Collecting dust and filing for Chapter 11

For the better part of 15 years I've been buying virtually all of my golf equipment from this back-alley warehouse, appropriately named Golfers' Warehouse. It was every golfer's dream...a huge space devoted to framed photos, novelties, accessories and of course every set of clubs you could think of. Some years ago on my way to work I noticed a large new building off the highway being built, and when the large green illuminated Golfers' Warehouse lights were hoisted up I nearly drove off the road in excitement.

This place is incredible. It was a brand new facility with a clothing and shoe section, a clubfitters workshop, a professional indoor range for private lessons, a large practice green for putting and about 8 mats at the indoor range for testing virtually every club in the store. If there wasn't a demo version on the floor, the reps would even gladly tape the face of a new club off the shelf and even let you hit that. Behind the net covering the ENTIRE WALL (which must have been 100 feet long and 15 feet tall) were two great murals - the 18th at Pebble Beach and the 17th at TPC River Highlands. This place had it all.



Apparently due to this stupid economy, spending money on golf hasn't exactly been a high priority for many people. There result is a huge warehouse with hundreds of thousands of dollars of brand new equipment occupying floor space and collecting dust. If you include clothing, footware, bags, used clubs and other accessories, and multiply that by the store's 6 locations, you have millions of dollars of inventory that has been slow to move.

Faced with dwindling sales during these trying economic times, Golfers' Warehouse has been forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. I suppose the good news in this is that the stores have been sold to a California-based golf accessories retailer called WorldWide Golf. Hopefully there won't be too many job losses, and it has been predicted that the flagship store in Hartford will remain open.

You can find everything that you want at Golfers' Warehouse online at other vendors for the same price, as golf equipment prices are usually nationally set with only smaller private retailers charging a markup (generally pro-shops or fancy casino boutiques). The real benefit of Golfers' Warehouse was being able to hold the gear in your hands and even demo it for a few days at little to no cost before deciding to buy. On top of that, you could be professionally fit for free if you purchased the equipment from the store, something that just can't be done online unless you know exactly what shaft flex, kickpoints and weights you'll need for your fancy new driver or what your lie angles are...and you're sure not going to buy a set online and have it sent to you already bent to your specifications.

Damn these Wall Street goons and garbage government bailouts. Damn them all to hell.