Businessweek November 8, 2001
Mark Nelson
What better way to get to know somebody, commune with nature, work a deal, and improve your swing — all at the same time
Calvin Coolidge, who once remarked that “the business of America is business,” didn’t quite get it right. As any CEO will tell you, the business of America is golf.
Golf and business have been inextricably linked for more than a century. From the formation of private country clubs in the late 1800s to today’s ritualistic sales meetings at Doral, Pebble Beach, or Kiawah Island, executives seem to be as comfortable conducting business against the serene backdrop of a rolling emerald fairway as they are within the controlled confines of the office. After all, they’re also working on their swings. The ability to play golf, understand its etiquette, and respect its traditions can boost a career.
Former U.S. Amateur champion Vinny Giles, who now represents nearly two dozen professional golfers, explains the attraction this way: “There’s a camaraderie that can be developed on the golf course,” Giles says. “You spend four hours with a person. You get to know him and see him in a different environment than the boardroom. There is a certain bond in the game, and everyone shares a common purpose and a common enjoyment.”
BETTER THAN TENNIS. Like business, golf tests an individual’s ability to set goals and achieve them with as few expenditures (strokes) as possible. Adversity lies everywhere, whether it be in the form of a sand trap or a sharp drop in earnings. Both activities seem infinitely perfectible. All you need is intelligence, creativity, focus, total mastery of your emotions, practice, practice, practice — and no small amount of luck.
Today, golf still reigns as Corporate America’s No. 1 pastime. “Not everyone can play tennis, but everyone thinks they can play golf,” says Lynn Roach, an agent who represents PGA Tour mainstays Fred Couples and Jeff Sluman. “If you’re playing tennis and you get beat six-love, I’m not sure how much fun that is.”
Best of all, you don’t have to be a great athlete to be a good golfer. You simply have to be somewhat proficient, knowing how to “negotiate” your shots, “control your pace” and understand “course management.” Golfers talk like that — with good reason. In an age of health and enlightenment, golf has replaced the three-martini lunch as the preferred vehicle for sealing deals.
click here to continue this article…
