For many of us, there are a lot of special memories tied up in time spent working on a project with dad. Whether it was as an active participant on a repair or just handing over tools when they were requested, those moments often sowed the early childhood seeds of a desire to someday follow in our father’s footsteps.
Often, those dreams are just that. Occasionally though, the stars align and we get to live out those childhood fantasies — and sometimes dad follows in our footsteps, instead.
Such is the case for Kevin Packard Jr. of Sun Prairie and his father, Kevin Sr. Together with a third partner in Jay Royle, owner of Royle LLC, the two operate Wisconsin Classic Golf Tour, a discount golf membership service.
However, while father and son always shared a love of golf, this wasn’t a family business in the traditional sense.
After graduating from the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, Packard Jr. spent a year selling specialty foods in the Waukesha area. To move closer to his then fiancée (now wife), he packed up and headed to Sun Prairie, where he landed a job with a golf magazine.
“After a year, I interviewed with Jay Royle for a startup golf magazine position and received the sales position,” says Packard Jr. “For the past 16 years Jay and I have created an awesome company that consists of Midwest Golfing Magazine, the Madison Golf Show, and the Milwaukee Golf Show. Adding Wisconsin Classic Golf Tour was just a natural fit.”
That fit was made possible when Wisconsin Classic Golf Tour’s creator, John Krueger, was looking to retire in 2014. “John was looking to retire and thought his company would fit our already developed golf portfolio,” explains Packard Jr. “He also wanted this creation in the hands of die-hard golfers such as us. We agreed and became the new owners.”
Packard Sr. came from a slightly different place. He started at a corrugated box company on the ground floor, worked his way up to a supervisor position, and then up to the general foreman of third shift overlooking two supervisors and 45 employees. In 1997, he was offered and accepted the production manager position at a sheet plant in Milwaukee. During his time there, he moved up to operations manager and then general manager. After attempts to purchase the sheet plant were unsuccessful, an exciting new opportunity arose.
“Knowing that my son had experience in the golf industry and I had experience in managing a company, I believed we had a good combination to be successful,” Packard Sr. says. “Looking at my opportunities in the corrugated industry versus a new challenge in an area of interest to me, I decided to move in a different direction. My main goal in life for the past several years was to own a company. This opportunity enabled me to fulfill that dream and offered the ability for me to work with my terrific son. It really was a golden opportunity.”
Since they took over in 2014, the company has nearly $200,000 in annual sales, and is expected to grow to about a quarter million annually.
Father and son say they’ve always been very close with similar passions, interests, and even personalities.
“Growing up, we spent a lot of time together growing playing sports, watching our Packers, Badgers, and Brewers, and of course on the golf course,” says Packard Jr. “We have had ups and downs along with growing pains [as a business partnership] but we realize that family is family, so we choose to agree to disagree and move on. And if all else fails we always have Mother Packard to calm us with a home cooked meal!”
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Playing a round
Wisconsin as a premier golf state may not make much sense to the uninitiated, especially when we’re perhaps best known outside the Midwest as the home of the Frozen Tundra.
But with the 2017 U.S. Open being contested in Wisconsin for the first time at Erin Hills June 12–18, not to mention the American Family Insurance Championship at University Ridge Golf Course from June 19–25, and other renowned courses like Whistling Straits and Blackwolf Run, Wisconsin is a golf state on the upswing.
Wisconsin Classic Golf Tour fits perfectly into the golf landscape as a membership-based company that offers golfers the opportunity to create their own custom discount golf package. Operating exclusively online, the program has over 200 course offerings from Wisconsin and Upper Michigan.
A variety of packages are available to the general public to purchase, including:
- Grand Tour Package — Includes all 200-plus course offers
- Eagle Package — Golfer can select 25 course offers
- Birdie Package — Golfer can select 20 course offers
- Par Package — Golfer can select 15 course offers
- Vacation Package — Golfer can select 10 course offers
- Bogey Package — Golfer can select six course offers
Once a customer purchases a package, they then get to select their courses and become a member. Members also receive free golf show tickets at the Milwaukee and Madison Golf Shows, a season subscription to Midwest Golfing Magazine, an invite to play in the members-only golf outing at Trappers Turn, and opportunities to win several contest prizes.
“The customization process of this company is really what sets us apart from the rest,” notes Packard Jr. “We send them their custom card that they take to the courses to redeem the offer.”
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