Former PGA Tour winner Hunter Mahan believes the recent controversial advertisement involving the popular YouTube golf channel Good Good and Callaway Golf was "stupid" but argues the subsequent fallout has been an overreaction.
Mahan, a six-time PGA Tour champion, stated that while the advertisement was "dumb" and "silly," the consequences, including severed partnerships and pulled merchandise, appear too severe for the golf content creators. He suggested that Good Good may have failed to realize the scope of their audience and the increased scrutiny that comes with partnering with major brands.
"Their impact on the game is huge, and with that size and scope of that lens on you, there is a responsibility, and I think they've realized that, probably in this ad and everything," Mahan told OutKick. "I think they might have learned that lesson, and they maybe didn't realize who was watching and how people are going to be judging them."
The controversy stemmed from an advertisement in late August where Good Good co-founder Garrett Clark appeared to shove a female member of the brand. Following the ad's release, it was deleted, and multiple apologies were issued.
Callaway, which collaborated with Good Good on a driver to promote the new club, has since cut ties with the YouTube group. Callaway CEO Chip Brewer stated that the company's content review process was "not comprehensive enough" and that corrective actions have been taken to strengthen approval procedures. The company also committed $1 million to organizations working to prevent violence against women, support survivors, and advance education and awareness efforts.
"You're with a large partner, Callaway, PGA Tour, you can't do those things now," Mahan explained. "I think they may have still lived in their small ecosystem and didn't realize they had entered a large ecosystem, which is awesome through all the hard work you've done, but there are going to be consequences for that. Probably too severe, but that's sort of the world we live in."
Following Callaway's decision, the PGA Tour announced that Good Good had withdrawn from its sponsorship of a scheduled November tournament. The PGA Tour has listed the event as the Austin Championship on its website.