eBusiness Weekly
Mugove Chigada
Next Wednesday is Valentine’s Day.
The 18 holes, on a day most executives prefer to play their golf, may just pass as a dream. For many, not without a struggle.
Assuming it is the passionate male golfer, he may need 18 reasons why he is missing the usual Valentine’s Day lunch, opting for the course.
But one can still save the day and be at par. Avoid the 19th hole and rush intime for a special dinner — the “Feast of Saint Valentine”.
But with office work in the morning, golf in the afternoon and celebrations of love and affection in the evening, you also risk getting drained.
The joke, however, has been that either way the gentleman gets drained, so if one is teeing-off Wednesday afternoon, he gets to reduce the time. Short and sweet is way to go, they say.
Some say love her or him every day like it was the last, and you won’t miss your golf.
The sight of my uncle, a passionate golfer, trying to sweet talk his fiancé to be allowed to go for his usual Saturday golf, years back, was such a scene. The memories are vivid.
“The last time you said this Saturday we will set it aside for that visit, but now you are talking golf again,” she would say, the environment getting a bit tense.
She meant every word. It was never that she was not an avid golfer herself. Only that the passion in her seemed a bit subdued since she moved into the capital around 1999.
The standoff would always end one way, looking at my uncle’s back as he rushed for the course, but not without consequences.
“Well, with golf it becomes a part of your life and at times you have to expect the hazards on and off the course,” my uncle recalled later.
And most recently, he seemed a golfer missing the “18 reasons” moments to get off the hook. He is heading AvocaVale Country Hotel in South Africa and can now play as much golf as he wants.
But perhaps the best is to seize the opportunity and buy a gift that relates with your partner’s passion for a start.
GolfDigest didn’t miss the opportunity to highlight what the day means for golfers.
In the past week, they unveiled the “18 gifts” one can get for his or her partner, indicating that the day has become highly commercial.
“Long removed from its flowers and chocolates beginnings, Valentine’s Day’s impact on e-commerce is significant. US consumers spent almost $20 billion on Valentine’s Day gifts in 2017, and more than 50 percent of Americans celebrate the holiday each year, according to the National Retail Federation.
“Everyone enjoys receiving a little special something on February 14th, and if your loved one is a golfer you should absolutely consider including a golf-inspired gift in your offering,” GolfDigest wrote, before unveiling the products.
In 2015, former US president Barak Obama spent Saint Valentine on the course at the Palm Springs with “childhood friends”, according to the Telegraph.
But to his credit, after addressing the media on education policy, he didn’t forget Michelle.
“Thanks, and before I go — Happy Valentine’s Day, Michelle,” he was quoted as saying.
He did his part and you may need to stay true to the day too and be safe.
Feedback: Email — [email protected]. witter – @mugovechigada
