Callaway and Good Good executives axed amid fallout after controversial ad which ‘depicted domestic violence’
The fallout from the Callaway/Good Good ad controversy continues as executives at both companies have been let go in the aftermath of the ‘tone deaf’ commercial.
Good Good, the popular YouTube channel and golf brand, has lost endorsement deals and media opportunities after they produced a commercial for a branded driver which critics say depicted domestic violence.
In response, Callaway ended their partnership with the group. Additionally, Good Good has had their products pulled off shelves, their show with Golf Channel has been cancelled before it even began and the brand backed out of their title sponsorship of a tournament in Austin.
Now, further consequences have been revealed after both Good Good and Callaway are ousting executives.
According to Front Office Sports, Alex Upegui, Callaway’s director of content and production, is leaving the company.
Upegui is believed to be the highest-ranking Callaway employee who would have had the authority to approve the ad. He had been in his position since 2023.
Fallout continues amid the Good Good/Callaway ad controversy that gripped the two brands
Alex Upegui, Callaway’s director of content and production, is leaving the company
Good Good is also firing their VP of brand and marketing, Jeffrey Lefkovits
Additionally, the outlet reports that Good Good’s VP of brand and marketing, Jeffrey Lefkovits, has been fired.
FOS also reports that another unnamed Good Good employee is being let go.
In a statement on August 25, Callaway CEO Chip Brewer said the company was ‘conducting both internal and external investigations and have already made changes to our approval process aimed at ensuring this will never happen again.’
Two days after that statement, Callaway announced they were severing ties with the golf brand, saying: ‘In this instance, our content review process was not comprehensive enough. We have taken appropriate internal corrective actions and significantly strengthened our approval procedure to help ensure this does not happen again.’
The full-60 second ad, for the Good Good-branded Callaway Quantum driver, was supposed to be a spoof of the popular horror movie ‘Obsession.’
But the opening of the advertisement shows Good Good co-founder Clark rushing over and body-checking fellow member Alexis Miestowski as she reached for the golf club.
As Miestowski lay flat on her back on the ground, Clark is seen standing over her before angrily saying: ‘Do not touch my new driver.’
The rest of the ad shows other members of the content team somehow becoming possessed by the golf club before the video ends.
The video depicts Good Good co-founder Garrett Clark body-checking collaborator Alexis Miestowski to the ground as she attempted to reach for a branded driver
The popular golf social media brand has seen backlash from fans and sponsors over the ad
In a video released following the backlash, Clark apologized and even called the commercial the ‘worst ad known to man.’
Last week, Kendrick told the Wall Street Journal: ‘We fully own that we did make a mistake … As the CEO of the company, the buck stops with me and we should have had better processes in place.’
He added: ‘Obviously the execution missed the mark and didn’t come across the way that we wanted to, and in no way were we trying to make light of or support violence. But it came across that way, and that’s our fault.’
But the apologies have not prevented Good Good’s empire from crumbling.
The Golf Channel announced that the upcoming show, ‘Good Good x Big Break,’ has been canceled – just 24 hours after initially announcing that it was only pushing back the release by a week.
The decision to delay the release came after an unnamed sponsor, believed to be Golf Magic, asked for its branding to be removed from the show. But The Golf Channel has now made the decision to scrap the show altogether.
Big Break is golf’s version of a reality TV show, pitting 12 aspiring golfers against each other in a series of unusual challenges, with players eliminated each week until only one winner remains.
Garrett Clark posted his own apology video after the disastrous Callaway advert was pulled
It ran for 23 seasons from 2003 to 2015 before being canceled, but was set to make its big return this year in a partnership with Good Good. The show was due to be hosted by professional golfer and model Blair O’Neal and TV host Wells Adam.
The winner of the 2026 reboot was due to receive an exemption into the PGA Tour’s Good Good Championship in November – but the Good Good branding has now been pulled from that event.
‘The PGA TOUR has been informed of Good Good Golf’s decision to step away as sponsor of the event in Austin, Texas, this fall,’ a statement read.
On the PGA Tour’s website, the event is now titled the Austin Championship, with no sign of Good Good as the tour evaluates its ongoing partnership with the YouTubers.
