"You will not make this putt. ... You, jackass!"
Hopefully, hecklers will be nowhere to be seen when collectors and golfers alike test out their brand-new Callaway “Happy Gilmore 2” limited-edition Odyssey hockey-stick putters and golf balls.
Along with the release of the sequel to Adam Sandler’s beloved comedy, set for July 25 on Netflix, Callaway announced the launch of Odyssey putters (available at Dick's and Golf Galaxy) and golf balls inspired by the film.
After the release of the original film, Odyssey developed 1,000 limited-edition hockey-stick putters which have since become fan favorites.
Callaway vice president of global marketing Nick Mclnally told cllct this marks an update to the iconic hockey-stick putter, which was produced when Odyssey was just establishing itself — now the brand is at the top of the golf world.
“How do we make a putter that is relevant for today, that actually uses some of our technology and bring that to life?” Mclnally recalled asking his team when discussions began with Netflix for the collaboration more than a year ago.
The actual design of the putter, which will cost $499.99, was agreed upon quickly, Mclnally said. It was the head covers that took nearly a month of back and forth.
Golf as a sport has come a long way, culturally, since the release of the first movie in 1996, when Shooter McGavin represented the stuffy PGA crowd, and Sandler’s character Happy came to shake things up.
“A lot of that has become the accepted norm,” Mclnally said. “Street styles have come to golf.”
Just as the audience for the film will be a combination of casual comedy and sports fans as well as hard-core golfers, Callaway is looking to appeal to both types of fans with this collaboration.
The putter does not conform to the rules of golf, and Mclnally said he expects the majority of people to be buying it as a collectors item. But that doesn’t mean it won’t be seen out on the course by a few golfers looking to play like Gilmore.
Callaway specifically sought to keep the putters limited in production.
“We don’t want them absolutely everywhere, and we do want it to effectively become a limited-edition collectors item that people are going to love,” Mclnally said. “In our office, we still have some of the original Happy Gilmore products, and any time anyone saw them the first thing is ‘Oh that’s cool!’ We’re trying to get a little bit of that back again with these putters.”
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible content.