PGA Merchandise Show: A Candy Store for Golfers

This week, I am joining some 41,000 people as the golf industry convenes at the 2009 PGA Merchandise Show. An annual gathering that began 56 years ago in a parking lot, the trade-only event now takes place inside the expansive Orange Country Convention Center in Orlando, FL.

The PGA Show is a virtual candy store for golfers and includes 1.1 million square feet of exhibit space with approximately 1,100 exhibitors. The building will also house the largest indoor range in golf, a continuous golf fashion show, meetings, and hospitality functions.

Traversing a total of 10 miles of aisles, the exhibit space will house large McBooths by major companies like Titleist and Callaway as well as tiny 10’ by 10’ displays by startups with new names.

The exhibitions start on Thursday and end on Saturday, but the event begins with an outdoor demo day at the nearby Orange Country National Golf Center on Wednesday. The demo day features 90 top golf manufacturers with hitting bays that completely circle a 42-acre driving range, which in itself is an amazing site and the biggest outdoor demo day in the game.

While attending the PGA Show, I will be meeting with companies that have supported my quest to play on the PGA Tour. Of course, I’ll be searching for new sponsors, and I’ll also be conducting public relations work as the event annually hosts over 1,000 members of the international golf media.

On Friday night, I am hosting a “tweet-up” – a special gathering for the Twitter golf community — at the Bahama Breeze at 8849 International Drive. If you are in Orlando, please be sure to stop by the bar and say hello beginning at 9:00 p.m.

During the week, I will post daily updates on Twitter marked with a #PGAShow hashtag, and at the end of the week, I will post a full recap on the blog. To stay informed, be sure to subscribe to the RSS feed of the blog and follow me on Twitter @PhilBundy.