Fashion Insider: 'Bad golf style' lives with Loudmouth, Daly
By Man in the Black Hat, PGATOUR.COM Fashion Insider
The first time The Man In The Black Hat encountered Loudmouth Golf in person was at, of all places, the 2009 Masters Tournament.
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On a brilliant Saturday morning, with sun streaming through the majestic pines, it was hard not to notice a rather striking juxtaposition against the hallowed backdrop that is Augusta National Golf Club.
A small gathering of Al Czerviks had formed in the early morning light, numbering a half dozen individuals, just to the right of the pond that fronts the 15th green. One would think that with a security gate substantially more thorough (though markedly more friendly) than those found at most major airports in the United States, trousers of the Technicolor variety would be banned from the premises just as quickly as any electronic device. But alas, this was not the case.
Approaching the group cautiously, it became apparent that the gathering wasn't that of a frat reunion gone wrong (or right), as first expected. Instead, the these wearers of the world's gaudiest golf pants ranged in age from spotty faced teenager to weathered octogenarian, and each and every one of them was wearing a broad smile. Curious.
As it turns out, these patrons were longstanding Masters badge holders commemorating their 40th year of their family's attendance, which lead The Man In The Black Hat to think that he had been playing the part of a golf fashion Grinch, and his traditional golf apparel heart had some sizes yet to grow.
A year and a half down the road, the can't-help-but-notice Loudmouth Golf phenomenon is out in force at private and public clubs alike, a trend that is now in full effect thanks in no large part to the support of Loudmouth's PGA TOUR front man John Daly, and some fortunate ordering from a certain Olympic curling team.
To get to the bottom what makes Loudmouth Golf as popular as it is, we turn to Scott "Woody" Woodworth and Larry Jackson, the men at the Loudmouth Golf helm.
BLACK HAT: What was it that inspired the genesis of Loudmouth Golf? Caddyshack's Al Czervik combined with Johnny Miller circa 1975, or was it a desire to bring more color and conversation to the golf apparel table?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "We wanted to continue the tradition of bad golf style. The sport is famous for it. EVERY golf caricature in cartoon, print, advertisement, TV episode, depicts the golfer wearing pants "made for golf." Everybody has a picture of it in their mind. We realized that that unique fashion sense in the real world had become dormant. We brought it back in the spirit of Al Czervik and Johnny Miller. In fact we offer replicas of Al's and Johnny pants from the era."
BLACK HAT: For the traditionalists out there who might wonder about target demographics and such business, who is it that cleans the racks of Loudmouth apparel from every golf shop I stop at?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "If we could make a demographic category as follows: anyone who wants to have a great time while being stared at while having that great time, then that's the demographic. You'd be surprised how many people fit that category; ALL age groups, ALL body types, ALL genders. We call it the Bon Vivant demographic."
BLACK HAT: Although it seems like a no-brainer after the fact, how important was it to find a pro in John Daly that seems to match your company ethos so well?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "Three years before John Daly started wearing Loudmouth, the partners were sitting in the House of Prime Rib in San Francisco and wondered what it would be like if we could just get John Daly to wear our pants. It eventually happened, and it accelerated our exposure exponentially."
BLACK HAT: Further to that, how did the relationship between Loudmouth and John Daly come to be?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "We first met former Chicago Bears' QB Jim McMahon. He started wearing Loudmouth pants. He's good friends with John and introduced us and set up a meeting. We brought different styles and sizes of pants, had a fitting, John like them and said, 'Shoot, I'll wear those on TOUR.' It all happened in the span of 2 weeks."
BLACK HAT: Aside from your association with John Daly, the 2010 Winter Olympics provided you with an unexpected boost thanks to the Norwegian curling team. How did this come about, and has it opened new cross over markets for Loudmouth?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "The Norwegian curling team ordered their pants from our website unbeknownst to us. We shipped their order out like any other order, as we've shipped to countries all over the world, including Dubai, Slovenia, and even Venezuela. We had shipped to Norway before too. The only way we found out about it was that one of the pants didn't fit one of the players, and they emailed us to see if we could FedEx the replacement pair directly to the Olympic Village, attn: Norwegian Curling Team. So we immediately got back to them and asked, 'you mean THE Olympic Curling Team, like, from Norway?' As soon as we found out, we jumped into action and were all over it. Halfway through the fortnight, NBC's The Today Show wore the pants during a segment and introduced Loudmouth to the world, and later that afternoon our website server melted down."
BLACK HAT: Speaking of curling and cross over markets, what's next for Loudmouth, both in and outside of golf?
LOUDMOUTH GOLF: "We will introduce products outside of golf in 2011. We currently offer snowboard pants in our Shagadelic Black and Oakmont Houndstooth designs. Cool Loudmouth sunglasses will come out just before the holidays. On the horizon are fancy resort shirts, board shorts, T-shirts, and pool table felt. We've recently had requests from polo teams, bocce tournaments, and just yesterday received a fantastic photo of a skydiver who only wears Loudmouth on his record-breaking dives. If fact, he's offered to do a tandem jump with John Daly. John? You interested? You've got the wardrobe for it!"
Given Daly's noted lack of fondness for flight, a tandem skydive might not be in his immediate future, though Daly left no doubt about the possibility of jumping back in a traditional golf clothier at any point in the future.
"Never, ever. No way, not a chance," came the definitive response to the possibility.
The reality is that Daly and Loudmouth Golf are a match made in product marketing heaven, as the kaleidoscopic brand has found the perfect front man, and Daly the perfect reflection of his larger-than-life personality.
Daly also shared his thoughts on the practice of apparel scripting, also known as "being told what to wear and when." Does direction come from either Loudmouth Golf or girlfriend and fellow Loudmouth Golf wearer Anna Cladakis? Or, does he just made things up as he goes along?
Daly weighed in with mock outrage, stating, "I'm my own man! I decide that morning, lay a color out and she goes just as Loud with me," leaving no doubt as to who wears the Loudmouth Golf pants in this relationship. Right, John?
The Man in the Black Hat is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.
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