Would Golf be Better or Worse if 12 Holes Had Become the Standard?

[Patch]

35 minutes ago, iacas said:

That’s one example.

And there’s logic that a course that costs less to build, maintain, etc. would cost less to play, on average.

You’re in the weeds on this one.

That example is being set all over southern nevada. Courses here are begging for more business. 

As for being in the weeds, it's actually sagebrush. 

[RFKFREAK]

7 hours ago, klineka said:

This ^^^

I'd be more willing to walk 12 holes than I am 18 so I guess it would be better for me personally from a fitness standpoint.

Considering walking courses is pretty much the only cardio I do, I think reducing the amount of cardio I'd do would not benefit me as I'd have to find other (less enjoyable) ways to get cardio in. 

[Vinsk]

7 hours ago, iacas said:

But the bigger expenses would be reduced. 

Logical but not how many if not most businesses  work. Like banks and ATM’s. The whole idea was to reduce costs for banks via labor...and it did. Then they decided to charge fees to exponentiate the profit. But I can see  the 12 hole idea as a good thing otherwise.

Edited August 29, 2018 by Vinsk
Typing

[Piz]

I am all for games taking less time to play.  

[billchao]

I was on the fence when this thread started and after thinking it over some and reading the responses, I'm still on the fence.

The only things I know for certain from 12-hole courses instead of 18-hole courses is less land and maintenance required, and shorter rounds. I can't assume that the savings would mean cheaper rounds. Driving ranges all charge about the same despite having difference facilities, quality, etc. There's a 9-hole course near me that actually charges more for an 18-hole round than most 18-hole courses charge. The course is well maintained, but not a step above anywhere else or anything to justify the cost.

On the other hand, I like the way the game kind of balances itself after 18 holes. It can take me 9 holes to get going sometimes, so if a round was only 12 holes, it's pretty much over about when I start to right the ship. Putting a premium on making the most out of a shorter round or making a round more random in general aren't necessarily things that make the game more attractive to me.

[DaveP043]

When I first read the question, I said to myself "There's no way you could cut golf back to 12 holes!"  Then I read the question closer.  And drew a blank.  If all anyone ever knew was 12 holes, would golf be more popular?  Who knows.  Would it be quicker, definitely.  Less costly, probably.  But is that "better"?  If golf courses were all 12 holes, would we have 7 and 11 at the Old Course crossing each other?  Maybe not, and that wouldn't be better.  Courses would simply not have built certain holes, and some of that would have made the game poorer.  12 holes of golf would be less of a "marathon" than 18 holes is, and I'm not sure that's an improvement.  Shorter rounds might draw a different type or personality, again that might not be better.  The only thing for sure is that golf would be different, but not necessarily better.  I'm very slightly on the worse side.

[Moxley]

16 hours ago, GolfLug said:

Bargaining with the wife for 5 hours away from home every weekend is just an impasse and as a result I play less than 30 full rounds a year.

For me, this is the key reason why 18 holes as a standard is probably too high these days. With travel & social time inclusive, it makes it an (nearly) all-day activity. 

Men lead different lives these days, and as well as being busy at work, are expected to take a key role in bringing up the children. For older folk,  there is often grandparent duties. I'm fortunate that I can play in the week, and use my membership to fit in a lot of golf , but the same thing arises at weekends & I wouldn't think it fair to my wife to disappear for half a day more than maybe once a month or so. 

There are obviously some sorts that are an all-day activity, but golf doesn't need to be one of those , I really think had golf started in the modern era, we'd have settled at something between 10-15 holes for a standard round.  

[mcanadiens]

I know the spirit of the thread was "what if it had been always been a 12-hole standard", but why should be it be such a big deal to play 12 holes as opposed to nine?

If it's better to play golf in 2.5 hours instead of 4, isn't it that much better to play in 2 hours or less? Think about that extra half hour you'll have for your honey-do lists. God, it almost makes me wish I were married. ... Not. 

I get guys like @GolfLug wanting to play those extra three holes, but isn't having the flexibility to play 18 holes or nine holes seem like the better of the possible options. How many people would bother to drive to the course to play six holes?

12-6

14-7

16-8

18-9

20-10

I guess I could see a 16-8 split pretty easily. Things would seem a bit thin when you get down to a 7-hole half and 6 seems not worth the effort..  

 

 

 

Edited August 30, 2018 by mcanadiens

[iacas]

If golf was 12 holes maybe the idea of a half round wouldn’t even really be a thing @mcanadiens. Like nobody really plays two period of hockey… they just play shorter periods.

[mcanadiens]

Just now, iacas said:

If golf was 12 holes maybe the idea of a half round wouldn’t even really be a thing @mcanadiens. Like nobody really plays two period of hockey… they just play shorter periods.

Clearly. 

I think having the option to play 18 or 9 is a good thing.

[iacas]

2 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

Clearly. 

I think having the option to play 18 or 9 is a good thing.

I don’t think you’re really considering a world where 12 had almost always been the standard.

[GolfLug]

2 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

I get guys like @GolfLug wanting to play those extra three holes, but isn't having the flexibility to play 18 holes or nine holes seem like the better of the possible options. How many people would bother to drive to the course to play six holes?

I think 9 is originally arbitrary because it is an easy half fraction of the equally arbitrary 18 holes. 

Bottom line is I would love to play as many holes as I can each time out there and do it more often too.

12 sounds like a great compromise. 

EDIT: ..and leave me enough time for a 10 minute stop at the '13th' hole without much guilt.

Really, let's go already!

Edited August 30, 2018 by GolfLug

[DeadMan]

2 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

How many people would bother to drive to the course to play six holes?

I would. I drive to many things that I end up spending an hour at. The gym. Restaurants. Etc. Hell, I will drive to get 30 minutes of practice in at a driving range. I would love to be able to stop at a course after work in the summer and get in a quick 6. That doesn't work for me at all now.

It's just that we're used to spending 2+ hours at a golf course now, and it seems strange to not spend that much time there. But that's because golf is a time sink now, and that would be different if golf were 12 holes instead of 18.

[Jeremie Boop]

48 minutes ago, DeadMan said:

I would. I drive to many things that I end up spending an hour at. The gym. Restaurants. Etc. Hell, I will drive to get 30 minutes of practice in at a driving range. I would love to be able to stop at a course after work in the summer and get in a quick 6. That doesn't work for me at all now.

It's just that we're used to spending 2+ hours at a golf course now, and it seems strange to not spend that much time there. But that's because golf is a time sink now, and that would be different if golf were 12 holes instead of 18.

I just don't find golf to be a "time sink" because I enjoy the time being there. I don't really want to get it over with quicker. I mean, I don't enjoy regular rounds that last 5+ hours because the course is slow, but it's not about the 5+ hours total, it's because the time per hole is too long. That wouldn't change if it were 12 hole rounds. On a slow day each hole would still last as long. I can appreciate people who have a more busy lifestyle thinking that having the option of play 6 or 12 holes would fit in their schedules better though. For my part though, it wouldn't make me able to play anymore than I currently do.

[DeadMan]

4 minutes ago, Jeremie Boop said:

I just don't find golf to be a "time sink" because I enjoy the time being there. I don't really want to get it over with quicker. I mean, I don't enjoy regular rounds that last 5+ hours because the course is slow, but it's not about the 5+ hours total, it's because the time per hole is too long. That wouldn't change if it were 12 hole rounds. On a slow day each hole would still last as long. I can appreciate people who have a more busy lifestyle thinking that having the option of play 6 or 12 holes would fit in their schedules better though. For my part though, it wouldn't make me able to play anymore than I currently do. 

I didn't mean time sink the in negative sense, more as a statement of fact. Golf just takes a long time. That's all I meant.

[iacas]

12 hours ago, Jeremie Boop said:

I just don't find golf to be a "time sink" because I enjoy the time being there. I don't really want to get it over with quicker. I mean, I don't enjoy regular rounds that last 5+ hours because the course is slow, but it's not about the 5+ hours total, it's because the time per hole is too long. That wouldn't change if it were 12 hole rounds. On a slow day each hole would still last as long. I can appreciate people who have a more busy lifestyle thinking that having the option of play 6 or 12 holes would fit in their schedules better though. For my part though, it wouldn't make me able to play anymore than I currently do.

Cool, Jeremie, but many people don't have 5+ or even 4+ hours.

[Crim]

I dig this, big time, and wish it was. 

 

[Carl3]

I work with a semi retired gut who is in a league and he was lamenting going to his year end outing. It seems when he and his partners hit the turn they are thinking "what? we are not done yet?" They normally play 9 holes.

Maybe some course ought to rethink and rework their layouts to provide three 6-hole tracks. You know how some courses offer 27 holes, or three 9-hole tracks?  

 

Edited August 31, 2018 by Carl3