A couple of months ago, I took a golf lesson. My husband plays golf two or three times a week in Hawaii with a group of “golf buddies.” Every couple of months, there’s a “couples” golf outing. While all the other wives play, I don’t.
My girlfriend Marti decided that I would love playing golf if I tried it. I repeatedly told her I have no interest in golf and I reinforced that I am NOT very athletic. Sweetly, I said, “thank you very much. I don’t want to take a lesson.”
Like me, my friends don’t take “no” for an answer. Still convinced that one lesson at Wailae Country Club would make me fall in love with the game and play happily ever after, Marti’s solution was to give me a golf lesson for my birthday. Pretty clever. Reluctantly, I agreed and decided to adopt the right attitude, “you never know – I may enjoy this.”
A couple of days before my lesson, Marti called to ask me if I’d purchased my golf clubs, shoes and attire. “What?” I asked. “Since your going to love golf, you really need the right equipment,” she said.
As much as I adore Marti, there was no way I was going to invest hundreds of dollars into my “accessories” without even taking a lesson. After 15 minutes of Marti doing her best to convince me that at the very least I needed to buy golf shoes, she finally acquiesced.
My lesson was scheduled for 4:00 pm and I had to choose my outfit. With adorable brown, beige and purple Coach “mini sneakers” as my muse, I selected brown shorts, a lime green shirt and socks with purple and green stripes. I wore a cute lime green cap with my hair in a ponytail neatly tied back in a green sequin “scrunchie.” While scrunchies may be a fashion faux pas, I didn’t think they were a bogey (golf term ladies) on the course. I was perfectly made up, but my casual look could have been right out of the LPGA handbook.
As I was leaving, my granddaughter looked at me and said, “Are you really going golfing?” When I confirmed, she added, “Tutu, you don’t look like you.”
No kidding. At that precise moment, my husband and son came in from golfing. While they tried their best, both burst out into laughter.
Undaunted, I headed off to my lesson.
When I told my golf pro instructor that I didn’t know much about golf, he decided to treat me like I had an IQ of 45. Firing questions at me like, “Do I know what a golf club is?” “Do I know the difference between a bunker and the greens?” I was getting rather irritated. Athletic? No. Intelligent? Yes!
A short while into the lesson, the pro tried to persuade me to try putting. I said, “No, I really want to see if I can drive the ball.” (While I know putting is crucial to the game, I wondered how I was going to get to the green if I can’t drive the damn ball.)
For one solid hour, I was forced to learn “technique.” Of course, I never actually was allowed to try to hit the ball. Instead, for 60 incredibly frustrating and hot minutes, I was “swishing” in mid air, never touching the ball or the ground. Swish, Swish, Swish, was all I did! My instructor insisted that before I could hit the ball, I needed “the right form.” Swish, Swish, Swish – Swish, Swish, Swish. All in the air!
Everyone who hears this story says, “He should’ve just let you hit the ball to see what you were doing wrong. He was a horrible instructor.”
I’ve thought about that. I don’t think he was a bad teacher. I think his teaching style and my learning style were misaligned. He’s the Pro. He wanted to make sure that I got the technique down pat. I’m an entrepreneur. I want to get in there and give it my all. Yes, I will learn the basics, but I need to PLAY!
My golf lesson reminds me of UndercoverWear. Some gals want to learn everything about the product, the presentation, etc before they do a show. I’m the type – and have always been – to say, “Ok, give me the basics and let me just do it.” I’ll figure out what I’m doing right or wrong real quickly. Like in UCW, I’m an “earn while you learn” kind of gal.
So many of my lessons in life were realized through UndercoverWear. My golf experience was no different – it reinforced that every good leader must consider the needs of her team and how to train, motivate and inspire that team.
I’m sure you’re wondering if my golf career is over. Last weekend, my husband and I hosted a dinner party. I was the only non-golfer in the party of eight – in fact, one of the ladies is almost a pro! After lots of eating and drinking, my husband decided to host a midnight putting competition in our living room. Yes, you heard me correctly – in our living room.
Having had enough wine, I joined them. Seven golfers (and I) competed for about 30 minutes in a number of events. Drum Roll please…I beat them all!
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