Topgolf began as an idea to liven up golfing ranges, envisioned by the Joliffe brothers in 2000. By 2015, Topgolf has grown to be a global sports entertainment community with 24 venues worldwide.
To continue this growth, Topgolf acquired World Golf Tour (WGT) in order to expand their digital format. By adding a mobile aspect to Topgolf, the company can market to both traditional golfers and virtual gamers.
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WGT, based in San Francisco, is a sports gaming company with over 20 million players worldwide across online, social and mobile platforms. The company’s mission is to combine the love of sports with innovative gaming.
The deal between Topgolf and WGT brings both offline and online experiences into one. Fans can continue to play the existing WGT games, in addition to new virtual Topgolf games.
“Joining forces with Topgolf means more growth opportunities for our associates, improved service for our fans and additional development resources to advance our games,” YuChiang Cheng, president of Topgolf Media and WFT Co-Founder and CEO said. “The World Golf Tour team is excited to grow our existing games and build even more engaging content with Topgolf for the future. Topgolf’s popular games will soon be available to play anywhere in the world from the palm of your hand.”
Topgolf is opening more venues throughout 2016. Topgolf Entertainment Group (TEG), another division of Topgolf, will help extend the brand to other platforms. TEG has formed Topgolf Media to enhance the experience by incorporating advanced media. Topgolf International was also added by TEG to help the international development of Topgolf and it will be based in London.
“Topgolf has always signified so much more than a golf entertainment venue,” explained Erik Anderson, Co-Chairman and CEO of TEG. “We envision ourselves as a global sports lifestyle brand where people go to have the best times of their lives with golfing, gaming, food and beverage, music, apparel, digital content and much more.”
By expanding to online versions, Topgolf will be able to market to more users. This is a crucial partnership for sports entertainment to keep up with the forever growing technological world and digital demands of consumers.