Golf Networking for Women: Use the Course for Business

Aundie Owens
Jul 3
4 min read

I spent four years competing as a Division I golfer at the University of Illinois. Thousands of hours on the range, early morning practices, travel, pressure, and competition. And honestly? The most valuable thing golf gave me wasn't a trophy or a ranking. It was a way of thinking about business that I still use every single day.

That probably sounds like a stretch, but bear with me.

Here's little junior golfer Aundie! Although I was in elementary here, it's never too late to pick up the game! Little would this girl know that the game would set her up for life in the world of business and entrepreneurship.

What Golf Actually Teaches You

When you compete at a high level, golf stops being about the swing and starts being about decision-making under pressure. You learn how to manage your emotions when things go sideways. You learn how to stay composed when you're behind. You learn how to read a situation, make a calculated move, and live with the outcome.

Sound familiar? That's entrepreneurship.

Golf also taught me something about relationships that no business class ever did. The four or five hours you spend on the course with someone, you get to know them. Not their LinkedIn headline. Not their elevator pitch. Them. How they handle a bad shot. Whether they cheat on their scorecard. How they treat the cart girl. You learn more about a person in one round of golf than you would in a dozen coffee meetings.

That's why the course has been a relationship builder for me, even when nothing formal ever got discussed. Some of my most valuable professional connections started with a tee time.

The Access Problem Nobody Talks About

Here's the thing that frustrates me about golf and women in business. So many deals, partnerships, and opportunities still happen on the golf course. It has been that way for decades. And for a long time, that space was almost exclusively male.

Women were excluded, not always by policy, but by culture. By assumption. By not being invited.

That's changing.

And the women who figure out how to use the course strategically, even casually, are walking into rooms that a lot of people don't even know exist. Golf is still one of the most underrated networking tools available, and most women haven't claimed it yet.

That's the gap I think about a lot.

You Don't Have to Be Good

This is the part I want you to really hear. You do not have to be a scratch golfer to use golf as a business tool. You don't have to have played in college. You don't even have to have played before.

What you need is the willingness to show up, be coachable, and enjoy the experience. Nobody expects perfection on the course. What people remember is whether you were good company.

I've seen brand new golfers land meaningful connections on a scramble because they were fun to be around and genuinely curious. Golf rewards presence and personality just as much as it rewards skill.

If you're intimidated, that's normal. Every golfer was a beginner once. The key is starting somewhere and not letting the intimidation make the decision for you.

How to Actually Use Golf for Business

If you want to start using golf strategically, here's how I'd approach it:

Start with a lesson or a clinic. Get comfortable enough with the basics that you can enjoy yourself on the course. You don't need to be great. You need to be relaxed enough to be present. (If you're in Central Illinois, I coach women's clinics and would love to help you get started!)

Say yes to the scramble. Charity golf scrambles are the perfect entry point. The format is forgiving, the stakes are low, and the room is full of business owners, community leaders, and decision-makers. Show up and be yourself.

Invite someone to play. Instead of another coffee meeting, suggest nine holes. The conversation that happens on the course is different from anything that happens across a conference table. It's more honest, more relaxed, and more memorable.

Invest in a few good basics. You don't need a full set of clubs right away. A starter set, a good glove, and a comfortable pair of shoes will get you through most situations. Don't forget a good hat or visor and a water bottle too!

Starter Set: https://amzn.to/3SHCYSE

Gloves: https://amzn.to/4awdZrx

Golf Shoes: https://amzn.to/4eIs1ZD

The Real Point

Golf gave me access. Not just to courses, but to a way of building relationships that is slower, more genuine, and more lasting than almost anything else I've found in business.

It also gave me a competitive mindset, a tolerance for uncertainty, and the ability to keep swinging even when the round isn't going the way I planned. Those things show up in my businesses every single day.

If you've been waiting for permission to take up space on the course, consider this it. The women who figure out how to use golf strategically aren't waiting for an invitation anymore. They're teeing it up and building their own table.

And there's plenty of room for you at ours.

Aundie Owens is the founder of DASH Business Solutions, KayBee Community Cafe, and Adegacha Premium Coffee. She is a former D1 women's golfer at the University of Illinois and coaches women's golf in Central Illinois. Connect with her for golf lessons on our Golf Coaching page or follow along on social media here:

Instagram:

@actuallyaundie

@dash.biz.solutions

@kaybeecommunitycafe

@adegachacoffee

This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a small commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I actually believe in.