At the annual PGA Show late January in Orlando I always make a point of taking the 30 minute bus shuttle out to Demo Day to kick the tires of the golf industry's latest equipment at the 360º range facility. The product that really caught my attention had nothing to do with hitting balls across the 400 yard diameter driving range. Off to the side was a compact setup that exuded a fun vibe where people were hitting oversized plastic whiffle balls with an oversized plastic club.... at buckets with flags in them.
This was my introduction to BucketGolf. After playing a quick round I struck up a conversation with Founder and CEO Tyler Simmons to learn about how BucketGolf came to be. Tyler's entrepreneurial journey aligns nicely with the stories we showcase on The ModGolf Podcast, so I had no choice but to invite him to share it with all of us.
"I figured out after looking at my roommate throw his clothes into his pop-up laundry hamper that I should just make pop-up buckets which solved a ton of issues for us. The game became cheaper because the box is much smaller and it cut the price in half. Two years in is when the snowball started rolling down the hill. Once I figured out the social media side, marketing strategy and of how to get the game out there, it all clicked at the same time."... BucketGolf CEO and Founder Tyler Simmons
I discovered BucketGolf and Tyler at the 2024 PGA Show Demo Day, where we created a couple of videos for our ModGolf Instragram. Click on the image to watch and give it a 'Like' and follow us while you're there!
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As the creator and host of The ModGolf Podcast and YouTube channel I've been telling golf entrepreneurship and innovation stories since May 2017 and I love the community of ModGolfers that we are building.
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You can also learn more about Tyler on his bio page and purchase your own BucketGolf set from their website.
"The hardest part in the beginning was how long it took me to learn how things work. We really didn't see any success for the first two years. I was trying as hard as I could and put everything I had into BucketGolf outside of my regular day job. The biggest insight for me was learning that shipping is very expensive. You need your box to be small. The light bulb moment that took us from "not doing too much in sales for the first couple years to starting to go upward" was the buckets used to be a soft flexible plastic and the box they shipped in was too big."... Tyler Simmons
Episode Chapters
[03:10] How and when Tyler was introduced to golf and who invited him
[04:20] The "AHA moment" that led to the creation of BucketGolf
[06:50] What it's like to play BucketGolf and set up a course
[09:55] Tyler shares stories of the most amazing BucketGolf shots he has seen
[10:50] We learn about the BucketGolf ball and clubs
[12:45] How BucketGolf opens the game up to people who have never played before
[13:40] The story behind coming up with the brand name "BucketGolf"
[14:40] How "BucketGolf Glow" allows people to play at night
[16:30] Tyler discusses why they decided to attend The PGA Show and value it provided
[18:50] BucketGolf's B2B marketing strategy to sell to businesses, schools and organizations
[20:20] Tyler's background and experience before launchnig BucketGolf (hint: he had a lot to learn!)
[21:10] Steps and sequencing Tyler took to design and manufacture the orginal BucketGolf product
[23:00] The design pivot Tyler took that changed the pricing and sales volume for BucketGolf
[25:50] The BucketGolf manufacturing process
[29:00] The Power of Partnerships to accelerate BucketGolf's growth
[31:00] BucketGolf tournaments, events and social media content creation
[32:40] The best user-created BucketGolf courses that Tyler has seen
We want to thank our Episode Presenting Partner Golf Genius Software who have supported The ModGolf Podcast since 2019!
Golf Genius powers tournament management at over 10,000 private clubs, public courses, resorts, golf associations, and tours in over 60 countries. So if you’re a golf professional or course operator who wants to save time, deliver exceptional golfer experiences, and generate more revenue, check them out online at golfgenius.com.