Length of Course

[garyinderry]

It depends on the conditions.


Ours is 6670 off the whites and is a complete slog in Irish soggy conditions.

Out toughest comp of the year is st Patrick's day open. Freezing long slog where 36 might just win you the comp.

6400 off the yellows is fair enough with plenty of birdie chances. Once we go to whites the amount of birdies drops drastically.

I have a strong game from 200ish yards due to my hybrids so it suits me to have everyone playing a long course. The winning score is lower, Css usually goes up too so all in all I dont mind a bit of length.

 

[Backache]

I’ve played plenty of courses that I find tougher of the yellows as the fairway bunkers come into play off the tee.

If it's tough because of that surely the answer is to use a 3 wood/ hybrid / long iron from the tee?

 

[ManinBlack]

A properly designed course has landing zones on the fairways & the greens are designed for the type of club you're supposed to be hitting into it. For example, if you play off a tee which makes you hit a three wood second to a small green sloping front to back, you've played off the wrong tee. If you can't reach or carry the fairway bunkers set for the tee shot then you should move forward. I'm not short for a 70+ golfer but my ideal course has no par 3s over 190 yards & most par 4s under 400. I occasionally play a local course, Sharpley Springs (you'd like it, Lord T!), which is very short. Most par 4s are a drive & a short or mid iron. However, you need to hit your tee shot in the right place & there are some places on the sloping greens where it's almost impossible to get down in two. It feels like the way a pro plays a course, position the drive, short iron into a tricky green - great fun. Much better than drive, three wood, wedge on every hole.

 

[HampshireHog]

If it's tough because of that surely the answer is to use a 3 wood/ hybrid / long iron from the tee?

Which I do, but that then leaves me even further behind the big hitters who can bomb it over the bunkers off the yellows.

 

[Orikoru]

I don't really enjoy longer courses because my long irons & hybrids are probably the least consistent part of my game, even if the G25s have improved that very slightly. And my drive is not especially long (240 odd). So really between 5600 and 6200 yards is nicest for me. Longer than that and it usually means there's several par 4s I'm not going to enjoy. Most of the courses we play regularly are 6000 or under.

 

[patricks148]

I don't really enjoy longer courses because my long irons & hybrids are probably the least consistent part of my game, even if the G25s have improved that very slightly. And my drive is not especially long (240 odd). So really between 5600 and 6200 yards is nicest for me. Longer than that and it usually means there's several par 4s I'm not going to enjoy. Most of the courses we play regularly are 6000 or under.

but if you can drive it 240 even for a 400 yards par 4 that's only an 8 iron for your 2nd with those distances a 6500 course should be no problem?

 

[Orikoru]

but if you can drive it 240 even for a 400 yards par 4 that's only an 8 iron for your 2nd with those distances a 6500 course should be no problem?

400 yard par fours are fine, yeah. It's not like every par four on the course is the same length though. I haven't played many longer courses to be honest, as I said most of the ones we play tend to be 6000 tops, but then again they're also around 69 par, so a 6500 yard course with 72 par probably would be fine as well. Didn't think of it that way at first.

 

[louise_a]

Surely length is relevant to how the split of the pars, my course off the whites is 6270 we have 5 par 3s. Stand a local course is 6400 yds but only has 2 par 3s. Thake the par 3s out and our average hole length is longer

 

[Imurg]

We're 6700 off the whites and that's enough for me. Any longer and it starts becoming a slot and we're supposed to be enjoying it!
6400 off the yellows and that's a decent distance.
I can still hit it a reasonable distance but CVG is starting to struggle with par 4s over 400 yards as his Sunday best drives go 210 tops, Fragger's much the same.

 

[Slab]

Usually play at about 6,300 to 6,600 & that’s the limit I’d want to do (ideally 500yrds shorter would be better & far more enjoyable but rarely get the chance to move up a tee)

Wouldn’t play anywhere here at full length, I wouldn’t enjoy it slogging round and I’d slow the field pace down too much in searches/reloads etc

 

[Grant85]

I'm at a 6,000 yard par 70 - that probably plays a big longer due to raised greens, uphill holes and strategic holes.

But I wouldn't really want to play at anything over a 6,500 par 72 - unless it was a links course with good levels of run.

 

[rksquire]

Course plays 6,300 from the medal tees, 5,950 from the mens. Play regularly from both tees, there's a couple of short par 4s, a monster par 5 (615-620), and one long par 3 (220 yards); much easier from the mens and scores reflect this.

Just played a 6,800 yard course twice in a few days in poor weather - not sure I'd enjoy that every week.

 

[Canary_Yellow]

but if you can drive it 240 even for a 400 yards par 4 that's only an 8 iron for your 2nd with those distances a 6500 course should be no problem?

240 is pretty long in my opinion. I’m similar and I’m generally beyond my playing partners.

In any case, 240 is plenty to cope with a course of 6,500. Which is the length I enjoy the most.

Hitting driver long iron on par 4’s of 425/450 is boring for me.

 

[r0wly86]

My the course I grew up on was only 5700 yards 69 of yellows and 6000 yards par 70 off of whites.

However it plays much longer than that as due to the nature of the course you have to have very good course management.

I prefer this, I prefer having the choice of taking driver if I'm feeling confident that I can land it in the right place to give me an advantage or take iron be safe but leave me a 8 or 9 iron in rather than a pitch.

The greens are also very tricky so hitting the right part of green is needed, which often means hitting the right part of the fairway

 

[rksquire]

240 is pretty long in my opinion. I’m similar and I’m generally beyond my playing partners.

In any case, 240 is plenty to cope with a course of 6,500. Which is the length I enjoy the most.

Hitting driver long iron on par 4’s of 425/450 is boring for me.

240 yards is pretty long, especially in wet, soggy conditions, which we still have here. We have 2 par 4s that play 420 and 430ish, and it's a small minority that get on either in 2.

 

[Fabia999]

I play 6400 from whites and I wouldn't like anything over 6500.

 

[clubchamp98]

When we play on holiday we always choose closest tees to 6500yds.

 

[Canary_Yellow]

When we play on holiday we always choose closest tees to 6500yds.

That’s what i do, but if either side I go under

 

[craigstardis1976]

6000-6400 is a good distance for me. My home course is 6100 and a par of 72. Works out fine.

 

[ScienceBoy]

Don’t get me started!