On Sunday, at the pro shop at Santa Teresa Golf Club, an hour south of San Francisco, you can buy a sleeve of balls, grab a bag of T-shirts and pose for a selfie with the “Glove Father.”
That’s what a customer recently mentioned to Tyler Nguyen, which made him laugh.
At 26, Nguyen is not a father to anyone. He is also not a powerful figure in the sector. He is the founder of a golf glove startup, Forelinksgolf, which he runs from his bedroom in his parents’ house. Sales are picking up. But Nguyen still works three jobs, including a weekend shift at the public institution where he first learned the game, and his green fees are subsidized by Youth on Course — the same junior golf program his company now supports.
“In addition to a quality product, I have come to realize that my greatest asset is my story,” says Nguyen. “And a big part of that story is giving back.”
The story begins when Nguyen was 13, the older of two boys born to Vietnamese immigrants. His father worked in construction and swung a golf club like many busy parents do, in stolen hours between work and family. Nguyen went along. It wasn’t long before his parents dropped him off at Santa Teresa at sunrise and picked him up again at sunset. By industry standards, the course was inexpensive. But it still added $40 a day.
“There were days when all I could do was hit balls on the court instead of playing,” Nguyen said. “That was simply too much money for us at the time.”
The financial troubles ended a few months later, when Nguyen heard other kids talking about Youth on Course, the nonprofit that lets juniors play rounds on thousands of courses in the U.S., Canada and Australia for $5 or less. The calculation has changed.
“[Youth on Course] gave me the opportunity to keep showing up without financial barriers,” says Nguyen. “Without that, I don’t know if I would have stayed in the game.”
He stuck with it enough to play on his high school team alongside Justin Suh, who went on to the PGA Tour. Nguyen could also play golf with his ball, but he had no illusions. He would have to find another path in the game.
At San Jose State, he studied economics while turning to entrepreneurialism, orchestrating the sale of cat beds, alarm clocks, hoodies – anything he thought might sell. Only a few things did.
After college, he got a job in marketing and launched a side hustle: an online golf apparel store called Forelinksgolf. Like a tough day on the job, the company learned hard lessons. Chief among them: skimping on quality was a great way to end up with a stockpile of ugly shirts.
Through contacts he maintained in Santa Teresa, Nguyen also had a part-time job as a pro-shop counter. It came with perks (free golf) and something else: a front-row view of how merchandise moved. After golf balls, nothing moved faster than gloves, which golfers blew through just like balls, just in a different way.
Around that time, Nguyen read Phil Knight’s memoir, “Shoe Dog,” absorbing his message about building brands and taking risks. He tried to have gloves made abroad. The first run, manufactured in China, was inadequate. It reminded him of something else he had noticed in the pro shop. Most high-quality golf gloves are made in Indonesia.
Nguyen called manufacturers there. Some replied. One invited him for a visit. Nguyen booked his first international flight, bound for Jakarta with a notebook, samples and a camera to document the trip – partly for posterity, mainly to show customers he wasn’t putting his name on a generic import. He wanted people to see the craft.
In July 2024, Forelinksgolf transitioned into a different company focused solely on gloves. Sales trickled in. Then came a glowing review from a golf website. Orders increased. Inventory gone.
The product itself was a point of pride: full-grain cabretta leather with a slightly thicker cut – about 0.50mm – than the industry standard of 0.40 to 0.45mm.
Politeness
“On paper, that probably doesn’t sound like a big difference,” says Nguyen.
But on the other hand, he says it translates into a durable glove that’s still nice enough to feel “like a second skin.” Nguyen won’t promise a specific lifespan, but does expect his gloves to last longer than those of leading brands. They retail for $27.99.
Nguyen thinks a lot about his business. He also thinks a lot about the boost he got when he first fell in love with the game as a child. About a year ago, he contacted Youth on Course and set up a partnership donating $2 from every sale to the organization. As Youth on Course has grown, so has the volume of such studies. Most don’t come true.
“But Tyler’s was different,” says Michael Lowe, Head of Impact at Youth on Course. “We serve so many young people and we hope this has a positive impact on all of them. But his journey is truly remarkable. What’s better than an alumni starting their own brand? And donating to the company so early in the life of the company. That’s not an easy thing to do.”
For Nguyen, it feels like a debt paid in advance. And there’s more in its coffers than there ever was to finance it. In 2024, Forelinksgolf achieved $10,000 in revenue. This year, Nguyen says, the company is on track for $150,000.
“We’re not trying to outpace the giants in this space,” says Nguyen. “We’re just trying to find our own way, building on our story of community and trust.”
By ‘we’ he means himself. Although his parents sometimes help with boxing and transportation, Nguyen is Forelinksgolf’s only employee.
For now, he’s also sticking to his other gigs and keeping a firm foothold in reality even as he chases his dream. The company’s gloves are sold online and in three physical stores, including Santa Teresa. But Forelinksgolf’s logo – an infinity symbol – reflects the vision of its founder, who sees golf as a game with endless possibilities.
“It doesn’t matter how old you are or how big or strong you are,” he says. “You can make it a game for your life.”
You could even turn it into a business, robust enough to outgrow a bedroom, replace the side gigs, and create a nickname that isn’t just in jest.
One day Glove Father might fit the bill.
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