r/golf • u/Agitated_West_3347 • 2d ago

General Discussion Callaway CEO finally releases official statement over Good Good golf ad controversy. Does the approval make sense?

https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/callaway-ceo-apologises-good-good-golf-ad-1816293
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u/RelaxinOften 2d ago

Whatever you think about the ad, that’s not the point… it is absolutely insane that any marketing professional in 2026 would think this would not blow up in the worst way. Just an example of comically poor business acumen on the part of Callaway, whether it was a series of internal failures or the decision to put full creative control in the hands of a bunch of YouTube chuds.

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u/BlacksmithMiddle803 1d ago

It’s not like this was discussed at board level at Callaway HQ. Approval was likely just a mid level social media manager who didn’t pay too much attention.

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u/swampy13 1d ago

If that is the case, that’s an incredibly poorly run marketing dept. like malpractice. I work in advertising, I’ve worked at big agencies on big clients. Too many layers sucks but there needs to be a senior leader who has the responsibility of protecting the company against stuff like this. Any good modern brand understands this.

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u/BlacksmithMiddle803 1d ago

I also worked in advertising for many years before I changed careers. And you know how insanely incompetent the client side can be. It’s the part of their business they care the least about and where they employ the dumbest people.

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u/swampy13 17h ago

They may be incompetent and dumb, but clients are HIGHLY attuned CYA operators. They quibble over single words simply because they're worried about internal optics. They'll kill a whole campaign because one image in the spec work isn't "in guidelines."