Pace of Play Formula

The USGA has announced a formula for pace of play that works. In the ten national amateur championships it had a major effect in speeding up play. On average, the threesomes sped up by 30 minutes in their stroke-play events.

Here's how it works: Each group has to hit four checkpoints -- the fourth, ninth, thirteenth, and eighteenth holes -- in a certain allotted time, depending on the course, or stay within 14 minutes of the group in front of them once the flagstick is put back into the hole.

The first breach is a warning and then a Rules official will monitor the players in the group to see if the culprit is one player or if the entire group is the problem. If the problem is the group, then the second infraction is a one-stroke penalty for each player.

How I wished this policy was implemented at most courses, or at least during tournaments.

Big Easy Just Isn't So

In a rare moment of losing his composure, Ernie Els threw his club while playing in the Nedbank Challenge in his home country of South Africa. Els was fined the equivalent of $138, which he paid after the tournament.

I was disappointed to see the video. He threw the club end-over-end at least ten feet. And, then grabbed a club out of his tour bag, which was standing nearby, so vigorously that the bag fell to the ground.

I haven't read his comments about the incident, but it's not a good showing of etiquette and sportsmanship. I know he's just human and frustrated as he makes his comeback from his knee injury.

A pro who makes his living with every shot, I am more willing to excuse his club throwing tantrum. But if I was playing with a client who did the same, I'd have to question whether I'd want to continue doing business with this person. How would he or she react if there was a problem in our business together?

Tasty Golf Tees

The love of the game (and the billions of dollars spent in the industry) brings out entrepreneurs with innovative, unique, and different golf inventions.

Typically, the latest golf item to hit the market is related to the golf swing. It's the best swing aid or putt maker.

Now, though, you can lick your tee. Yes, a couple of guys are marketing tees with flavors like mint, cherry, strawberry and grape. The tees are your good old-fashioned wooden tees, but with a coat of your favorite flavor.

The idea is after you've enjoyed your cigar, you can taste your tee to get rid of that cigar taste. Or, if you're hungry, just take a lick.

My only suggestion is you might want to get in your licks before you tee up the ball. I can only imagine that fertilizer and grass don't taste very good. And, another thing, if you're playing business golf with clients or prospects, stick to Tic Tacs or gum for your flavoring. You'll make a much better impression.

Hitting the Course Without Knowing Etiquette

I recently read an article about women learning how to hit the ball and then heading to the links to play, without any etiquette tips. That might be a great way to get women enthusiastic about playing golf in a controlled environment of the class that they were all taking.

But if a woman who read that article thought she should do that, she'd likely have a very unpleasant experience. I strongly believe that whether a person is an enjoyable playing partner isn't determined by the score he or she shot. It's instead whether he knows etiquette and is pleasant to be with for five hours. I'd rather play with a beginner who knows how to play with proper etiquette and a great personality than a single digit that has a similar level of etiquette I.Q. and personality.

If you want to play without knowing your etiquette, play with friends and warn them that you're ignorant of etiquette. If you want to play with them more often, at least ask them to teach you proper etiquette while you're playing. You'll make and keep your golf friends around by doing so.

Think Business Golf is Played Only in the US?

Business golf is going to China. According to the Associated Press, a Chinese university is requiring law and business students to take golf lessons to prepare them for a business world where deals are made on the golf course.

Listen to Suzanne's interview on why playing golf with clients is valuable in London's BBC Newshour.

Furyk's Costly Sportsmanship

Jim Furyk may have a swing that would earn it "Most Unlikely to Succeed" in a high school yearbook, but he as a man would earn the "The Honest Guy" of the class.

During today's final round of the American Express World Championship, Ian Poulter inadvertently stepped on Furyk's ball, which was in the deep rough. while searching for Furyk's ball. Furyk was entitled to a free drop, but instead told the Rule Official that he'd take an unplayable lie penalty. He felt since his ball was in such deep rough that he wouldn't have found it but for Poulter stepping on.

Furyk went on to make a bogey rather than having a par. It was a costly display of sportsmanship because he ended up in third place rather than sharing in a three-way tie for second place.

As announcer Nick Faldo said, "At the end of the day, he (Furyk) puts his head on the pillow.

Sleep well, Jim. You earned it! And, to those fortunate to do business with him, he's certainly a man you can trust.

How Is Your Gamesmanship?

Unfortunately the European team beat the US team definitively in the Ryder Cup. But, in a great showing of gamesmanship, Paul McGinley gave a long putt to J.J. Henry to tie their last hole and halve their match. If McGinley had not conceded the putt, the European team would have set their record in beating the U.S.

What's not good gamesmanship? Of course, cheating is an obvious. But it's also the subtle comments made about the water or O.B. before the player is about to hit, or taking a jab at your opponent's political or religious beliefs before you tee off.

If you have to resort to those tactics to "win" in your match, then remember Paul McGinley and how you want to be thought of as a golfer.

Time for Wie to Give It Up

Michelle Wie won't make the cut against the men at the 84 Lumber Classic Tournament. It's time to question whether she needs to give up on trying to be the first woman in 61 years to make the cut in a men's tournament.

I'm not saying she should quit on achieving her goal, but she needs to get her game in better shape before she has a realsitic chance to make the cut. David Leadbetter, her coach, has said he's concerned that her long irons into the green are too low and she can't get the ball to stay on the green. He stated simliar concerns at the Omega tournament as well.

She played the Omega tournament because Omega is one of her sponsors. She is friends with the family-founders of 84 Lumber. Other tournament sponsors like her to play because gate numbers go up.

But at what point does she (or her family) say it's unrealistic for her to continue to try to make the cut? She needs to play on the LPGA tour, win against the other gals, build some confidence, learn some shots, improve her putting, and then go for her other goal of making the cut against the men.

At this point, she's not close, and I don't see how continued attempts will improve her chances. If anything, it's getting embarrassing.

Listening to the PGA Tour on XM

I'm in S. Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where my family has a vacation home. The home has neither television nor telephone. And, my cell phone doesn't work from the home. So, it's a place that I come to when I need an escape and want to take in the view of the beautiful lake.

Unfortunately I can't watch the PGA or LPGA tours when I'm in the house. During the PGA Championship, I had to go to Edgewood Tahoe Golf Course to recall my steps at Medinah.

However I can at least listen to live coverage on a link from www.PGATour.com to XM Satellite radio. Coverage is pretty good and a lot better than nothing. So if you're cut off from t.v., but have Internet access, check it out!

How to Avoid Playing with Cheaters?

In a previous BizGolf E-Tip, I shared with you my experience playing with a woman who played to a higher handicap during match play.

Five weeks after the match, I finally received a ruling from the Golf Committee against my claim because I didn't notify the player that I was making a claim when I learned that she was cheating. I made the claim to the Head Pro instead.

Moral of the story: Don't play with cheaters, who by the way is angry that I made a claim, and check on the posting computer your opponent's handicap before starting your match.

Are You Reading Golf Magazines Too Carefully?

Do you enjoy reading golf magazines and all of the newest swing tips?

I do as well, but be careful. You might get overloaded with new swing thoughts and make a mess of your swing. If you read a tip that really seems to make sense to you, try that one and only tip on the driving range to see if it works for you. Don't try to incorporate more than one or two tips at a time. You'll only get confused and frustrated.

Never Again Another Tiger in Golf

I saw Tiger's interview after he defeated the rest of the field at Medinah Country Club to win his third PGA Championship. The rest were playing their own tournament of who would finish second. Like Mike Weir in 2000, Luke Donald, folded during the final round with Tiger. Is it the "Tiger Mystique" that causes his competitors to play mediocre, if not poorly, when they're in contention against Tiger? Absolutely.

The interview revealed to me how Tiger has developed the Tiger Mystique. First and foremost it's the unique characteristics of his mother and father who raised him with complete unconditional love. His father and best friend, Earl, was 42 when Tiger was born. He already had had three children with his first wife and he probably learned how to be a better father by the time Tiger was raised.

Tiger said he could score 1,000 in a round and his father would not have chided him, be disappointed in him, or love him any less. How many junior athletes now can say that about their father? Unfortunately I think few as the parents of this generation seem to live more through their children's successes on the field, and sadly some want it even more than their children. Most junior athletes today don't have the luxury to try different shots or swings like Tiger did without the fear of disappointing their parent or losing their love.

Earl Woods also was retired military where he likely learned discipline, commitment, and focus, without worrying about having to prove anything because of his race. Who else could have instilled those traits along with Tiger's ferocious work ethic, determination, and maturity? A silly question asked of Tiger was what he could tell his opponents to do when they are paired with him on a Sunday, so they could beat him. Tiger swatted that question away as if it were an annoying gnat by simply replying, with a grin, that he wouldn't say.

Why would he? But, more importantly, how could he? His opponents weren't raised by Earl and Kultida Woods, and later mentored on how to handle success by one of the most successful athletes in the world, Michael Jordan. I believe Tiger credits his mother as much for his success with her spiritual grounding.

Without the fear of looking sentimental, Tiger uses a head cover that his mother gave him. Written in Thai, it says she's always with him. Tiger beams his pearly whites as he describes how he looks at that head cover and feels his mother's presence out on the course. Tiger ever consider wearing a blue shirt on a Sunday of a Major? Never. It would mean the death (of course, figuratively) of Tiger at the hands of his mother. His fondness of red is because it's a power color and blue will never do.

Will Tiger smash Nicklaus's Major records of 18? Barring an injury, or surprising loss of interest by Tiger in golf, definitely. In 10 years, he's already two-thirds of the way there. A golf-focused, healthy Tiger will set new records of golf that won't be broken in my lifetime, if ever.

Simply said, they don't make them like they used to. There won't be another combination of parents that will raise another Tiger.

Golf is a Game of Integrity!

Recently I played in a match play tournament and my opponent played the match to a higher handicap than she actually was. She claims to have told me that she was the lower handicap, but I somehow agreed to "give" her an extra stroke.

Considering the golf slump that I've been in for the last several months, I wouldn't give her or anyone else right now an extra stroke. Instead of disqualifying herself for playing our match with a higher handicap, we're still waiting for a ruling from the tournament committee. Regardless of the ruling, I don't look forward to playing with this woman again (and certainly hope to never have to do business with her).

I'll keep you posted on the ruling about my match!

Playing Out of Your Mind

Today was the last round of my Club's Ladies Championship. I'm not the Champ, but I'm pleased with the way I played.

We started our Championship last Thursday, and I started to feel ill on Wednesday. Sore neck, scratchy throat. The second round on Saturday was worse with feelings of nausea and wanting to throw up. Today, I've practically lost my voice.

I started last week hoping to contend, but realistic since I was sick and in one of the worst golf slumps I've ever been in. Shooting 93 was a small victory for me because I didn't totally embarrass myself and come in dead last.

On Saturday, holding my stomach after nearly every shot and shooting 87 was a huge victory. Today, after shooting 10 on a par-4 on the fourth hole, I shot 90. I was so out of it on 4 that I said out loud, "Am I right-handed or left-handed?" as I looked at the ball in the weeds, debating whether to take an unplayable from there or putt the provisional that I hit.

I ended up finishing First Low Net and winning a beautiful silver bangle bracelet. It's not Club Champ, but considering how I was feeling for the entire tournament, I'm pleased that I could pull it together. I also think I didn't try to play well or hit those perfect shots. Instead I was trying to survive out there. I got my mind out of the way of what my body naturally knows what to do.

I hope to take that attitude to the course the next time I play!

Wie Fires Caddie

It comes as no surprise that Michelle Wie has fired her caddie Greg Johnston. The chemistry between the two never looked very good. She was disqualified for an incorrect drop that he thought she did correctly. He also never helped her read putts, which Michelle's father has been rumored to have required. If true, that wouldn't make sense, since Johnston was a veteran caddie. She's young and will eventually find a caddie that fits her style and personality. Until then, we'll wait to see who she picks as her new caddie.

Congratulations, Tiger!

I'm sure Tiger's victory at the Open today is the sweetest of all. The focus, determination, and pressure were all released in the arms of Stevie and his wife.

Death of a parent, I've thankfully not experienced. Tiger and Chris have shown that although their loved one is gone from this life, they continue to inspire and instill in their children the desire to do well and make their parent proud!

Congratulations to Tiger and Chris!!

Played Medinah and Still on a High

On Monday night, I provided a business golf presentation to 60 executive women from the Chicago area at Medinah Country Club. It was a great event with women who've never played becoming enthusiastic to learn golf and experienced golfers ready to hit the links. I told them I felt like a kid in a candy store because I was playing Medinah's Course #3 the next morning with the General Manager and a board member.

With the two caddies and my playing partners, I took the advice that I often give to women business golfers, and decided to hit off the same tees as the gents. It meant playing off of the silver tees, which is 7009 yards and a slope of 147 for men. I have to ask for help to calculate the slope for me, but I have a pretty good idea that it's going to be high. For the ladies off the white tees, it's 6728 and a slope of 146. 149 or 150 for me wouldn't be surprising.

As I walked down the first fairway, I was in awe of the carpet-like fairways. I made the mistake of hitting my second shot in the rough and had to contend with getting out of 4 1/2" rough. Needless to say, I used the 7-iron quiet often during the day to get out of the tall stuff.

I stood by the tree where Sergio hit his famous slice onto the green in the 1999 PGA Championship. I saw the height of the collection area on 12, which is an incredible hole that Rees Jones found nothing to change. I stood at the tip of the 13th hole to take a picture of the 224-yard signature hole across water. When we reached 17, the gents suggested that I hit off of the white tee and I took their advice. I ripped my driver onto the green 8' behind the flagstick into the rough. After a weak putt through the fringe, I sank my par putt and celebrated.

I'll be honest, the course ate me up and I shot 106. My playing partners were kind and said that it was respectable considering my first time, near Major conditions, and playing a set of rental clubs. But, it's one day I didn't really care about my score. I was thrilled to be at the course where Tiger, Sergio, Retief, Ernie, and the golfers of their ilk have played.

Most importantly, my playing partners were gentlemen of the kind that I sadly don't meet often. It will be a day of golf that I'll not forget and I can't wait to watch the Championship in August!

Hindsight Not 20-20 for Mickelson's Caddie

Nicklaus, Watson, and others have all questioned Phil's poor club and shot selection on the 18th hole. Mickelson's caddie, Jim "Bones" Mackay, a single-digit golfer himself, felt compelled to defend his boss today.

He stated that there was never a question about using the driver on 18. They knew how each player ahead of them was scoring. He then says, ""So we knew that 4-over was going to win the tournament, and Phil was not playing for a tie."

And therein lies the problem. Neither Phil nor Bones thought to play for a tie when they're near the corporate tents with trees in front of them. Hence, they played for the most embarassing lost in the U.S. Open thus far.

It's just hard to feel sorry for the guy when he thinks that way.

Mickelson Muffs Again!

On the 71st hole of the U.S. Open, Mickelson with a one shot lead pulls his driver out on the 18th tee. It would be okay if Mickelson was hitting it well, but instead he had hit only 2 out of 14 fairways all day. He sprays it left onto the corporate tent and tries two miraculous shots only to double bogey the 18th and lose the U.S. Open.

I try to like Phil...he smiles all of the time, which actually can be annoying and makes him look like a dufus, he has a nice appearing family, and he even said, "Good morning!" to my Mom when he was at the AT&T two years ago.

But his course management skills can be horrendous. It feels almost too risky to cheer for him because you never know what incredibly stupid thing he's going to do. I don't mind a guy being human and making a poor shot. He, however, makes poor decisions and then loses tournaments that he should have won.

I wonder how he'd be as a CEO of a company. I fear he'd have some huge wins and huge loses that a company probably could not survive his decision-making. Even with an ever presence of brains around him from Rick Smith, Dave Pelz, his caddie, and I'm sure a sports psychologist, they've not taught him how to play smart and win the tournaments that will forever haunt him because he lost them.

LPGA Championship & Calling a Penalty

I'm watching the sudden death playoff between Karrie Webb and Se Ri Pak. The latter just hit a beautiful second shot to inches from the hole. An awesome shot as she swung 65 feet behind Webb's drive! It's nice to see Pak's comeback after taking a break because she had started to hate the game.

I watched with anticipation Michelle Wie's attempt to win her first professional tournament. For some reason, I have a protective attitude toward her. She just failed to qualify for the Men's U.S. Open earlier in the week and then attempted to win in a major against the gals. Unlike any other professional that I watch, it's just hard to watch her disappointment. She has the opportunities, but hasn't shown the killer instinct a la Tiger yet. I anxiously await to see that develop in her.

Did you hear about Karrie Webb calling a penalty against Annika yesterday? Annika was removing a couple pieces of a divot before she hit, and Karrie called her on it. In a business golf round should you call a penalty against your client? My suggestion is that you not call a penalty against a client. Your client may be a new golfer and not know the rules yet. Or, your client is focusing on developing a business relationship with you and isn't as cognizant as the rules as he or she should be.

A caveat: If you and your client are playing in a tournament, then you need to call the penalty. You wouldn't want your foursome to win a tournament knowing one of you cheated. Handle it with finesse, so your client isn't embarrassed or humiliated. You'll keep your integrity and maintain your business relationship.

Interesting Math

Tiger Woods was in Arkansas for a children's golf clinic and he was asked about playing golf with Bill Clinton. Tiger's response, "Interesting math."

According to Woods, Clinton hits his first drive into the bushes. Then, he hits a second drive down the middle of the fairway. He then hits his wedge shot six to seven feet by the pin. And, then picks up his "gimme" putt.

Meanwhile Tiger hits a nice drive, but hits his wedge shot twelve feet past the pin. Tiger takes two putts to finish out the hole.

Back at the cart, Clinton writes down the scores: Woods -- 4, Clinton -- 3.

Golf is such an invaluable business tool because it is a true revealer of character and integrity. Tiger's encounter with Clinton on the golf course shouldn't surprise anyone.

Golf Club Leasing

An entrepreneur has applied his B-School education to the game of golf. After purchasing a new set of clubs every year or two, Damian Novak wondered if he could lease golf clubs like one leases cars. He founded Top Swing Leasing (www.topswingleasing.com) two years ago and has about 250 sets of clubs out on leases.

When you check out at Top Swing Leasing you simply pay one month's lease payment. The term of the lease will be 12 or 18 months with the option to buy out your contract, exchange for new clubs, or simply send back your clubs with no further obligation. If you opt to pay the lease up front, you'll have a cash savings of 10%!

A set of Callaway irons, which retails for about $700, can be leased for $35 per month on a 12-month or 18-month contract.

If you've wished you could lease clubs like you can your cars, check out Top Swing Leasing!

Have Some Spare Change?

Perhaps, this is the purchase for Tiger Woods and Michele Wie in the future. Airbus has manufactured a superjumbo plane. It's a double-decker and carries up to 850 passengers I'm sure more comfortably than any first-class seat on a flight that most of us could have.

You can catch a few winks in the bedroom suites, or sip champagne with "mood lighting" that changes as you travel the time zones to minimize the impact of jet lag. You can have a royal lounge and dine in a private dining room.

Best of all, you can have a driving range built into the plane! For the golf obsessed who don't want to miss a moment of practice, all of this can be yours for a mere $375 million!

Enjoy the Colonial...I miss the excitement that Tiger and Phil bring to tournaments, but it's still great golf!

Swinging Pink!

Derek Jeter, David Eckstein, and ten other baseball sluggers will be swinging pink bats on Sunday's Mother's Day to raise money for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Pink is also making a comeback in golf, thanks in part to Paula Creamer, who likes it as an accent color. Adams Golf has put out a set of a pink graphite clubs for women.

If pink is to support Susan G. Komen, I'm all for it. But, if you're a female business golfer and wanting to show your professionalism and use golf to build rapport with clients and prospects, be careful of using pink clubs and balls. Unfortunately, the color can still conjure the image of cute, bubbly "pretty girls in pink," which may not be how you want to be perceived.

Always use white balls in a business golf round. It certainly can have the pink ribbon on it as a logo and your mark on the ball, but shy away from the purple and green balls during your business golf round.

Masters Brand Management --- Part 2

A couple of trophies won by tennis player, Martina Navritilova, were auctioned yesterday. She doesn't know how the company acquired them, but her attorney is investigating it. Bjorn Borg recently announced that he was going to sell his Wimbeldon trophies for "financial security." He decided to keep them after a couple of fellow players called him.

A Heisman Trophy has been sold to raise legal fees for a murder defense fund or a token payment of a civil judgment. I'm sure Super Bowl rings have also been sold for cash.

Winners of those high-profile accomplishments in their respective sports seem to place little sentimental value on their prizes.

Will the awards presented at the Masters end up on EBay one day? The Masters champion is presented with a replica of the official trophy, a gold medal, and, of course, the green jacket (it probably can't be sold since the jacket stays on the premises of Augusta National Golf Club, except in extraordinary circumstances). The runner-up receives a silver medal and a silver tray. Crystal items are also given to players who shoot the low round, or have a hole-in-one, an eagle, and a double eagle.

To maintain the Masters's mystique, I'd advise Hootie and his friends to issue another rule for the players. Something to the effect that any trophy or award received at the Masters shall never be sold or auctioned in the public. And, Augusta National shall have the first right of refusal on the purchase of any such items.

I hope Hootie doesn't have to take this step, but nowadays you never know what people will do for "financial security" or to pay off debts, especially gambling ones.

John Daly's Gambling

I like John Daly as a golfer with long drives, yet soft hands around the greens. In his autobiography, he claims to have lost $50-60 million in gambling losses.

Perhaps the attorney-side of me is coming out, but my first thought is how could he not know the amount? If he doesn't know, you'd think there is someone in his organization who would know the amount. His admission is similar to a government agency who reports that its lost $25-35 million. Money that somehow just disappeared from the government coffers. It's bad enough that money is lost, but how can you not know if it's $1 million let alone $10 million.

Now, the author-side of me. By stating (unverifiably) the grandiose amount, he has received a tremendous amount of publicity. It's a great way to sell books. Create controversy, even if it reveals a negative characteristic.

On a personal note, I assume Daly can afford the loses while he's on tour and earning endorsements and tour monies. He seems to have an addictive personality, whether it's drugs, smoking, drinking, or gambling. If he decides to slay all of them, I wish him the best.

Check out Horsesmouth.com

If you're a financial advisor and member of Horsesmouth.com, I am the expert on playing business golf. Visit the discussion board and add your question or comments about the ins and outs of playing business golf.

It's been a very active forum and full of great ideas for financial advisors on how they can use golf to build their businesses.

Personal Note: Played 7-Hour Round + 5 Holes

Am I the only person who has a let down after the Masters or any other Major? I just couldn't get into the last two tournaments. I was interested to see Tiger racing stock cars and bungee jumping in New Zealand while attending Stevie's wedding. And, I was saddened to hear that Tiger was taking time off until the U.S. Open, only because I'm assuming time is short for his father, who is battling terminal cancer.

Speaking of fathers, on Sunday, I played a seven-hour round during the first round of a golf tournament with my father. It took five hours to play the first 18 holes! It was so slow because it was cart path only. I know to bring extra clubs, but in wet and heavy grass conditions, I would sometimes have to get more clubs to hit the next shot. I'm in Northern California where we've had more rain than ever and the grass was 5-7" long in the rough and 3-4" in the fairways. So, we spent more time looking for each other's balls.

In this tournament, we had three matches against our opponents. Two individual matches based on handicaps and then one team match based on best ball. After 18, we split the individual matches and tied on the team match. We had sudden death and finally my Dad and I won on the fifth hole.

Seven hours later, my father and I walked into the Clubhouse where he and my mother were hosting my niece's sweet 16 birthday dinner party. By the time we arrived, guests had finished eating and applauded when we walked in because they had heard we had won.

Talk about an exhausting, stress-filled lengthy battle. Imagine if we had lost and then still had to go to dinner...it would have been even more embarrassing given how late we were to our own party.

Here are a couple of reminders for speeding up play. Instead of taking the time to put your clubs back into your bag, hold them, and walk or ride to the next tee to put your clubs away.

Also, don't stop at the putting green to keep score. Walk ahead to the next tee and get everyone's score then, so the players behind can hit their approach shot.

Finally, especially in the conditions that we were playing in, try to help your playing partners and opponents spot their balls and help them look for them.

I can't wait for the sun to shine in Northern California!

Masterful Masters Management

Congratulations to Phil for his second green jacket. Although I wished Freddie had won because he's a favorite, I am glad to see Phil finally playing smart and with precision.

I love the Masters--the lore, the tradition, and the mystique. The folks at Augusta National Golf Club are the kings in brand management of their august tournament.

They're not spectators or galleries, they're patrons. You won't see a blimp shot or hear the annoying motor noise during the broadcasts. You see beautifully manicured golf for 56 minutes out of every hour. And, you only see ads from select companies. No ads from Cialis and Viagra, and no comments about bikini wax or Mark O'Meara belonging to Tiger a la Gary McCord.

I know I am supposed to hate them for not allowing women members, but I don't. It's the civilized and circumspect Super Bowl of golf.

Teamwork in Golf

Golf is usually thought of as an individual sport. It's you against your opponent or the field. But, teamwork can be a factor in golf in a couple of ways.

First, there is teamwork among the foursome. Each player should help other players locate and find their balls. There's the dance in the foursome of who should pull and replace the flagstick. And, the obvious is teamwork in team formats, such as scrambles where the player putting first should putt the ball to the hole to give his teammates a good read.

Another opportunity for teamwork to be a factor is the relationship between player and caddie. Think of effective player-caddie relationships. Tiger and Stevie, Phil and Bones, and last week's Steve Ames and brother, Robert, should come to mind.

While watching today's final round of the Kraft Nabisco Championship, however, I didn't see that type of relationship developing between Michelle Wie and her caddie, Greg Johnson. He was the caddie for Dottie Pepper and most recently Juli Inkster. Yet, when Michelle was on the green, I never saw him help her read the putts or discuss club selection, especially on the 18th green when Michelle hit an errant sandwedge eleven feet past the pin.

Given her caddie's experience at Mission Hills Country Club, I don't understand why they weren't talking about every putt. I would have assumed Michelle and her family selected Johnson as her caddie for his maturity and experience. After the bad drop which caused her disqualification in her first tournament as a professional and his not helping her read putts, I question whether this will be a team we'll see much in the future.

Although they don't work together often because of her limited playing schedule, there's a chemistry lacking between Michelle and her caddie. With her youth and inexperience, she needs to take advantage of a caddie's experience.

Teamwork in golf can help foursomes keep the pace or players win tournaments. Let's hope Michelle finds a caddie relationship, whether with Johnson or another, that will lead to victories on both the LPGA and PGA tours.

Ames Right On

Stephan Ames won The Players Championship with confidence and precision shots I haven't seen in awhile from a third-round leader. What struck me was what he said during his interviews after the third round and before he teed off on Sunday. He repeated if he stayed committed to every shot, he'd do well.

He did just that. There was never a hesitant swing (except one putt on 10) or sense of indecision. His caddy-brother surely helped Ames with his comment, "Have fun with the shot!"

We can apply the wisdom of the Ames brothers to our business lives and our golf games: Commit and have fun with it!

Sabbitani Slow Play Snafu - Round 2

Rory Sabbbitani made his dislike for slow play known when he teed off his ball on the next hole while Ben Crane (Sabbitani's playing competitor) was still putting out. On Thursday at The Players Championship, Sabbitani was put on the clock with playing partners Nick Faldo and Camillo Villegas. Sabbitani accused Faldo of slowing down play on purpose.

Sabbitani refers to Faldo's comments during the Nissan Open where Faldo suggested the way to beat Sabbitani is to slow him down. I didn't hear Faldo's remarks and he denies he played slowly intentionally. Instead Faldo explained they slowed to look for Villegas's lost ball and then got back on pace.

I don't particularly like Sabbitani, but he makes a good point about slow play. “When people say, if they are paired with you, that they will slow-play you, it leaves a lot of questions about their morals and professionalism,” said Sabbatini. “It is a matter of respect to your partners and the rest of the field.”

I hope Nick Faldo didn't slow play Sabbitani. So many golfers need to learn how to keep up the pace and keep rounds to four and one-half hours.

Take a Deep Breath

If you saw Greg Owen's three-putt on 17, which caused him to lose Arnold's tournament, you can feel his pain. I was watching the tournament after playing a wet, muddy round at my club. When he missed the first putt and immediately stood over the second putt, I yelled, "Take your time!"

Unfortunately, he didn't.

If you're working on a tight deadline, and things fall apart, say you can't find a document you thought you saved, it's best to take a deep breath and step back. Rather than randomly pushing different keys and getting angry, you need to push away from your keyboard. You might find it by doing a search of your hard drive, or the worst outcome, you'd have to re-compose the document.

The important thing is if you keep your head, you'll have a better chance to get that deadline met and make that comeback putt.

LPGA Tournament Thoughts

I flipped onto Golf Channel to watch some of the LPGA MasterCard Classic tournament and to my surprise I saw Annika getting into a golf cart. In fact, she was driving and her caddy was the rider. Apparently because of the elevation changes at the course, carts were allowed.

I chuckled to myself because when I speak to professionals I suggest that they drive if they're the host of a business golf round. The goal is to build a relationship and treat your guest well that day.

To see Annika driving, just showed who is in charge and is in the power position. I would have thought her caddy would drive, like he carries the clubs ordinarily, and she's thinking about her upcoming shot rather than maneuvering the cart.

As to seeing the carts in an LPGA tournament, it also surprised me to see that carts were even being used. I certainly remember the lawsuits over Casey Martin riding in PGA tournaments because of his illness that causes excruciating pain in his leg. I can't help but feel three-day tournaments and carts for players are not promoting an image of the LPGA as being on par with the caliber of competition in the PGA (at least that's what the LPGA and some players would like).

Let's Talk Business Golf on Monday, March 13th!

On Monday, March 13, 2006 at 6 p.m. PST (9 p.m. EST), I'm having a one-hour teleseminar call. It's free. If you ask me a question at www.asksuzannewoo.com, I'll answer it during the call.

I won’t help you hit the ball farther, or help you sink those 20-footers, although I play to a 13-handicap and am the 2004 women’s club champion at her club, Mira Vista Golf and Country Club in El Cerrito, California. But I can answer these questions:

• When are you ready to play golf with clients and prospects?
• Why should you play business golf?
• How good of a golfer do you have to be to play business golf?
• What mistakes must you avoid while playing?
  

So, ask me your single most important question about playing business golf with clients and prospects at www.AskSuzanneWoo.com. Submit your question along with your name and primary e-mail address.

I'll answer your question during the one-hour free teleseminar. Here’s the call-in information:

Date: Monday, March 13, 2006

Time: 6 p.m. PST (9 p.m. EST)

Phone: 712-580-0100

Access Code: 841845# (Enter this number when prompted.)

NOTE: Please call in a few minutes early. The call will start
according to www.time.gov.

Women's World Rankings and Wie

The LPGA and the other four women's professional golf associations throughout the world released a world ranking system of the ladies. To no one's surprise, Annika is #1, then Paula Creamer, and Michelle Wie debuts at #3. Similar to the men's world ranking, the Women's World Rankings will base ranking on the field strength of tournaments played and player performance.

In the Fields Open in Hawaii, Wie finished third in a 54-hole tournament. I'm not used to seeing tournaments end on a Saturday, but the gals can watch Davis Love III take on Geoff Ogilvy in the final match of the Accenture Match Play Championship.

Good luck, Davis!

Check out the Matches

The Accenture Match Play Championship has started at LaCosta in Carlsbad, California. If you're not familiar with match play, it's an exciting format because every hole is a match. Rather than seeing who played the best based on the total score like in stroke play, the winner in match play is the player who wins the most holes during the match.

For example, Tiger is back after his flu forced to him withdraw at the Nissan Open. At LaCosta, Tiger beat Stephen Ames, 9 and 8, which means Tiger had won 9 holes with 8 holes to play. A resounding victory in match play, which usually comes down to the last two or three holes to decide the match.

Watch this tournament and listen to the announcers describe how players may play differently because it's match play. There's more intimidation and mind games played because of the format.

Watch and Learn

During my presentations on business golf, I often talk about what you can learn about someone by watching how he or she plays golf. Confident? Selfish? Team player? These characteristics and many more will be revealed to you by playing with that person.

I was talking with someone about a person she knows that won't play golf on a golf course, but just hits balls at the driving range. He hasn't been on a golf course for several years. Money for green fees or lack of time isn't his issue. Instead, he prefers to hit balls at the range because he doesn't enjoy the pressure of playing on the golf course.

What pressure was my thought? Each of us plays the game and hopes to do well. We have great days and bad days. Yes, it's frustrating when I don't play well, especially if it's a prolonged slump. But, in short time, the joy of being on the golf course, talking with friends, and getting exercise always takes me back to the course.

Although I couldn't play with that guy because he refuses to get on the course, I have a good idea about the guy at least with regard to golf. He sounds like someone who has unreasonable expectations about his game and is afraid to look bad on the course.

It's really too bad, and somewhat sad, because ultimately we're out there to have fun and enjoy the game!

Pebble is Rocking

The start of the Pebble Beach AT&T has started. It's been glorious weather this week and will continue through the weekend.

Certainly the sponsors and corporate tent owners are having a great party. It's just not about great golf in a spectacular venue; it's about client relationship-building and schmoozing.

If you can go to a local PGA or LPGA tournament with a client, it's time well spent enjoying live phenomenal golf shots and building rapport.

Learn from Prime-Time Tiger

Tiger does it again. He needs to sink a putt to tie for the playoffs, and he fist slams after the ball dives into the hole. The odds weren't with Jose Marie and Nathan. One a veteran and the other a PGA rookie knew they were in for Tiger at his best. Jose Marie's smile on the driving range as the crowd roared said everything...Tiger is in the playoff.

In an interview before the tournament, Tiger explains why he always wins in the pressure situations. "You've got to have the guts to get it done," he says when asked why so many guys with picture-perfect swings can't win on the PGA Tour. "That's when it comes down to what do you have inside... . Some people may or may not have it, and that's something you can't teach."

Whether it's Tiger to sink the putt, or his friend, Michael Jordan, to sink the basket, they get it done when it counts.

The body language tells it all. On the 72nd hole, must have birdie hole, Tiger walked up to his ball in a not-so-perfect uphill lie, but the announcers noticed his shoulders were back and he walked tall.

I talk about body language in my book, On Course for Business. If you're a beginner to business golf and have a high handicap compared to your playing partners, walk with confidence and enthusiasm as you play...and while you conduct business.

Playing to Pay for a Huge Mortgage

After signing title docs for a $38 million oceanfront estate on Jupiter Island in Florida, Tiger is back to work. He's playing his first tournament of the year at the Buick Invitational in beautiful San Diego. By the way, I'm sure Tiger just used some extra cash he had earning 4% interest to pay for his estate.

During his time off, he didn't touch a club for 24 days and spent valuable time with his father, who is dying from cancer. Tiger has always been motivated to win every tournament he enters. But, with his father ailing will Tiger make it a year filled with victories for his father? I hope so.

Missed Opportunity for Me?

Chris DiMarco won his first tournament of 2006 today. Playing in the inaugural Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, he beat the field mostly of European pros, but including notables such as Sergio Garcia, Vijay Singh, Miguel Angel Jimenez, and Colin Montgomerie.

Why a missed opportunity for me? The Abu Dhabi Golf Championship is played in Karachi, Pakistan, and I was invited to speak in Karachi last year.

At the time, I checked with the State Department's web site to learn about Americans traveling to Pakistan, and saw the travel warning advisory and closure of the four American consulates. So, I politely declined the invitation.

Did the European and PGA Tour officials provided tight security for the players? I suspect so, but as a Chinese woman traveling alone without an entourage of security, I didn't want to risk it.

Would you have gone?

Chinese Discovered Golf -- Holy Scot!!

According to Professor Ling Hongling of Lanzhou University, the Chinese invented the game of golf more than 500 years before the Scots. Then, Mongolian travellers took the game to Europe.

The game was written about in the Song Dynasty (AD 960-1279) and was called chuiwan - 'chui' meaning to hit and 'wan' meaning ball. Players used ten clubs, including a 'cuanbang' (known today as a driver), and a 'shaobang' (a three wood). Chinese royalty inlaid their clubs with jade, edged them with gold and decorated the shafts elaborately.

The next time I tee it up, I'll pay reverence to my ancestors for the game, but wished I had their clubs instead.

Wie Misses the Cut -- What You Can Learn

Michelle Wie missed the cut during this week's PGA Tour's Sony Open. Reasons given for her poor play include she was nervous, it was windy, and even that she felt the nervous energy of her gallery, which was large since she was playing at her home club, Waialae Country Club.

After cheering for Annika and Michelle to make the cut, I have to wonder why they are attempting to compete against their male counterparts. For Annika to do so, I understand better. She's the number one ladies golfer in the world and she wants to see how her game compares against the men.

I question why Michelle, who hasn't won yet an LPGA event, has set such unreasonably high expectations for herself. As Tiger said, you learn from your victories. Thus far, Michelle has only suffered from nearly making the cuts and her disqualification in her first tournament as a professional.

When I speak to beginners wanting to play business golf, I tell them don't set yourself up to fail. Don't play your first business golf event by entering into an 18-hole tournament with a client. Obviously, take lessons first and learn a golf swing. Then, play with friends to learn the etiquette and the dance on the golf course.

When you're comfortable on the golf course, then your first business golf outing should be a practice session at the driving range with another beginner client or prospect. As your game and confidence improve, only then you're ready play 9-holes with a client, and then eventually 18-holes.

Everything in life requires first taking baby steps before one can "master" a new skill or behavior. The golf swing can never be mastered, but learning how to play proper business golf so you're effective in building business relationships on the course can be learned with patience and proper information.

Golf in 2006

The PGA Tour is back with The Mercedes Championships in Hawaii. I'm glad to see golf is back at least on T.V. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area and we've been drenched for the last week or so.

If you plan to use golf to develop your business relationships in 2006, then you should make some goals about your game and how you want to use golf in your business. What you measure grows. So, how many business golf rounds do you want to play -- one per week or one every other week? Mark some dates in your calendar now, so you'll make time to play as the date approaches.

Do you need to take some a lesson or two to improve your game? Winter is a great time to take lessons. Find an indoor teaching facility. The teaching professionals will likely have more time to spend with you and you'll be ready when spring arries.

Does your favorite charity or civic organization have a golf tournament that you want to play in?
If not, create a committee to plan a fund-raising tournament for '06.

If you can't play because of bad weather, at least you can talk about golf with clients and prospects. Keep up with the golf news on www.pgatour.com or www.lpga.com. The pros will be making news soon that your clients and prospects may want to talk about!

If golf has been proven to help you grow and build your business, then make it happen again this year -- even if it's just talking golf until the weather permits .

Winter Golf

As an avid golfer, this is a tough time of the year for me. Although it's festive because my birthday is in December and Christmas, there's little golf and the professional tours have wrapped up. As a fan of the game, I might follow the Australian Tour and the European Tour, but it's just not the same without Tiger, Phil, Fred and the gals. It was fun to hear about Retief's and Ernie's battle in South Africa though.

So, this winter, I've decided to read some books about golf. One is Golfing with God, which I've enjoyed. The other is The Future of Golf, which has been eye-opening regarding the USGA and the technology war. I'll post reviews of those books in the near future.

I did want to share one story about winter golf though that you might not have seen in local newspaper. It certainly isn't something I want to ever experience while on the fairways.

Near Tokyo, Japan, four golfers were nearly hit by disc-shaped piece of ice. The chunk weighs 4.4 pounds, is 20 inches in diameter, and 6 inches thick. The course isn't near an airport and it's not under a known flight pattern. Golf is hard enough without having to worry about a mysterious chunk of ice hitting you!

Anyway, have a Merry Christmas and a 2006 filled with birdies and pars. Oh yeah, watch out for any flying ice chunks!

Thankful for Golf

Wednesday was a special day because my niece and I, as a twosome, were able to play 18 holes before the start of "Mens' Day." She is 15 and can out drive her aunt by 30 yards, but I don't mind. I love watching her aggressive swing and her determination as she reads our tricky greens. But, after her uphill putt just missed the hole, she declared, "Aww...life's tough, Auntie!"

On Thanksgiving Eve, I couldn't resist a lesson on gratitude and humbleness. I explained to her that our lives are anything but tough. I reminded her of the obvious -- we were playing golf at a beautfiul country club on a spring-like winter day with views of the Golden Gate, SF skyline, and were enjoying each other's company. Then, the plethora of loved ones and material things that we are blessed with while many are without. In short time, she got it!

I was especially in a thankful mood as it relates to golf for two reasons. First, on Sunday, while playing with my Dad and friends, I had my second hole-in-one on the same hole that I had my first ace! It was during our club's Turkey Trot tournament and as a team we were grinding to do well. We were playing off of the forward tees and I hit my 6-iron onto the green. It's an uphill hole and a tiered green. We could see it rolling on the green, but didn't know whether it was long or fell off the green and rolled short. After looking for it, I asked my playing partners if they saw my ball. One friend said, "Look in the hole!" which my Dad did and to our surprise there it was.
I was thrilled to share the excitement with my Dad, my Mom, and other relatives and close friends later in the clubhouse.

Then, on Tuesday, a friend invited me to play Monterey Peninsula Country Club near Pebble Beach and the beautiful Pacific Ocean. I've not played Pebble and I'm threatening to take my Dad and Mom there next year -- he's old-fashioned and just can't imagine paying $425 for a round of golf and that's without the lodge fee required to even get a tee time!

I must admit the hospitality was not the most inviting. I suspect because it's a premier private club and guests aren't welcome without being accompanied by a member. After getting over the difficulty of buying my Dad a souvenier, we first went to the driving range, which is one of the nicest and largest that I've seen. Green grass, of course, and there wasn't signage to post the distances to the flags, but range finders behind the stalls.

Newly re-designed, the holes wind through the forest and then you're greeted by the sounds of the waves clapping the beach. It was hard to concentrate on playing well while being distracted by beautiful homes and the vistas. It was a special treat!

It wasn't too long ago that I was very frustrated with my game. I was scoring poorly and just not hitting the ball well. I've improved slightly and then was struck with a bit of good luck with the hole-in-one and a chance to play a beautiful course. I have much to be thankful, and I hope you're having a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend!

No Whining Allowed in Golf

Terrell Owens' recent comments about wishing he had Brett Favre as QB rather than Donovan McNabb was the last straw. Management has benched Owens for the remainder of the season and he'll likely not play again donning an Eagle on his jersey. His problem with the Eagles started because he wanted to renegotiate his already-lucrative seven-year contract after the first year.

Besides speaking to groups about the game of golf, I'm also an attorney, and a contract is a contract. One party can whine and complain, but the other party doesn't have to renegotiate as the Eagles have shown.

Thanks to T.O., I've discovered another reason why I love the game of golf. Seldom do you hear the golfers on any of the professional tours complain about their take-home pay. Except for company endorsements prevalent in every professional sport, they're not paid for their performance on-the-come or their shots in the past. They're paid for every swing they made, or not paid for every putt they missed.

It's called self-responsibility for your outcome. Perhaps, every sport should adopt the pro golfer's pay scale. For every completed pass thrown, every ball caught, every block made, or every ball hit, you get paid $X amount. Maybe then over-paid athletes will keep their mouths full with humble pie, so they can't say anything to further embarrass themselves and their sports.

Congrats to Annika for her Five-Peat!

On Sunday, Annika won the Mizuno Classic for the fifth consecutive time. She has surpassed Tiger Woods, Gene Sarazen, and Walter Hagen, who have each won four tournaments in a row. Prior to Annika, Laura Davies held the LGPA title for winning the Standard Register Ping tournament four times consecutively from 1994-97.

Winning five times in a row is an awesome feat in any sport. Congrats, Annika!

Congrats to the PGA for Hitting a Billion

The PGA Tour has reached its goal of a "Drive to a Billion." More than 2,000 charities and one million people have been aided by the money raised for charity by the TOUR and its players, tournaments, volunteers, sponsors and fans. The monies are raised from gallery receipts. If you've not been to PGA event, here's another reason to attend. Besides watching great golf, part of the proceeds of your ticket goes to a local charity. It took 67 years to reach a billion. Let's hope it takes less time to reach the next billion!

Knowing the Rules

If you play in tournaments, it's clear that you must know the rules of golf. And, if you don't, then you should ask someone in your foursome what the rules require in your given situation.

Michelle Wie's disqualification is a sad outcome for her inaugural professional event. I'm more dismayed at the interference of the reporter and his timing of his concern with her drop on the day before. I believe Michelle when she says she thought she made a proper drop. Neither her nor her caddie was trying to cheat by dropping the ball a few inches closer to the pin.

No doubt that this event will make her more cautious when taking a drop in future tournaments. But, it certainly is worth considering whether outsiders of the tournament, i.e. fans watching on T.V., reporters, or the gallery, should have any say about the rules during a tournament. I opt that they shouldn't or, if there is concern, it should be voiced at the time of the ruling, not a hole later and certainly not a day later. But, if a player chooses to disqualify him- or herself for an infraction (like David Toms during the British Open), then that's permissible.

Play well and according to the rules of the game!

Range Finders Allowed in Tournaments

The USGA has approved the use of Electronic Distance Measurement (EDM) devices during tournaments effective January 1, 2006. Apparently, the hunt for distance markers will no longer be as ferocious. The official tours, however, will continue to ban the use of those devices during tournament play.

One argument in favor of the EDMs is they help increase the pace of play by 20 to 30 minutes in a round. Thus, the golf course management companies can increase their revenues by having more players on the course.

I've got mixed feelings about EDMs. I have played with course yardage books, carts with GPS on board, and often times, I feel like screaming, "Too much information!" I don't want information overload when I'm about to hit a shot. Since I love to walk, finding a distance marker, and walking off the distance, works fine for me.

I'm old fashioned and the less electronic equipment intrusion on the sanctity of the golf course, the happier I am.

As to increasing speed of play, I am always for that idea. I walk and can play eighteen holes in less than four hours. I'm not sure how much of slow play is due to looking for distances. It seems slow play is caused more by players taking two or more practice swings, not walking quickly off the greens, not deciding the club to use until at their ball, and so forth. Or, for some, it's an inconsiderate attitude of "I paid the green fee and I'll play as fast as I like."

Regardless, if you're playing in a round of business golf with a client, leave the EDM in your bag. Remember, it's relationship building time, not the time to hit the perfect shot, and have your client watching you peer through your EDM most of the round.

Golf in the Bay Area

I'm excited to see San Francisco's Harding Park as this week's venue for the PGA American Express World Championships. The world's top players (sans Els and Goosen) are here and the weather has been beautiful. Who will reign as champion in San Francisco?

Meanwhile, the LPGA players are north of the Bay Area in the gold-country town of Auburn playing in the Long's Championship. Unfortunate about the timing for the ladies in terms of gallery attendance with both being played this weekend.

I played in a golf outing sponsored by a local private bank. First, we had a four-station clinic on our game: woods, pitching, irons, and putting. I learned a lot and then we went off to play an alternating shot, 9-hole tournament. I've spoken at these types of events, and it was fun to partake in one, so I can talk to organizers about the pros and cons from the perspective of an attendee.

For the pros, it was great to have everyone participate in the clinic -- whether a low handicapper or high handicapper -- people who learn together have a common bond that they can always talk about. I also liked the idea of a 9-hole tournament. It only took more than two hours and it was nice change to play in shorter format rather than the usual eighteen holes.

As to cons, as one can imagine, you only get a few minutes with the teaching professionals. Yet, two of them gave me very specific information to help me improve my game. So, the information is there for asking; one just needs to be assertive and ask.

Another con is the format of the tournament which was pretty confusing. I've never played in an alternate shot format. I felt like my tempo was thrown off a little. But, the format made it even more confusing in that the first two shots you alternated hitting between your partner's ball and your own ball. Just too confusing!

Finally, it paired two of us against the field. When playing in a networking event, I like the feeling of camaraderie when I'm part of a foursome.

Overall, it was a great event! I met some very nice people. One gentleman I met had read my book, On Course for Business, and after dinner, he asked me for my autograph and shared how much he enjoyed my book. Indeed I was flattered!

Play well!

Presidents Cup and More

It is great to see the the American team working as a team! They're tied with the International team as they go into the final day of singles matches. It's going to be an exciting day tomorrow and I hope the American guys prevail as the women did in the Solheim Cup. Go USA!

On Thursday, I played in a local Chamber of Commerce tournament and had a great time. I wasn't sure about how well I would play since I was sore from aerating my back yard. To my surprise, I played well. I suspect I did so because I didn't try to hit the ball hard, but took easy swings. The ball was going far and straight unlike my ugly slices of recent rounds.

One thing I had to catch myself from doing was being a stickler about the rules. My team was over par in a team scramble format, yet I was still worried about how many drives each player had hit and whose drive we needed next. My cart partner reminded me that we didn't have a chance to win and just have fun. He was right, yet I would have hated to have won knowing we didn't follow the rules. I like to walk my talk about playing with integrity and according to the rules at all times. Fortunately, we didn't place, but we had a great time.

Go USA!!

I awoke this morning watching the 9/11 memorials at Ground Zero and the Pentagon. You can't help but think back about that horrific attack on our country four years ago. From the somber mood on TV, I tuned into the Golf Channel to watch the Solheim Cup and was thrilled to see the USA was leading in several matches. Most notable of the matches was Paula Creamer over Laura Davies. I took her confidence onto the course and played with the best tempo in my swing and putting stroke in quite awhile.

Perhaps the lesson to be learned is watching the best play can help take your game up a level. Congratulations USA!!!

Rules are Rules in Solheim Cup

Did you happen to see the afternoon match with Annika Sorenstam? On the 17th hole, she had what looked like spike marks in her putting line. She asked for a ruling and whether there was any exception if they were indeed spike marks. After a fairly long delay, the Rules Official ruled that they were spike marks. Thus, she would have to putt around the marks as Tiger said when Vijay Singh complained about Phil Mickelson's spike marks.

It was nice to see that rules are rules. Until the USGA changes the rule about not being able to tap down spike marks on putting greens in the Official Rules, there was no reason for Annika to receive an exception and tap down the marks. Neverthless, it was unfortunate that the person who created the spike marks did not tap them down.

So, in your next round, if you happen to create spike marks with a slip or shuffle of your feet on the green, be considerate and tap them down.

Golf in Perspective

After seeing the horrible devastation of Katrina, it's a good lesson for me to remember golf is only a game. It's heart-wrenching to see the loss and suffering. I will play on Sunday and remember how lucky I am to play the great game of golf.

It's Back, but Too Late for Tournament Play

I'm back from playing the team event. Unfortunately, our team didn't finish first. The good news though is my swing finally is back. I wasn't coming through on my woods and, late Sunday, I finally got that feel back. I also started hitting my irons accurately and crisply. I need to work on my putting, but at least I don't feel so hopelessly confused and frustrated about my game any longer!! It's fun to play hit 'em long and straight again!!!

Today, I played at the Links at Bodega Harbour on the Sonoma coast of California. It was like how I would envision playing in Scotland--thick fog, long grass, and windy. But, it was a delight to play!

I've played with three different playing partners in the last week, and I can't say enough how important it is to be an enjoyable playing partner, especially in your business golf rounds. I played with my dear friend today, but her etiquette is atrocious. She started to complain and whine after the second hole. She is constantly fidgeting when people are about to hit, or she'll sigh just before one putts. I finally told her on the eighteenth green, "Stop moving!" just before I sank my short putt.

It's annoying to play with someone who doesn't care if she disturbs or distracts others. Moreover, when you correct her, she doesn't apologize, but instead gets defensive and angry that you're bothered. I am not blaming her, or anyone else, for my bad shots. I just like simple consideration when I'm about to hit like I extend to others.

Here's a tip: If you're not playing well, keep your frustration to a minimum or, better yet, keep it to yourself. It's grating on your playing partners to hear the constant negativity, especially if you're in the cart together. If you're feeling trapped, take the clubs you need and try to walk to your ball more often. It gives you a chance to relax and breathe in some fresh air!

Back from Tucson, Arizona

I had a great time in beautiful Tucson. I played at The Preserve, which is a challenging course regardless of the temperature (It was in the high 90's). It is picturesque with the mountains serving as backdrop to the course. I played with a friend's "guest" set, and was pleasantly surprised that I could hit the ball fairly well. The bermuda-grass greens though were like putting on velcro. It took me the front nine to figure out the speed and break of those greens. Despite my putting, the round was a confidence booster as I get ready to play on Monday for the club's team. We're tied for first and playing against the team that we're tied with. We control our destiny!

The group that I spoke to had some of the most thoughtful questions I've had in a group. What to do when one person in the foursome is a serious golfer and another is not at all? How should my employee and I decide who plays with the husband and who plays with the wife? I'm going to answer these questions and more in my BizGolf E-Tips.

I send my BizGolf E-Tips on every other Tuesday. To sign up, visit http://www.bizgolf.biz/freeinfo.html. To see an archive of past BizGolf E-Tips, visit http://www.bizgolf.biz/archive.html. You'll get a sense of what I talk about in each issue. They're short and sweet to keep your head in the game of business golf.

While flying to Tucson, I read that Tiger left the PGA Championship on Sunday night because he didn't think Mickelson, Bjorn, Love, and Elkington would all tie his score of two under. Is it me or does this strike you as being strange? He has his own jet. I'm sure he stays in a very comfortable, luxurious home or suite, if not the entire floor, of a first-class hotel. So, what's his hurry to get home? His wife was probably at the tournament with him. This was a Major, not just another ordinary PGA tournament. Lucky for Tiger Mickelson did win it outright, but what would have happened if Tiger made a playoff? I can't help, but think of the phrase, "Haste makes waste."

Play well and hit them straight this weekend!

The Ups and Downs of this Game

I love this game, but it has me flummoxed right now.

I played Sunday and thought my Dad and I are so far back, let's just go have fun and play well. We both played well and ended up winners of second low net. We were thrilled because neither of us expected to come in the money.

I was pleased because my game was much better and I saw hope. Then, I played yesterday and was disappointed with my game again. It truly is a rollercoaster ride of emotions with regard to my game. My partner and I split the points with our opponents and our club is now tied for first with a team from another club. We play against that team on Monday at a course I've not played for nearly eight years.

I don't know what happened yesterday except two possible things. I'm feeling golfed-out. I've played so many rounds of competitive golf in the last three weeks. I think I'm getting sloppy with my mental game and my swing. It makes me only admire more the professionals that play tournament after tournament.

The other thing is the course that I played was quite boring. Most of the holes look alike. I always had this sense of deja vu. Rather than seeing the layout of each hole and seeing a challenge, I think I got complacent and didn't keep my head in the round.

That's the beauty of this game. I can learn about myself and how I operate. I can get tough when the going gets tough and perhaps even do better when it is tough. And, I can get sloppy and lazy when I'm not challenged and bored.

So, I'm glad to be getting a change of scenary by leaving tomorrow for Arizona. I have a business golf presentation there and will play on Thursday. Then, a practice round on Sunday at the course that my team and I will play on Monday. It will certainly be an exciting round of golf on Monday!

PGA Championship & My Game

I'm watching the final round of the PGA Championship and amazed at the heat and the difficulty of that course. The greens have hardened and are much faster than they were yesterday morning. As much as I like Phil, I'm worried. He doesn't seem to have that ability to close out a tournament and intimidate the others. Sergio said it best, "I still think 4 under can win this." He certainly doesn't have much confidence in Phil and Davis Love III. I doubt Sergio would have said that if Tiger was in the lead.

As to my game, I played the final round of the Club Championship on Thursday. I played the round with one thing in mind. Could I get my ball striking back? Overall, I'm pleased that I could make better ball contact. I slowed my backswing and worked on my tempo. I also put out of my head my recent struggles and made sure that those memories (rather, nightmares) didn't haunt me. Another thing I did was to just step up to the ball and swing. I let my muscle memory work instead of over thinking. Like in life, my golf swing can suffer from over analysis!

Today, I'm playing the final round of the Mixed Couples Club Championship with my Dad. I'm not even sure where we are in the standings. I just want to play well and have some fun. Then, tomorrow is the second to last match for my club's team play. We're just out of first and tomorrow is important that we play well.

Besides playing well for my partner and team, I'm ready to do so for myself!

What's with this Game?

I just got off the phone with my Mom and she said she won $27 in mah jong. I was happy for her and replied, "You played m.j. better than I played today!" I am in my worst golf slump at the worst time. Today, I finished the second round of the Club Championship. I'm defending champ and intended to defend my title valiantly. Instead, it's been vitriol and venting. I'm also in the middle of the Mixed Couples Club Championship with my 77-year old father as partner. Last Sunday, I was embarassed that my Dad had a heavy burden with me as his playing partner.

My swing seems to have disappeared. I'm hitting my drives 10-20 yards shorter; my fairway woods aren't crisp. It's just down right frustrating! Thankfully, my entire game hasn't left me; I'm feeling good about my short game.

I had a good practice session this morning and felt good about the upcoming round. But, then I never had it on the course. I could say that my back is giving me problems (which it is) or I've lost some weight (which I have) and my swing just doesn't feel the same, but that doesn't explain how I could have a good practice session this morning.

This Thursday and Sunday are the final rounds of the upcoming Championships, respectively. Then, on Monday, I have a team event representing the Club at a course that I've not played before. I wish I could say that I'm going in with lots of confidence, but I'm clearly not.

Thus, the problem with my game. I've been beaten up on the course recently and I've lost swinging the club with the confidence and the crispness that I usually have. What's the answer to improving my game? I suspect it's forgetting the past several rounds and playing out of my head. Stay tuned!

Frustrations with Playing Partners

I need to vent, and I'm sure some of you have had similar experiences. On Sunday and yesterday, I played in two different match play tournaments with two different partners.

The first day I played with a very close friend against two other members of our club. Even though I had a birdie on the second hole, I was rocky on the other five holes. At the seventh tee, my friend declares, "We're four down. This match will end quickly." "That's a great attitude!!" I shot back.

I had no intentions of conceding the match at that point and would never concede a match until it's clear that I've lost. After the seventh hole, it was obvious that I was playing solo against the twosome, although mentally it felt like I was playing against a threesome. I played with such determination and focus that I shot a five-over back nine, which is very good for me.

I understand if my playing partner is not playing well and is frustrated with her game. But, I don't appreciate the give-up attitude. We ultimately lost, but it was not until the 18th hole. Our opponents even graciously recognized we gave them a good fight to the end.

When I'm having an off day, and my playing partners are playing well, I try to help my partners with the logistics of playing. For example, I'll help look for fairway distance markers. I'll keep score, if that would help them concentrate on their game. I'll pull and tend the flag more often, so they don't have to worry about it and can focus on reading their putts. Or, I'll pick up their clubs on the green. I'm still trying to contribute and play well, but I'm also recognizing that my partners are playing better than I am and want to support them in continuing to do so.

Yesterday I had a team play event with another partner. I've never played with her as a partner and she seems to be a nice person. However, on a couple of occasions she did the worst thing possible to me, which is put doubt in my shot. In the first instance, I'm about 65 yards off the green and her ball is on the rough 20-30 feet short of the green. I've taken my practice swing and was set to take my swing when she yells, "Do you need me to mark my ball?" First of all, if I did, I would have asked her. My intent was to sail over her ball and stop the ball near the pin. She should have seen that I was just about to swing and, instead of being helpful, she was being disruptive.

The other time was when I was reading my putt, which was about 15 feet from the pin on the rough with a downhill 5" break right to left. I was visualizing my putt when she used her putter to show me the line 3" on the other side of the hole of the break. Annoyed, I declared, "No way!" and had to back off and start my routine over again. When I did finally putt, it went into the hole for a nice birdie.

I understand she was trying to be helpful in both instances, but she instead interfered with my concentration and confidence. If there were other instances, I would have said something to her politely, but fortunately there weren't any others.

In summary, when you're playing as partners with others, make sure you're being a partner and not a distraction and annoyance. It will make way for others wanting to play competitively with you again.

Oregon Golf was Beautiful!

I'm back from playing the south course of The Reserve in Hillsboro, Oregon. This former farm town is now Oregon's high-tech area. The Reserve is a slice of green-grass heaven amid the techno craze. Looking at each hole from the tee box was a beautiful site of trees, water hazards, bunkers, and never a home. So unlike courses in Northern California, I felt like I was playing in another world with no congestion or cell phones since they're banned on the course (Hurrah!).

As to the event, it was great to speak to the group. The sponsor wanted me to talk about what you can learn about a person while playing golf together. It was a fun and interactive group and everyone enjoyed learning and sharing their insights about others.

The two gentlemen that I played with were just that...gentlemen!!! They worked together and one offered to ride with me, so I wouldn't be alone in my cart. It was a generous move on their part and I appreciated the gesture. Like the other scramble that I played in and wrote about, we also never hinted at cheating. What a delight to not have to worry about that with your playing partners!

I hit Oregon during their week of fabulous weather. The temperatures were in the high 80's and low 90's. Thankfully, the host ordered large buckets of ice and bottled water throughout the course. I'm not used to that heat, and I could feel a brain haze come over me, so the water and our box lunches were perfect! It's a good reminder for everyone to drink plenty of water during the summer heat.

I hope to return to Oregon for other talks, more golf, or even a possible move!

Tiger Victorious!

Hmm...I know I made a post about Tiger's victory while he was still playing the 16th hole and I had to leave for the airport. I wrote: forget fiance/wife distractions or he's in the slump, Tiger is back with a new swing and another Major victory this year. He makes it look so easy (although those two missed short putts on the front nine made it even closer). Congrats, Tiger!!!!

Balls Are Up!

The British Open Championship has finally started and it's exciting to watch yet another major. Although I've never considered the courses in Scotland as beautiful, St. Andrews is steeped in lore, tradition, and considered the birthplace of the game I love. I've never gotten used to the barren look of the courses and doubt I'd fare well with the wind, pot bunkers, and fast fairways. But, one day I look forward to taking in the ocean air and taking the bounces as I get them at St. Andrews.

This week is filled with talk about Jack Nicklaus and his retirement from the game. As one of the greatest golfers leaves the game another is making her move into playing in the Masters. After nearly missing the cut in the USGA Men's Amateur Public Links, Michelle Wie has moved into the third round. She trounced her first-round match play opponent with a 6 and 5 victory. After missing the cut at the John Deere Classic, she has shown grit.

Weekend Golf Thoughts

Number 60 in women's golf, Marisa Baena, won the HSBC Women's World Match Play, which shows the fun of the match play format. The beauty of match play is one or two bad holes won't knock you out of contention, unlike stroke play. Baena is a first-time winner, who to get to the final match had to beat Candice Kung, who beat #1 women's player, Annika.

It was great to see Jim Furyk win. Clearly it was an emotional victory for Furyk after losing last week and coming back from his wrist surgery. Meanwhile Tiger earns more than $50 million in career earnings while playing on the Tour. That amount pales to the amount he earns as the highest paid athlete in endorsements.

What a fun way to make a living!

It's Not Over Till It's Over

I finished playing yesterday just in time to see the final holes of both the LPGA and PGA tournaments. First, the finish to USGA Ladies Open matched the winner's namesake. Birdie Kim's birdie from the sand was a spectacular shot for the win. She was only trying to make par and finished with a win. It's great to see both Championship winners are relative unknowns and first-time winners.

Then, I watched the PGA tournament with hopes that Jim Furyk would have his first win after his injury. Instead, I watched Padraig Harrington's 65-foot incredible eagle putt for the win. A competitor to the end, Furyk sank his putt slightly off the green for a birdie, but alas one shot off the win.

Watching these finishes should remind us to play until the ball hits the bottom of the last hole! Play well and play often!

The Open Was Indeed an Open

The USGA Open Championship is unlike any other PGA tour event because you don't have to be a member of the PGA or professional to play. The USGA holds qualifying rounds whereby an amateur can earn a place on Thursday.

Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina was the host of this year's Open. I was in awe of the course, especially those greens. I don't know anyone who has played it, but it looks demoralizing even without USGA's difficult pin positions. For regulars of No. 2, their short games must be magnificient.

Magnificient is the word to describe Michael Campbell's final round. A New Zealander who hasn't played regularly on either the European Tour or the PGA had to qualify to play the Open by winning a spot at the first-ever held qualifer in Europe. To win the Open, without winning a PGA Tour event and suffering ups and downs in his career, is what the Open is all about.

Although Tiger was in close pursuit, Campbell and Jason Gore, who also had to qualify, were the feel good stories of the Open.

No Washington, but Plenty of Maryland

I ended up sick on Friday with a fever and stomach flu, so I couldn't go to Seattle for the golf tournament as a guest of MasterCard's. As a result, I got to watch a lot of the McDonald's LPGA Championship and the Booz Allen Classic.

First, Annika is amazing and arguably the best and most consistent golfer of both tours. She won the LPGA Championship three consecutive times and is on her way to the Grand Slam. I was pleased to see how well Michelle Wie played as she finished a solid second to Annika.

As to the Booz Allen Classic, we saw an example of improper etiquette from Rory Sabbatini while playing with Ben Crane. On the 17th hole, the twosome was put on the clock for slow play. Self admonishing is Crane for his slow play, but on the Tour, if you're on the clock ten times in the season, you are fined. Sabbatini is a notoriously fast player and was annoyed with Crane's slow play and presumably being on the clock. So, on the 17th green, Sabbatini putted out of turn (i.e., he putted when Crane was further from the hole), and then walked to the 18th tee and hit his drive leaving Crane to putt out on the 17th green.

There are a couple of lessons for business golfers. First, if you're slow, you need to figure out a way to speed up without interfering with your game. Whether it's determining your distance as you walk up to your ball and knowing which club to hit, or taking one practice swing only. Slow play is annoying to faster players and the rest of the field. Although faster players need to control their emotions and behave appropriately around slower players, playing slowly will not win you golf friends.

Second, be mindful of who you invite to your foursome and pairing of your group. On the Tour, players have no control on who they're playing with during the tournament. It depends on the scores shot the day before and the pairings are determined by the standings. But, if you have some say in pairings of your group or a tournament, don' t pair a slow player with a very fast player. Players may develop not so pleasant feelings about one another and your intended goal of building business relationships may be defeated.

Practice, Practice, Practice

If you watched the third round of the Memorial, you saw camera shots of Tiger on the driving range after he finished playing 18 holes. He didn't just have one large bag of balls; he had four large bags! I don't practice as much as I should, but I did last week. Although I didn't hit four large bags, I could tell the difference in my confidence of my swing and in my new clubs. So, a mantra that I know I would certainly benefit from is practice, practice, practice.

Perhaps you subscribe to my BizGolf E-Tips <http://www.bizgolf.biz/freeinfo.html>, and saw my latest suggestion for playing business golf is to invite a client or prospect to a practice session at the driving range. You'll still have relationship-building time and both of you will get some much needed practice.

I'm off to Seattle, Washington as a guest of MasterCard's where I will be playing Washington National Golf Club. It sounds like a tough course, but I hope to enjoy the beautiful scenary of the Pacific Northwest and time with new friends.

Tiger Never Gives Up

Tiger recently made a comment about his 142-consecutive cuts made in his diary. He says, "Mostly, the streak represents good execution down the stretch or good, old-fashioned luck." Instead of "or," I would have used "and." His streak is definitely good execution on his part and in one of my earlier posts I talked about having luck when playing golf. It's nice to see that a player of his caliber can admit to having some lucky bounces now and then.

His other thought was, "You never know what can happen if you keep trying." That's a great reminder for us in whatever endeavor we are in. Whether it's getting ten no's when cold calling or trying to beat your personal best golf score, keep trying and you will get a different result. It might not be the one that you want, but it'll be one that you can learn from.

No Cheating Here!

Yesterday I had a great time playing in a scramble. The woman who invited me is a bank vice president and included in our foursome was her husband and a member of the country club that they are all members of. As a fundraiser for a local college, they, of course, sold mulligans and raffle tickets.

We each had two mulligans for the entire round. It was such a delight to play with this foursome because there was never a hint of cheating with the mulligans. I've played in others where some of the other players were a little generous with how they used their mulligans, and even though I said something about it, it still happened.

With my foursome yesterday, we kept count of the mulligans and when we were out of them, we were out. On our 17th hole, we could have used a mulligan because we ended up shooting a bogey on that hole. But, there was never any question and we took the bogey on our card.

In a business golf round, I'm less apt to call someone when they're cheating whether out of ignorance or intentional. I keep a mental note of it though. But, in a tournament, I don't want to be a winner when I know there was cheating. We didn't win yesterday, but it felt good to know that our two under was legit. Although we didn't win in golf, two of us won some nice raffle prizes--enough of them for each of us to take something home. So we each left as a winner, most importantly, with our integrity intact.

Golf Leads to Leads

On Friday, I played in my club's team event with two other players I had not previously known from another club. Even though I had laryngitis, I was still able to talk some during the round. Eventually, the conversation turned to what type of work I do, and I shared that, besides being an attorney, I speak to corporations and associations about using golf to develop and enhance business relationships and to increase sales.

By the time we had lunch with four others, my voice was almost gone, so I didn't say much. When the conversation turned to someone's work schedule, one of my opponents excitedly said, "Listen to what she does!" as she pointed to me. Despite the lack of my usual strong speaker's voice, I shared what I did. As two women asked if I'd be interested in referrals to two different major corporatons in the area, I thought even without my voice, golf is a great networking tool!

Get out on the course! You never know who you will meet whether for friendship or a business relationship.

A Streak to the End

Tiger failed to make his 143rd consecutive cut today at the EDS Byron Nelson Championship. It's a hard number to even comprehend. Tiger played in 142 consecutive PGA tournaments and made the cut to play on the weekend in each of them. Given the struggles with his swing over the last couple of years, that's a testament to his mental perseverance and will to win. When will someone break Tiger's record? I doubt it'll be in my lifetime, if ever.

Byron Nelson - The Legend Lives On

Ninety-three years young, Lord Byron, as he is known, is hosting this week's tournament. He commands the presence of Tiger, Phil, Retief, Earnie, and Vijay as if his tournament was a major. And, each player pays homage to him at his throne just off the 18th green. Sixty years ago, Lord Byron won eleven straight PGA tour tournaments and eighteen tournaments in that year. He deserves every player's respect as a living legend in the game we love. Watch this tournament as the fate of the #1 golfer in the world is again at stake!

More than Just a Pretty Swing!

Vijay Singh won again yesterday in a playoff against Sergio Garcia and Jim Furyk. He's not my favorite Tour player, but I certainly respect his game.

Someone I know insists that the player with the best technical swing will win because his swing won't fail him. I think that it is an inane comment. First of all, having a technically-correct golf swing discounts the fact that playing well in this game also means having a good short game.

In addition, saying someone has a good swing and, therefore, will likely win the tournament is like saying the candidate who was selected for the job got the position he was the best looking. It discounts one's experience, confidence-level, intimidation-factor, and a host of other factors.

I think it's possible to have the most technically correct swing and not win in pressure situations. Perhaps the player gets the yips or tenses up, and he isn't able to come through with the proper swing. According to the CBS commentator, Vijay has a hundred books on the mental side of the game. It's no surprise given how he handles the pressure in each tournament.

Besides, would I mind having an unconventional swing, like Jim Furyk? It can't be too bad. He's in the top one-half of one percent of all golfers in the world and has won twenty million on the Tour.

Soar with the Eagles

In the New York Times, an article talked about how Tiger Woods and Annika Sorenstam have become good friends. It's fitting that the best players in our lifetime on their respective tours can talk about golf, the pressures of their success, and life in general.

When I speak to groups, I always encourage beginners to find players of slightly more advanced skills. I have often noticed that my game is lifted to another level when I play with golfers that are better players than I am. Whether it's watching the tempo of their swings, or picking up on their confidence levels, it just seems to happen.

It's not to say that I don't want to play with players that aren't as good as I am. They can be fun to play with simply because of their personalities. I just don't want beginners to think they have to play with only beginners. Instead, they need to soar with the golf eagles, and improve their games!

Major Letdown

I've spoken to some friends about how watching a golf tournament isn't as much fun when Tiger, Retief, Ernie, Phil, and Vijay aren't playing in the tournament together. Well, this weekend Vijay is playing in Houston at the Shell Open, while Ernie and Retief are in China at the Johnny Walker Tournament

Even if it's not a major, again, if the members of your sphere of influence follow golf, then you should as well. One highlight of this weekend is Vijay's election into the Hall of Fame. Last weekend it was Darrell Clarke's $700 plaid trousers and his double-bogey on the 18th hole. But, with a wife at home who is a survivor of cancer, he was a class act when talking about his loss. He suggested that he only lost a golf tournament and that there's more to life.

Remember that when you play your next round of golf, especially in a business golf round. No matter our score or how we play in a given day, it's only a game for us--it's not how we make a living.

My Masters Thoughts

The Masters is my favorite tournament. On Monday, a friend and I were e-mailing about Tiger's victory. The friend said Tiger was lucky and DiMarco should have won. Given his lead going into the third round, it looked like DiMarco would win, and I would have been very happy if he had won. But, to claim that Tiger's victory was luck struck me as being unfair and odd. First, unfair because Tiger had to come back from as much as a seven-stroke deficit. He pulled it off on Sunday morning to even take the lead going into the final round.

And, odd because Tiger's chip shot on the 16th green was fabulous. First, Tiger had to read the green, hit the ball, and then it had to drop in. I don't know how many players (pro or amateur) could have made that shot. Sure there is a modicum of luck that it went in, but it isn't like Tiger skulled it or hit it fat, and the ball happened to land where it did, so it would take the break, and then go in. Tiger had the imagination and skill to pull that shot off.

Besides, isn't some luck (serendipity, providence, or whatever you want to call it) always a factor in a person's success? I think even Donald Trump would say luck is some part of his success mixed with his vision, hard work, persistence, and focus on achieveing his goals.

To have luck, you have to put yourself in a position to receive it. So, maybe it's luck Tiger's chip went in, but he put himself in a position to chip it in. And, if you have a long putt, at least you hit the ball on the green, read the break, and then stroked the ball well, so it went into the hole.

I'm not ever one to kick a gift horse in the mouth. I've had my breaks on the golf course for which I'm grateful and will admit to. But, to chalk Tiger's victory to just luck is bad form and, a frightening thought, perhaps even a method of attracting a share of one's own bad luck.

Rained Out Again!

As long as I've been a golfer, which is 15 years now, I have never seen the PGA season inundated with rain. Last week's tournament was rain delayed with a Monday start, and now the Masters has been struck with the same fate.

Be patient and try to see some of the tournament. It's the most revered tournament on the PGA schedule. Despite the recent controversies, it's still my favorite Major filled with lore, tradition, and beauty.

Remember, keep in the conversation and watch this tournament. Your golfing clients and prospects will definitely be talking about it, especially Tiger's putt into the water. Ouch!

Dittos and What If They Cheat?

In my last posting, I asked the rain to go away for the last tournament. We're asking for the same as the Players Championship has also been rain delayed. At least the ladies are playing in their first major with Annika tied for the lead.

On another note, a professional golfer this week asked the PGA to check Tiger's driver to see if it conformed to the PGA's rules regarding equipment specs. He was watching the Ford Tournament and couldn't believe Tiger could out drive Phil by 20-25 yards. Well, Tiger can and does with his new Nike driver, which is legal according to the PGA.

So, what do you do if you're playing a business golf round and your guest is cheating? First, don't automatically assume that the person is cheating. He or she may simply not know the rules of golf, since we're not required to learn them before we can play like in other countries. Yes, some countries make golfers take playing, rules, and etiquette tests before they can get their "driver's license" to play on the course. The idea is to prevent cheating and five-hour rounds. Doesn't seem like a bad idea for us to have the same! I hate slow play.

But, back to playing with a "cheater." If your guest is a new player, then he's not likely cheating, but just ignorant of the rules. If she is a single digit, has played for 20 years, then you can probably conclude she knows the rules and is cheating for some reason. You should definitely take note! When I'm considering to do business with people, I want to make sure they're not dishonest. In a round of golf, you'll get valuable information about your playing partners. Is this just competitiveness gone too far, and/or a major flaw in her business ethics? If you decide to still do some business with her, then armed with this information, you can be more careful. Thanks to your round of golf together, you'll at least be able to protect yourself better!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

The PGA Tour seems to have had more rain delays as the race for #1 golfer in the world tightens. The Bay Hill Invitational has been delayed with Vijay Singh, Ernie Els and Retief Goosen taking aim at Tiger. If you live in a weather delayed area where playing golf hasn't become a thought yet, start preparing your game. Check your equipment. Do you need new grips? New shoe spikes? Practice putting in your living room or office, and start thinking about your game! And, don't miss Michelle Wie and Annika going at each other in the Safeway tournament this weekend!

Even Vijay Misses 3 Foot Putts

Vijay uncharacteristically missed a three-foot putt to continue the playoff against Padraig Harrington in the Honda Classic. If Vijay, who practices hours in a day, and can miss a three footer, then we certainly can't get down on ourselves when we do so. To our relief, our missed putts don't cost us hundreds of thousands of dollars.

I played in a scramble this weekend with my niece, father, and friend and had a great time. You can spot the leaders in foursomes by who takes charge in deciding which drive to use, and other characteristics of players.

If you're new to golf, scrambles are the perfect venue for you as you start playing business golf outings. Let the long-ball hitters hit their drives, and you can help with your short game, which you should practice before you play in the tournament. Just make sure you play with proper etiquette, know the rules, and are a fun playing partner!

A Great Tournament

Sunday's final pairing between Tiger and Phil lived up to what everyone expected. It was the most exciting final round that I've seen in a long time. I can't wait to see another tournament with the top ranked players again.

Tiger vs. Phil!

This is the showdown we've been waiting to see. A chance to beat Tiger versus Tiger's chance to reclaim the #1 ranking in the world. Watch this tournament, so you can stay in the conversation. And, if you didn't see Tiger's shot to the 16th par-4 hole on Saturday, you missed a shot that was as much fun to watch as it was for Tiger to hit. Course management? Not for Tiger!