Why Is Golf On The Decline?
- Thread starter Crazyface
- Start date
Mandofred
Well-known member
I don't see slow play here in the UK (OK...I pretty well only play at Knaresborough..but it's a fairly long course). Playing back on US public courses I was HAPPY to get around in 4:15 up to 4:30....longer was not unusual. 4:00 is pretty normal here and quite often less. I can live quite comfortably with 4 hours, 4 1/2 gets a bit irritating. I occasionally play early (8am) on Monday mornings with a few guys that occasionally turns into a 5 ball (don't stone me....) and if nobody is slowing us down (2 balls have been known to) we often get around in 3:30.
Mandofred
Well-known member
I just keep thinking Saturday Night Fever......
Grant85
Head Pro
a lot of reasons.
1. Culture - not many people currently in their 30s or 40s would have been introduced to the sport growing up. Most clubs were full and not exactly welcoming to juniors, unless their parents were in the club. Similarly, not much access for a keen dad to join somewhere and take their kids for a game on a Saturday morning.
2. Awareness - much less golf on terrestrial TV and despite UK golfers being very successful, very little main stream coverage outside of designated Sky channel.
3. Competition for time. Now a lot more activities people can do in and around the house, including watching about 30 games of football a week as well as other things leisure pursuits such as gyms, cycling, cinema being more accessible and affordable. 4
4. Family life. Most families have 2 working parents and so weekend are seen far more as family days.
5. Expense. Golf is relatively expensive - especially in competition with a lot of other activities and subscriptions people could have.
Personally think the biggest one is time. People don't feel they can justify spending 4 or 5 hours away from the house and can't get to the course for a midweek round after work.
Would be really really interesting if a club tackled this head on and made a big thing of a 12 hole golf course. Had the holes designed with pace of play in mind, with not many places you could lose a ball. Not have it too long, but still a strategic challenge.
A 12 hole course would cost less to maintain, so less to play as well.
With the right design, I'd guess it could be a sub 2 hour round on average.
Obviously big problem in this country is so many courses are 100 or more years old and not many memberships are going to pro-actively change their course like this. And most struggling clubs would not have the money to make an investment in this kind of redesign, even if they could convince their members it was a good option.
1. Culture - not many people currently in their 30s or 40s would have been introduced to the sport growing up. Most clubs were full and not exactly welcoming to juniors, unless their parents were in the club. Similarly, not much access for a keen dad to join somewhere and take their kids for a game on a Saturday morning.
2. Awareness - much less golf on terrestrial TV and despite UK golfers being very successful, very little main stream coverage outside of designated Sky channel.
3. Competition for time. Now a lot more activities people can do in and around the house, including watching about 30 games of football a week as well as other things leisure pursuits such as gyms, cycling, cinema being more accessible and affordable. 4
4. Family life. Most families have 2 working parents and so weekend are seen far more as family days.
5. Expense. Golf is relatively expensive - especially in competition with a lot of other activities and subscriptions people could have.
Personally think the biggest one is time. People don't feel they can justify spending 4 or 5 hours away from the house and can't get to the course for a midweek round after work.
Would be really really interesting if a club tackled this head on and made a big thing of a 12 hole golf course. Had the holes designed with pace of play in mind, with not many places you could lose a ball. Not have it too long, but still a strategic challenge.
A 12 hole course would cost less to maintain, so less to play as well.
With the right design, I'd guess it could be a sub 2 hour round on average.
Obviously big problem in this country is so many courses are 100 or more years old and not many memberships are going to pro-actively change their course like this. And most struggling clubs would not have the money to make an investment in this kind of redesign, even if they could convince their members it was a good option.
Imurg
The Grinder Of Pars (Semi Crocked)
I've never understood the clamour for dropping the number of holes to 12 to make a game that lasts around the 2 hour mark...
That game already exists
It's called 9 holes.
If someone can't or won't allocate enough time to play 18 then, simply play 9.
Costs nothing....
D
Deleted member 1147
Guest
There’s always options to reduce the length of a game, unless it’s an official event.
I have often played 6,9,12,15 holes depending on time, light and how busy the course was at different points. Our place has lots of points where you can jump across to another hole.
But there is no need to change the game as a whole to fewer holes, just to suit those whose wives won’t let them out.
I have often played 6,9,12,15 holes depending on time, light and how busy the course was at different points. Our place has lots of points where you can jump across to another hole.
But there is no need to change the game as a whole to fewer holes, just to suit those whose wives won’t let them out.
Dibby
Assistant Pro
The counter to that is it would be easier to reverse the situation and make the "official" version of golf shorter, then for those who have more spare time, they can play multiple rounds. That way everyone can be included in official events, and those that choose can play more afterwards. The current setup excludes those who are unwilling or unable to spare more time.
D
Deleted member 1147
Guest
Wouldn’t it get a bit boring to play the same 6 holer three times, every time you want to play a full 18?
Dibby
Assistant Pro
Why would it have to be the same 6? Why is it even 6 in the first place, when most suggest 9 or 12.
In the same way that right now some resorts may have 54, 72 or even more holes, but a round is 18, a club may have more holes, such as 3 sets of 6 holes, so an "event" might be 12 made up from 2 of the 3 sets of holes and those that want to play more can play the third set too.
Imurg
The Grinder Of Pars (Semi Crocked)
I'll stick my neck out and say that the idea is simply a change for the minority and for changes sake.
Is the idea to bring people to the game?
Reduce rounds to 9 holes and hope they come flocking in..?
As it is people can play 9 hole competitions (our Seniors do it, especially in Winter) without changing fundamentals of the established game.
If it can be shown that reducing the number of holes is going to lead to a swarm of new members then it may not be a problem but I doubt that can be proven.
Is the idea to bring people to the game?
Reduce rounds to 9 holes and hope they come flocking in..?
As it is people can play 9 hole competitions (our Seniors do it, especially in Winter) without changing fundamentals of the established game.
If it can be shown that reducing the number of holes is going to lead to a swarm of new members then it may not be a problem but I doubt that can be proven.
D
Deleted member 1147
Guest
Is anyone looking forward to the days we can go and play 12 holes and then have a pint and natter in the 13th??
?
?
Crow
Crow Person
The thing to do is to organise some shortened competitions yourself, then you'll get an idea of how many people want to play a shortened round. There might be loads of people and you'll go down in folklore, as did Dr. Frank Stableford.
Just complaining about it will definitely not change anything.
jim8flog
Journeyman Pro
I know during the past year I have often wished golf was just 15 holes and feeling as if I am due for the glue factory , our last 3 are all the way down to the river and back up again. After 15 the painkillers are starting to wear off and I cannot justify taking another for the sake of 3 holes.
Duckster
Tour Rookie
Over winter we’ve had two holes shut and a couple of the par 4’s taken down to being par 3’s. Not once did I hear cries of “16 holes, that was perfect....” but every single week we had “Can’t wait to play a full 18 again”.
funny how people that play once in a blue moon and take all day to do so are the ones shouting loudest to play less holes??
HomerJSimpson
Hall of Famer
The same. Two holes waterlogged and two reduced to par 3's. The club did well to get as much open as they could in the conditions so no gripes from members but like you say, we all wanted the ground to dry up so we could fully reopen. It did, just in time for Corona but that's life
Crazyface
Tour Winner
Hiya !!!! Tough day at work. Glad to see no one really got my post. Sure I realise Panmure is obviously a fantastic place to go and play golf but my thoughts were supposing a person was thinking, about playing golf and saw the post on FB followed the link and read through Panmures website. No disrespect top them but as I said would this inspire someone to start to play? I think not. Well I'm sure NOT! Maybe those who post these sort of things on FB or elsewhere should maybe throw in the odd,
Hey guys look at this place!!!! Cracking course good test but not too difficult and an amazing price of £30! Highly rated food and good beer in the clubhouse.
See that makes you look!!!! Bet you all want to know where this is? Well so do I. These places are out there. I'm damn sure EVERYONE on here knows of these places. Maybe GM should do a year long piece on these places? This would make great reading, I think. Golf need to be attracting more people to play. Slow play? Nah don't get that. Golf is a four hour thing. Go to the match? To some that's an all day thing. In my opinion, Gm and others should be pushing the great places to play for reasonable prices. And places with a good clubhouse. My ex place has a cracking balcony that over looks the course and is full at the weekend. Things like this should be highlighted. These courses need the money and the publicity, especially now!!!!
This is what I'm on about. I have posted something like this a while ago. Golf should stop looking at the top end courses that we all would like to play eventually (hopefully) and show the people thinking about starting to play, where there are good places to play at cracking prices! And there are some cracking places for less than £30. I can reel off a few near me. Disley, Chapel, New Mills, Westwood. All these are stunning courses and all for under £30!!!!
Hey guys look at this place!!!! Cracking course good test but not too difficult and an amazing price of £30! Highly rated food and good beer in the clubhouse.
See that makes you look!!!! Bet you all want to know where this is? Well so do I. These places are out there. I'm damn sure EVERYONE on here knows of these places. Maybe GM should do a year long piece on these places? This would make great reading, I think. Golf need to be attracting more people to play. Slow play? Nah don't get that. Golf is a four hour thing. Go to the match? To some that's an all day thing. In my opinion, Gm and others should be pushing the great places to play for reasonable prices. And places with a good clubhouse. My ex place has a cracking balcony that over looks the course and is full at the weekend. Things like this should be highlighted. These courses need the money and the publicity, especially now!!!!
This is what I'm on about. I have posted something like this a while ago. Golf should stop looking at the top end courses that we all would like to play eventually (hopefully) and show the people thinking about starting to play, where there are good places to play at cracking prices! And there are some cracking places for less than £30. I can reel off a few near me. Disley, Chapel, New Mills, Westwood. All these are stunning courses and all for under £30!!!!
fundy
Ryder Cup Winner
Nurse!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dibby
Assistant Pro
I didn't complain about anything, just put forward an opposing viewpoint. I've organised weightlifting competitions, coached the sport and still remain active in the community despite being too old to be competitive. Golf is just a secondary sport that I play, so the odds of me being on a committee or organising anything are low, at least in the short term. For now, I happily play 18 hole comps and practice\social rounds of whatever length the light and other restrictions permit.
However, the only reason for 18 holes is because "it has always been that way" which generally is the worst reason for doing anything. Not saying 18 is bad, but the justification for that number should be some merit of 18 itself, rather than just because that's what it always was and we are not going to question it. You know golf history better than me, so feel free to correct me, but I am pretty sure there were courses of all number of holes for at least 100 years before 18 become the standard, and even when it did at St Andrews it was only 10 unique holes with some played multiple times to make 18.
shane3003
Newbie
I feel I’m missing something here
