Golf :: Titleist — How Did a 100+ Year-Old Golf Ball Brand Get Its Start?

Young then brought in Fred Bommer, an MIT classmate and rubber specialist, to run Acushnet's golf division. After three painstaking years of development, the two of them introduced the first Titleist golf ball to the world in 1935.

 

That effort paid off. At the 1949 US Open (Medinah Country Club), Titleist won the "ball count" — the most balls used by the field — cementing its reputation as the best ball in golf.

 

Another milestone came in 2000. The Pro V1, which debuted on the PGA Tour in Las Vegas that October, became the best-selling golf ball within four months of launch, and it remains one of the most-played balls on tour to this day.

The company's ownership has also changed hands. In 2011, a Korean investment group led by Fila Korea and Mirae Asset Private Equity acquired Acushnet for about $1.23 billion. Acushnet Holdings later went public with an NYSE IPO in 2016, marking another turning point.

 

Compared with other long-standing brands like Mizuno (1906), Titleist (1910), and Wilson (1914), Titleist is one of the rare brands that has consistently held onto its identity as "the best ball" for over a century.

Summary

 

Titleist started with a chance discovery over an X-ray and has grown into the golf ball brand trusted by more tour professionals than any other. Ownership has changed hands more than once over its 100-plus year history, but the core principle — making a well-balanced, high-quality ball — has never wavered.

 

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