The Hindu Business Line : Addicted to golf

This might sound a bit extreme, but in the world of leisure and recreation, golf tops the charts. The wonderful thing about golf is that it touches every player's life in different ways and each will swear that the game has brought something special and unique into his or her life.

Largely perceived as the pursuit of richie-rich corporate dons and head honchos who rub shoulders at the golf course and swing clubs and business deals at one go, long-time golfers from all strata of society will however tell you that the game is like an addiction that is more often likely to bring marital problems rather than business!

Manu Tandon, Managing Director, Dr Beck India, says that the networking aspect of golf is much exaggerated. "We do meet corporate biggies on the golf course but not all the associations translate into business deals. People go golfing to relax and the last thing they want is to think of cultivating someone to get mileage out of it," he says. "Besides, if all you do is talk on the greens, who will do the playing?"

He has been playing golf for many years now but says his four-hours plus at the golf course every Sunday is guaranteed to relax him enough to tackle the week ahead — the clean air, the calm surroundings and the greenery are just right to soothe frazzled nerves.

Alfa Laval's Managing Director Satish Tandon is the game's most visible face in Pune, and even sponsors an annual golf championship. "I got hooked to the game in the 1980s and for me it is an exciting combination of playing, socialising, spending quality time with good friends and enjoying the greenery at the course every morning," he says, adding, "With all of us leading fast-paced lives, being a golfer ensures that two hours in the morning are necessarily kept for oneself, which is great for the mind and body. I personally try to fit 6-8 hours of golf in a week."

"My divorce came to me as a complete surprise. That's what happens when you haven't been home in eighteen years."

— Lee Trevino

While the veterans have managed to bring about a compromise solution at home, the dropout rate among beginners is fairly high, both due to family pressure and the expensive nature of the hobby. "But once you are hooked, there is no looking back," says one veteran golfer. "I have found the perfect solution to the squabbling at home. I got my wife to enrol in a golf clinic and now it is difficult to keep her away from her game, come rain, wind or storm. In fact, our children want to learn golf too and I am looking forward to the time when the entire family is on the golf course," he says.

In Mumbai, the Bombay Presidency Golf Club is the old favourite while the Willingdon Club is the corporate hotspot. The defence services' US Club offers a stunning sea-view and is, therefore, much sought after by Mumbai's golfers. The Royal Palms country resort started off with a well-designed golf course but visitors say it has not fulfilled its initial promise.

The last 12 years have found businessman Sukhminder Kalra at the Poona Club golf course at sharp 6.30 every morning. And when he travels, he never misses playing wherever there's a golf course.

"The two-and-a-half hours I spend on the golf course constitute the best part of my day and equip me to face the strain of running a business," he says. He loves the "greenery, the cool breeze on my face and having my friends around me. The golf course has given me friends who will stand by me in any situation in life and I can now judge a person's character by spending half an hour golfing with him."

Kalra has played in almost all the golf courses in the country, including the Noida course and Sahara's Lake City which he rates highly. "I like playing at the Bombay Presidency in Chembur and find the Willingdon and US Club courses tough to play, with the grass very different there." In Pune he has played on the golf courses at the National Defence Academy and the College of Military Engineering, but finds the Poona Club course to be his comfort zone.

His favourite crib at the moment is that his export-import business takes him frequently to Ukraine, where he stays 40-45 days. "They don't have the faintest notion about golf and it drives me crazy. I'm beginning to think that I miss my daily trips to the golf course more than my family during my Ukraine visits," he quips.

"I've spent most of my life golfing... the rest I've just wasted."

— Anonymous

Hans Michel Huber

While golf is a stress-buster for some, Daimler Chrysler India's Managing Director and CEO, Hans Michel Huber says the game has taught him many a survival trick in running his company. "The game constantly challenges you to better yourself and gives scope for improvement. This is true of both life and business, where the only way to survive is to constantly innovate and improve."

Huber spends time on the Poona Club golf course at least a few days every week but says his progress has not been fast enough. "I am down from a handicap of 34 to 30, which is not a great deal, and that is another thing that this game has taught me — humility; it keeps you grounded.

"My 14-year-old son, who I play with sometimes, can probably teach me to better my game; but it has taught me that if something is not working, go back to the basics and work upwards again. I now spend a lot of time on the driving range to practise the basics. Very akin to cricket at the nets," he quips. In Mumbai, Huber plays at BPGC and Willingdon Club.

"I think the Poona Club golf course is good and improving with time. The most exciting golf course for me is the one at Amby Valley which is very beautiful — it is exciting to play when the setting is so spectacular," says Satish Tandon.

The Sahara group's 18-hole golf course, set up at an estimated Rs 50-55 crore, has established itself as one of the finest golfing destinations for international championships, with the European and Asian PGAs (professional golfers' associations) evincing interest in it. The fully floodlit, 7,030-yard golf course is spread out on a spectacular undulating, hilly terrain. Lake City recently commissioned a Golf Academy where beginners can learn the ropes, while the pros can hone their skills.

"Cricketer Nikhil Chopra and leading Asian golfer Amandeep Johl are among those who had their swing analysed here," says Col S.K. Sinha, General Manager.

"Golf is so popular simply because it is the best game in the world at which to be bad."

— A.A. Milne, author.

Says Ravi Krishnan, Managing Director, IMG - South Asia, "During the last few years the golfing scene has changed dramatically in India and it is not restricted to just the senior executives. Middle management and women golfers have also discovered the joys and benefits associated with the sport. The numbers have increased and will continue to do so because the game is more accessible now." IMG, the sports, leisure and entertainment marketing company, has organised several high-profile golf events in the country and was also instrumental in bringing world-class golfer Vijay Singh to the BILT Skins event.

At golf, you are competing against yourself and nature, rather than against another individual. This is believed to heighten the enjoyment factor. Says Manu Tandon, "What I like about golf is the fact that you are pitted against yourself and constantly challenging yourself to do better. It calls for a lot of concentration and focus, qualities that also help at the workplace. Also, the game offers good exercise but is not so strenuous as to force you to drop out, as you grow older."

But what about the impression that golf is the sport of the rich and the famous? Tandon says this is a common misconception. "Annual membership at a golf club is Rs 15,000-20,000, which is nearly the same as that of a gym. In Mumbai, memberships might be more expensive but everywhere else it is the same," he points out.

The golf lover's expenses can be steep or reasonable, depending on how much he or she is willing to spend, and on one's brand-consciousness.

Golf clubs cost between Rs 20,000 and Rs 50,000, depending on the brand, but beginners can hunt for bargains on second-hand clubs. In any case, golf clubs usually last for about ten years.

And compared to strict dress codes in the past, golf wear is a more relaxed polo over-slacks these days. But the right kind of shoes are a must in order to preserve the grass.

A caddy costs about Rs 100. Ball losses can be steep in the initial stages, but regulars have learnt to pick up extra lots during trips abroad. And long-timers train with a pro regularly to stay in shape.

Today there is a wide range of golf accessories available and these are gaining in popularity among golf-crazy executives.

But, at the end of the day...

"Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into an even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose."

— Winston Churchill.

Picture courtesy: Amby Valley golf course

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