Hafizur Rahman Khan, Chairman of Runner Group, speaks about his golfing life and draws parallels between a golfer’s swing and business decisions
Q: Why do you sponsor golf?
A: This is our corporate decision that we will sponsor in sports and education. We are doing this as part of our corporate social responsibility. We prefer golf among all the sports, and hence we are sponsoring golf.
Q: Tell us something about the Runner Group BPGA event.
A: We started sponsoring BPGA events because professionals play here and we want to enrich the professionals. We sponsor a tournament for the members and one for the professionals. We want to improve this gradually.
Q: Runner Group is deeply involved with sports, not just golf. You are also sponsoring sports individuals. What next can we expect from Runner Group?
A: We are sponsoring youngsters, who we think will do well at the national and international stage. We want to select some youngsters who we would like to sponsor in future.
Q: Let’s come to your passion for golf. When did you start playing the game?
A: I have been playing for only 8/9 years. I never used to be that much regular, but now I take this as a way of staying healthy.
Q: What is your routine for golf?
A: I play on Fridays, Saturdays and Tuesdays.
Q: Golf is called a game for life. What do you think about it?
A: Golf is one sport which helps one stay healthy. Then golf can teach other things also. I learn a lot about business management from here. If your swing goes just a bit awry, the ball will go off target by a long way. Similarly, if you make a slight mistake in decision making, the organisation can suffer in a big way.
Q: We are promoting golf to be the second most popular sport in Bangladesh by 2025. What needs to be done to achieve that goal?
A: The game will need to be taken to school level to achieve that objective. There should be a course on golf in BKSP. If you can’t make the game popular to youngsters, at junior school level, the game won’t be popular at national level.
