Every year our IT department holds an employee golf tournament. Naturally, this is sponsored and championed by a few of the managers who are more avid golfers. Everyone who wants to participate has to pony up $50, and then they spend a day in may goofing off on the golf course.

Needless to say,  I decline to participate every year. I have no interest in golf, I don’t like my coworkers enough to want to spend a day participating in an activity I don’t care for with them, and I’d honestly much rather spend the time working on, you know, work. My decision is also reinforced by the fact that I haven’t wielded a golf club since I was 13 (excluding use as a weapon) and have never demonstrated any skill with one (including use as a weapon). I’m certainly not eager to spend a day displaying my lack of prowess for my peers, nor to pay for the privilege.

Nevertheless, one manager or another has gotten a bug up their ass about it and has assigned one of the newer managers I work with to go around rallying participation. I got the hard sell shortly ago, and it seems the guy used to be a used car salesman. I have to paraphrase, but the conversation went like this:

“HEEEEEEYyyy, what are you doing on <date>?”

“Well <project1> will have just wrapped up then, and the production build for <project2> will be going on.”

“Well I need you to drop that and volunteer for me on <date>.” (cutting a chunk out here as he dodged the question as to what specifically he was talking about… the truth eventually came out)

“No.”

“It’s loads of fun! Come on!”

“No.”

“You don’t need to worry about being any good, I NEVER play… well not never, but I rarely play and I’m no good and I had fun! And nobody takes it seriously, aside from some of the managers who take it really really seriously but so what!”

“No.”

“Oh why not? Come on, we need you out there!”

“I’d rather not. I don’t care for golf.”

“So? Come play anyway! You need to get out with your peers more!”

“I do? I participate in <informal social group I and a peer founded based on a hobby>, <regular non-golf team outings>, <whole IT department non-golf outing last year>,  <whole IT department non-golf outing year before that>…”

“Well then let’s golf man!”

“No.”

“Ok well will you think about it?”

“No. I’m quite uninterested.”

“Ok, think about it!”

So apparently I’m thinking about it? I don’t know. I’m sure it’s beneficial for plenty of folks to get out of the office and chum it up, and I’m not even against doing so, but I’m not sure why this one in particular is the hard sell all of the sudden.