Swag Golf – a leading premium, limited-edition golf accessory, equipment, and apparel company – recently announced it has closed a $10 million growth round led by Verance Capital. And the participants in the financing included leaders across the sports ecosystem, such as the San Francisco 49ers’ affiliated fund Aurum Partners, three-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White, two-time NBA All-Star Zach LaVine, Founder of Heights, LLC, Alex Cohen, Howard Lindzon, and former CEO of Libra Solutions Greg Zeeman among others.
This funding round will support the company’s innovative product lines, including its next-generation headcovers and putters. It will allow for greater expansion into new products, increase its presence in the Asia-Pacific marketplace, and accelerate its manufacturing capacity, allowing Swag Golf to meet growing demand from its collector base.
This expansion is pivotal for the broader golf industry – which has experienced incredible growth over the past several years, driven by a younger and more diverse audience. And the industry has experienced double-digit growth in total rounds played vs. pre-COVID, a vibrant collector’s market, and a continued resurgence in PGA TOUR viewership. Swag Golf has embodied the change taking place in the golf world and is now represented by top athletes in the PGA and LPGA TOURS.
Every Swag headcover combines bold, unique designs with industry-leading craftsmanship, becoming the gold standard in the headcover space in under six years. And Swag’s putters are methodically engineered and precisely milled utilizing 303 American Stainless Steel, emphasizing machining and thus eliminating the need for constant polishing. Swag’s quality and the time and care invested in its products is shown through a consistent sweet spot and weighting trusted by PGA TOUR and LPGA TOUR professionals weekly.
In 2020, Swag acquired Ecktron Performance (EP), a Georgia-based manufacturer, to vertically integrate its headcover production in the US and expand into the wholesale business across country clubs, the PGA TOUR, and other licensing partners. In 2021, Swag ambassador Anna Nordqvist won the British Open using a Swag-produced putter, leading to multiple Korn Ferry players adopting Swag Golf putters and signing its first PGA TOUR ambassador in Nick Hardy. In his first year – using a Swag putter – Hardy won his first PGA TOUR event at the Zurich Classic in April 2023, propelling him to a career-best 52nd-place finish in the FedEx Cup rankings.
KEY QUOTES:
“I founded Swag after spending many years in the golf industry and noticing a distinct lack of original expressive design and quality. This investment will help us broaden our incredibly innovative product base. Our limited edition, premium product releases typically sell out in minutes. With this investment, we will be able to increase our manufacturing capacity to meet increased demand and satisfy our ever-growing customer base while enabling us to innovate on the next generation of Swag’s product lines.”
“Since embarking on our journey to disrupt the golf industry in 2018, we have been humbled by the insatiable demand for our products and are grateful for our loyal, passionate customer base. We are thrilled to partner with Verance Capital and the rest of our industry-leading investor group as we embark on our next growth phase. Their expertise across the sports and media ecosystems will help us accelerate our value proposition and capture a larger share of the growing golf merchandise and collectibles market through international expansion, new partnerships, and increased manufacturing capabilities.”
- Nick Venson, Swag Golf’s founder and CEO, who spent over 19 years in the golf industry before founding Swag Golf
“We are thrilled to partner with Nick Venson and his team to help accelerate Swag’s mission to transform the golf industry. Swag Golf is a proven disrupter in the space that has successfully tapped into the collector psyche by offering premium, exclusive, and differentiated products. The company is poised to capitalize on the extraordinary demand for its products and the strong macro tailwinds in the golf industry and we’re excited to be part of that journey.”
- Lyle Ayes, founder and CEO of Verance Capital
