Ep. 166: The Unexpected Story Behind Ugly Rabbit Golf with Brian Darling

Welcome back to another Stay Connected podcast. It's your host Leo Herrera the connected golfer. Today. I am joined by Brian Darling. He's the co founder of Ugly Rabbit golf. If you've been playing some ugly golf, you might be connected to this brand. He partnered with Tim Havens just six weeks ago, launching the. Launching the brand and they're just getting started with a really cool concept we connected and we're staying connected because I want to hear more about ugly rabbit golf. I want to share this message with you guys today so that you guys can hear all about it probably find some inspiration about just building a brand in general and maybe cop some nice golf clothes from ugly rabbit. So Brian, thank you so much for being here today. Oh, thanks for having me. So where are you from and how did you get involved in golf in the first place? So I am from West Michigan. And my golf journey. I played almost every sport growing up. My dad played a little bit of golf. I played baseball, football, basketball, hockey, you name it. But we would always mess around with his golf clubs and some old golf balls out in the yard. We lived out in the country, hit him out into the Apple orchards and stuff. And then when I got to my freshman year in high school, football was really my thing. But I was extremely small frame. As a freshman, I was about four foot 10 70 pounds. And everyone told me if you play football, you're going to die. So I had a friend who was a golfer and he said, well, why don't you come out for the golf team? He said, you don't get cut your practice as you go playing nine holes every day. Even if you don't make it into the tournaments, you still get to go play golf every day. And I'm like, it was the same season as football seasons. I'm like, all right, let's do this. And I fell in love with the game. I started playing golf my freshman year at 15 and got a little bit of pointers and tips from the golf coach. And then that same golf coach had a connection to a golf course and they were looking for guys to work in the spring to drive carts around and get ready for golf outings and clean trash and cans out of the golf carts. So I spent all of the next two summers on the golf course. When I wasn't working, I was golfing when I wasn't golfing, I was working. Yeah. And again, just fell in love with the game played every minute I could. And it was great. What was it about golf that really captured your attention? I just think that there's always a new challenge. Like you never, you never conquer golf. Even on your best round, you have shots you could have hit better. And I love the outdoors. I love, I'm a talker. I love people. It's a sport that you play and you're alongside a couple other guys or a couple other people. Great conversation. And you have a good time. Yeah, it blends everything that I love. Yeah, that's awesome. And how did you get to the point where you wanted to actually build a company in golf and share a message? Honestly, I didn't plan it after after I golfed all of all through high school and played a ton and was actually, you know, a decent golfer when you played 72 plus holes a week. I had kids young and had a job and had to be an adult. And I got down to playing maybe 72 holes a year. As I raised family. So just recently, I've gotten back into it. You know, I think I've gotten out like 13, 14 times this year with a few more coming up in the next few weekends. But I had a chance encounter on LinkedIn with Tim. And he had shared a picture of this exact shirt. And minor back story, I got the nickname as the rabbit in my stock trading group because the guy who runs it, his name is John, but I would always call him boss or captain or whatever. And he said, you can call me John. So the one day I said something to him about a stock and he said Roger. I said, no, I said, you can call me Brian. And he says, no, I've given you a new name, Roger, you're Roger rabbit. So, so I'm the rabbit. And then I see this golf shirt. And I'm like, I'm a golfer. I love golf. I'm the rabbit. I need one of these. So I reached out to Tim and I said, how do I get one of these shirts. And I heard the back story about how he had come up with the idea. I was Tim's brainchild. And him and another partner were going to launch the golf apparel brand. They had some differences in opinions in which way that was going to go and ultimately decided not to pursue it. So when I reached out to Tim. He said, funny thing about that shirt. I'm trying to launch it right now. Would you be interested in helping me because I love your enthusiasm. And again, that was that was like late July. So, you know, six weeks, less than two months ago. And so we set up a call. And I had ideas on how we could build the brand and expand the brand and extend our reach. And he liked the ideas. And he said, would you be interested in being my business partner. So, wow. I was I was immediately on board. I'm an IT guy by day. I work in the tech operations industry. But I love business and finance and sales have to people I run into say, are you in sales? I'm like, no, I'm an IT guy, but I just like to talk a lot. That's awesome. And tell me a little bit about the strategies that you and Tim have been going through to launch this thing because we all know how difficult it is to launch a company of brand and golf and, you know, especially in clothing where there's so many clothing brands out there. Like, what are some of the things that you guys have been talking about to differentiate yourself and be able to get out there to the masses. So we really started. Well, like our target our goal is like the everyday golfer like 99.9% of us are not out on tour. We're not out playing for money. We're we're going out and hanging out with our buddies and our friends or our family and enjoying around on the weekend. And, you know, we hit ugly shots. We we played bad sometimes. And, you know, we wanted to embrace that and say that doesn't need to steal the joy of the game because ultimately golf is supposed to be fun. Like you're paying decent money to get out there and play. You're taking, you know, four or five hours out of your day away from family and to go out there and just be angry about it and be mad is just to me is just not worth it. So it was a hey, most of us golf a little ugly, but we all still want to have a good time. So that's that's like our that was our core message. And then of course, like anyone I employed the help of my 15 year old to take to social media. Because who better than to take care of your social media side of things and and help with that than your 15 year old daughter. And as soon as we started, you know, getting active on social media, the feedback was just amazing. Like it resonates with everyone. So like I love that. Like, you know, that's that's what we do. We golf is fun for there's, you know, there's accounts that they're their name is forget the score. And I'm like, yeah, you're just like us. Yeah. I really like this. And I'll tell you why golf is a game of acceptance. And it's so hard for us to accept bad outcomes when we play. But what you're doing is you're creating an identity that accepts that from the beginning. And as a golf coach is someone that sees a lot of ugly golf sometimes and tries to make it a little bit prettier. The foundation of it comes from acceptance because we can't accept where you are now. You can't keep moving forward. So I don't know if you guys ever made that with that intention, but instantly like my head went that way, just like knowing that perspective. You guys are creating an identity that that pretty much like grounds people where they're at. I mean, you know what? I am an ugly rabbit out there. And when they hit an ugly shot, they're almost like happy because they embrace their identity. I am, you know, whatever. So it's cool. Yeah. And so I don't know if you know I've connected a little bit with Corey Collins. He's on LinkedIn golfer. And his whole thing is like life is golf golf is life. And sometimes life is ugly. Like anybody who's lived any amount of life knows that you you hit bumps you it can get messy. And and it's not it's not avoiding the messy because it's going to happen. And it's how you it's how you handle it. It's, you know, we're all going to face adversity. So how do you how do you find the silver lining? How do you how do you not get down when you face adversity? And and that's kind of the whole ugly rabbit brand is like, look, the golf may get ugly. But let's have fun. Let's embrace it. Let's let's find the silver lining. Like, yeah, my my number on that scorecard was was a little bigger than I wanted today, but I spent four hours with some my. my closest people or my family. I went out golf in a couple of Sundays ago with my 12-year-old daughter. She's of the Rabbit Golf's biggest fan, you know, but I went out there and she recorded me, you know, hitting the golf ball and we just got to ride around in the golf cart for a couple hours and spend some father-daughter time and and you know the at that point the shots don't even matter. It's it's not about that. 100%. So what's the vision for the brand? How do you guys want to grow this over the years? How do you envision the community coming together? I see a banner behind you saying ugly rabbit golf outing, you know, I'm sure that's part of the plan. Yes, so that was our first my first thing is, you know, I've got a lot of golf friends, family, people who support me and I said, hey, we're going to launch this brand. Let's go see if we can raise a few bucks for our launch and buy inventory so that we can sell it because you can't sell stuff that you don't have. So I created the ugly rabbit golf outing, talked to some people about sponsors, about playing, that's coming up on September 26th and we are going to have our first inventory by then, so we will have sales live at the event. You know, the guy who I was telling you about John, my stock group, he sponsored the tournament, so he's got his website on there. I had the banner made and it's just going to be a great, you know, people are like, oh, I'm not any good at golf. I'm like, perfect. Come on, we're giving only prizes for first place, last place, you name it, there's going to be prizes for good, there's going to be prizes for ugly and it's just a day again to take it out there and have fun. Both my girls are going to be coming out there. My daughter, my 12-year-old begged me to buy her this rabbit costume she found online so that she can be the ugly rabbit mascot and ride around and say hi to the golfers and be the rabbit at the at the outing. So it's, you know, it's just fun. It's just let's let's enjoy it, man, embrace the good things in life. There's too much ugly out there to put no pun intended. There's too much ugly and bad stuff in the world to let the good stuff pass you by without noticing it. Man, that's that's awesome and I really love how you've embraced even the family element into this and bringing your daughters into helping you build this brand and like, you know, it shows like what it takes to really be an entrepreneur and start a business and and make it happen. You're you're making something out of nothing and takes well, it takes perseverance, takes determination, but it also takes the right people, it takes like the right support around you. So I'm sure as a father, you know, you're probably very happy that, you know, your your your your children are supportive of what you're doing and and really want to get involved and and love it. So props to you. Thank you. There's so many lessons, you know, my 15-year-old has a job. My 12-year-old can't get a job yet. So I'm like, well, I've got I ordered all of these 1500 ugly rabbit golf teas that need, you know, put in these little baggies with stickers. You want to earn some money? Like pack these things for me and then lo and behold, she packed like 200 of them while she was sitting watching the TV on Saturday. So nice. So she got her toy that she wanted from the store that which was her payment. But, you know, I I truly believe that like everything is built on relationships. Like you have to have a good product. You're not going to sell things that are that are junk. So, you know, we're focused on quality. We cut and sew every polo. We've got the the mesh under the down the sides and under the arms for for ventilation when it's hot. I mean, I wore this shirt when it was a 114 degree heat index down in Alabama and other guys shirts were soaked and I was I was, you know, as comfortable as you can be in a 100 degree weather. But a good product will only take you so far. You have to build relationships. You have to talk to people and and that's what I love because that's that's my thing. Like yeah, I we're talking to a guy who's going to make our our hats for us. He's out of Minnesota. And we placed our hat order with him and by the end of the call him and I are planning on going and playing golf in Wisconsin right after we we launch. And I'm like, that's just that's just how it works. Like I talk to these people and next thing, you know, we're we're booking golf vacations to to go swing the sticks. Well, I might be able to join you on that one. I'm going to Wisconsin at the end of the month. Are you really? So I don't know of your launching at the end of the month, but it seems like you are right with the event. Yeah, so we're doing live sales at the event on the 26th. So we need to wait till after that to get our full inventory for our website so that we populate accurate numbers so that when people go to buy stuff, they, you know, it doesn't say we have something that we don't have. So the events on the 26th, I will finalize our inventory the night of the 26th after the event sales. And we're hoping to go live on the 27th. And then we're looking at golfing at Northern Bay in Wisconsin on the 28th. So I'm literally going to land in Wisconsin on the 28th. That's crazy. Well, maybe I'll just stay for two days. Yeah, you're playing Whistling Straits. Yeah, I'll be at Whistling Straits. Oh, that's like sure how far one of the top ones. Yeah, yeah, very fortunate. Again, just, but you're totally right on the relationship thing because there's so many things out there. Everyone's coming out with things left and right. But, you know, the ones that really move it are the ones that move people that are like, wow, like, I want to be a part of what this guy is about. Like, it doesn't matter if you sell me a pen. I'm going to buy it because it's like, it's this guy. And that's really like what motivated me to build my personal brand and create a my ecosystem because it's like, you're building relationship even through social media without even needing to see people at times. And it's like, that is, it's powerful. And nowadays, like, you have the opportunity to build relationships with people in China, you know, you do a video. And it's like so cool to see. And it's hilarious how you're your stock guy and that have sponsoring the event. You must laugh when you came back to him about the ugly rabbit brand. Yeah. Well, I had a little help from AI and designing it. And I needed something to put on there for a mockup. So I told AI to create it with his website and all his logo because I had all of those things. And as soon as he saw, he's like, I'm in. He's like sending me an invoice. I'll sponsor your turn a minute. So okay, easy enough. No sales involved. I shared the mockup and he loved it and was on board immediately. So Brian, to wrap it up here, man, how has this process of starting the brand and going for something new like evolved you as a person? Man, evolved me as a person. So honestly, like, this thing has lit my fire. Like, I have a passion for this like no other. And it's kind of told me like the things that get me going, you know, I've always, I've always said like if I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it well. I, I'm not going to, you know, do anything halfway. But it showed me what I get excited about, you know, talking to people, you know, the business side of things. How do we, you know, how do we build this? How do we, how do we go wisely while still wanting to be aggressive? You know, it's, it showed me how to, you know, be a business partner. And, you know, when you guys agree, you're disagreeing how to handle those conflicts. And, you know, we're, we're only a couple months into this thing. And I'm just, I'm the guy who knows there's going to be bumps. I, I fixed broken technology for a living. Yeah. Like every single day, things don't go as real. Like, it might need your help for a few things. If they went as planned, I wouldn't have a job. I'd be unemployed. So, um, so it's, it's really, that's kind of my thing is to expect the, expect the hiccups planned for them. But, you know, you just have to start to, so many people don't chase what they want to chase because fear of beginning. Yeah. And, and my, my whole philosophy is take action. And then you observe what happens. And then you adapt. Yeah. Because you're going to hit bumps. You're going to hit hiccups. Something is going to come up. But don't let that stop you from starting. Like just, just know and have a, have a backup plan for like, okay, if this happens, this is how we're going to react. If this happens, this is how we're going to react. And, and that's, I mean, I, I'm a systems guy. I do that with everything. I burn wood for heat. And I'm like, okay, how warm is it outside? How warm is it in my house? What's my thermostat set at? Is it windy? And so, yeah, I'm, I'm always weighing all the variables in, in anything that I do planning for plan B and C and D. Um, but really what it's taught about me about me is just what, what energizes me. And it also gets me going. And I'm having so much fun doing this and building this brand and just talking to people about golf. And, and it's, you know, it's, it's really, it's really ignited my passion. Yeah. And it shows like I could see how passionate you are about what you're doing and it's a cool story. I hopefully inspire somebody listening today to, you know, just set free and, you know, there's no right or wrong way to do it. You just got to start and you'll, you'll find yourself through the journey and like the same mentality that you're taking on to entrepreneurship where and what you do in your job. It's like expecting the hiccups is the same mentality. A lot of us you're taking off. It's like expect that you're going to hit some ugly shots out there. Embrace the ugly rabbit identity and have fun. Because the only way you have fun is by embracing it, letting yourself go and just starting and going. Well, in like acceptance, like you said, we all do it. Like, you know, you know, they, they were saying golf, you know, next shot, the last one's done, next shot. But, you know, embrace it. They're going to happen. You know, don't get all angry about it, just, you know, 100% at the end of the day, the number at the bottom of the scorecard isn't what, it's what's important. It's the people at the time, the escape, whatever, whatever you use golf for, you know, we all have different reasons for going out there. But whatever your reason is for going out there, like, like don't lose that because you hit a bump or ran into some adversity. Yeah. And it's a lot easier said than done for a lot of us, but you're making it easy for us to embrace that man. So I really appreciate it. Working people find you find ugly rabbit golf so they can engage with, with what you're doing. Okay. So first, the website is uglyrabbitgolf.com. And we're on all the socials, Instagram, TikTok, X, Facebook, YouTube. All of them are a version of ugly rabbit golf, whether it's ugly.rabbit.golf or just ugly rabbit golf. The sales will be live. Like I said, uh, end of this month, all things going according to plan, barring any hiccups. Um, so yeah, I mean, we're, we're on LinkedIn, we're on Instagram, we're on X, we're, we're on our website. Um, we have an email, ugly rabbit, ugly rabbit golf at gmail.com for anybody who wants to shoot us an email and we can keep you posted on when things are released or more specific time frames. Um, there's also a comment box on the website. There's all sorts of ways to get a hold of us. Nice. I love it. Make sure to get a hold of them, guys. If you're feeling like an ugly rabbit out there, this might be what you need to, to embrace that identity and start having a lot more fun when you play. Brian, thank you so much for what you're doing. I look forward to seeing how your journey evolves and, uh, if any of those ugly rabbits want to get a little bit more connected, just shoot them my way and vice versa. I got any guys that I might need to get more connected. You know, I spent 20 years only playing twice a year. Yeah. Well, I'm more than happy to, to get you through the process, man, so you could start feeling the connection. Because once you do it, uh, like everyone said, I mean, like, like something I've heard that really changed my life was once you transform, you never go back. So, you know, you just got to get it to click. And once it does, you're connected. Uh, absolutely. Thank you guys for watching today's episode as well. Uh, make sure to leave a review helps the episode get out there. Some more people can stay connected to the podcast and check out some ugly rabbit golf. But, uh, Brian, any final words you want to share with us here today? Oh, just like you said, get connected. Even, even, uh, as someone who wants to improve their golf swing, I think most people do. Um, I want to check out and find out more about the connected golfer, um, because even when even the best still hit bad shots, I watched, uh, someone on the BMW championship the other day, top of drive into the creek. So, nobody, nobody is immune from ugly shots. So get connected and, uh, you can still guarantee there's room for some ugly in there. Oh, yeah, man. I can remember my last run. I was kind of an ugly rabbit at times. So we all have it. It comes and goes. It's the journey of life, isn't it? It is. All right. I love it. Stay connected guys. Thanks for watching. Thank you.