Welcome to the Two Down Press golf newsletter!

I just got back from my annual golf trip with my college buddies - 72 holes in 48 hours in the North Carolina mountains! We played Waynesville Inn and Golf Club and Springdale Resort, which has to be one of the best value-for-money golf trips in the Carolinas. We dodged the rain all weekend and were blown away by the courses, the views, and the food (turkey club at Waynesville, IYKYK)!

In today’s newsletter, we have the return of our Golf Biz series with a profile on Haven Golf Company. We chatted with founder Gage Benevento about his rapidly growing golf apparel company headquartered in Mooresville to learn more about his founder story, the philosophy behind his designs, and his perspectives on where the brand is headed. We also have updates on yet another new short course in the area, plus tournament results from around the region. Let’s dive in.

GOLF BIZ

The algorithm isn’t all bad! A few years ago, Gage Benevento stumbled upon a video that sparked a business idea that ultimately changed his entire career trajectory. It explained how most big golf brands quietly source from the same handful of manufacturers. He decided to order some samples and see what happened.

Benevento had always wanted to start something - he'd messed around with a few business ideas back in college, never quite landing on the right one. Despite his entrepreneurial ambitions, starting a golf brand was never on his mind, partially because he wasn’t an avid golfer until 2020. Shortly after picking up the game, however, his now fiancée’s job with Honeywell brought him to Uptown Charlotte. Benevento, who was working for Amazon at the time traveling the country to launch fulfillment centers, could live anywhere with an airport nearby. While the career logistics ultimately drove the move, access to the rich depth of golf in the Carolinas was no small cherry on top.

By the time the aforementioned video came up on his feed in 2022, he had caught the bug badly and the lightbulb went off. "I should reach out to some manufacturers, just order some samples and see what comes from it," he remembers thinking. The process was surprisingly easy, and he was shocked by how close he could get to a $125 Peter Millar polo for a fraction of the cost. He built a website, mocked up the first designs, and started selling polos.

A marketing major by training, Benevento built Haven around what he calls identity-based design - pieces built around things people already connect with rather than just another logo on a plain polo. His first real hit was a Lakers-inspired "Mamba" design - a purple and black snakeskin print meant to conjure memories of peak Kobe.

Benevento’s design style is a deliberate contrast to competitors he sees in the market. He doesn’t want to be thought of as just another brand "pumping out a million designs" that look like Clip Art, but he also deliberately strays away from the traditional solid colors and stripes that make up most golf polo lines. "Why would you buy from a brand you've never heard of if you could just go get one from Peter Millar?" he said. Haven leans into louder, hand-drawn, intricate designs, threading the needle of standing out while not looking tacky or cheap.

Like most startups, the early days were extremely modest. Year 1 was almost entirely friends, family, and hustle, including a Golf Digest feature Benevento landed through cold outreach. Sales for the year totaled $10,000. "It was pure hustle.” he said. “I didn't run any ads, and I didn't really know what I was doing," he says.

Year 2 brought real growth once he started experimenting with advertising, as Haven’s revenue jumped to $100,000. 10x growth seemed promising, but it couldn’t prepare Benevento for what would come in Year 3, where revenue “blew up” to $2.5 million, a 2,500% jump. He was still working full-time at Amazon through most of it, packing every order himself on nights and weekends before finally saving 6 months of salary and making the leap. He quit last June and quickly reaped the benefits of devoting more time to Haven - the business grew another 180% in the 12 months following. Haven is projecting roughly $4 million in revenue this year and is closing in on 50,000 total orders, almost a year after crossing the 10,000-order threshold.

Now 12 months into running Haven full-time, Benevento is firmly in growth mode. He brought on a close friend from college last year to run the operational and technical side of the business, freeing him up to focus on product and creative. He’s now starting to consider adding additional roles focused on wholesale distribution and media production, which he considers key to continuing the brand’s near-vertical trajectory.

Product-wise, he's staying disciplined rather than chasing every category at once. Hats have been a great expansion, but he leans heavily on customers for feedback on the brand’s direction. Haven recently launched a new youth polo line, an idea that came from moms commenting that they wanted matching sizes for their husbands and sons.

The biggest recent development for Haven is their new office in Mooresville, a beautifully designed space complete with a golf simulator that will become the brand’s content headquarters going forward. Benevento has noticed that investors are chasing businesses with monthly recurring revenue - supplements, health and wellness - and largely passing on clothing brands unless they have a real community and media presence behind them (think Barstool Golf or Good Good). While he admits the investment in the new space doesn't pencil out on paper for a brand Haven's size, he's betting on his ability to build high-quality content and attract an audience that will support the company for years to come.

Zoom out, and Benevento thinks the golf apparel market still has room to run. Despite the tremendous growth of the industry the last 5 years, he’s still seeing new entrants, including celebrity-backed brands, launch nearly every week. He initially wondered if he was too late, but 3 years and $2.5 million in growth later, he doesn't see things slowing down.

Follow Haven Golf Company at havengolfcompany.com and on Instagram. Gage shares business lessons from building Haven on TikTok.

PRESENTED BY TWILIGHT GOLF CLUB

The 7th Annual Twilight Open will take place next Tuesday, August 4th at Reynolds Park Golf Course in Winston-Salem! The Twilight Open is TGC’s signature event and annually attracts 120+ players for an evening of casual golf (pick your group and starting hole, play in groups of 8+), food, and fellowship.

The event begins at 5:30 PM and runs until dark, with putting, par 3, and long drive contests beginning as the sun starts to set. $60 to participate, with proceeds going to support the First Tee - Triad chapter. The Twilight Open raised $10,000 for the First Tee at last year’s event - will 2026 top that goal?!

Register here and join us for what should be another awesome night.

LOCAL BEAT

The Statesville course recently unveiled a new NASCAR-themed short course called “The Graveyard,” a 9-hole pitch-and-putt course. The course was built using artificial turf greens and features holes generally ranging 10 to 20 yards in length, making it the perfect place for kids, beginners, or a drink-and-a-wedge post-round hang. A round will run you $15 during the week and $20 on the weekends.

Off-course powerhouse: Formerly known as Larkin Golf Club, the 500 Club officially reopened in 2024 after a significant overhaul from a group of new investors that includes NASCAR stars like Michael Waltrip and Ricky Stenhouse Jr. While ownership certainly put money into the golf course, the 500 Club has become an off-course destination with simulators in the clubhouse, a strong food and beverage offering, an 18-hole putting course, and now The Graveyard.

Trending: The short courses just keep coming! It’s been fun to follow the variety of new “non-traditional” golf facilities in and around Charlotte in recent years. We’ve had Old Field up in Mocksville, The Matchbox at Tobacco Road, which is set to open this weekend, and we still have 3’s Charlotte in the works at the former Pebble Creek location in Indian Trail. Cheers to more fun, interesting, and unique golf facilities like these.

STORIES TO TRACK

Paul Simson Wins 50th CGA Title: Nope, not a typo! That’s 50 CGA titles in ~36 years for the Raleigh legend, as he and partner Donald Detweiler took down the 70+ Division title at the recent North Carolina Super Senior Four-Ball. Simson adds another trophy to the largest collection in CGA history, while Detweiler brought his career tally to 15 CGA titles, 12 of which have been Four-Ball events with Simson.

Austin Langdale Wins SCGA Amateur Championship: A final round 71 (+1) was enough for the former Clemson golfer to hold off defending champion Sam Jackson, who made a valiant effort at repeating. Langdale’s victory was his first since graduating college in 2017, as injuries and other health issues derailed what was a promising playing career. Host venue Quixote Club, the Kris Spence redesign in Sumter, South Carolina, held up very well against the field, with only 4 players breaking par for the tournament. View full scoring.

Charlotte City Amateur 2 Weeks Away: We’re officially 2 weeks out from Round 1 at Pine Lake Country Club! As a reminder, 2DP will be onsite all 3 days to bring you expanded media coverage of the event. Keep an eye out for Round 1 tee times soon and be sure to follow along on Instagram for all the latest content.

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