Golf and Business

You have heard it before. You can close business deals faster on the golf course. We browse the web and collected the following statistics from multiple credible sources:

MGT Open shares the following:

  • “54% of Biz Professionals see Golf as “The Sport of Business“… (6 x more than 2nd choice Motor Sport. Only 8% selected Football!) 

  • 25% of Business decision-makers play Golf! 

  • 48% of Executives see the Golf Course as an ideal biz environment! 

  • 20% of the FTSE-100 Chairmen belong to the same Golf Club! 

  • 38% of Executives use Golf as an “international language” to break language & cultural barriers! 

  • 27% of Executives see Golf as ideal to get ahead with their careers! 

  • 41% describe Golf as “a perfect way” to get to know Biz associates! 

  • 25% of Executives see Golf as a Sport for young managers!” .

Golf.com writes: “Golf isn’t merely a leisure sport. It’s the martini lunch of the modern workforce, the buoyant venue where business gets done.

“Think of it as a six-hour sales call,” says Bill Storer, a 22-handicapper who ranks as the Ben Hogan of business golf. Just as Hogan had his five fundamentals, Storer, the president of Business Golf Strategies in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, has boiled the game down to a few basics. And unlike the rules of golf, his rules of business golf are relatively simple.

But here’s the biggest difference: if everyone follows them, everyone wins.

1. Pick Your Partners Wisely
This isn’t the Ryder Cup. You want to play with decision-makers, not the golfers who can shoot the lowest scores.

2. Don’t Sandbag or Tank It
It’s the most common question, Storer says: to win, or not to win. The answer is: play to your ability, fair and square. Gauge the personality of your partner and determine how intense he or she is about the game. If you decide to play a match, use the handicap system to establish even ground. An intentional “tank job” can be insulting to a potential client. But a flagrant sandbagging can be even worse.

3. Patience is a Virtue
Don’t discuss business before the 5th hole or after the 15th hole. Like golf itself, you’re in this for the long haul.

4. Play Ready Golf
Par is less important than pace of play. When Storer says that business golf is like a “six-hour sales call,” that includes post-round drinks or dinner. Six hours on the course is way too long.” Click HERE to read more

David Kennedy