Experienced strategist, entrepreneur joins industry’s business-to-business technology leader
Chicago, Illinois – (April 18, 2013) – EZLinks Golf, Inc., the world’s largest golf reservations network and operator of the highest-volume tee time call center in the golfing industry, added experienced corporate strategist and entrepreneur Gary Cohen to the executive team as the company’s chief executive officer. Cohen, who has a wealth of experience driving innovation in the tech sector, is focused on continuing EZLinks’ track record of develop industry-leading technology and working in partnership with its more than 1,000 course partners.
“EZLinks has built a successful business by aligning our success with the success of our golf course partners and I look forward to continuing this strategy,” said Gary Cohen, chief executive officer, EZLinks. “EZLinks will continue to be an industry partner and pioneer leveraging emerging technology to streamline core processes and improve efficiencies for our course partners.”
Representing seven of the top 10 management companies, EZLinks technology and service suite is focused on driving operational efficiencies and revenue for course partners. Cohen’s background leading major technology companies and building strategic partnerships will foster an environment of growth and user-focused solutions.
Prior to joining EZLinks Golf, Cohen was senior vice president of marketing and customer experience at Redbox, where he was instrumental in growing the movie and video game rental company into the market share leader with revenue in excess of $1 billion. Cohen is leveraging the brand-building insights, retail experience and product development expertise gained at Redbox to expand the golf industry’s approach to consumer and business services.
“I look forward to bringing new strategies and technologies to the golf industry and to building on EZLinks’ history of driving revenue through innovation for our golf course partners,” Cohen remarked. “It’s time for the golf industry to further leverage emerging technology to streamline core processes and to create a better user experience for golfers and industry professionals. In my mind, EZLinks is a 16-year-old start-up and the company is primed for exceptional growth. I join an established team of talented golf, technology and ecommerce experts and our Chicago base provides us with access to additional top caliber talent.”
Prior to taking on a pivotal leadership role at Redbox, Cohen served as managing director of Six Degrees Capital Management, where he led funding of media, entertainment, technology and intellectual property-focused ventures.
Previously, Cohen founded MusicNow, a subscription music service, and orchestrated its sale to Circuit City and then to AOL, serving as general manager until the company was successfully sold to Napster.
A serial entrepreneur, Cohen also was co-founder of Cruise Technologies and served as director, mobile systems at Zenith Data Systems. Earlier in his career, Cohen was managing consultant at Frank Lynn & Associates, an international marketing firm. He earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in economics and computer science from Union College.
To find out more about EZLinks Golf, Inc., please visit www.ezlinks.com.
About EZLinks Golf, Inc.
A pioneer in online reservations and tee time services, EZLinks was founded in 1995 and currently operates the world’s largest golf reservations network as well as the industry’s highest-volume tee time call center. The company, with more than 200 employees, provides tee sheet management software, 24/7 live operator reservations support, custom online booking technology, golf course web development and integrated point-of-sale, email marketing, mobile app and social media tools for the golfing industry. The EZLinks Golf ecommerce platform provides golfers with the ability to book their next tee time online at ezlinks.com. Discover more at www.ezlinks.com.
Contact:
Jonathan Gluskin
SS|PR
847-415-9319
jgluskin@sspr.com
