The Tour De France is making the most of the opportunity to grab some headlines between the final two golf majors of the year. And the triumphs and travails of Chris Froome, Dan Martin et al resonate increasingly with a growing peloton of weekend cyclists in this country – many of whom would be more regularly found behind a C-suite desk during the week.

In a previous generation, golf was the ultimate networking occasion for business wannabes and high fliers alike. Politicians, bankers and businessmen were as likely to meet on the green as in a boardroom.

Michael Smurfit, the ultimate dealmaker of his generation, went so far as to buy the K Club and consider delivering a Ryder Cup as a landmark achievement.

But times are changing. Top Dublin advisory houses now entertain key clients on the road rather than the fairway. Corporate leaders recently had to choose between two high-profile events on successive days, both offering a chance to meet and cycle alongside Irish tour legend Sean Kelly.

Where golf restricts networking opportunities to groups of four at most, the thinking goes, a day on your bike allows for greater opportunity as Lycra-clad corporate wheelers can move up and down their peloton.

And, of course, there is the all-important chance to show off both your talent and your financial worth as represented by your bike – many specially customised and imported at a cost of thousands of euro.

Such is the change in fashion that a business invitation to golf these days is a clear indication that the invitee is yet to scale the corporate inner circle.