Despite the recent obsession with creating championship 7,000-yarders, for most golfers, surely there’s more enjoyment to be had from shorter golf courses?
There may be much talk about ball, equipment and club-fitting technology rendering courses obsolete, but play most older clubs, particularly in winter, and you won’t see a whole lot of gratuitous overpowering going on.
Some would blame course architects on some kind of ego trip, but from my experience at the EIGCA (European Institute of Golf Course Architects) conference in Estoril, Portgual last year, they in turn might point the finger at owners demanding as long a ‘championship’ course as possible.
But from my experience at Estoril Golf Club that week, there’s more than one way to test the average golfer.
With the course soft underfoot, there was many a comment along the lines of, ‘That was the longest 5,600-yarder I’ve ever played!”
And just weeks ago, I spent a very enjoyable couple of days in mid-Wales playing at Llandrindod Wells and Builth Wells, neither of which get anywhere near 6,000 yards, yet both of which are more than capable of providing a challenging and enjoyable round of golf.
Don’t get me wrong. There’s something exhilarating about the challenge of heading back as far as possible occasionally when the starter gives you free rein at one of our modern championship courses.
But every week? Wouldn’t most golfers derive greater pleasure sticking to an arena where their fairway woods aren’t the first clubs they wear out?
With many golf clubs crying out for new members and revenue, and slow play a much-debated curse, surely shorter golf courses might go some way to addressing both problems?
