No regrets choosing golf, say Agunbiade

Patron of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Oyo State council, Dr. Babajide Agunbiade, FNSE, has said he has no regrets about choosing golf as the sport he adopted.

Speaking in Ibadan after being decorated as the Patron of Oyo NUJ, the Atóbaáse of Yorubaland said golf is life, and he will forever play the game.

He disclosed that he played the game to exercise and keep fit.

According to him, “Golf is the only sport I know of where a player pays for every mistake. A man can muff a serve in tennis, miss a strike in baseball, or kick an incomplete pass in football and still have another chance to square himself. In golf, every swing counts against you.

“Through my interactions in golf, my wife and I have a foundation called the Agunbiade foundation that supports education, provides mentorship for students, and perform other charitable causes that benefit communities.

The charity has donated nearly 30,000 books and a library in Nigeria and the US, and have built water systems in the most impoverished parts of Nigeria, and also made several donations and interventions in infrastructural development.

“I will encourage the Federal Government to introduce the game of golf to schools to catch them young, as we can’t focus all our attention on sprint and football alone.

“We can launch the game from the primary school to the university level to see the likes of Tiger Woods, and Phil Mickelson.

“The object of golf is not just to win; it is to play like a gentleman and win.

“That is why I said golf is life. By the time you play 5 holes, it will tell who you are, as it will expose you if you are a cheating type.”

Agunbiade is CEO of Alpha Energy Resources LLC and a Director at National Oilwell Varco, the world’s largest Oil and Gas equipment manufacturing company with its headquarters in Houston, Texas.