I walked off the golf course midway through a tournament after nearly two decades of competitive golf, including reaching the top 20 in the world as an amateur and turning professional. I simply picked up my clubs and left.

That decision to abandon my golf career might appear reckless, but it led me to found several businesses armed with the resilience golf taught me to have. Company building, product development, fundraising, pitch decks, events – to me, all of this pales in the face of needing to sink a 6-foot putt on the last hole to eat, or to secure a tournament spot to play next year.

A 2024 study found 68% of CEOs at Fortune 500 companies had played sports at the university level, and it makes sense. The mental discipline required in professional sports – staying focused under pressure, bouncing back from setbacks, maintaining long-term perspective – directly translates to startup leadership.

Preparation and positioning

Our company, Wingbits, is the world’s fastest-growing flight tracking network in an $8 trillion-valued aviation industry that has seen little innovation in the last decade or two. With the industry relying in large part on hobbyists tracking flights from their rooftops and providing data to networks for free, we created the first reward-based system where contributors earn cryptocurrency for their data. Yet, to grow our business, much like training in golf, we needed to know our game inside out.

Take fundraising as an example. You learn everything you can possibly learn about your market, you practice your story over and over, but crucially, you’ve applied that same work ethic to actually building your startup, so when it comes time to raise money, you’re prepared. Many people put too little thought or effort into raising, throwing together a pitch deck in an hour and thinking that’s enough. A pitch deck is the tip of the iceberg – underneath is the work and foundation you’ve laid out.

Once I was ready to pitch and speak to investors, the mental conditioning and calm focus I gained from golf kicked in. I spent over twenty years being paired with strangers from different backgrounds on the course, and learned how to quickly build rapport and credibility with people I shared little with other than our shared passion for the sport. Golf also taught me how to perform under pressure, just like standing over a crucial putt in front of a crowd, walking into high-stakes investor meetings required trusting in my preparation and the work I'd put in pre-pitch.

Reading the course

In golf, success requires constant adaptation and a nimbleness to changing conditions. Before every tournament, I’d analyse weather patterns, wind directions, different holes, course terrain, and pin placements to develop multiple strategic scenarios. If conditions changed mid-round, I already had contingency plans in place.

In tech, things move so fast that what worked six months ago might not work today and you need to look at what’s ahead to stay ahead. Our preparedness for change proved essential when building Wingbits. When AI began disrupting various industries, we had already considered automation scenarios and quickly adjusted our product roadmap. You want to have an overarching plan while keeping various scenarios in your mind to fall back on without being completely thrown off guard.

Approaching the green

The start of my career change came through a side job at my previous girlfriend’s father’s company. For the first time, I experienced a true correlation between effort and result, where the work you put in and the tangible outcomes you get are often missed in sport. In golf, you can execute a perfect shot only to have it land in a bunker after a sudden gust of wind, despite your best-laid plans. In business, while external factors matter, there’s a much clearer path from strategic effort to measurable results. On top of that, you get to do it with other people – you share the journey, the challenges and ultimately the success, which makes it incredibly rewarding and fun.

Both golf and aviation are steeped in tradition and resistant to change. But as both industries maintain sacred core principles, there’s huge room for innovation. In golf, equipment technology has revolutionised the game while respecting traditional course layouts and rules. Players went from chain-smoking to becoming elite athletes, but the mental game and etiquette traditions remained largely unchanged.

Aviation follows the same pattern. The industry is deeply traditional around safety and regulatory compliance, which is absolutely right. But within those guardrails, there’s a high level of openness to technological innovation, whether it’s avionics, materials, or operational efficiency. A key lesson from golf is that you don’t always have to challenge the traditions, you innovate within them. When I approach aviation customers, I emphasise how our solutions enhance their existing expertise rather than replace it. Just like a new driver doesn’t change your golf swing fundamentals, it can help you hit it 20 yards further.

Three golfing lessons for founders

So, how does professional golf apply directly to startup leadership? Here are three quick tips.

First, scenario planning is essential – always prepare for multiple outcomes. On the course, you plan for different weather conditions; in business, you plan for different market scenarios.

Second, pressure rehearsal matters. Golf taught me to rehearse pressure moments; startup founders should similarly practice investor pitches, difficult conversations, and crisis management.

Third, maintain a long-term perspective. Both golf and startups require patience with short-term setbacks while maintaining focus on long-term goals. The ability to bounce back from a bad hole without letting it ruin your entire tournament is identical to recovering from business setbacks.

Walking off the golf course was the best career decision I ever made, but the skills I developed there continue to drive Wingbits' success. Stay calm, think ahead, and be ready to change tactics at any moment.

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