2012 Chicago Golf Show Shatters Previous Records

The 2012 Chicago Golf Show shattered records for number of exhibit booths, number of participating companies, and number of attendees, show officials announced today.

"This year's Chicago Golf Show was the most successful in the 29-year history of the event," said show owner Tom Corcoran, who has been running the three-day consumer show since 1997.
Corcoran said, "The show's unqualified success was the result of a combination of factors, including

* our Free Golf promotion, now in its third year

* an increased number of golf wholesalers offering incredible deals on clubs, balls, shoes, apparel, and more

* celebrity appearances by former Masters champion Craig Stadler, three-time Ryder Cup team member Chip Beck, and Mark Murphy, winner of Golf Channel's Big Break Ireland reality show competition

* and a comprehensive marketing campaign across multiple platforms."

Corcoran said a record 16,700 people attended the show at the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont the weekend of Feb. 24-26. A record 187 companies bought a record number of exhibit booths, with booth sales increasing 25 percent over 2011
"Golfers have come to realize that if they attend the Chicago Golf Show, they will be enjoying the most complete golf show around," Corcoran said. "With our speakers, wholesalers, golf courses, travel destinations, new products, free golf, free lessons from Illinois PGA pros, and long drive and putting contests, there is something for everyone.

GolfVisions, Inc. enhanced its Free Golf offer this year by allowing up to four golfers at a time to redeem their coupons together. The company, which operates 12 courses in the Chicago area initiated its Free Golf promotion in 2010

"I thought this year's show was great and GolfVisions was pleased to be a part of it," said Tim Miles, president and CEO of GolfVisions. "The Chicago Golf Show provides an opportunity for us to give away some golf to our valued customers. It's the best promotion I've ever done for GolfVisions.

Ongoing support by the Illinois PGA, which supplied more than 40 of its members to give free lessons to attendees, was another important element in the show's success, Corcoran said. The Chicago Golf Show is the only such show supported by the Illinois PGA.

The Illinois Junior Golf Association has helped make the show even more "kid-friendly" with its highly successful scavenger hunt and its ability to provide information about junior golf opportunities to children and parents. More than 200 children participated in the scavenger hunt, according to IJGA officials.

Appearances by Stadler, Beck, and Murphy differentiated the Chicago Golf Show by giving attendees the opportunity to see them on the Daily Herald Golf Academy Stage, ask questions, and get autographs. Both Stadler and Beck also had exhibit booths at the show. Meanwhile, Murphy regaled his audiences with behind-the-scenes nuggets about his Big Break Ireland victory and his aspirations someday to play on the PGA Tour
The show undertook a highly efficient and cost-effective marketing strategy, which included direct mail marketing, e-mail marketing, outdoor billboards, print and online advertising, radio advertising, and TV advertising - all of which targeted key golfer demographics.

The 2012 Chicago Golf Show featured an expansive indoor driving range at "Chicago's Largest Demo Days" sponsored by the Swan Lake Resort of Plymouth, Ind. There, golfers hit the latest new clubs from a range of the industry's most popular manufacturers, including TaylorMade, Wilson, Callaway, and Mizuno, among others. GreenGrass Clubfitting - which has never missed a show - provided attendees with information on custom club fitting.

This year, the always-popular Chicago's Longest Putt competition was presented by Golf Galaxy. The golf retail chain gave away $10 gift cards to all 3,500 contestants who tried to make the 85-foot putt over the course of the show. GolfVisions gave a free round of golf to anyone who putted the ball within two feet of the hole. Among those who made the putt, three received $100 Golf Galaxy gift certificates after winning an end-of-the-day drawing
The Chicago Golf Show is the nation's oldest consumer golf show and one of the largest. The show typically attracts 12,000-15,000 visitors each year.