The last week of January is a busy one in the golf industry  Lamkin joined thousands of PGA professionals, retailers, distributors and golf companies at the annual PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando. For golf geeks, it’s a lot of fun to wander the isles and see what’s new in golf equipment and apparel. For sales teams, it’s a week of sleep deprivation, muscle soreness and voice hoarseness. All in all, it was a successful event, particularly the Demo Day which was held the Wednesday before the Show at Orange County National. The driving range there is phenomenal, a huge circle in which all the golf equipment companies line the perimeter and the attendees hit balls toward the center. Thank heaven it was sunny, even though the temperature wasn’t exactly what I envisioned for Florida. I’m grateful to have worn a winter coat. (Okay, I’ll admit it, I’m a Southern California weather wimp. No one from the East or Midwest was complaining.) The Show was also a chance to celebrate Lamkin’s 85th birthday. A huge card from PGA Magazine was propped up against our video screen which featured clips from Arnold Palmer talking about the importance of the golf grip, how his signature drink came about, his association with Lamkin, and the advancements in grip technology, including our new 3GEN synthetic rubber. Graphics in the booth featured our new ad campaign, now appearing in print in the national golf magazines and also online. It plays off lines from Caddyshack. As you might imagine, the research behind it was exhausting…many hours of movie watching. It’s always entertaining to get a group of golfers together and have them recall their favorite scenes and lines, It’s amazing how many websites are devoted to this, but I suppose it makes sense, the movie, like Lamkin, is a classic!