Here’s how a golf-club maker — one of many — flourished amid the COVID pandemic

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Tens of thousands of small businesses have struggled over the past year and a half amid COVID-19 infections and disruptions to the economy. But the pandemic has allowed a Scottsdale-based golf-club manufacturer to tee up its growth prospects.

Parsons Xtreme Golf, or PXG, got a couple favorable breaks from the pandemic.

For starters, golf participation and revenue expanded as courses around the nation were allowed to stay open. In addition, the company, which connects with consumers directly, was able to stay open and keep revenues flowing in because it didn’t need to rely on sales through third-party stores, many of which had to close temporarily.

The company, which is owned by GoDaddy founder and Arizona billionaire Bob Parsons, has ramped up sales and employment and expanded its marketing reach. It opened its fourth Arizona store and 10th overall Nov. 17 at the Norterra shopping center in north Phoenix, which Parsons’ Yam Worldwide also owns. PXG plans to have two dozen stores nationally by the end of 2022.

Parsons, a self-described “golf nut” with a 12 handicap, got interested in the game as a kid in Baltimore. He gained more enthusiasm after serving with the military in Vietnam, later completing his college education and founding several companies, of which GoDaddy is the most prominent.

The technology of golf

As Parsons grew wealthier, he spent more money on the pastime, eventually hitting what he said were $300,000 in annual expenditures on golf clubs and other equipment. He became obsessed with technological improvements that could allow players to hit farther, straighter and better. That resulted in his founding of PXG in 2014.

The company now has about 650 employees in Arizona, including roughly 340 hired this year. PXG has substantially increased sales, Parsons said, though the private company doesn’t disclose financial figures. It holds nearly 550 global patents, mainly for club design.

The PXG 0311 club heads are hollow and filled with a gel that the company says improves sound and feel. Photo by PXG

“The whole idea was that we could make a better club,” Parsons said during an interview prior to a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Arizona store.

“If you had unlimited time and money, could you make a better club?” Parsons said. “Absolutely.”

The importance of swing analysis

PXG stores sell clubs, clothing and other equipment. They also have rooms with golf simulators where players can test clubs and have their swings analyzed by experts and computers. In addition, PXG hosts club testing and swing-analyzing events or “fittings” at driving ranges and elsewhere. Fitting sessions evaluate a player’s swing speed and angle and other aspects in the hopes of recommending the most suitable clubs.

“Nothing is sold off the shelf,” Parsons said.