Is there any growth left in Golf? (ELY)

If you ask Callaway Golf Company (Public, NYSE:ELY) if there is any growth left in Golf, I think they would say yes.

In a recent market Study called "Opportunities in the Global Golf Club Market" published by E-Composites, Inc., the golf club market in India and China will see a growth rate of over 25% annually for the next 5 years. The growing popularity of the game and the affluence of the golfers will insure the growth. The market size for the worldwide golf club manufacturing industry is estimated at US $3.9 billion.

An increasing number of golfers in the world have come to rely on higher- level products and thus titanium and carbon fiber have become the mainstream materials in the industry, and the trend now is toward lightweight golf clubs. According to the study, carbon composites dominate over steel in the manufacturing of golf shafts.

Callaway, and the Golf Industry have been susceptable to the recent recession however. In July, Callaway Golf Company reaffirmed fiscal 2009 outlook for sales to be down 15% to 17% compared to fiscal 2008. The Company reported revenue of $1.117 billion in fiscal 2008. According to Reuters Estimates, analysts on an average are expecting the Company to report revenue of $939 million for fiscal 2009.