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- Business-friendly golf courses in Virginia

Going for the green
Mixing golf and business is hot; here's how to do it right

by Charles Slack

"Going for the green" has a whole new meaning. More and more, people are combining the challenge of the links with sealing business deals. Of course, business and golf have a long and storied relationship. Industrialists Andrew Carnegie and Charles Schwab hatched the deal that resulted in the formation of U.S. Steel while on the golf course, and John D. Rockefeller built his life (and several estates) around the game.

But these days it's not just corporate titans who are slicing, topping, and duffing their way to fortune. Entrepreneurs, small-business owners and executives from mid-level managers to CEOs are finding golf is good for their business and their careers.

There's no question that golf is a good relationship builder. A survey by Hyatt Hotels conducted during the 1990s found that 93 percent of executives say golf establishes closer relationships, and 80 percent say the sport is a good way to make new contacts. Nor is business golf a male-only club as it once was. The Executive Women's Golf Association (EWGA), a national organization dedicated to promoting golf for professional women, counts 16,000 members in nearly 100 chapters across the United States and Canada. A quarter of those members have joined in the past two years. "The goal is to help women learn to use golf, like men do," says Mary Peak, president of the EWGA's newly formed Hampton Roads chapter, the only chapter in the commonwealth (there's one in Washington as well).

While some women feel intimidated joining men in a traditionally male endeavor, Peak says, "If you know the rules, know the etiquette and keep the speed of play up, you can play with anybody." Men, meanwhile, are more open than ever to mixed foursomes - broadmindedness often earned the hard way: by being beaten by a talented woman. Tip for guys: It's no longer the "ladies' tee." The appropriate term is "forward tee."

Why do golf and business go together? "Golf conveys a little prestige, a little class, sportsmanship and character," says Mike Garrell, president of Leaderboard Management Group in Fairfax. Not to mention, you have four to five hours of a person's attention, in a fun and relaxed setting away from the pressures of business. Garrell and partner Lawrence Shorten offer classes, speeches and seminars to help business people get the most out of their business rounds.

Business golfers say the sport enables them to form friendships they might not form elsewhere. Clayton Roberts, president of Virginia FREE, a Richmond-based company that conducts political research on behalf of business and industry, recalls one busy chief executive whom he'd been trying to get a meeting with for months. "I wasn't getting anywhere," Roberts says. Then an unexpected opportunity arose to play a round of golf with the executive. The two found they enjoyed each other's company. "I see him now and it's like we're best buddies," Roberts says. Not only is that executive's company a member of Virginia FREE, but the executive has joined Roberts' board of directors.

Golf isn't just a good way to form friendships. It also allows you to evaluate the character of a potential business contact. You learn a lot about someone in a round of golf, Garrell says. If your partner kicks a ball from a bad lie when he thinks no one is looking or throws a tantrum every time he doesn't hit the fairway, what sort of business associate will he make? But beware - evaluation goes both ways, so be on your best behavior.

Since this is a business round, and an investment, you may want a quick result. That's a mistake, experts say. In fact, most business golf aficionados caution against discussing business at all, except in the most general terms. "What you're really trying to do is build a relationship and open a business opportunity for the future," Garrell says. Instead of coming on strong and trying to ice an agreement before the 18th hole, set a more modest goal for the round. Perhaps you'll come away with an invitation to a conference. Maybe you simply exchange business cards at the end of the round. But if you've had a pleasant round and begun a friendship, that could pay back many times over. As Peak observes: "I don't hear anybody saying 'We sealed the deal,' after a round of golf. Sales are based on relationships. It's easier to sell to a friend than to strangers."
Here are some other tips for an effective round of business golf:

Where should we play?
If you and your guest don't know each other well, everything about you, including the course you select, will help form that first impression. In this case the course is substituting for your office, so a low-rent course may, fairly or not, tell the client the same about your company. In other words, you don't want your guest's first impression influenced by those loudmouths on the practice tee wearing tank tops and cracking their first Old Milwaukee of the morning. The local dog patch certainly has its advantages, such as low greens fees, relaxed rules and a pleasing shortage of guys trading interest rate derivatives on their digital phones while waiting to tee off. But save that course for rounds with your buddies.

That doesn't mean you need to fork over $50,000 for membership at some exclusive club. Of course, doing so may expand the circle of executives who bite at your invitations. But a resort course, if there's one nearby, or an upscale public course, will do nicely. The course should have an attractive clubhouse - remember that first impression - an attentive staff and carts that don't handle as if their engines came from old vacuum cleaners. You want a course where you can make a reliable tee-time, and where it spaces out groups so you don't feel slowed or rushed. A good clubhouse restaurant is a plus.
It helps if you've played there a few times, Garrell says. That way you'll feel more comfortable as the host.

Virginia has loads of good public courses that fit the bill. In Northern Virginia, Garrell plays frequently at Westfields Golf Club in Clifton, Virginia Oaks Golf Club in Gainesville, Bull Run Golf Club in Haymarket and Augustine Golf Club in Stafford. With its central location and great reputation, Williamsburg boasts a number of great courses for hosting business, ranging from the venerable Golden Horseshoe to the newer Kiskiack. In Hampton Roads, Peak plays at Kiln Creek in Newport News, Cahoon Plantation in Chesapeake and the Tournament Players Club in Virginia Beach.

What's the best day and time for a round?
Obviously, you want to accommodate your guest's schedule. But as a rule, avoid weekends, especially at popular public courses. Your client's time is valuable, and one of those glacial, six-hour rounds may leave her more frustrated than relaxed. Roberts, of Virginia FREE, favors Tuesday mornings, when it's possible to navigate even a popular public course such as Augustine in Stafford in three hours. Even when hosting at Richmond Country Club, a private club where he belongs, Roberts phones ahead to let the kitchen know he's entertaining and would like especially quick service for a pre- or post-round meal.

How do I handle the money?
You're hosting, so obviously it's your treat. But how you pay is just as important as the fact that you're paying.

At a public course, arrive a half hour early and explain to the manager that you are entertaining a business client and would like to pay in advance for greens fees, cart, range balls and any other incidental expenses. Throw in a sleeve of balls with the course logo, or a hat. Tip any cart or bag attendants in advance and ask them not to accept a tip from your guest.

All of this will avoid that uncomfortable moment when you have to whip out your wallet with your guest standing there wondering if she should offer. It also communicates that you are considerate and efficient - commendable qualities your client will value when considering doing business with you.

But I stink at golf. Can I still host a business round?
Join the club. "Only 10 percent of all golfers break 90," Garrell says. Even if you rarely break 100, you'll still have plenty of company. If you've never played, take some lessons, hit the driving range, play a few warm-up rounds and read up on the game. Before you know it, you'll join that vast and consoling pool of people known under the collective title, "The Average Golfer."

Unless you start boasting beforehand (a bad idea regardless of your skill level), nobody's expecting you to hit like Davis Love. More important than a fluid swing is an appreciation for the game and a basic understanding of its rules and traditions, Garrell says. Keep the game moving, don't take 53 practice swings before each slice, make some nice comments about your partner's game and never talk in the middle of anyone's back swing.

Besides, this is a business round, remember? "People think they're going to impress their boss or client with their game," Garrell says. "What they're really going to impress them with is how they conduct themselves, and how much they pay attention to their partner's game."

I'm a low handicapper. Should I let my client win?
No. Which would make you madder, losing or sensing that your opponent tanked on purpose? If your client is the type who wants you to lose on purpose so that he or she can "win," maybe that's a clue to do business with someone else.

Actually, Garrell suggests avoiding the problem altogether by making sure you don't play against your client. If there's a competition within your foursome, partner with your client. If all others in the foursome are your clients, consider changing partners every six holes. If you do find yourself in a head-to-head situation, "Never play stroke play with your client," Garrell says. "Play match play instead." Unlike in stroke play, where a single bad hole can ruin a round, match play (where the golfer taking the most individual holes wins) makes it much easier to write off a bad hole.

If your client insists on a friendly wager "just to make things interesting," keep the stakes low so no one can lose more than $10 or $15 and suggest that the winner buy drinks after the round. "That way, everything comes out even," Garrell says.

My client isn't turning his hips properly on the downswing. Should I point this out?
Only if you want to kill any chance for a business relationship and, quite possibly, leave the course with a six iron protruding from a bodily orifice. The fact is, nobody likes a know-it-all, especially on the golf course. "Even if asked, beg off," Garrell suggests. Leave the teaching to a pro. Praise your guest's good shots and, after he screams a slice toward the far pines, point out that you've been there many times yourself.

Resources:
Executive Women's Golf Association, Hampton Roads Chapter, 757-624-3264, or the national headquarters in Palm Gardens, Florida at 800-407-1477.

Contact Leaderboard Management Group at 703-577-8964

Charles Slack is the author of two books, "Blue Fairways," published in 1999, and "Noble Obsession," to be published by Hyperion Books in August. He rarely entertains on the golf course but is open to invitations.

Return to Virginia Business - March 2002