Dale Smigelsky, the 2012 PGA Merchandiser of the Year for Public Facilities, is the PGA director of golf at Collindale Golf Club in Fort Collins, Colo.

Dale Smigelsky on the importance of range ball sponsorships:
For the past eight years, I have been selling space on our facility’s range balls to a local business. It’s a matter of pride for me to always have the best driving range conditions because it reflects on me, our golf academy and the entire Collindale Golf Club facility. A big part of that is having new range balls year after year. We’ve found that the two things players expect most from a driving range is a good surface to hit from and good, high-quality range balls that go a consistent distance. It might seem cost prohibitive to have new balls each year, but if you can have a large portion paid for by a sponsor, then it’s definitely a winning proposition for all involved. It results in happy customers hitting brand new balls off a top-notch surface, and happy companies ranging from car dealerships to home builders who get to be a part of a unique marketing effort and get positive advertising from a reputable source (Collindale) in return.

Dale Smigelsky on the business impact of range ball sponsorships:
No matter your situation, take the time to determine who might be interested in partnering with you on your range ball purchases as it really can make a difference. We buy 2,000 dozen balls each year, and depending on my relationship with the sponsor I can get 50-75 percent of the price of our range balls paid for. The money we save here affects the bottom line directly, and much of it gets pumped right back into other areas of the facility, making it look better and making our course owner, the city of Fort Collins, very happy. And while not the sole contributing factor, we have also seen range ball sales increase 5-10 percent every year since we have implemented this program. Many facilities overlook the fact that each aspect of their facility compliments all the others, and when one achieves success, it ultimately helps all the others.