Golfing Thoughts
On Saturday for the first time, I played golf with two ladies on a partial business stance. It is a first of sorts for me, as not only do I not solely play with with business relationships, it was a friendly affair which I did not expect to pay, and also it was with only ladies. My previous affairs playing with my closest golf mates Evonne and Ai Leen had proven to be always entertaining and very unwinding, and it pretty much died down quite a bit after Ai Leen left for Melbourne.

It rained at 6:50 when I woke up for the event. Surprisingly, and also an indication of how crazy a golfer we can be, I did not question or SMS the organiser to inquire whether it was on or not. I knew however that if I did not turn up, there was no chance they could play even if the rain stopped as there were only three of us, and without me it would have been only two person.
So I drove there, to arrive on time as per the host's request, at 8:45 am, and the rain died down to a slight drizzle.

Let me describe my two golfing mates - they were two people I greatly admire in their work attitude. I admire them for their rightness, their efficiency of doing things and their direct way of doing business. Despite that they are slightly older than me, I also respect them for respecting me.


In golf, how you play the game greatly reflects the person you are. A, a relatively easy-going person, always is modest about her score and declares a 'double-par' for too many shots. She however, never gives up, and it is reflected in her quick to pick up the game and her 'working hard' at each shot despite not playing well.

B, on the other hand is a woman in control. She plays at tournaments and is relatively business savvy. She is a forward looking person, and assesses those around her closely. Only a risk taker will start talking about betting with me on the first hole, not because I am good, but because I have never played with her before, so my capabilities are unknown!!!


I, am a person who enjoys a challenge. I bet all the time to improve my own motivation to win, but for those which I don't have a chance or have no interest in winning, I would never bet. Which explains why I did not bet this round!!! I also play better under pressure, but I knew women play golf to socialise, not to discuss work. And I had looked forward to the game with this in mind.

I do not recall what was the score, but we all had a good time. I definitely could do better, but was not too bad as well, just out of practice and losing some concentration on a few holes.

One of the key learning points for me from this event was my glimpse into these golfing acquaintances lifestyle. Both were perhaps somewhere in their early middle ages. They both had kids in the school ages. They have a comfortable job, a good husband and loving family. Yet, they still suffered from a chronic difficulty of balancing work and family life. Often I detected some tinge of regret of not spending more time with the children or for example fetching kids to school, etc. I had a glimpse of a possible lifestyle I was heading for. I was quiet as I contemplated how I could ever escape this rat race called work. It was a small but niggling and disturbing thought of what I could end up to be, even at the best, will still be besieged with time constraints.

I leave this blog with that thought, which I will never have an answer, but definitely on my mind, at least for the moment. This is something I learnt also to let go the last couple of years - enjoy this moment of your life, as you can never know what will happen in the days to come.