happen to return to the unique Completely happy Gilmore within the mid ’90s, the stereotypes that have been in there have been nation membership members that he was nearly form of poking enjoyable at. Golf at that stage was an older man’s recreation, and Shooter McGavin is the basic golfer who doesn’t need these folks coming in messing up our golf course,” stated Nick McInally, vice chairman of worldwide advertising and marketing at Callaway Golf. ”If you happen to now quick ahead to the center of the 2020s, you’ve obtained a scenario the place—whether or not it’s driving vary, whether or not it’s 5 Iron Golf—the place individuals are simply going into the town and hitting some balls in a simulator or taking part in a golf course of their basement, then you could have Topgolf bringing new folks of various ages into the sport.”
Amid the discharge of Completely happy Gilmore 2 and a surge in informal golf curiosity, Callaway has launched collections of limited-edition Chrome Tour golf balls emblazoned with pictures of Gilmore’s hockey jersey, stick, and quotes from the movie like “simply faucet it in” and “it’s all within the hips.” Callaway has additionally reworked Gilmore’s Hockey Stick Putter right into a $499 memento with a chrome steel head, urethane “pistol grip” insert, and tube sock headcover that fairly visibly doesn’t conform to skilled golf specs, “so nobody goes to be successful the Open with it this yr,” in accordance with McInally.
Callaway labored with Netflix and Completely happy Madison on the brand new merchandise, with Callaway’s Odyssey taking part in a barely higher position within the inventive course of than it did in making the unique Completely happy Gilmore putter. Earlier than filming the 1999 unique, director Dennis Dugan approached Odyssey Sports activities marketer Vikash Sanyal about making a putter resembling a hockey stick for the film. The corporate agreed, asking solely that one among its inserts be used because the stick and its brand seem on the blade.
The corporate was bought by Callaway for $130 million a yr after Completely happy Gilmore’s launch, and a model of the putter made it into McInally’s Callaway workplace within the U.Ok. a number of years in the past. Whereas “a bit huge” and “nice for digital camera, however not essentially match for function,” the hockey stick putter predicted not solely Callaway’s participation in a Completely happy Gilmore sequel, however its golf advertising and marketing future {that a} sturdy social media presence, trick-shot influencers, and celeb companions like Stephen Curry, Justin Herbert, and Niall Horan.
“At any time when we’re doing advertising and marketing, every time we’re doing activation, we’re at all times attempting to focus on golfers, however there’s an viewers that can sit and watch the Golf Channel each week, and watch the PGA Tour, watch the LPGA, and many others.,” McInally stated. “That’s most likely about 15 to twenty% of your viewers if you get the chance of one thing like [Happy Gilmore 2], that hardcore golfers are going to observe, occasional golfers are going to observe, comedy followers are going to observe, Adam Sandler, followers are going to observe. It simply makes it a lot greater.”
Any individual’s nearer
The Nationwide Golf Federation discovered that 32.9 million of the 45 million individuals who performed golf within the U.S. in 2023 did so at off-course amenities. Final yr, the variety of golfers taking part in solely at off-course amenities rose from 18.4 million to greater than 19 million. McInally famous that, in South Korea, greater than half of the nation’s golfers won’t ever play on a course.
Whereas Callaway is aiming for that entire group of golfers, the adjustments to golf demographics have it taking a running-start swing on the sport’s extra informal followers. McInally famous that, previously, Callaway would’ve launched a marketing campaign round Completely happy Gilmore 2 with a number of TV adverts, a characteristic in Golf Digest, print adverts, a presence at Dick’s Sporting Items or the PGA Tour Superstore—and hope {that a} Callaway-sponsored participant would win that weekend.
Immediately, Callaway’s campaigns see assist on TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube from Good Good Golf, Bob Does Sports activities, and Dude Good. It hosts launch occasions at Topgolf and brings within the San Diego Padres’ Manny Machado and offers chef Min Woo Lee his personal line of golf balls.
For the Completely happy Gilmore 2 debut, Callaway is internet hosting a Putt Completely happy Problem and having ambassadors Roger Steele, Horan, Herbert, and Underrated Golf founder and clutch putter Curry see what number of 10-foot putts they will drain in 30 seconds with the Hockey Stick Putter. On the American Century celeb golf match in Lake Tahoe this weekend, the putter is discovering its manner into the combination. When the movie itself debuts on July 25, Callaway is partnering with Topgolf on screenings and competitions the place gamers can win the putter for themselves.
— Odyssey Golf (@odysseygolf) July 1, 2025
In Brooklyn, Odyssey hooked up a 70-foot putter to a Netflix billboard previewing Completely happy Gilmore 2. For the corporate that invested within the TravisMathew attire model and 5 Iron Golf simulators and merged with Topgolf (although the manufacturers are splitting later this yr), it’s a broad cultural and advertising and marketing technique that might make Completely happy Gilmore really feel at residence—and Callaway isn’t too good for that residence.
“Golf grew to become cool, and that wasn’t one thing that you possibly can say 25, 30 years in the past—definitely earlier than Tiger got here alongside—however now, when it comes to trendy tradition, it’s not frowned upon to play golf anymore,” McInally stated. “So, how can we gas that? How can we get folks enthusiastic about our manufacturers? But additionally, how can we get folks excited concerning the recreation? That’s hopefully the place Completely happy Gilmore 2 goes to assist us.”
