By Lauren Hirsch and Vanessa Friedman
For even those who have only a passing interest in golf, one of the sport’s most memorable images is of Tiger Woods playing his way to another major tournament victory while wearing a red polo shirt with a white Nike swoosh.
That image is officially in the past, however. In January, Woods announced the end of his 27-year deal with Nike, which had made him hundreds of millions of dollars. The partnership was marked by memorable ads and, of course, the red Nike shirts that Woods wore during many final rounds on Sundays.
When Woods announced the ending of his partnership with Nike, he said there would “certainly be another chapter.” Earlier this week, he and his new brand sponsor, TaylorMade Golf, made clear that the next chapter would again include a red polo shirt. It will be stitched with a tiger in the center, the logo for his new brand under TaylorMade: Sun Day Red.
Sun Day Red is marketed as a “lifestyle brand” for both sports fans and non-athletes and will include apparel — even cashmere sweaters — and shoes, David Abeles, CEO of TaylorMade, said in an interview. (Woods switched to FootJoy shoes from Nike after his car crash in 2021.)
How much of a role design will play in that apparel was not entirely clear, but Abeles said that “the design language of the products is completely different” from products Woods wore in his last sponsorship deal. Initial promotional images showed a new logo — a tiger with 15 stripes to mark the number of major championships Woods has won; a black, long-sleeve T-shirt with the brand’s name, Sun Day Red, on it; and its version of the red polo, which is on the bloodier end of the red spectrum and includes black buttons, suggesting attention to detail. (To be fair, there’s only so much anyone can do with a polo.)
Woods’ affinity for red stems from his mother, who is from Thailand, where the color has significance.
“We worked through what he believes is the red that’s most associated with his color palette,” Abeles said. “The red color he chose is the one that is most prominent and most consistent with what he believes is the red that has inspired him.”
As for the space between “Sun” and “Day,” Abeles said it was meant to underline the brand as more than a weekly fit.
“Sunday red is the color that Tiger has made, you know, very famous on Sundays,” he said. But Woods “plays golf more than just Sunday,” Abeles added.
In ambition, if not design, Sun Day Red reflects a growing trend, one in which athletes see long-term potential in the increasing convergence of fashion and sports into one category known as “lifestyle.”
To that end, many are interested less in being living advertisements for a sponsor than actual participants, demanding increased ownership and control over their own brand. In 2019, Roger Federer became both an investor in and a guest designer for On, a Swiss sneaker company, and in 2022 Tom Brady unveiled Brady, a menswear brand developed in conjunction with Jens Grede, the mastermind behind Kim Kardashian’s Skims. Serena Williams also has her own fashion line, S by Serena.
Abeles would not confirm whether Woods had equity in the brand.
Sun Day Red will exist as a stand-alone brand within TaylorMade, with its own headquarters and team of designers. The company has appointed Brad Blankinship, who was previously at Quiksilver, to oversee daily operations.
Sun Day Red will first make its products available for sale online May 1, with aims to eventually expand internationally. Polos will cost $115 to $175, and cashmere sweaters will be $250 to $350.
Woods has had an equipment deal with TaylorMade since 2017, when Nike shuttered its equipment business. The company made its pitch to Woods about an expanded relationship over the past several months, Abeles said. It included a visit to Woods’ boardroom in Jupiter, Florida, where the TaylorMade team showed him a pitch video that “really connected with his legacy, his greatness, his values and his future.”
Woods is now entering, in many ways, a new era in his professional life, nearly five years after his last major championship. Last year, he joined the powerful board of the PGA Tour and has been a key player in deliberations as it negotiates its future.
Woods announced the TaylorMade deal Monday in Southern California, where he is hosting the Genesis Invitational tournament.
“I have learned so much over the years and have a lifetime of experience adjusting my apparel and footwear to help me play better based on the way it was constructed,” Woods said in a statement. “There are things that I could tell you that no one knew I was doing over the years. I’m ready to share those secrets with the world.”