New England's Golf Entrepreneurs

I wrote earlier this month about the New England golf scene.

Did you know that Top-Flite and Titleist golf balls are made in Massachusetts, and that Cobra and Ahead also have a presence here?

The column focuses on smaller ventures, though, like GolfEtail (Springfield, MA), 3balls.com (West Bridgewater, MA), Beacon Ridge Golf (Windham, NH), Stiletto Green Tool (Worcester, MA), Green Friendly Golf (Providence, RI).

A snippet:

Just as golfers can't resist the lure of the links as the weather turns warm, some entrepreneurs are drawn toward the golf industry, with its typically spendy, passionate, and gadget-oriented customers.

But even as the region's golf entrepreneurs are focused on designing unique, must-have products or offering alluring online discounts, they may not be able to dodge the effects of the economic downturn: Retailers are reporting decreasing sales, courses are closing, and attendance at this year's big merchandise trade show was down.

Last month, Callaway Golf Co. chief executive George Fellows predicted that sales of golfing gear will sink 15 to 20 percent in 2009.