Michael Mark is no stranger to SHOOT’s readership, particularly around Super Bowl time. His assessment of each year’s crop of Super Sunday ads has been an annual tradition as part of our post-game coverage.
As creative director/CEO of NYCA, a full-service marketing agency in the San Diego area–Encinitas, Calif., to be exact–he has had a creative hand in assorted notable jobs, including commercials that have made SHOOT’s “The Best Work You May Never See” gallery over the years.
But now one of his ad endeavors is getting attention he hadn’t counted on–and which has him more than a bit taken aback. For client TaylorMade-adidas’ Maxfli golf balls, NYCA came up with a playful music video starring professional golfer John Daly, a two-time Majors winner and one of the PGA’s most distinctive personalities known for his long ball hitting prowess.
In the 90-second clip–which can be seen here–Daly sings and dances on the links and in a honky tonk roadside bar, cavorting with fans, underscoring his penchant for breaking through the tournament dividing line which separates pro players from the spectators.
Making the cut Client and agency liked the video so much that they decided to cut a :30 for air on television. The Golf Channel has been running the spot but CBS rejected the ad because of beer’s presence in the footage. Daly is seen grabbing a beer from a friend and hitting a golf ball from a makeshift beer can tee. He is also seen driving a golf cart. CBS reportedly issued a thumbs-down because it was uncomfortable with the implied consumption of beer and coupling it with riding in a golf cart.
For Mark, he sees the rejection as a double standard on a couple of fronts. For one, CBS runs assorted beer commercials–and spots showing people drinking beer. The network carries NFL games, for example, which are a showcase for beer advertising.
Furthermore, he related, there’s plenty of content that’s more objectionable airing regularly on network TV.
“There’s no drinking in our commercial or the video,” notes Mark. “The reality is that there are ‘halfway’ houses on the ninth hole of golf courses where people get beers. Beer is sold on the so-called 19th hole.
“We went with John Daly,” continues Mark, “because he’s a larger than life guy, the golf game’s rebel who fits perfectly with Maxfli’s good-natured ‘go long or go home’ mantra. The song he sings is titled “Go Long or Go Home,’ celebrating fun on and off the course–whacking the ball as far as you can when you tee up while living it up, bringing a rockin’ attitude to the game. The feedback we’re getting from CBS is that this isn’t a conventional golf spot. But being conventional wouldn’t help the brand, which is our job. To be antithetical to John’s personality would be wrong–why have him as the face of your campaign then? He’s popular for his fun-loving attitude and being a big hitter on the tour.”
The lyrics include a passage which goes, “When I step up and hit it, don’t you blink or you’ll miss it, ’cause the long ball is all I know.”
Mark says he could “understand objections if Daly were drunk in the commercial or shown drinking excessively–but neither is the case. The spot is about having fun and CBS has chosen to frame the conversation around beer…It’s a network where beer advertising is rampant on its NFL games. How many golf courses serve beer? How many have golf carts? They have beer carts come out to you while you’re playing.”
At the same time, is there such a thing as bad publicity? Controversy over the video and spot has prompted coverage on various media outlets and stories in newspapers such as USA Today, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.
“The media serve as the conduit to our consumer–but the media [in this case, CBS] is out of touch with the consumer,” contends Mark. “We spend a lot of money on research and insights so that we can be in touch.”
Mark feels the feedback on YouTube and the Internet in the wake of CBS’ rejection generally provides validation that NYCA is in touch with consumers and that the ad–which was never intended to offend–isn’t offensive.
More than 90 percent of the feedback all over the web is positive related to both the video and commercial, said Mark, who read some comments in reaction to CBS banning the commercial. “One guy wrote, ‘I can watch ads for video games that promote killing, decapitation, fighting to the death, but this video is banned. That’s just incredible’…
“Another person wrote, “The thought police have gone a little crazy…This is just silly and hypocritical.'”
Mark observes, “Golf fans get it. The network doesn’t.”
However, CBS isn’t the only medium to balk at the campaign. Several publications have refused to run print ads, including a spread in which Daly says that “just about everything in this magazine is b.s.,” as he points to a facing page offering instructions on playing safety-first golf. Instead he advocates just crushing the ball as hard as you can–basically go long or go home. Apparently the b.s. reference has caused publications to nix the ad, which is contrary to what’s conventionally perceived as the staid country club mindset of golf.
Alternative options At press time, making an alternate version or versions of the commercial was being considered, according to Mark, who acknowledged that Daly has battled alcoholism in his personal life and gone through rehab. “But the campaign isn’t about the beer. It’s about Daly being an original, singing and having fun with the fans. For us and Maxfli, it’s a refreshing departure from the effete, uptight country club attitude often associated with the game.”
Evan Bernard of Chelsea Pictures directed the video, from which the commercial was gleaned. Editor was Kevin Garcia of bicoastal Beast Editorial. The composer was Rich Wiley of Singing Serpent.
The NYCA creative team consisted of creative director Mark, senior art director Mike Frey, associate creative director Travis Graham and producer Amy Krause. NYCA’s Jon Dupuis and Melissa Ziegler were VP/director of client management and senior account executive, respectively. Print ad photographer was John Schulz.
