Adirondack Golf

Image Source: John Haslam, Creative Commons

Adirondack Golf Courses. That’s the title of a book written by J. Peter Martin, a local pro in the Adirondack area. A client of mine sent me a copy for enjoyment and it was enjoyable.

I really related to the opening section titled “Golf and Life.”

“The main idea in golf as in life is to learn to accept what cannot be altered and to keep on doing one’s own resolute best whether the prospect be bleak or rosy.”

Life, like golf has its ups and downs. In golf if you can approach your “situation”, be it sitting just right in the middle of the fairway or stymied behind a tree, with a calm approach to do the best you can, you will experience the most success and the most enjoyment in your game.

I need to add another observation I’ve had through the years. Playing golf in Scotland, the home of golf, is different than playing golf in America. In America golf courses have been designed, built and manicured for the purpose of playing the game of golf. In Scotland, the old courses grew from natural conditions. They were usually on ground that was useless for any other purpose and developed into locations where people play the game of golf. Because of this difference, Scottish golfers seem to have a different (and I think healthier) attitude about the game.

To the American golfer, if I stand on the tee, execute a very nice swing, send the ball flying down the fairway, I expect to be rewarded by finding the ball in a good place on a manicured fairway, perfectly situated for the next shot. But Scottish fairways are different. After that “perfect” drive I may find my ball in a deep hidden bunker right in the middle of the fairway. Or, because of all the natural moguls in the fairway, I may find that my ball landed in the middle of the fairway but hit one of the moguls and bounded into the gorse of the rough.

Now to the American mind, That’s Not Fair! “I hit a good drive, I did everything right, I should be rewarded with a good result!” The Scottish golfer would say “Why are you complaining? This is golf (life). Find the ball and do your best to hit it again.”

In life, and especially corporate life, we can do everything right and still experience less than desirable results. But the best leaders and performers live by that original quote “Accept what cannot be altered and keep on doing one’s resolute best whether the prospect be bleak or rosy.”