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In the midst of a golf craze for space-age composite equipment that sends the ball farther than ever, it seemed to one group of local golfers that it was  time to go old school.

Nationwide tour exempt player Bob Burns, who spent much of the 1990s honing his game in East Tennessee, founded Hickory Golf Classics last year to begin bringing the clubs of the 1900s back into fashion almost a century after they were last commonly used on the links. However, the Nationwide tour member had no hesitation to using state of the art sales techniques — through the Internet — to bring his product to market.

"They were beautiful hickory-shafted clubs in that era," Burns said. "No 460 cc (cubic centimeters) drivers. They are a throwback compared to the direction the game has gone now — with high-technology super-drivers and super balls. I think that will actually increase the interest in our product.

"I have a lot of respect for the game and the history of the game that my dad taught me. He taught me a lot about it and he always had an interest in the evolution of the game."

Burns, who also makes regular appearances on the PGA tour and won the 2002 Disney Classic, funneled his long-time love of the game's history into a new product line that features four vintage clubs.

 The web site, HickoryGolfClassics.com,  features period clubs of the mashies, niblicks, plus a blade and mallet putter. The clubs have hickory shafts, carbon steel heads that can be engraved and genuine leather grips.

"We're going to try and introduce two new clubs every year, I think," Burns said of the first-year product line. "We might go that direction where we eventually have a full set of clubs, I haven't really decided yet."

Starting a new business, while juggling a family with two youngsters and keeping up a busy tour schedule that takes the professional golfer coast to coast from his current residence in California, has been a challenge.

"I've always wanted to do something other than play golf," Burns said. "I've always had an interest in business. I really broke ground with the concept in the fall of 2005. Spent most of 2006 with research and development, putting together a sales force and suppliers. It snowballed into making it cost effective, not only for me to start a business and build the clubs, but also to provide a good value for tournament directors, member-guest tournaments and corporations who sponsor those kinds of events."

Those events are the prime sales target for Burns's company. The vintage clubs aren't so much for a day on the links as for a trophy or keepsake above the fireplace.

"We have hit them," Burns said, slipping a sly smile at HGC general manager Billy Cox. "But we don't recommend it. In fact, we have a disclaimer against it for liability purposes."

With thousands of corporate and charitable golf events held throughout the nation each year, Burns also sees an opportunity to sweeten the deal at the tournament registration table. According to Burns, companies and charitable organizations need a better way to reinforce their brand during golf events.

"Tournament participants typically receive a sleeve of balls and maybe a ball marker and divot tool at the registration table. On the higher end, they might receive a personalized wooden plaque or some sort of crystal piece. A Hickory Golf Classics personalized mashie, niblick, or putter, is a bit more unique and the pricing won't give tournament organizers sticker shock. I see how happy amateur players are at Tour events because the 'wow' factor is so great. Why not bring a little of that to the club player?"

Hickory Golf Classics is now geared up for full operation after opening up on-line sales for individual orders for the Christmas season. The first large volume orders began arriving in January, but the site still allows the flexibility for small-scale sales for gifts or trophy use.

Burns believes that the relationships and connections he's made on the course will translate into the crucial first-year sales volume.

"Part of it is from being in the business and having relationships with people," Burns said before flying out to take a spot in the field at Pebble Beach last month. "I've been a professional since 1991 and over 15 years I've established quite a few relationships and you go to those people. Some of those are going to be the guys working for the company and some are going to be the tournament directors that are targets for purchasing clubs for their events."

Already involved with the company are Daniel Walker, current pro at Cedar Hills in Lenoir City, who has been Burns's teacher. Cox, who won the '94 Tennessee Intercollegiate Championship at Walters State, is managing the warehouse and fulfillment aspects. The two met while Cox was Walker's assistant pro at Willow Creek. PGA player manager Ralph Todd heads up the research and development aspects of the business.

With the company warehouse and fulfillment operations in East Tennessee, his home in California and a constant travel schedule for PGA and Nationwide events, Burns sees the Internet as more than just a sales tool for HGC.

"Our software lets Bob check in from anywhere on anything down to the status of an individual order," Cox said. "It allows us to run a virtual office even though different people in the company are generally thousands of miles apart."

Being an e-business for sales actually makes things easier for their customers asserts the gm.

"It's all contained," said Cox, a Seymour High alum. "There isn't the headache of ordering a club or trophy, waiting for it to arrive and then taking it somewhere else to get engraved and hoping they have the right equipment so that it's hopefully ready to be picked up in time for your event.

"Say the Blount County Amateur wanted to give one of our blade putters to the champion in each of their flights, not they have made that order, but if they did. The director can place the order with us, upload the event's logo and be done in five minutes. There's no driving anything anywhere or delays due to art work for engraving. The event can check one thing off the to-do list, not have to worry about it again and have a unique piece as a trophy for the winner or keepsake for those who played in a special event. Since there are several clubs an event could give a different club every year."

The concept merges the classic — replicas of vintage clubs seen before mainly in black and white photos of a different age of the sport — and the user-friendly efficiency of today's e-business concepts.

"It is a different aspect than just playing golf," Burns said. "But it's a golf business so it's not like it's something I haven't done all my life."



On the web

n www.hickorygolfclassics.com