Hype Sports Innovation Announces Finalists and Judges for Global Sports Innovation Competition at the PGA Merchandise Show

London, UK –The inaugural Global Golf Innovation Competition, a new “Shark Tank”-style competition for golf startups, announced today the finalists and judges who will participate at the 2019 PGA Merchandise Show, Jan. 22-25, in Orlando, Florida.

HYPE Sports Innovation, an established global platform which facilitates connections and investments among the sports innovation ecosystem, will host the competition in cooperation with PGA Worldwide Golf Exhibitions to showcase up-and-coming innovators and cutting-edge technology in golf to an esteemed panel of judges on Tuesday, Jan. 22, at the Orange County Convention Center.

The judges for the competition are:

● Uli Becker, Chairman, HYPE Capital, Former President & CEO, Reebok
● Roberta Bowman, Chief Brand & Communications Officer, LPGA
● Randy Chase, Sr. Director of Strategic Alliance Marketing, Electronic Arts/EA Sports
● Amy Fischer, Group Vice President Strategy & Insights, Reed Exhibitions
● Elisa Gaudet, Founder, Women’s Golf Day and Executive Golf International
● Jeehae Lee, Director of Business Development, TopGolf
● Jeff Price, Chief Commercial Officer, PGA of America
● Eddie Smith, Vice President-Golf, Lagardére Sports

The finalists for the startup competition are:

●        CaddieNow – The nation’s most trusted caddie program

●        Golf Post – New media house for golf

●        Khelfie Technologies – Golf’s first AI-powered super-wearable

●        Kinexit – Train better. Play more.

●        Players 1st – Know your players’ needs – keep them in the game.

●        Shot Scope – Shot Scope V2 is the world’s only GPS and fully automatic performance tracking system.

●        Swing King – New revenue for your course and excitement for your golfers

●        TDJ Golf – Merging on-course play and fantasy golf

●        GolfBoo – The comparison website for golf travel

●        6Joe’s – Play like a Joe. Score like a pro.

The Global Golf Innovation Competition will be held in Room 414D of the Convention Center and features the following event schedule:

2:00 p.m. Reception
2:30 p.m. Keynote Session: Startup Landscape in Golf
3:00 p.m. Startup Competition
4:30 p.m. Networking Cocktail (Finalists and Guests) / Judges Discussion
5:00 p.m. Awards Ceremony
5:15 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. Networking Cocktail (Judges, Finalists, and Guests)

About the PGA Merchandise Show

The 66th PGA Merchandise Show, held Jan. 22-25, 2019, in Orlando, will welcome some 1,000 top golf companies and brands and more than 40,000 industry professionals from around the world to the industry’s annual global summit for the business of golf. The PGA Show Demo Day, the world’s largest professional golf testing event, will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 22, at the Orange County National Golf Center. During PGA Show days, Jan. 23-25, at the Orange County Convention Center, PGA Professionals, retailers and industry leaders will uncover the latest trends, source the newest golf merchandise, test the latest equipment, learn proven business best practices, network among peers and move forward the business of the game. The PGA Merchandise Show, “the MAJOR of Golf Business,” is a trade-only event, not open to the public.

Learn more at PGAShow.com

About HYPE Sports Innovation

HYPE Sports Innovation is the largest, global ecosystem in sports innovation. With over 40,000 members, including retail brands, athletic clubs, federations and academia, and over 10,000 startups, HYPE converts sports and innovation into business success.

HYPE nurtures winning ideas and connects them with global sports partners and investors. Our unique scouting approach together with customized services and strong relationships with the sports innovation ecosystem, enable us to help sports start-ups to scale up and to the sports brands, leagues and teams to stay ahead of the curve and move from traditional sports experiences to the new era of sports and innovation. The HYPE ecosystem includes leading sports brands, investors and associations from UEFA, Adidas, Spalding, Silicon Valley Bank, Asics, Google and many more. The company’s vision is to impact people’s lives through the power of sports and innovation.

Visit HYPE Sports Innovation: www.hypesportsinnovation.com

Media Contacts:
HYPE Sports Innovation/PR and Marketing: Michelle Handelman, michelle@hypesportsinnovation.com
PGA Worldwide Golf Exhibitions:  Sherry Major, (716) 662-3855, smajor@reedexpo.com