Callaway Golf Stock Lands in the Rough After Ad Backlash

Dow Jones
Aug 28

Shares of Callaway Golf Co. were down again on Thursday, as the fallout from the golf club maker's controversial ad continues.

The 60-second ad shows Garrett Clark, co-founder of the Good Good Golf YouTube channel, shoving golfer and content creator Alexis Miestowski to the ground after she appeared to reach for his Callaway co-branded driver.

He then leans over her and warns: "Do not touch my new driver."

Good Good Golf, which has more than 2.1 million subscribers on YouTube, and Callaway Golf have a business relationship related to co-branded products. They have since taken down the ad, which critics say shows violence against women.

Good Good Golf founder and CEO Matt Kendrick said in a LinkedIn post that the full video had been intended as a parody of the new horror movie Obsession, but acknowledged it was a "mistake."

"We made a mistake, and as CEO of Good Good, I own it," he wrote in the post. "The concept was intended to parody a scene from the movie Obsession. The execution missed the mark. I understand why people found it insensitive, and I want to be clear that neither I nor anyone at Good Good condones violence of any kind. Regardless of what we intended, we are responsible for what we put into the world and how it is received. We got this one wrong."

Callaway CEO Chip Brewer also posted on social media, telling Instagram followers that while the video was produced by Good Good, "it was approved by Callaway prior to posting. That approval should never have happened. Mistakes were made, and we are taking the matter very seriously."

Brewer apologized and said they are conducting internal and external investigations. "As we deal with the consequences of our mistake and complete our investigations, I want to make it clear that we sincerely apologize for the video," Brewer wrote. "The content was inappropriate and does not reflect our values. To be clear: We are unequivocally against discrimination, domestic violence, or threatening behavior of any kind."

Callaway shares were down 1.2%, at $15.55, around 1 p.m. Eastern time on Thursday, after falling more than 2% on Tuesday, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Shares have traded as low as $15.40 intraday, down 2.2%.

The stock is down 15.2% this month, on track for its worst month since February 2025, when it fell 16.9%. The shares are up 34.1% this year.

The Callaway Golf fallout comes the same week that retailer Target faced accusations of racism over a child's Halloween costume that some said evoked blackface performances and minstrel shows.

 

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