Word: golfed
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...this sounds like the sort of obsessive behavior to which the ordinary duffer can relate, that's because Harrington is the patron saint of duffers. In his twenties, at an age when Tiger Woods was shattering records, Harrington was training to become an accountant on the assumption that professional golf was too difficult to crack. Between his first professional victory, in 1996, and his second four years later, he recorded nine runner-up finishes, and spent most of his early years on tour being chided for his plodding style and slow play. But Harrington has always had one great skill...
Sporting geniuses such as Tiger Woods have an intuitive, almost artistic feel for golf; Harrington belongs to a breed of amateur scientists who use an agonizing process of trial and error to master their craft. "Padraig is the hardest worker I've ever coached, and the most curious," says Bob Torrance, Harrington's 77-year-old swing guru. "[Former great Ben] Hogan was similar, both struggled early in their career. Both learned long and hard, and both became great...
Harrington has learned to balance his obsessive focus on technical details with a less tangible discipline - sports psychology. Renowned golf psychologist Bob Rotella teaches Harrington how not to think, encouraging him to play "unconscious, out-of-his-mind golf." Such clarity is muddled by technical tinkering on the practice tee, so Rotella places a limit on practice during big tournaments. It's an abstention Harrington struggles to uphold. "I'm getting better but if I'm let loose I'll just practice all day," he says...
...golf stop the slump? Polegato insists that his customers have asked that GEOX create a comfy golf shoe. "Golf is a perfect environment for GEOX technology," he says. "You walk long hours, often on a damp surface, and in warm if not hot climates. Why suffer with your feet? In the third millennium, it is impossible that people still suffer from such a basic problem as sweaty, smelly feet." Right on, Mario. The problem for GEOX, however, is that the world's economy may stink even worse...
Despite this favorable environment for golf shoes, GEOX's success is no gimme. First, the shoes are expensive, ranging from $160-200. Some golf shoes in the market cost even more, but that's still a steep price during down times. Plus, golf is a crowded marketplace; in the U.S., for example, Nike owns 56% of the market. With Tiger Woods returning to the course, in his usual Swoosh-clad clothes, an upstart like GEOX is unlikely to make a serious dent. "It's not like the industry is crying out for a new brand or a new idea," says...