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!