“Golf-Sabbatini goes from 'bad boy' to role model” plus 1 more

Golf-Sabbatini goes from 'bad boy' to role model

Posted: 06 Mar 2011 04:03 PM PST

By Simon Evans

PALM BEACH GARDENS, March 6 (Reuters) - Once considered one of golf's bad boys, life has thrown a few tests in the direction of Rory Sabbatini who on Sunday claimed his first PGA Tour win in nearly two years with victory in the Honda Classic and acknowledged he was a changed man.

The Texas-based South African has had to deal with two major health scares—a skin cancer operation and a serious problem for his American wife Amy, who spent four days in cardiac intensive care after childbirth.

"It's been a stretch, a tough road. My wife had some health issues with the delivery of our baby and it was very concerning. Then obviously having to go through what I went through with my skin cancer and then her father just went through that recently too," he said.

Nine days after the birth of the Sabbatinis' third child, Bodhi Mac, the golfer went under the knife to have a cancerous growth removed from his face.

The scare has led to him wearing a broad rimmed hat and smearing his face in a special sun-cream each time he steps on a golf course.

At first glance, the cowboy hat seems to enhance his old image as a maverick but it is clear from the composed way in which he approached his golf this week in Florida that he is now a focused and settled man.

Sabbatini's reputation for being fiery and emotional came largely from some public spats with Tiger Woods and an incident in 2005 where he protested slow play by storming off to the next hole leaving Ben Crane on the green on his own.

Yet on Sunday, after holding off a challenge from South Korean Yang Yong-eu to win by a stroke, it was Sabbatini's "emotional stability" that his opponent praised.

"I'm a passionate golfer, I really I am. I love the game of golf and I have had my moments. I'm not proud of everything that I've done out here (on tour) but I'm trying to learn," he said.

He credits fatherhood for his more mature approach and a rebuke from his wife.

"I'm trying to be a role model for my children and I know, as my wife has said to me, I wouldn't want my son doing some of the things that I have done in the past.

"I definitely have to take into account that my son is old enough now that he understands everything that I do and I really try to be a role model for him," he said.

Sabbatini has also been rewarded for sheer hard work and persistence - the Honda Classic was his eighth straight tournament without a break.

"I have been feeling like things are going in the right direction and was trying to build on it each and every week. I felt like something good was going to happen. Really, I guess, I have been trying to flush a win out.

"I guess if you flip coins enough times, you are eventually going to end on the right side"

(Editing by Rex Gowar; To query or comment on this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)

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Canada’s Golf Town heading to U.S.

Posted: 07 Mar 2011 09:13 AM PST

MARINA STRAUSS

Globe and Mail Update

Published Monday, Mar. 07, 2011 11:33AM EST

Last updated Monday, Mar. 07, 2011 11:51AM EST

At a time when U.S. retailers are rapidly expanding into Canada, a Canadian chain is boldly heading in the opposite direction and taking its first international swing in the cutthroat U.S. market.

Golf Town, a big-box golfing equipment and fashion chain, will open its first U.S. stores in the Boston area later this month. With 60 stores planned in Canada by the end of 2010, it envisions that as many as 600 eventually south of the border.

More related to this story

Beyond the U.S. market, expansion in Europe and Asia are also potential growth engines, said Stephen Bebis, chief executive officer at Golf Town.

"Our big audacious goal would be to be the world leader in golf retailing," Mr. Bebis said in an interview. "Certainly the rest of the world is available to us at the appropriate time. We've got to walk before we run."

Golf Town's first foray outside of Canada comes as another domestic retailer - Loblaw Cos. Ltd. - prepares its blueprint for global growth with its affordable Joe Fresh Style fashions. Two weeks ago, the company unveiled that it will test four stores in New York later this year, with the possibility for between 500 and 800 outlets in the U.S., and expansion in other international markets.

The plans come despite a decidedly poor track record among Canadian retailers to make it in the highly competitive U.S. market. Such luminaries as Canadian Tire, Shoppers Drug Mart, Future Shop and Loblaw itself have been forced to retreat after failed attempts at U.S. retailing.

Mr. Bebis' move is a risky one also because growth in golfing has declined in the downturn. But he said he's done his homework, particularly in the New England area where golfing is still popular.

"With the economy turning around in the U.S., everything we're hearing and reading is that the golf market is improving," he said.

Mr. Bebis' initiative coincides with a flurry of U.S. retailers announcing plans to open stores in Canada, or contemplating the move. The U.S. retailers include discount giant Target Corp., which will launch here by 2013. Other U.S. chains already in Canada, such as Wal-Mart Canada Corp. and Lowe's Cos., are pushing forward with more stores here.

Canadian retailer weathered the economic storm better than their U.S. counterparts. The U.S. golf market suffered because some of its key areas for the sport, such as Florida, Arizona and California, were hit hard in the recession and are recovering more slowly than other markets.

Mr. Bebis is betting on Golf Town's strengths to help it take off in its new venture. Golf Town has deep pockets, having been bought in 2007 by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, one of this country's largest pension funds. Mr. Bebis said a U.S. acquisition of a rival golf chain could be in the cards.

Golf Town has differentiated itself with its interactive golfing capabilities, allowing shoppers to try out equipment in the store. On rainy summer weekends, his stores are packed with golfers who can't play outside, he said. As well, it has a wide assortment of brands, and three to four times as many fashion offerings as competitors - for men and women.

Mr. Bebis got his retailing experience in the United States, and brought U.S. style merchandising to Canada. He headed Aikenhead's, which modelled itself on Home Depot, which in turn bought the Canadian home improvement chain. Subsequently Mr. Bebis launched his first Golf Town stores in 1999.

Today, Golf Town has about $400-million of annual sales at 55 stores in Canada. Its long-term goal is for $1-billion of sales a year, Mr. Bebis said.

Golf Zone

Monday, March 7, 2011