(WXYZ) — Golf fans who want a piece of the sport's recent history, Upper Deck is planning to deliver in a big way.
The company is working on multiple golf trading card releases, UD's Chris Carlin told WXYZ. There will be three arriving in 2021, starting with Artifacts Golf.
Tiger Woods is a longtime spokesperson for Upper Deck. Cards featuring the golf legend have been inserted into multi-sports products like Goodwin Champions, and other promo packs over the past few years, but there hasn't been a full, golf-only product since 2014.
"It's happening," Carlin, senior manager of customer experience at Upper Deck, told WXYZ. "We feel like the golf trading card category isn't an every-year type of category. It's hard to develop new rookies each year. We've tried it. It hasn't always done what we'd hoped."
That being said, the class of golfers that will see their first cards in the upcoming products will be loaded with big names.
Woods will have a lot of company in the new releases. Upper Deck is sharing some of the big names, including Arnold Palmer, Annika Sorenstam, Bryson DeChambeau, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Matthew Wolff, Danielle Kang, and Lexi Thompson.
The PGA Tour has an infusion of young talent that has dominated attention with success over the last few years. There's no doubt Upper Deck recognizes that.
Of course, the top name in the game drives everything golf-related. Upper Deck is riding shotgun with Woods, which will only help.
"We made his rookie card way back in 2001. Tiger's been a part of our trading card releases throughout our history," Carlin said.
As for timing, Upper Deck is releasing Artifacts in Spring 2021, and two more products are set to arrive in the year.
Artifacts will feature a 50-card base set, 30-card rookie set, and inserts like Multi-Majors Winners Memorabilia. There will be signed memorabilia cards and Diamond Relic insert cards that can include up to four manufactured diamonds per card.
“Collectors have been begging us to bring golf cards back for years,” Upper Deck’s sports brand manager Paul Zickler said in a release. “Professional golf is in such a great place right now, with new young stars emerging on the PGA TOUR and players challenging long-standing records almost daily, it seems like the perfect time to introduce a new golf product to fans around the world.”
In a cool new twist, each of the new releases will include Legendary PGA TOUR Course Relic cards. They feature course-used sand and dirt from the home of The Players Championship. TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
