Q&A: Benjamin Beaufils discusses TAG Heuer's ‘common ground’ with golf

Beaufils, TAG Heuer's president of the Americas, shares his thoughts on the company's golf smartwatch, Tommy Fleetwood as a brand ambassador and the marriage of fashion and function.

The TAG Heuer brand has been crafting precision timepieces since 1860 but is something of a newcomer in the golf world. That hasn’t stopped the luxury Swiss watch designer from making serious inroads when it comes to tracking your game — and helping shave stokes off your score.

The TAG Heuer Connected Golf Edition Smartwatch features 3D maps of each hole for more than 40,000 courses worldwide, can keep your playing stats over time, track shots and also keep scores for your foursome during a round.

Morning Read's David Droschak recently sat down with Benjamin Beaufils, TAG Heuer’s president of the Americas, to discuss the company’s involvement in golf. 

Benjamin Beaufils, TAG Heuer's president of the Americas.  / TAG Heuer

Morning Read: I know TAG Heuer has been heavy into the motorsports scene for decades. Can you trace the company’s history in the golf world and how that all got created?
Benjamin Beaufils: Everything in golf started in 2002 when we began working with Tiger Woods. We worked with Tiger from 2002-2011. A lot of people in golf remember that time and it was very exciting for us. Golf also was really changing at that time, so TAG Heuer was deep into golf back then. Now we are working with a different ambassador in Tommy Fleetwood. He is an amazing five-time champion on the DP World Tour and has also been one of the heroes of the Ryder Cup, so we’re very happy to be working with Tommy and we believe that’s where we want to go.

Morning Read: Who do you identify as your core golf customer?
BB: We target the golfer who wants to use a beautiful watch, but make sure they are using a watch in which he or she is able to improve their game. If you are playing nine or 18 holes, we want clients who won’t need to take their watch off if they are going to go to work or a family reunion. We want to make sure we’re marrying that perfect world of both — having a beautiful piece on your wrist but at the same time have a product that will help you perform at the next level on the golf course.

Morning Read: Why is golf a great market for TAG Heuer?
BB: We’ve been involved with lots of different sports over the years and golf is a sport we believe we have a lot in common ground with, in terms of high precision, high performance and mental strengths. As a company, we seem to have the same values with golf. We feel it’s the perfect fit for us. Our golf smartwatch is very different from what we used to be doing, with us going into a more niche sport like golf, but it’s still one of the top 10 sports in the world. So, it’s a big market and we know golfers are very passionate about the game and want to improve. We want golfers to use our watch to drop one or two strokes off their scores and we’re so happy that we can help them accomplish this.

Morning Read: Tell me the thoughts behind the TAG Heuer golf smartwatch.
BB: We launched the first version in 2019 and it was a limited edition and then we released it again two years ago. We want to make sure we can offer a product which is a beautiful piece and it will improve you game. I’m personally fond of the distance function where you can track that part of your game or if you’re playing with some friends in a foursome you can track all of their scores. There are so many cool features on it that makes it the perfect watch. It is going to improve your game but at the same time keep things light and have fun with your friends on the golf course. 

Morning Read: How do you see the company’s future relationship in the golf world? What’s next?
BB: TAG Heuer has been there as a brand for 160 years but on the golf side we’re still very new. Things are evolving and we’re investing a lot in golf. For us, it’s only the beginning and we plan to keep evolving our golf watches, improving the features we have and there is much, much more from us to come on the golf side of the business. We’re so very excited about what we see surrounding golf, a sport which has been growing so much, especially during the pandemic, so there are a lot of new customers who have discovered golf as a new hobby or sport and we’re looking at how we attract them and offer beautiful pieces and help them perform better with their games. 

Morning Read: How do you view cell phones? Since we all have them on the course now and can see what time it is, did they hurt the watch industry or create a new challenge over the last decade?
BB: Sure, people use cell phones for just about everything they do, even checking the time. But at the same time, I wear our golf smartwatch also and when you have that on, you look less at your cell phone because you can see your emails, text messages, what is urgent or not, and you can filter items better on the watch. At the end of the day, you can get a lot of apps on the watch and it makes it much easier, much more natural and you don’t have something else in your hand. For us, the golf smartwatch is a market that is really growing. So, a smartwatch both complements and competes against cell phones at the end of the day. 

Morning Read: What goes into selecting a golf ambassador and why Tommy Fleetwood? What does he bring to the table?
BB: Tommy is a great champion and he shares similar values as we do as TAG Heuer, in terms of high performance and he’s really dedicated. He’s really into the mental side of the game and he’s really providing his best on the golf course, but at the same time when he’s not there, he’s dedicated to his Tommy Fleetwood Foundation. I think he wants to improve his game, but he also really cares for others and we share those ideas. Tommy is playing much more in the U.S. now and he is working very hard. He is one of the top players worldwide. Tommy wears our watch when he plays which is great for us and he trains using our watch. For us, he’s a fantastic ambassador, but if there was also an opportunity to add a U.S. ambassador, sure why not? 

Morning Read: Do most golfers wear your product for fashion or function?
BB: I think it’s a bit of both. People today, when they wear the golf watch they want to look at their performance, to see their distance, to see where the hazards are and keep track of their scoring and all of those things the watch provides. At the same time, on the opposite end of the performance side, people want to make sure they have a beautiful piece on their arm and not something that you are just going to be playing with and then take off and put in your bag and switch to something different. The beautiful thing about our watch is you can wear it on a 24-hour basis — if you are going to work, going running or playing golf. That’s where we do make the difference. 

Morning Read: Do you play golf?
BB: I used to play quite a lot when I was younger, not so much now. I love golfing and it’s a great sport. I have just introduced golf a few weeks ago to my six-year-old son. That’s the beauty of golf — you can play when you’re very young or when you get a bit older and have a lot of fun with friends and family, and you are outdoors, which is what I enjoy the most. Our family recently played at the Biltmore Golf Club in Miami and it was a great experience. I’m so happy my kids have grown up on a golf course. When you start them young they develop a natural swing, it’s just a lot of fun to be there. I used to be a 4-handicap, maybe now an 85 scorer or so. 

Morning Read: When golfers think of your watches, what is the first thing you want them to think of?
BB: That you are buying a piece which is going to be helping you to take your game to the next level by the features we provide, but at the same time we also make sure as soon as you wear it on your wrist you don’t have to remove it. We want you to play your nine holes in the morning and then go on with your day with your beautiful piece on and people will notice it. We want people to know they are acquiring a beautiful timepiece that really gives you features to keep you healthy and tracking your performance with golf and different sports. There is now a lot of diversity in the products that we offer and a broad range of products. We want people to use their watches all the time, not just put them on their wrist as a beautiful piece. That’s who we are as a brand; we encourage people to buy our watch and use it on a daily basis.