BSG Poll

[Jason Topp]

Which course would you pefer to belong to?

7600 yds, green year round, flattish greens (11 stimp), tough walk

6700 yds, brownish and firm, wild greens (8 stimp), easy walk

http://www.bombsquadgolf.com/invboard_release/upload/index.php?s=eaf04d22864ad209127b79c8532ea123&showtopic=95259

Results are as you would expect 75%/25% - probably the opposite of here.  

The reasoning is interesting.  Points made include (1) 8 is too slow; (2) you can move up a set of tees on a 7600 yard course; (3) green color is important.

Is BSG as out of the norm as us?

[Tom Huckaby]

Jason - just curious - what do you think "the norm" would answer?

My guess is they're way closer to BSG than they are to what would be said in here, which I'd guess would be 97-3 in favor of the shorter course.

The 3 would be Goodale and two other contrarians to be named later.  

[Jason Topp]

Tom - My guess is 60/40 in favor of the long course because of the green speeds, the color and the ability to move up and play from an appropriate distance.  It is interesting that most of the recent highly touted courses would fit more closely to the shorter course profile than the longer ones.

In addition, there are plenty of "wild" greens that I do not enjoy.  Many RT Jones Jr. courses I have played have wild undulations but I find them largely goofy rather than interesting.  There is another local club, Rolling Green, that I really disliked after one round.  The greens were a random collection of mounds that were very difficult to putt and, at least with limited exposure, seemed to just make the game more difficult rather than more interesting.

I suspect the greens I dislike are poorly done, but for the life of me, I cannot tell you why I would consider them poor and the greens at Pasatiempo or other older couses interesting.  

[Tom Huckaby]

Jason - don't be so sure about Pasa.  When they get them up to the speed they can (10+) many of those greens cease to be interesting and become absurd.

Which might also explain how you feel about other severely contoured greens?  They get to be goofy golf if gravity won't allow the ball to stay by the hole - and to combat that, the only pin positions used are the small flat areas, which are rather absurd to try to get to all to often.

In any case, I think you're right - the norm might be 60/40, with a lot of the 40 thinking 7600 is too long and disliking it just on principle for that.

But BSG remains way closer to that than this group would be!  I'm not kidding about 97/3.

TH

[Jason Topp]

Tom:

I agree with the 97/3.  

It would be interesting if a poll were conducted after 10 rounds each on the two courses whether the general populace view would change.  

[Tom Huckaby]

Very good question!  I'd hope that after 10 rounds it would at least move closer to 50/50....

TH

[Adam_F_Collins]

Funny thing to me is the fact that 6700 is plenty long. It's not a 'short' course in my book.

[Tom Huckaby]

Funny thing to me is the fact that 6700 is plenty long. It's not a 'short' course in my book.

Absolutely agreed - especially if there are elevation changes - but even without those 6700 is plenty long for me also.  I hadn't thought of it that way at all - great point.

TH

[Sean Leary]

Adam,

I was thinking the same thing.  However, it depends on where the 6700 yards is.  If it is in Nor Cal or here up in the Pacific NW, 6700 is plently long.  In the desert or in Texas 6700 can be very short.

A better question may be 6100 or 7600. Make it a bigger descrepancy..

Ooops TH and I crossed posts. Same idea.

[ForkaB]

Jason - just curious - what do you think "the norm" would answer?

My guess is they're way closer to BSG than they are to what would be said in here, which I'd guess would be 97-3 in favor of the shorter course.

The 3 would be Goodale and two other contrarians to be named later.  

What a silly thing to say, Huck.  The shorter course (if you raise the average stimp to 9) is Royal Dornoch.  I like it.

[Marc Haring]

That green colour thing is ridiculous. It just goes to show the futility of surveys. I’ve survey’d my own members on how they want their greens and green colour is bottom of the list of requirements. It all depends on how you ask the question. I mean if you just stick it in there, sure lots of people are going to think it’s eternal spring time and the sun is shining. But if you say what do you prefer, blemish free, high quality tight mowing, consistent and a great roll of the ball or do you want it just green, then you know what the answer will be.

How about they ask the question, do you want course ‘A’ or ‘B’ but course ‘A’ will cost an extra twenty quid a round and will be devoid of all character, because that is what it is likely to be.

[Jim Nugent]

I have this memory, which may not be true, that some members of Bellerive sprayed a few of the fairways a bright green right before the 1965 Open.  They wanted it to look good on TV, as I recall.