Nike Still Owns Pro Golf Despite Cutting Ties With Tiger Woods, and More In 2024; Here’s How

Many would have thought that after Tiger Woods parted ways with Nike, the apparel brand may lose its popularity among golf fans. After all, for 27 years, Woods was one of the best faces Nike sponsored and the two celebrated many milestones together. However, to this day, the Swoosh still exists fairly dominatingly in the golf realm.

New brands come and go but since their debut in the game of golf in 1984, Nike has stayed relevant for the past many decades. Although they stopped the equipment production in 2016, their shoes, hats, and merch can still be seen on many stars of the golfing world expanding from the PGA and LPGA Tour to those on the European circuit. And here’s why Nike is still the biggie among all!

Nike’s hold on top PGA Tour pros

It is the brand’s habit to grab the best player under its contract and that is what they did when Rory McIlroy turned world no. 1 in 2013. Then, they renewed the contract for 10 more years in 2017. Similarly, Scottie Scheffler was signed around 2021-22 and the two have been a great endorser of the brand. How, you ask? Well, just this year, the two have represented Nike in various tournaments on the PGA Tour, and have won 10 events among them, while donning Swoosh from head to toe.

The biggest exposure for Nike in 2024 was probably at the 88th Masters as Scheffler won the second green jacket and millions watched him at Augusta National. Nike also sent a gift hamper on the birth of Scheffler’s son, Bennett Scheffler, showing how close the brand is to its athletes. Three of the two best-ranked golfers are signed under Nike, but that’s not all. They also have many other PGA Tour pros like Tony Finau, who still uses the 2016 Vapor Fly Pro Irons.

Swoosh didn’t leave LIV Golf alone either

Well, seeing Nike on the PIF-backed circuit is rare but is not impossible. The apparel still has one top star on LIV Golf donning their jerseys instead of his team’s merch. It is the 5-time major winner, Brooks Koepka. Even after moving to LIV Golf, Koepka stayed with Nike after signing with them in 2016 and this turn of events makes him one of the few on LIV representing Swoosh. He doesn’t wear his team, Smash GC’s jersey either because of his Nike contract.

From LIV Golf events to the majors, Koepka always wears one brand and they also collaborated with his team Smash GC in January. Nike and the 34-year-old’s team made custom shoes for the four members, boasting the team colors and the name on the side. And as the custom goes, they have sent packages for Koepka’s son, Crew. Surely, the clothing giant knows how to make their entry in every golf league, while having personal connections with the players.

LPGA Tour? Nike has checked that box too!

At the start of 2023, one of the biggest names to sign with Nike from the LPGA Tour was Nelly Korda. In that year though, Nike’s investment in Korda wasn’t fruitful as she was winless on the LPGA Tour. But the pro made it big for the apparel brand after winning six times on the LPGA Tour including, the Chevron Championship.

While Korda has been with Nike for only over a year, the brand has also signed the South Korean golf phenomenon, In Gee Chun. Playing on both the LPGA and KLPGA Tour, Chun was signed by the brand in 2013 and has since been the face of it. She celebrated her 10th anniversary with Nike in December 2023. The two have been huge Nike faces on the LPGA Tour but they aren’t the only women golfers with Nike!

Another LPGA star stays with Nike even after retirement

Nike signed with Michelle Wie West when she was only 15 years old and climbed the stairs of success as a woman golfer at the age of 15. And even after West retired from professional golf in 2023, the LPGA Tour star still was a Nike partner. Although she didn’t endorse the brand on the course anymore, West took the help of social media.

With 608K followers on Instagram, West posts some of her collaborations with the brand. In 2023, she became a part of Nike’s Athlete Think Tank. The collective is made for the empowerment of women’s sport and growth. Moreover, West and Nike also launched ANGC/Masters-themed shoes in April. Its name was the 2024 ANWA/Masters NRG pack based on the concept of metamorphosis and how golfers evolve over time. Even after her exit from golf, West is still a big part of Nike.

How can the DP World Tour be forgotten?

Last but not the least, the ambassador of Nike Golf in the game of golf and at the DP World Tour is Tommy Fleetwood. Nike signed Fleetwood when he was only an amateur in 2010. Over the past 14 years, their deal has only gotten stronger. Undoubtedly, the Englishman brings business for the clothing brand and that’s why they haven’t parted ways with him yet. Fleetwood dons the iconic Swoosh not only on the European Tour but also when he plays on the PGA Tour.

For all of his seven victories on the DP World Tour, Nike has always been Fleetwood’s partner. Because of these top players, Nike still stays relevant in the golf world, and with their strong contract benefits and terms, it will be decades before Nike is out of the golf game.