[PHOTO: Abdullah Ahmed]
When Dustin Johnson signed a contract extension with TaylorMade in 2021, the newly minted Masters champion said, “With all the challenges of 2020, it was one of my best years on the golf course. TaylorMade was right there with me each step of the way, just like they’ve been for my whole career. There isn’t a better golf equipment company in the game, especially the guys out on tour. I’m looking forward to being part of Team TaylorMade for a long time to come.”
That time, however, has come to an end.
With that extension expiring at the end of 2024, the union between the two-time major winner and the equipment powerhouse ended as well, TaylorMade confirmed, although there was no comment on whether it was Johnson’s or TaylorMade’s decision not to go forward.
TaylorMade is the only equipment company Johnson has been with since turning pro in 2007. One of the biggest stars on the PGA Tour, Johnson amassed 24 victories, including a pair of majors (2016 US Open and 2020 Masters) as well as a string of at least one win in each of his first 13 seasons on tour.
But in 2022, the former world No.1 left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf, going on to win three titles on that circuit and top the nascent tour’s individual points title in 2022. Meanwhile, the Johnson/TaylorMade split underscores the conundrum regarding LIV golfers and endorsements.
LIV golfers – especially high-profile players who have signed seven, eight and nine-figure contracts – don’t necessarily need equipment endorsements to supplement their on-course earnings, allowing them to become equipment free agents if they chose. And manufacturers might be inclined to let deals expire if they don’t feel they’re getting a return on their endorsement investments. By doing so, they risk the potential that LIV continues to move from upstart to a permanent part of golf’s ecosystem in which having players competing in their events who are part of their tour staff will be important from a brand-building standpoint. On the flip side, how much exposure does a company receive when LIV players wear hats branded with team names, not company names?
There’s also the undeniable fact that Johnson, who’ll turn 41 in June, is far from his competitive best. Not that golfers who age can’t be competitive, but Johnson’s performance on LIV, with its smaller fields, and in last year’s majors hardly smacks of his salad days. Although he did win the LIV event in Las Vegas, in eight of the 13 events he finished 20th or worse in eight of them. And in the four majors in 2024, he missed two cuts with a best finish of T-31 coming at the Open Championship at Royal Troon.
Even so, the split clearly wasn’t a result of dissatisfaction with equipment. Johnson was still using a TaylorMade driver at the LIV Golf Riyadh season-opener last week.
