An Australian has clinched golf’s biggest prize, the US Masters, for the first time ever with Adam Scott’s victory at Augusta this morning.
Scott won a playoff against Argentina’s Angel Cabrera to clinch the title and will earn $US1.44 million for the win, not to mention the countless endorsements and sponsorship deals which will flow his way.
Golf has clearly been good business for Scott and golf has long been a favourite pastime of many businesspeople around the world, but what are the lessons for your business from the game of golf?
Unsurprisingly, there have been countless books written on this subject, including Deals on the Green: Lessons on Business and Golf from America’s Top Executives, by David Rynecki, a former golf and business journalist.
In an age of emails and instant communication, taking several hours out of a day to play golf sounds like a big time investment, but it takes time to build relationships and establish trust with your key clients and business partners.
“Golf teaches you about a person’s reactions in adversity – how they deal competitively with situations – because with golf there is such an easy mechanism to take advantage of the rules,” Rynecki says in his book.
To succeed in business, and to succeed in golf, Rynecki says you need to have the imagination to look for opportunities that others cannot see.
This doesn’t necessarily mean having a completely fresh and original idea, but just finding a better way to execute an already existing concept.
A great example is Facebook, it wasn’t the first social networking site but Mark Zuckerberg made it the most dominant by creating the most popular social network.
In the game of golf and world of business, Rynecki advises to keep your enemies close.
Legendary golfers Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus had a great relationship even though they were sworn rivals and enemies on the course.
The same is true in business, where competitors shouldn’t be viewed as enemies but instead the challenge and inspiration to work harder.
Cara Waters is a former SmartCompany editor. Previously, Cara was a senior reporter for the Financial Times’ website and worked for The Sunday Times in London.
