Industry’s top club fitter expands equipment offerings, goes international in historic year
Willowbrook, IL – The game of golf requires a certain optimism — players keep coming back regardless of the challenges. The golf industry has seen the perseverance of that optimism in recent years and Club Champion, the globe’s top custom club fitter, is proud to report on exceptional growth in 2022. Following international acquisitions in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia, Club Champion has further solidified its place atop the club fitting industry.
The company’s thorough fitting process, hand-built clubs, and attention to detail have gained a strong recognition among golfers, leading to over 94,000 fittings in 2022 alone.
“After over a decade of growth, you’d think there has to be a plateau but that hasn’t been the case for us,” said Club Champion founder, Nick Sherburne. “We continue to have the best fitters, the best fittings, and the most brands a golfer can try in the bay. We won’t stop so long as there are golfers looking to improve their game through better equipment.”
The fitter’s international growth came with acquisitions of Canadian club fitter, Tour Experience Golf (TXG), Golf Principles in the UK, and the Australian fitter, PureForm Golf. Club Champion also opened a location in the birthplace of golf: Glasgow, Scotland.
“Our international acquisitions have combined some of the best golf and club fitting minds in the world,” said Club Champion CEO, Adam Levy. “Expanding our global footprint will allow Club Champion to be there for golfers looking for the best club fitter to optimize their game and lower their scores.”
TXG was established in 2016 and has become Canada’s preeminent club fitting and club building company. The brand has amassed a measurable and loyal following in the digital space and quickly established a position as one of the most trusted resources for golfers worldwide via their YouTube channel. The TXG ideology is centered on fitting, building, and educating golfers to help them maximize their performance on the golf course, making them a perfect outlet for Club Champion in Canada.
Golf Principles was established in 2008 by PGA professional veteran, Jason MacNiven. His philosophy is deeply rooted in a process which finds the best equipment available for golfers of all levels and swing capabilities throughout the South of England. Like Club Champion in the US, the Golf Principles team takes equipment specifications for each customer and custom assembles their clubs using state-of-the-art machinery.
Finally, PureForm Golf was founded in 2014 by Paul Jenner, a member of PGA Australia. PureForm is the market leader in custom golf club fitting and building in Australia. PureForm’s brand agnostic approach has improved Australian golfers’ performance and enjoyment of the game for nearly a decade. With more options becoming available thanks to the Club Champion acquisition, Australian golfers will have the most extensive club fitting process available.
On top of the international expansion, Club Champion also opened 18 stores domestically in 2022. The domestic growth led to a 15% increase in the company’s labor force across the United States. With a new distribution center in Tempe, Arizona and renovations to the Willowbrook, Illinois headquarters, the company has reduced its average build and ship time to just 10 business days for club orders. Collectively, the two build shops produced more than 345,000 hand-built golf clubs during the year. Those impeccably built clubs contribute directly to the company’s on-course claims, including the fact that Club Champion custom-fit golfers add an average of 21 yards off the tee. That statistic was proven by a Golf Digest study, along with a metric showing an average 17-yard dispersion improvement with custom fitted and built clubs.
“There’s no such thing as ‘good enough’ at Club Champion,” Levy said. “Our tagline says it all: with a better fit, you achieve lower scores, and it’s our job to be better than the others so you can play at your best.”
To round out an incredible year of firsts and record-breaking results, Club Champion also reported the following:
- 67% of all fittings were first-time customers, further supporting the growth in beginner and returning golfer segments.
- Content created by the Club Champion team, including video content on YouTube and episodes of their podcast, Fits with the Founder, reached over 93 million impressions on social media in 2022.
- Over 198,000 hours were spent in fitting bays — that’s over 8,250 full days.
Looking ahead in 2023, Club Champion has plans to continue its growth with even more stores in the United States and around the globe.
“We’ve got big plans for 2023,” said Levy. “Between our fittings and our digital content, we know Club Champion will continue to be synonymous with better golf moving forward.”
For more information about Club Champion, please visit clubchampion.com.
About Club Champion
Club Champion is the globe’s most prominent name in custom club fitting and building services. Established in 2010, there are now more than 110 Club Champion locations internationally, including studios in Canada, the UK, and Australia. Each US studio offers golfers access to over 60 brands and more than 65,000 hittable head and shaft combinations. Club Champion has solidified their position at the top of the industry through comprehensive Tour-level fittings, unrivaled club building, and the use of top-tier technology. The company is headquartered in Willowbrook, Illinois, USA, and boasts more than 400 employees, including hundreds of the most highly trained Master Fitters in the world. For more information about Club Champion, visit www.clubchampion.com.
