Eastside Golf, the brand founded by HBCU alumni and known for its collaborations with Jordan, just held its second annual invitational at Liberty National Golf Club. The brand has charted an ambitious course in 2024, partnering with Mercedes-Benz USA to reach women and amplify its support of founders Olajuwon Ajanaku and Earl Cooper's alma mater Morehouse College, and the tournament was the second one that the two brands have hosted together. It capped off an important few days for Eastside that started with the opening of its first-ever experiential pop-up in SoHo and ended with rapper Fabolous serenading Eastside's guests in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty to "Make Me Better."
So has been the case at Eastside Golf occasions since the brand blew up, the tournament was attended by recognizable figures across sport and creative industries including former Cy Young winner CC Sabathia and Super Bowl champion Victor Cruz, both of whom were early investors in golf fashion's preeminent Black-owned label.
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"I think that their logo is perfect when you look at the way the golf landscape is changing and who is playing golf," Sabathia told us at Liberty National. "I told them right away that this is like the Jordan logo of public golf. Golf has taken off since Covid and I feel like this is the brand of the people." We also asked Cruz about his support of ESG, who said that "I think once I met Earl and Olajuwon, I saw their charisma and their history with the sport – Olajuwon's continued journey to become a professional. I knew these guys were passionate about it."
Attendees began arriving around 11AM and were greeted by some of the best looking vehicles from Mercedes and Maybach's fleet at the entrance to Liberty National. The golf club, which took $250 USD to build, opened in 2006 and is distinguished by its close proximity to Lady Liberty and views of the Manhattan skyline. It was a fitting setting for a brand as forward-thinking as Eastside. Each attendee received an envy-worthy swag bag of gear which included the Eastside Golf x Nike Air Max 1 G "Everyone's Game" among other items.
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After the ice was broken play began at 1PM and wrapped up as the sun dipped towards the horizon, and players were once again invited to congregate by the 65,000 square feet behemoth of glass and steel that is Liberty National's clubhouse. The day's final flourish belonged to Fabolous whose blend of hip-hop and R&B had the mid-2000s in a chokehold. Cooper and Ajanaku joined the New York City artist on the stage to savor in the moment before awards were given out to contestants.
Erica Bolden, head of DEI at Mercedes, reflected on the day that was: "It's really exciting to come to these events and to hear people saying 'I'd never thought about playing golf until now.' I was getting breakfast here and the chef was so excited when he found out that this was an Eastside Golf event. He's like 'I've seen the brand and I'm really excited about it.' So being able to see how [Earl and Olajuwon] have really grown and knowing we had a hand in that is really cool."
Take a look through the gallery above to see how all of the action unfolded.
Click here to view full gallery at Hypebeast
