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Golf

To Choke or not to Choke….That is the Question

left frontal lobe(red) and corpus callosum, di...
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You often hear the phrase when relating to sports; an athlete that fails to deliver in the clutch, analysts (Johnny Miller comes to mind) usually say they “choked”.  Defined further, to “choke” is when someone poorly responds to external pressure.  They do something completely contrary to what they would have done without the weight of the moment.  Preparation usually combats the choking reflex; usually.

There is no situation that puts you to in a better position to choke or excel, than golf.  Standing alone over a little white ball brings all sorts of peculiar emotions to the surface.  The subconscious begins to play tricks on the here and now.  You try desperately to recall positive shots of the recent past, yet negative sensations linger.  The golfer desperately combats fear, uncertainty and doubt with confidence, calmness and routine.  Many times however, one bad shot or two seems to trump all of the great swings of the recent past.  Back to back bad shots seemingly erase past success.  You become a victim of the present situation instead of moving beyond the past.

Yesterday, I watched Dustin Johnson choke away the 2010 U.S. Open.  After a Saturday round that saw Johnson dominate a brutally difficult golf course, he subsequently melted under the white-hot spotlight that shines brightly on the leaders during the final round.  One bad shot seemingly changed his demeanor, and unfortunately lead to more horrendous shots.  Johnson let negative emotions overwhelm him, and dominate his mind.

I just returned from a four day member/guest golf tournament in Michigan that saw me collapse under the pressure of the final day.  Coming into the tournament I was somewhat confident in my swing.  It has been a grueling twelve months of lessons and practice to try find a tempo and swing plane that works.  Lately, I had hit good shots under tournament pressure, so I felt optimistic in what would transpire.  As the days rolled forward my swing started to dissolve.  Drives that would stay in the fairway on day one, drifted to the rough on day two.  By day three and four, those 245 yard drives went out-of-bounds or ended up in treacherous lies.  Truthfully, and somewhat ironically, I actually felt composed over shots….not nervous or ill prepared.  Unfortunately my results (an 89 on day three and a 90 on day four) were emblematic of my poor execution.  Worse yet, I managed to make three doubles and a par on the way into the clubhouse; moving us from first to fourth place (out of the money). 

In my opinion, the only way to overcome the choking reflex is to get back into the heat of the moment and risk failing again.  This is not a comfortable position as thoughts of past failures will most certainly seep into the frontal lobe.  Unfortunately, this is the only way to truly appreciate the sensation of success. 

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Golf

Jon Curran – Heading to the U.S Open at Pebble Beach!

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On June 7th, my good friend Jon Curran, qualified for the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. I have been fortunate to watch Jon grow up playing golf at Framingham Country Club. His commitment to the game is only matched by his family’s love and devotion to him. After 4 successful years leading the Vanderbilt Commodores, Jon turned professional last year. Over the last 12 months we watched him refine his craft on the Hooters Tour. Then came this year’s U.S. Open qualifying rounds.

“Playing the North Course at Canoe Brook, (Jon) Curran earned the final qualifying spot in a playoff over 2008 PGA Tour winner Parker McLachlin of Paradise Valley, Ariz. In the playoff, Curran safely hit his approach shot from 155 yards into the middle of the green on the par-four first hole. After McLachlin missed his three-foot par putt, Curran tapped in his putt for par and saw his U.S. Open dreams become a reality.”

As an aspiring PGA Tour golfer, Jon’s budget is tight.  Hotel’s in the Pebble Beach area are either sold out or $1,000 a night. If anyone reading this BLOG has a friend living in the Pebble area, that would host Jon, please let me know as soon as possible.  Jon is a great kid, and he would be appreciative of any hospitality.

As Jon plays in his first Major Golf Tournament, I wish him focus, tranquility and of course a bit of luck.

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Golf

A Golf Dream Becomes a Reality

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ACE Colorado Golf Club Hole #6 001

As an obsessive, devoted golfer, there are certain things you dream about doing.

  • Breaking par (73 in 2009 is my best round – I choked on Pradera’s 18th hole)
  • Playing Pebble with your favorite golfing buddies (need to get this done – $500 is a little much but worth it)
  • Playing Ireland with your favorite golfing buddies (did this in 2001 – amazing time, must do it again)
  • Qualifying to play in a state amateur event (at this point I might humiliate myself)
  • Playing in a pro-am event with your favorite PGA professional (Steve Stricker for me)
  • Making an ACE (did this today – 5/31/10 – at Colorado Golf Club)

I have been fortunate to witness 3 hole-in-ones in my 20 years of playing golf.  Every ball was struck perfectly, and looked good right off the clubface (Scott Tynan’s sand wedge in Myrtle Beach, Victor Galvani’s 9 iron on Framingham Country Club’s 17th and Todd Curlett’s 6 iron on Framigham Country Club’s 11th).  As their ball melted inside the hole, I could barley control my excitement.  In fact, given my perfect form-tackle, I am surprised no one was ever seriously injured.

Today (May 31, 2010), I was invited to play in the post Senior PGA Championship event at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colorado.  My buddy, Brad Kellogg and I decided to play the course from 7,100 yards, and experience how the pro’s recently played the amazingly difficult layout.

The weather was perfect, 80 degrees with a subtle, but steadily growing, southwest wind.  My warm up could not have been better; everything felt in sync – unfortunately this usually means I will play terribly.  That said the day seemed to start out well.  On the 630 yard (par 5) first hole, I hit a nice drive down the left side.  After two good shots, I was left with a 35 foot put.  Unfortunately, it took me 4 putts to finish the hole – as a confident putter, this result was not what I had anticipated.  On the third hole the pin was tucked in the back right.  I hit a solid 8 iron approach shot (166 yards) downhill and downwind.  My ball hit the green on the left side, and rolled to the collection area about 40 feet to the left of the pin.  I decided to putt the ball as there was trouble just behind the pin. Unfortunately, I hammered my putt and ended up in a bunker from hell (to the right of the green).  Truthfully, I felt lucky walking away with a bogie after my poorly executed initial putt.  Holes 4 and 5 saw me make two more bogies even though I was hitting solid and accurate shots.

As I stepped to hole #6 (par 3, 200 yards), I could feel a slight breeze to my back.  Brad told me that the green rolled left (where the pin was), so I should target the right center as my landing area.  Brad chose a 6 iron, which means I committed to hitting my new TaylorMade Burner 5 iron.

I felt good standing over the ball (a rarity these days), and made a nice fluid swing (in my mind anyways).  The ball was hit high, with an evident and necessary draw.  Upon hitting the green, my ball moved left toward the pin.  I felt my heart race at it neared the cup.  Bingo, right in the jar!  I think I tackled Brad first yelling “I did it, I did it”.  I spun around (still yelling) and jumped on the two guys we were paired up with (Blaine and Casey).  I am certain my histrionics angered some of the other players on the course – truthfully, I really did not care.

Playing the rest of the round was difficult as I was still shaking three holes later.  I finished with an 85…respectable given the circumstances.

I will mount the ball, glove, scorecard and CGC flag later this week.  I am happy to say that one of my golf dreams became reality.

http://youtu.be/e7jIE4296wY

Business, Prepaid

Using Data to Generate Revenue

Business intelligence continues to be an area of high priority for organizations that are looking to improve their decision making on the data collected from processes, people and applications.  Understanding what your customers want is a fundamental principle of marketing. This principle is simple in theory, but challenging to put into practice. 

It is difficult for marketers to know what is on the customer’s mind today, then accurately anticipate what the customer may need/want tomorrow. The challenge doesn’t stem from lack of customer data.  The fact is, customers and prospects are giving us information about themselves all the time.  Through every purchase, response, event, transaction and web site hit, consumers reveal something about themselves.   The challenge is integrating customer intelligence into a powerful business system.

Consumer spend analytics, derived from prepaid card awards, enables strategic decision making, opportunity assessment and revenue prioritization.  Transaction processing data provides real insight for corporate leaders in marketing, product development, consumer experience, customer relationship and advertising management.  These detailed reports outline:

  • Where in the world your customers are spending their monies.
  • What they are spending their monies on.
  • How much they are spending and in what stores.

 

Synthesized with demographic data, static reports are transformed into a true decision support system for an organization.  A Colorado company called Clear Peak, has been able to harness this powerful solution, and offer their clients a true competitive advantage. 

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Business, Prepaid

The Future of Consumer Rebates

Over the last 5 years consumer focused companies have moved their rebate programs from paper checks to plastic prepaid cards.  This demonstrates an ongoing trend to reduce paper in the payments system, while providing consumers with the added convenience of a MasterCard® or Visa® card.  The Mercator Advisory Group, a leading industry consulting group, predicts the growth of prepaid cards in the consumer incentive market to grow at a  200%+ clip by the end of 2010. 

Consumer rebates create an opportunity for a organization to drive brand loyalty by ingratiating themselves with their end user.  A prepaid MasterCard® or Visa® loyalty card offers an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), a unique financial vehicle for promoting their product or service. 

  • Consumers:
    • Get the item they want at a lower price
    • Have immediate access to their funds and universal acceptance –– with no trip to a bank necessary

 

  • Original Equipment Manufacturers:
    • Receive a substantive revenue lift in the product/service being promoted
    • Establish an active, personal connection with the consumer through a customized card activation/registration process
    • Capture end user spending behavior by effectively levering a processor analytics engine
    • Enjoy brand enhancement as the custom designed card is used by the consumer to make subsequent purchases
    • Utilize custom card carriers/greeting cards to construct detailed messaging to be directed at their customer
    • Improve the economics of their rebate program

Some consumer groups claim that the reason for the shift from check to card is the hope (by the OEM) that the end user will forget about using their reward.  The reality is that the “breakage” income is only a small component in the overall revenue derived from the card.  Most OEM’s want their customer to spend the awarded monies on other goods/services they offer. 

My advice to cardholders:

  • Use the card immediately
  • Identify fees and the timing of those fees
  • Monitor your card balance (via the web or IVR) so you can easily navigate a split tender transaction (divide the bill)
  • If your card is lost/stolen, immediately report it so you can receive another card

My advice to OEMs:

  • Prior to making a decision, review the capabilities of both rebate fulfillment companies as well as prepaid card companies (many times money can be conserved by negotiating separate contracts)
  • Look for economic flexibility with your potential partner (what revenue streams can be shared)
  • Understand the personalization capabilities of your potential partner –  can they help establish a one to one relationship with the end user
  • Understand how program change requests will impact the delivery timeframe
  • Ensure that complex reports (spend data) can be accessed in a timely fashion

Prepaid cards are a flexible, cost-effective way to distribute cash rewards to participants.  If utilized correctly, both the OEM and consumer will enjoy the many benefits associated with the card.   

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