Orlimar
Orlimar was founded in 1960 by Lou Ortiz and partners, Pedro Liendo and Emilio Martinez. (The name comes from the first letters of the men’s last names). From its humble beginnings in a San Francisco horse stable, Ortiz built fine quality persimmon woods for notable Northern California standouts Johnny Miller and Ken Venturi.
Things chugged along for the company until the mid-1990’s when Ortiz’s son, Jesse, a master clubmaker himself, invented a shallow-faced fairway wood. Built from a stainless steel body, maraging steel face and copper tungsten weights, the TriMetal, which was launched in 1998, proved to be a game-improvement marvel that helped higher handicappers get the ball in the air.
In two years Orlimar’s annual sales skyrocketed, from US$1 million to $105 million and its staff ballooned from just eight to 103. But as quickly as the company’s fortunes rose, they fell. To launch the TriMetal, Ortiz needed to raise cash. Two outside investors came on board and the family-owned business was divvied up into thirds. Father and son Ortiz literally lost control of Orlimar.
Misguided expansion plans followed, not to mention three patent infringement lawsuits from Callaway and TaylorMade and a number of bankrupt retail accounts that put pressure on the company’s books. The company slid and Ortiz left in 2003. Shortly thereafter, Michigan-based King Par Corporation swooped in and picked the company up for cheap. But Orlimar just isn’t the same Orlimar anymore. Consider what King Par’s Stephen Graham once said, “Orlimar is simply a brand name. There essentially is no Orlimar Golf Company.”
Ortiz landed at Bobby Jones Golf, where he remains to this day.
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