The 7-iron that changed everything…

Everything's working.

The business is solid. People respect what you've built. You feel healthy. Relationships seem stable.

From the outside, it appears you've got it figured out.

But there's this nagging sense that something's... off.

Like you're one bad quarter, one difficult conversation, one health scare away from everything feeling a lot less stable than it looks.

And then you step onto the golf course.

That four-foot putt shouldn't matter this much.

But standing over it, you feel the same tightness in your chest that shows up in big meetings or conversations over dinner.

The same voice that whispers "don't screw this up" when stakes feel high.

The same grip that tries to control outcomes you can't actually control.

Sound familiar?

On the course, every swing hides a belief. The wrong belief can cost you a stroke. In business, it can cost you $10K–$100K at a time.

Golf isn't exposing a golf problem. It's exposing everything else.

The White Knuckle Grip

Not long ago, I played a round with a CEO who ran a mid-sized manufacturing firm. Successful guy. Built something real. But before we even teed off, I could see it on him.

Over coffee in the clubhouse, he told me he was burning out. His supervisors couldn't make a decision without him. He didn't trust anyone to get the details right, so he found himself in the weeds on everything. Approving purchase orders. Rewriting emails. Second-guessing his plant manager on equipment he hadn't touched in fifteen years.

"I hired good people," he said. "I just can't let go."

Then we played.

By the third hole, I noticed two things.

First, he gripped his clubs like he was trying to strangle them. White knuckles. Forearms tight. Especially with his 7-iron. Every iron shot, he'd squeeze the life out of that club before he swung.

Second, after every single shot, without me asking, he'd give me a full breakdown of what went wrong. The backswing was too fast. He came over the top. Didn't transfer his weight. Left the face open.

Every.
Single.
Shot.

Not once did he mention what went right.

At the turn, I bought him a drink and asked about both.

"Why the death grip on the club?"

He looked at his hands like he'd never thought about it. "I guess I want to make sure I hit a solid shot."

"And the play-by-play of everything that went wrong?"

He shrugged. "That's just how I think about the game. How else do you get better?"

I let that sit for a second. Then I challenged him with one thing.

"Next nine holes. After every shot, I want you to tell me one thing that went right. Just one. I don't care if you shank it into the trees. Find something."

He looked at me like I'd asked him to play barefoot.

But he tried it.

And something shifted. Not overnight. Not some miracle on the 14th fairway. But by 16, he was laughing at bad shots instead of autopsying them. His shoulders dropped. His grip loosened. He started seeing the good shots mixed in with the bad.

After the round, we grabbed dinner and I told him what I saw.

"You've trained yourself to scan for problems. On the course. In the shop. Everywhere. It's confirmation bias. If you believe you're surrounded by things going wrong, that's all you'll ever see. And you'll keep tightening your grip because you think control is the answer."

I told him to try something when he got back to work. One week. Instead of scanning for what's broken, look for what's working. Catch people doing things right. See what happens.

And I told him one more thing about the grip.

"You actually get more distance and more control when you loosen it. I know it doesn't feel that way. Squeezing feels like control. But it's not. It's just tension."

He sat with that for a long moment.

"Same with the business," he said.

I just nodded.

That's what happens on the course. Your patterns show up in your swing before you can hide them. The way you grip the club. The way you talk to yourself after a bad shot. The way you respond when things don't go the way you planned.

As above, so below. As within, so without. Once you see it, you can't unsee it.

Is This You?

SPARK Tee Time™ isn't for people looking to "learn more." It's for founders and leaders who've tried thinking it through, mapping it out, talking to their coach, their team, their spouse... and they still can't see it.

Something's misaligned. The old tools aren't showing you what you need to see.

The course will.

Not For Everyone

If you're here for swing tips, save your time and money. I'm not your swing coach.

If you're not circling a real decision, this probably isn't your day.

This is for people ready to see the pattern and move.

A Grand Experiment in Loosening the Grip

The tighter you grip the club, the worse you play.

Try to force the course to yield, and you lose your swing, your joy, and your sense of play.

One Sunday not long ago, this lesson came back to remind me who I really am.

Same course. Two Sundays. Two completely different rounds.

Week one: I shot a 107 with my worst attitude in years. F-bombing my way down the fairway, letting every mistake bleed into the next.

Week two: I shot an 83 with 4 birdies on the front 9. My back was tweaked. I couldn't muscle through it. Had no choice but to swing within myself.

Same player. Same clubs. Different grip.

Those two rounds became my mirror for everything I do now: in life, on the course, and with every leader I walk alongside.

The experiment is: Loosen the grip. Show up joyfully. Respond lovingly. Let the game (and life) come to you.

Why This Works

SPARK Tee Time™ aligns three powerful forces:

1. Movement. Your brain processes differently when you're walking, swinging, engaging physically. Breakthroughs that take months in a conference room happen naturally on the back nine.

2. Metaphor. Golf mirrors life. Every shot is a decision. Every hole is a fresh start. The course becomes your coach.

3. Connection. No vulnerability exercises. No sitting in circles. Just two people talking straight while doing something that matters.

The Structure Behind the Magic

SPARK Tee Time™ is a private, all-inclusive day designed to ignite your SPARK through honest conversation, powerful reflection, and the surprising wisdom of play.

Every piece of the day is intentional. From the first question over breakfast to the final putt.

Here's how it flows:

• Pre-Round Clarity Call: We surface the true question, not the safe one you've been repeating.
• Breakfast: Fuel the body and the mind.
• 18 Holes of Coaching in Motion: Side-by-side, story by story. The course becomes the mirror.
• Early Dinner + Debrief: We name what shifted and lock in what matters.
• Follow-Up SPARK Session™: One week later, you'll see just how far the shift has already landed.
• Optional Plus-1: Bring a key stakeholder (spouse, partner, or co-founder).

Locations: Chicago, IL or your home course

Logistics: Black-car service, two-night accommodations, and two meals included.

The Investment

$4,900 all-inclusive (black-car service, two nights, two meals, 18 holes, follow-up session).

$3,400 for Chicago-area clients or those providing own transportation and lodging.

This is not a golf lesson. It's a pattern reset.

What You Walk Away With

A decision you trust.

Language for the pattern you've been running.

And the kind of shift that sticks because it happened in your body, not on a whiteboard.

Still Not Sure?

For nearly forty years, I coached basketball, mentoring over 1,500 athletes through more than 1,500 games. Today, I bring that same pattern recognition, grounded wisdom, and good humor to golf as the Head Golf Coach at my high school alma mater and as the creator of SPARK Tee Time™.

I'm perfectly capable of shooting a 107 or an 81, sometimes a week apart. Golf keeps me humble. It also keeps me honest about what really drives performance: your grip on the club and your grip on life.

Bring me your biggest question and I'll bring the mirror.

If you are looking for perfection... for a coach with perfected golf skills and a grasp on all aspects of performance and mindset... please move on. I am a work in progress, but I have a load of experience and intuitive curiosity that I tap into to help you.

When I'm not coaching or writing, you'll find me on the course, exploring the Carolinas with my wife Arlene, or enjoying time with our two daughters, Anna and Bethany, who keep me grounded and remind me daily that how I show up matters more than any scorecard.