Acushnet (GOLF) Q3 2026 Earnings Call: Titleist Growth and Updated Guidance

Acushnet Holdings Corp. (NYSE: GOLF) reported solid fiscal Q3 2026 results, with continued Titleist Golf Equipment momentum offset by weaker FootJoy and Golf Gear sales. Management maintained its full-year revenue outlook and updated adjusted EBITDA guidance to $455 million-$470 million.

Key Takeaways

• Q3 net sales were $649 million, down 1% year over year on a constant-currency basis. Adjusted EBITDA declined 3% to $115 million.
• Nine-month net sales increased 6% in constant currency to $2.22 billion, while adjusted EBITDA rose 17% to $468 million. Excluding net tariff refunds, adjusted EBITDA increased 8%.
• Titleist Golf Equipment sales rose 1% in Q3 and 10% year to date, supported by golf ball demand and the GTS metals launch.
• Q3 gross margin expanded 110 basis points to 49.6%, reflecting improved FootJoy profitability and higher sales volumes in shoes.
• Management continues to expect 2026 net sales of $2.65 billion-$2.675 billion and now forecasts adjusted EBITDA of $455 million-$470 million, including an approximately $30 million net tariff refund benefit.
• The company is preparing for the 2027 Pro V1 launch alongside new irons and putters, while continuing investments in R&D, fitting networks, technology and the Titleist Performance Institute platform.

Key Financial Data

Inventories increased $60 million year over year as Acushnet prepared for 2027 product launches. Through September, the company returned approximately $127 million to shareholders through $45 million of dividends and $81 million of share repurchases.

Business and Operating Performance

Titleist Golf Equipment remained Acushnet’s primary growth driver. Segment sales increased 1% in Q3 and 10% year to date. Golf ball demand was healthy across all regions, led by Pro V1 volume growth despite 2026 being a non-launch year for the product.

Titleist Golf Clubs benefited from the earlier Q2 launch of GTS drivers and fairways, as well as momentum in Vokey wedges and Scotty Cameron putters. Management said GTS sell-through, shipments and adoption across professional and influential golfers were strong enough to support consideration of earlier launch timing for future irons.

Golf Gear revenue declined 9% in Q3 but remained up 2% year to date. Management attributed part of the quarterly decline to timing ahead of new Titleist golf bag and Club Glove launches in Q4.

FootJoy sales fell 7% in Q3 and 2% over the first nine months. However, management highlighted higher average selling prices, wider margins and historically low closeout footwear sales as evidence of improving segment profitability.

The shoes business grew more than 30% in Q3, with strong gains in the U.S. and EMEA.

Geographically, U.S. sales declined 1% in Q3 but increased 6% year to date. EMEA rose 5% in the quarter and 8% year to date, while Japan was slightly higher in Q3 and up 11% over nine months. Korea declined 3% in the quarter and was approximately flat year to date. Rest of World sales fell 2% in Q3 but increased 8% year to date.

Management Guidance

Acushnet continues to expect full-year 2026 net sales of $2.65 billion-$2.675 billion, representing approximately 4.1% growth at the midpoint. On a constant-currency basis, management expects growth of 3.3%-4.2%.

Full-year adjusted EBITDA is now expected to be $455 million-$470 million. This includes an approximately $30 million net tariff refund benefit.

At the midpoint, guidance implies Q4 net sales of approximately $440 million and an adjusted EBITDA loss of about $5 million. Management attributed the expected loss to normal seasonality, the earlier GTS launch, the transition to the 2027 Pro V1 and continued strategic investment.

The company still expects full-year free cash flow to improve meaningfully and equal approximately 40%-50% of adjusted EBITDA. Full-year capital expenditures are expected to be approximately $95 million.

Risks and Areas to Watch

• Q4 Titleist Golf Equipment sales are expected to decline due to the 2027 Pro V1 production transition and the shift of GTS sales and earnings into Q2.
• Acushnet is experiencing higher costs for tungsten, oil-based golf ball inputs, labor, healthcare and employee benefits.
• The North American ERP launch caused temporary disruption in custom embroidery operations, affecting FootJoy and Golf Gear.
• Weather reduced playable golf hours during parts of Q3, creating volatility in rounds played and consumer demand.
• Management remains cautious about apparel demand in Japan and Korea following softness in those large markets.
• 2027 club growth is expected to have a less favorable profile than 2026 because planned irons and putter launches follow a year that included metals and wedge launches.

Analyst Q&A Highlights

Management said dedicated golfers have not materially extended equipment replacement cycles. Consumables remain resilient, while the golf club business grew at a double-digit rate during 2026.

On 2027 margins, management said its objective is to maintain or expand the gross margin profile. Higher input, labor and benefit costs are considered manageable, but product-level pricing decisions have not been finalized.

Acushnet views competitors’ shift toward two-year golf club launch cycles as supportive of a more rational market, with fewer discounted prior-generation products. Management also expects the trend to increase the importance of custom fitting, an area it considers a core strength.

Japan remains management’s largest international market-share growth opportunity. The company plans to expand fitting capabilities there while building on momentum in golf balls and clubs. In Korea, management intends to remain cautious on apparel while continuing to support equipment growth.

Full Earnings Call Transcript

Complete Earnings Call Transcript

Management Remarks

Operator

Hello, everyone. Thank you for joining us, and welcome to the Acushnet Company 3Q '26 Earnings Call. [Operator Instructions]

I will now hand the conference over to Cameron Vollmuth, Director of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Cameron Vollmuth

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining us today for Acushnet Holdings Corp.'s Third Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. Joining me this morning are David Maher, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Sean Sullivan, our Chief Financial Officer.

Before turning the call over to David, I would like to remind everyone that we will make forward-looking statements on the call today. These forward-looking statements are based on Acushnet's current expectations and are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances. Actual results may differ materially from these expectations. For a list of factors that could cause actual results to differ, please see today's press release, the slides that accompany our presentation and our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Throughout this discussion, we will make reference to non-GAAP financial measures, including items such as net sales on a constant currency basis and adjusted EBITDA. Explanations of how and why we use these measures and reconciliations of these items to the most directly comparable GAAP measures can be found in the schedules in today's press release, the slides that accompany this presentation and in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Please also note that references throughout this presentation to year-on-year net sales increases and decreases are on a constant currency basis, unless otherwise stated, as we feel this measurement best provides context as to the performance and trends of our business. And when referring to year-to-date results or comparisons, we are referring to the 9-month period ended September 30, 2026, and the comparable 9-month period in 2025.

With that, I'll turn the call over to David.

David Maher

Thanks, Cameron, and good morning, everyone. As always, we appreciate your interest in the Acushnet Company. I am pleased to report on a solid third quarter for Acushnet, led by strength and momentum across our Titleist Golf Equipment segment. With many golf regions winding down their playing seasons, the golf industry is structurally healthy. This week as Acushnet celebrates 10 years as a publicly traded company, it is noteworthy how vastly improved golf industry fundamentals are today as compared to a decade ago.

There are many data points which frame recent industry growth with the most compelling being 8 consecutive years of participation increases, affirming the game's enduring appeal and the meaningfully improved financial health of golf courses and golf retailers, which has led to outsized investment in facilities to meet the future needs of an evolving golfer base.

Acushnet's headlines remain growth and strength in our core Titleist Golf Equipment segment, improving profitability within FootJoy and the durability of our golf gear franchise. On top of this, there are call-outs related to the timing of our golf club business in 2026, which we will address. Overall, we are pleased with the strength of our brands, the company's healthy balance sheet and Acushnet's clear future direction as we prepare for a full slate of product launches and new initiatives scheduled for 2027.

Now moving to our third quarter and year-to-date results on Slide 4. For the quarter, Acushnet delivered worldwide net sales of $649 million, a 1% constant currency decrease from last year, driven by continued strength in Titleist Golf Equipment and healthy demand in golf balls, offset by lower sales in FootJoy and Golf Gear. Adjusted EBITDA of $115 million was down 3% in the quarter. Year-to-date, net sales of $2.22 billion were up 6% in constant currency and adjusted EBITDA of $468 million was up 17% year-over-year. Excluding the net tariff refund impacts, adjusted EBITDA is up 8% year-to-date.

Getting to our segment results, you see the continued global momentum of Titleist Golf Equipment, which was up 1% in the quarter and 10% year-to-date. We are pleased with strong demand across the Titleist golf ball lineup, which has grown in all regions led by Pro V1 which has posted volume gains in 2026 on top of last year's record launch.

Titleist Golf Clubs also remain vibrant on the strength of new GTS metals, which have benefited from their Q2 launch timing and momentum in Vokey wedges and Scotty Cameron putters. Golf Gear revenues were down 9% in the quarter and are up 2% year-to-date, led by growth in EMEA, Rest of World and the U.S. This third quarter decline is partly timing related as we prepare for launches of new Titleist golf bag and Club Glove product offerings in Q4.

And our FootJoy business was down 7% in the quarter and 2% year-to-date. As previously noted, we are focused on and making good progress towards strengthening FootJoy's underlying profitability. FJ's performance-oriented and premium product assortment is generating positive trending ASPs, expanded margins and historically low levels of closeout footwear sales, all of which are delivering improved year-on-year profitability in the segment. And lastly, our shoes business continues to build positive momentum, growing more than 30% in the quarter with strong gains in EMEA and the U.S.

Now looking at the quarter by region on Slide 5, you see the U.S. market was down 1%, driven by lower net sales in FootJoy and Golf Gear, while the Titleist Golf Equipment segment continued to grow in the U.S. Year-to-date, the U.S. was up 6%. EMEA was up 5% in the quarter, reflecting gains in Titleist Golf Equipment and Golf Gear. And through the first 9 months, EMEA is up 8% on a constant currency basis. Japan was slightly up in the quarter with gains across all reportable segments and is up 11% year-to-date.

Korea was down 3% in the quarter, driven by lower sales in FootJoy and Golf Gear. And year-to-date, Korea is about flat with healthy gains from Titleist equipment. And Rest of World was down 2% versus last year's third quarter across all reportable segments and is up 8% year-to-date.

In summary, we are pleased with Acushnet's performance, the health of the golf consumer and the direction of the company. Product lines are in great shape. Inventory positions, both owned and at retail, are in line for this time of the year, and we are enthused about our new product pipelines as we prepare for 2027.

Q4, as is often the case, will be a period of transition as we convert Pro V1 production to next-generation product and make key investments in R&D, fitting networks and our TPI performance platform to drive future growth.

Thanks for your attention this morning. I will now pass the call over to Sean.

Sean Sullivan

Thank you, David. Good morning, everyone. As highlighted, we had a solid third quarter and year-to-date performance, driven by continued momentum in Titleist Golf Equipment with healthy demand for golf balls and the success of our new GTS drivers and fairways. Third quarter net sales were $649 million and adjusted EBITDA was $115 million, down $4 million from last year's third quarter. These results were in line with our expectations following the accelerated launch of our GTS metal woods into the second quarter.

For the first 9 months of 2026, net sales increased 6% and adjusted EBITDA increased 17%, which includes an approximately $34 million benefit from net tariff refunds. Excluding that benefit, adjusted EBITDA increased 8% year-to-date. Third quarter gross profit of $322 million was up $3 million compared to last year, driven by improved profitability in FootJoy and higher sales volumes at shoes, partially offset by higher product costs in Titleist Golf Equipment.

Third quarter gross margin of 49.6% was up 110 basis points, while year-to-date gross margin was 50.5%, up 190 basis points versus prior year. On a normalized basis, year-to-date gross margin was 48.6%, flat year-over-year despite an approximately $29 million headwind from higher tariff expense.

SG&A expense of $217 million in the quarter increased $12 million from 2025, primarily due to higher IT-related expenses associated with our ERP implementation project and higher incentive compensation expense. With respect to the ERP implementation project, I am pleased to report that the company went live in the third quarter in North America and at our golf ball manufacturing operations in Thailand. While the system cutover proceeded smoothly, we experienced some temporary disruption in our custom embroidery operations, which impacted FootJoy and Golf Gear. From here, we will continue to advance the ERP implementation in phases across our remaining geographic regions.

Interest expense of $12 million in the quarter was down $3 million due to a decrease in interest rates. Our effective tax rate in Q3 was 25.5%, down from 37.3% last year, primarily driven by changes in our jurisdictional mix of earnings and a reduced income tax benefit related to the U.S. deduction of foreign-derived intangible income.

Moving to our balance sheet and cash flow highlights. Our strong balance sheet and cash flow position us well to continue executing our capital allocation strategy with a focus on investing for long-term growth while returning capital to shareholders. Our net leverage ratio at the end of Q3 using average trailing net debt was 1.9x, down sequentially. Inventories were up $60 million versus last year, and we remain comfortable with this position ahead of new product launches in 2027.

Year-to-date cash flow from operations of $319 million increased $124 million from the first 9 months of 2025, driven in part by tariff refunds received in the second quarter and a reduction in working capital requirements. Capital expenditures were $57 million in the first 9 months of 2026, reflecting our continued strategic investments in additional golf ball manufacturing capacity and increased club assembly to support the sustained demand of our products globally. We still expect full year 2026 CapEx spend to be approximately $95 million.

Through September, we returned roughly $127 million to shareholders with $45 million in cash dividends and $81 million in share repurchases. On October 15, we used $52.5 million to repurchase approximately 584,000 shares of common stock from Magnus in satisfaction of our previously disclosed obligations under our share repurchase agreement. After reflecting the October 15 settlement, we had approximately $107 million remaining under our current share repurchase authorization. Today, our Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.255 per share payable on December 18 to shareholders of record on December 4, 2026.

Moving to guidance. We continue to expect full year net sales to be in the range of $2.65 billion to $2.675 billion, up approximately 4.1% at the midpoint. On a constant currency basis, we expect net sales to increase between 3.3% and 4.2%. We also now expect full year adjusted EBITDA to be $455 million to $470 million, which includes the full year net tariff refund benefit of approximately $30 million. We still expect full year free cash flow to meaningfully improve year-over-year, converting at roughly 40% to 50% of adjusted EBITDA.

This updated full year outlook reflects the strength of our year-to-date performance and our expectations for the fourth quarter. At the midpoint, the guidance implies fourth quarter net sales of approximately $440 million and an adjusted EBITDA loss of approximately $5 million. This is consistent with our seasonally lower fourth quarter earnings profile and reflects the timing of expected lower sales in Titleist Golf Equipment, including the impact of accelerating our metals launch into the second quarter, which shifted sales and earnings earlier in the year as well as the transition to the 2027 Pro V1 launch. During the fourth quarter, we also plan to continue our strategic investments in technology and fitting as well as preparing for our product launches in 2027.

Overall, we're very pleased with the performance of the business heading into the fourth quarter. The team remains focused on finishing the year strong, supporting dedicated golfers around the world and investing in our long-term strategic priorities.

With that, I will now turn the call over to Cameron for Q&A.

Cameron Vollmuth

Thanks, Sean. Ben, could we now open up the line for questions?

Operator

[Operator Instructions] Your first question from the line of Joe Altobello of Raymond James.

Question-and-Answer Session

Mitchell Ingles

This is Mitchell Ingles on for Joe Altobello. To start, can you help us bridge the 2027? I'm assuming you're going to back out the $30 million IEEPA refunds, but there will probably be some SG&A spending going away as well. And on the other hand, you have raw material and freight pressure. So can you help us think about the puts and takes?

Sean Sullivan

Yes, Mitchell, happy to do that in some broad strokes. So you have it right. At the end of this year, we will have a net benefit of $30 million due to the tariff refund. So we need to normalize that as we go into next year. From an input raw material cost of sales perspective, obviously, we've got incremental costs related to some of our input costs, both in terms of golf balls and golf clubs due to the materials we use in those products. We've got to keep an eye on labor, keep an eye on health and welfare costs, which are obviously increasing certainly in the U.S. and North America.

As we look at SG&A, I don't -- we'll continue the IT and the technology investment, the investment in A&P to support product launches and our whole technology road map. So I don't know that there is anything specific to call out SG&A year-over-year if you're already normalizing for the tariff refunds and the AIP or the incentive comp impact related to that. So those are the broad strokes.

As David said, we're excited about the '27 Pro V1 launch. In the club category, we've got irons and we have putters coming, which certainly will not be as strong of a growth profile as we'll see here in '26 due to the metals and the wedge launch, given that it's an odd number year. So broadly speaking, that's how we're -- how '27 sets up as we sit here today.

Mitchell Ingles

Great. That's helpful. And then as a follow-up, can you give an update on the GTS launch? How is demand tracked versus your expectations? And what you're seeing in terms of sell-through and custom fitting?

David Maher

Yes, Mitchell, we're really pleased with the launch on a variety of levels, starting with tour adoption and adoption across the pyramid of influence. As you know, we went early. We -- the team did a nice job getting our fitting tools out in the second quarter, and I think we went live in June. So as we sit here today in November, we're very pleased with, a, the product; and b, the decision to go early, both in terms of sell-through and our shipments into the market. So I think as we indicated on prior calls, this idea of moving launches earlier in the year, the first example being GTS has been a real positive experience. So we're real pleased with GTS, and we're thinking along those same lines for irons.

Operator

Your next question from the line of Simeon Gutman of Morgan Stanley.

Simeon Gutman

First, a short-term question. Rounds played, it looks a little, I don't know, choppy volatile week, at least coming into September. We haven't seen October yet. Normal noise, the health of the consumer, health of the game, where does it stand right now?

David Maher

Yes. Simeon, I think you summed it up. It was a bit of a choppy quarter. And if you look at golf playable hours, it would show that golf playable hours were down, I think, 6%, 8% in the key third quarter months. Rounds of play weren't down quite that much. So the way we think about it and really U.S. commentary first, net rounds are still tracking ahead for the year. We got through periods in the third quarter of heavy rains, heavy heat.

The latest we saw for October was that golf playable hours were about flat. But net-net, I think we're coming off a 6-, 7-year run of increases, maybe more like 5-, 6-year run of rounds played increases. 2026 still tracking at or maybe slightly above last year despite some choppy weather. But -- and we saw it in our business. When weather was good, people were playing, we'd see upticks; weather was poor, we saw rounds declines and some downticks. But I think you summed it up well. It was a bit choppy.

As we look around the world, similar profile. If we've got U.S. rounds up slightly, we've got Rest of World rounds down slightly, but it's a mixed bag. They're up in Korea. They're up in Australia and New Zealand. They're up in China, but they're down in some other markets, all in the low single-digit ranges. And again, I think it's as much commentary on weather. But as we step back from that, we still -- we're enthused about the games underlying demand. And again, I think that's reflected in our performance. That's reflected in the overall rounds of play trends, and we do accept that you're just going to see some weather swings like we saw in the third quarter.

Simeon Gutman

Got it. And my follow-up is how do you -- how are you looking at replacement cycles? Are they elongating? And are there differences in uptake from green grass versus some of the big box stores?

David Maher

Yes. We've said previously that when things slow down in the economy, we would expect consumables to hold up quite well and durables to maybe see some elongated product life cycles. We have not seen that at this stage, and it leads me to comment on the resilience and durability of our dedicated golfer, right? They're playing, they're avid, they're active. They're taking lessons. They're spending on performance equipment.

So -- and the other point I would make is we've counter to if there's an elongated life cycle purchase cycle, we're going a little bit the other way in part by us entering the second quarter, which was a really good move for our club business. And again, as I noted earlier, we think that's a trend you'll see play out over the next couple of years with iron launches. So I haven't seen anything yet. Consumables is in very good shape. And obviously, our results, our club business this year, up double digits, suggest that our golfer is staying with their pre-existing conversion cycles.

Operator

Your next question from the line of Gregory Miller of Truist Securities.

Gregory Miller

First question I'd like to ask you is about green fees. They are rising. And I'm curious if you're seeing any impact to rounds played or sport interest as a result.

David Maher

Yes, that's a great question. We talk about it often because it's a surprising number, and we point to data from the NGF average cost of a round and they normalize based on an average of peak and off-peak times. This is public golf average cost of a round is $47. It's up 4% versus last year, and it's up 29% versus, I guess, 6, 7 years ago. So there is affordable golf out there. But on the other side of it, we all know in major markets, big cities, it's maybe a little bit of a different story.

So when we look at rounds of play data, public, private, there doesn't seem to be a skewing or a backlash to pricing. The biggest influencer as we've seen this year and talked about earlier has been weather. So it is and will and should always be a watch out for the industry. But at the moment, we have not seen pushback. Again, the pushback on rounds has been largely weather. And it is a surprising stat for a lot of people to -- when they hear that the average cost of a round is $47.

Gregory Miller

And I do look at the national data from the U.S. as well, but I don't -- I frankly don't have as much color of what's going on internationally in terms of green fees. And wondering if you could also speak to that as well.

David Maher

Yes. Generally speaking, it's a little bit like the U.S. in that it depends. Big cities, you're going to see higher costs. Seoul, Tokyo, Japan, Korea, the cost of play is higher, always has been. Across Europe, you've got really 2 versions. You've got local play and you've got tourism play. Tourism play cost of those rounds have spiked, but local play has been more normalized. So it's a similar watch out, but we have not seen it reach a level where it's prompting folks to not play or play less golf.

Operator

Your next question from the line of Matthew Boss of JPMorgan.

Matthew Boss

So David, any recent change in buying behavior that you've seen from customers in the U.S. versus overseas? And could you just walk through puts and takes on fourth quarter revenues or any change relative to your initial plan? And last, just if we're taking a step back, how do you feel about your product and innovation pipeline into '27 at this point?

David Maher

Okay, Matt. Maybe Sean and I will tackle that one together. But I'll start with what we've seen from the consumer. Any time you have weather and rounds declines, you're going to see some dips. We saw that. The quarter best described as a bit choppy. But a lot of upticks within that choppiness when weather was decent.

So our consumer -- and again, it's this dedicated golfer, they're avid. They're resilient. They're passionate. They are alive and well, not to say that all of them are unaffected by whether it's interest rates or gas prices. But by and large, the first thing we're going to point to is rounds of play, and that speaks to their avidity and their commitment to the game and then what flows from that is their spending. So I would say steady state over the last several months with ups and downs as much weather related.

And I'm not sure I have any meaningful callouts outside the U.S. that would counter that. So again, it really -- it speaks to this sustainability and durability of Acushnet's core consumer. We're very sensitive to it. We're very aware of it. We understand what's happening broadly with inflation and watch carefully and closely as to what that might do to consumers and their interest in our products.

But at the moment, as we really enter -- we're in a shoulder season, we're soon to enter the snowbelt season where a lot of our play really comes from a handful of open Sunbelt markets. We're pleased with the state of our consumer and the durability of our consumer.

Sean is going to hit part 2.

Sean Sullivan

Yes, Matt. Just on Q4 and just stepping back the full year, I think it's playing out largely as we had expected. I think, again, strong year from golf equipment, strong performance in golf balls in a non-Pro V1 launch year. So when we think about Q4 for Titleist Golf Equipment, we're obviously expecting to be down given the transition to Pro V1 2027. Obviously, with the accelerated club launch, we're going to see a year-over-year decline in golf clubs.

From a FootJoy perspective, the -- as David said, the profit focus in FootJoy is intact, and you'll see that in the Q in the full year. In terms of the profitability portrait in golf gear, third quarter soft, but just timing. So overall, I think the full year will have a nice outcome there. So -- and I called out in my script. I think if not for some of the disruption to FootJoy and golf gear on the custom side, I think the sales -- due to the ERP implementation, I think the sales profile for the year is largely in line with our expectations. So very pleased with that.

David Maher

Yes. Matt, I'll wrap it up with commentary on our pipeline. And I'll begin with, as we both stated, the inventory in -- at retail and in our facilities is in really good shape. So we like our state of readiness for the holidays. And behind that, we like our steady state of readiness for new product launches. It's Pro V1 year. So that's a boost to the ball business. We've got some exciting things happening in irons and putters. So we're enthused there. We've got some good momentum happening in footwear and gear.

And apparel, we're just cautious about -- we're always cautious about largely, that's an Asia comment. We've seen softness over the last couple of years in Korea and Japan and not that we expect that to persist a whole lot longer, but we're just conservative about those very large apparel markets.

So real pleased with the state of our innovation pipeline. We got some exciting things happening at TPI in terms of that side of the business. So overall, we're investing. And as Sean talked about, part of our Q4 guide implies that we're going to continue to make some investments. I called it out. It's in R&D. It's in our fitting networks, it's in TPI. And that's really to drive future growth. So we are right where we want to be at this time of year and feel really good about what's to come in 2027.

Matthew Boss

Sean, just as a follow-up to that, on the drivers of gross margin expansion that you saw this year, any change or considerations we should think about for next year gross margin as we think or start to size up input costs, freight and pricing power?

Sean Sullivan

Yes. Again, a little early, Matt, to talk overall. But clearly, we're pleased that we're on a trajectory for '26 to -- on a normalized basis, excluding tariff -- the net tariff impact that we're going to see gross margin expansion. So slightly better. I talked about it in my comments about FootJoy and some other aspects driving that. And I think in one of the earlier questions, we haven't finalized the pricing grid for every product and every launch next year. So I'll leave that to the side.

But from a cost of goods sold perspective, I think tariff, unless there's a change, I would expect that to be effectively flat year-over-year. We certainly are seeing rising input costs in tungsten and some of the oil-based input costs to balls and the manufacturing of balls, health and welfare, labor, et cetera. So again, the goal here is to meet or expand the gross margin profile. There are certainly headwinds. Like I said, we haven't finalized the pricing decisions across every product launch for next year.

So overall, I think those are the things. I think they're all manageable, Matt, and we'll have more to say certainly in February on the call.

Operator

Your next question from the line of Jeff Lick of Stephens.

Tom Wendler

This is Tom Wendler on for Jeff Lick at Stephens. Congrats on a nice quarter. First question from us, as more competitors move towards the 2-year product launch cycle, how do you think that changed the overall golf club market? And what does that mean for your positioning?

David Maher

Yes. So we're certainly aware that our competitors are moving in a 2-year direction, we think is prudent. We've been there a long time and continue to stay there. What I think it means longer term is it invites a healthier marketplace. You're going to have less periods of discounted prior generation product in the market and you're going to have more periods where it's principally about performance rather than generation new versus generation old. So high level, see it as a step towards an even more rational golf marketplace. And if we go back 10 years, it was going the other direction. Product life cycles were less than a year, and it was very murky and complicated and messy.

So I think it results in a cleaner marketplace. I think it ultimately benefits Acushnet over the long term. And I think the final piece of that is it's going to really force and require a commitment to fitting, which is one of our core strengths. So high level, that's how we think about it.

Tom Wendler

Awesome. And then just following up on the fitting comments. You invested fitting over the last few years. Are you seeing those investments change how often golfers are buying equipment or the type of products that they are buying? And how important is fitting becoming in the overall golf club market?

David Maher

Yes. So we jumped into fitting in the early '90s, and we've been public for 10 years. But since the early '90s, we've been talking about building out and expanding our fitting network. And whether it's in the U.S. or whether it's globally, it's that important to our business. We believe the for golfers to get the very best out of Titleist equipment. They need to be fit. So it's really a core strategy of ours. It applies principally to clubs and balls. We started talking a year or 2 ago about FitLab and a fitting process for footwear.

So yes, it's a core -- it's a core strategy of the company. And at the heart of it is, we believe great product plus a great fitting is going to help golfers play their very best. And we also believe for our target consumer, you need both. So a key, key part of our business for a long, long time, and I expect for years to come, you'll continue to hear us talking about investing, strengthening, building out and growing our fitting capabilities.

Operator

Your next question from the line of Noah Zatzkin of KeyBanc Capital Markets.

Noah Zatzkin

When I look at geographic constant currency performance year-to-date, relatively stronger performance in Japan and Korea. So maybe if you could just provide kind of a quick update on those markets and how you think about the share opportunity looking ahead internationally.

David Maher

Yes. Noah, I'll do a quick flyover of Japan and Korea. But really pleased with our team's performance this year. I think we're up double digit, up 11%, really led by balls and clubs. Footwear and gloves are in pretty good shape in Japan as well. Apparel has been soft. I think I've talked about that. Rounds of maybe down slightly, but I think about rounds as being ballpark flat. So very pleased with our momentum. And as I've said on prior calls, we see Japan as our biggest market share gain growth opportunity, and that's as much commentary on where we are and the competitiveness of the market. And also back to my earlier comments, it's the least evolved of our fitting markets. So one of our unlocks in Japan will be to continue to activate and expand our fitting capabilities. But nice year in Japan.

Korea, rounds of play are up a little bit versus last year. We feel really good about that as just an overall sign of market health. Our business down slightly, and that warrants a comment. Nice growth in Titleist Equipment, balls and clubs, and that's a theme we've talked about across regions. Balls and clubs are having a good year in every region.

Similar to Japan, footwear and gloves are in good shape. If there's softness, it's apparel and the apparel market in Korea is really outsized. It's a very, very large marketplace. We think it's after a couple of year period of correction, it's largely stabilizing. But as we think about the future, I feel really good about our business in Korea. We're going to take a cautious view towards apparel and keep fueling our ball and club momentum.

Noah Zatzkin

Very helpful. And then maybe just a housekeeping question. I think net tariff refunds were a $38 million benefit through second quarter, and I think the benefit sits at $33.8 million as of the end of 3Q. So is the delta there in timing of incentive comp hitting in 3Q? Or am I thinking about that wrong?

Sean Sullivan

No, you're thinking about it right, and we'll have another one in Q4, right, as we true up the net $30 million.

David Maher

Thanks, everyone. As always, we appreciate your interest in the company, and wish you all a great holiday season and look forward to reporting back when we're on our February call. Thanks again.

Operator

This concludes today's call. Thank you for attending. You may now disconnect.