[JWL]

I realize that everyone's approach to the game is a bit different, thus a multitude of definitions.
But, I would be interested in hearing a quick description by any who would like to chime in.   It would also be helpful if you could add your handicap afterwards.   Thanks.

[tlavin]

This is easy: elevation changes, eye candy and more than a handful of greens that I can easily hit in regulation with a 6 iron or less.  Handicap is 12

[Joe Hancock]

Through the use of contours, force me to aim away from the pin for optimum results, at least a handful of times in a round.

Handicap= 6

Joe

[Jason Topp]

Hitting the tee shot over things - such as the bunkers at Royal Melboune, Ross top shot bunkers, the sheds at the old course or walls, mounds on Strantz courses, dunes on links courses or even the ocassional barn.

Short reachable par fives.  I enjoy par 5's that are 450 from the white tees and 475 from the blues.  

Speed slots or mounds that provide a boost to the tee shot if struck accurately such as 10 at Augusta and  16th at Sand Hills.

Long par 4's and par 5's that are reachable by a shorter driver if he places an accurate tee shot next to a hazard such as the 4th at Tobacco Road or the 18th at the Harvester.  I think this feature works really well on a long par 4 because it messes with the mind of the player that needs to take a chance to reach a green in regulation.

Short par 3's 160 or less from the back tees.  So many courses add yardage to the card by having a bunch of 200 yard par thees.

Long Par 3's 230 yards or more.  

Recovery shots.

7 handicap

[Adam Clayman]

FUN is shot option filled variety, with challenges that don't penalize to the point of no recovery. A course where I'm allowed to think my way around, predicting the unpredictable thanks to some clues from the designer. Where awareness, of everything, is rewarded. And, where long and down the middle can be highly over-rated.

12.4

[Kalen Braley]

Fun to me is:

- Having a variety of shots to hit with long and short holes.
- Creative rescue skills needed around the greens.
- Imaginative putting required to 2 putt
- Generally speaking having to really think about your next shot as opposed to just hitting it straight or getting the speed right on the putt.

[Chip Gaskins]

strategy and shot options where a poorly executed shot doesn't automatically equal a lost ball or penalty shot. 

courses that allow recovery shots.  we all inevitably hit it bad...and having the "chance" to recover is fun to me.

imagination around the greens (think bandon trails #17, very very fun)

tpc sawgrass, pga west = not fun (to me)
tobacco road, pine valley, ballyneal = fun (to me)

handicap - 6

[Mike Bowline]

Fun should be had no matter how well or poorly I play. Fun means:

A course that allows me to see a challenge, weigh the risk/reward, and get rewarded if I do it well, and getting punished if I do not execute.
Downhill shots, either tee shots or shots into greens.
Challenging greens with lots of movement.
Carry bunkers.
Not too much H2O.
A course my wife can play and not get frustrated (handicap 32.2)

My index: 1.9

[Bill_McBride]

I want to stand on the tee of most of the holes and have to make a decision about where to drive, not just be forced to drive down the middle between flanking bunkers or deep rough.  I like central bunkers, diagonal carries, optional lines of play.

I don't like to hunt for golf balls.

I like to be able to choose between several types of shots around the greens.

I like a lot of contour in the greens, some where you have to putt away from the apparent line, so stimp speeds need to be kept under control.

12 handicap sometimes. 

[Mark Bourgeois]

18 unique, wild green complexes + can't lose a ball. 11

[RJ_Daley]

Width, contour, firmness, enough strategically placed bunkers to engage or be trapped, no or little water, reasonable rough length to be able to find ball and move on, interesting greens.  A good balance of long medium and shot holes of all pars, 3-4-5.  Walkable, affordable. 

Oh... did I say Wild Horse? 

[Mike Nuzzo]

Opportunity for a great unexpected shot or to pull off a heroic one if caught in a pinch.
The Time & shot theorm have been some of my funnest shots - longer the ball moves the more fun the shot.
Artistic land forms
easy to walk with friends
10

[Melvyn Morrow]

To start it must be a Links course, it needs to fit the surroundings, minimal man made items (buildings, paths etc), no trees, wide fairways to give options, well placed hazards (to test skill and courage) and challenging greens.

There are two more things that makes it totally enjoyable and fun, if it’s a course that I have never played before and has a really friendly barman in
the 19th, Oh yes someone else driving me home later, much later.

Heaven, just plain heaven, who needs Virgins as well.    

[Tom Huckaby]

Being on it, playing this great game.

Tom Huckaby, handicap 4

[Jeff Grossman]

A variety of shots and angles of approach into greens, 1 drivable par 4 and at least one reachable par 5 with high risk reward opportunity, 18 different green complexes that provide multiple short game options.

Handicap +.2

[Adam Clayman]

Jim, Jack's New Course is tons of fun.

Dick, We had the G'burg invitational yesterday. Our team was leader in the clubhouse until the last little little rug rat from North Platte shot even on the back to beat our team total by one measly stroke. My she was beautious. I believe they are burning the back nine today.

[Bill_McBride]

I believe they are burning the back nine today.

Huh?    Please elaborate!

[Tom Huckaby]

Bill - each year they burn the gunch rough at Wild Horse lest it overake things.  It's a really cool look after it's done... someone put a picture up here once.

Question for one and all:  my answer was not nearly as smartass as it seemed here.  I do find ANY golf course to be fun - because it does mean I am playing the game, which is the fun for me.  Of course some are more fun that others, and of course why that is is what JWL is asking for.  So these are all great answers... but if any would be so kind, could you also answer a corollary question for me?

Do you have fun no matter where you play?

And note I don't want a litany of reasons why a course, or the golf experience, might be less fun or indeed no fun at all.  I kinda just want a yes or no answer, to see if I am insane.

Because we've covered this before... lots of things make the game less fun, but I have yet to experience a round of golf that I wouldn't call "fun" in the overall.  I do love the game that much.

TH

ps - if this gets too crazy I guess I could start another thread - I don't mean to pollute JWL's very fair question.  But man this all occurs to me as I read it...

[Kirk Gill]

I'm with Mr. Huckaby. If I'm on a golf course, I'm going to have fun. However, there are some courses that seem to be better at putting a smile on my face than others. Some commonalities:

Courses that are undulating enough and hard enough that I get to see the ball roll. I think that watching the ball roll up and over and to one side or the other is one of the most enjoyable experiences in the game. The satisfaction of anticipating the roll and using it and pulling it off is terrific.

The occasional heroic challenge is nice, especially if it really looks harder than it is. The tee shot on the 7th at Ravenna comes to mind, or the approach to the 7th at Pradera.

Newness and unique-ness are obviously fun, but so is familiarity and the process of learning new things about a known course.

Good company.

[RJ_Daley]

Bill, read super news at:  http://www.playwildhorse.com/

The burn the rough, front 9 in spring, back 9 in fall, to knock down the rough.  It looks charred for about 2 weeks, then springs forth with new grasses, and looks spring green fresh.  Burning the prairie is a useful management of the native vegitation qualities of that prairie.  It also cuts down the golf courses expense of otherwise managing broadleaf incursion to unplayable qualities, through use of chems.  But, blues are more likely to flourish over some native varieties of prairie grasses with burning.  

It works in NE where they allow it.  I doubt any burning would be welcome or legal in many parts of the country.  

[Scott Witter]

Jim,

This is a great question and though it has probably been discussed before, it seems there has been a lot of talk lately about strategy on old and modern built courses and how most golfers simply and unfortunately don't understand it.  Hey, I love strategy as much as everyone else around here, but strategy needs to be converted and interpreted by the average golfer as FUN.  While it is doubtful that I nor other designers will stop their efforts to fold strategy into the mix whenever possible, having fun according to just about any golfer IMO, no matter how they define or shape it in their mind is key to the game. 

[RJ_Daley]

Mr. L., sorry, regarding my original answer, the handi is ~12.  

As to Huck and Gill's idea of, if you are playing golf, you are having some version of fun, I can go along with that in the social, commeraderie sense.  But, once you actually consider the act of playing golf rather than bonding for grins and giggles, I believe the apparent consensus here trends towards, contour, firm, strategic, not oppressively hard, nor unduly lengthy in time required to play (efficient balanced routing) nor distance in overall length of the course.  Also, balance as to shots required of all the clubs in the bag.

But, our old friend Tim Weiman's oft quoted observation holds a great deal of value to me:  "people want to play more, not pay more".

Frankly, I have felt that an otherwise "fun" round on a great course is ruined by the excessive freight charged by certain courses.  For those that love to play often, and varied style course, prices sometimes don't factor into the first sizzle inclination to go try a new, heralded course.  But, the fun factor diminishes rapidly for me when a certain "buyer's regret" sets in, usually causing me to say, "one and done", to an expensive course, that I realise was great, but just too costly to overcome the allure of a repeat play at outrageous prices, no matter if that course was otherwise, "fun".  

I wonder if top level architects operate on a default notion that in order to create "fun" on a golf course, a certain element of extreme, bombastic, or expensively done landscape, waterscape, eyecandy features are a requirement?  Thus, for every added excessive landscape feature added, the cost to the end user is increased; until the end result is a set of diminishing returns, with the fun factor overcome by "buyers regret", and a "one and done" result that disencourages the fun seeker to repeat play?

[Tom Huckaby]

RJD:

Great stuff - and this does turn on one's personal situation.  If one plays a lot of golf, I'd guess that the simple joy of playing is somewhat taken for granted, and then the fun turns on issues you state.

I'd just say if one really does love the game and sadly doesn't get to play it as much as he'd like to, then those issues exist, but are pushed to the background, as the simple joy of playing does make any round fun at least to some degree.

I've just never played enough to get to that first status.  I wish I would.  Maybe some day.

TH

[Kalen Braley]

Huck,

I'd agree in principle, but slighty differ on one thing.  If the course is a dog track, and its 100 degrees out, and the fairways are a weed patch, and the greens fuzzy, then generally its not all that fun to me if I'm playing alone.

Now if I had some good company come along, then it wouldn't matter too much where we played.

[Tom Huckaby]

Kalen:

I read your example and say it still would be fun.  I suppose I am insane in loving to play this game that much.  Even that example sounds fun to me.  I doubt I'd seek it out, for sure... but I still would think that was fun.


Oh well, this is a stupid tangent - my apologies.  Back to what makes some courses more fun that others.

TH

[Tags:]

Tags:

[Tags:]

Tags:

Call to undefined function theme_linktree()