Friday, February 08, 2008

How Not to Use Business Golf

Did you watch the Dubai Desert Classic on Sunday where Tiger won his second tournament of this year? You might have seen one of the professionals, Henrik Stenson, hit his approach shot into the water. He then took his club and slammed it into his golf bag, hard enough to tip it over, except he caught it before it dropped to the ground.

I understand being competitive and wanting to do your best, especially for a professional where every lost shot is money and a possible drop in ranking as a professional. But, if you're playing business golf, you are presumably wanting to strengthen your relationship with your clients, prospects, and others. This means acting in a way that doesn't surprise or offend your playing partners. A business golf round is not the time to try to shoot your personal best round, so be careful in how you react to your missed shots. Throwing your clubs or hitting your bag with your club may turn your playing partners off and hurt your business relationships instead of improving them as you intended.

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