[John_Conley]

I've been thinking about this for two days.  Golf is no longer growing in the U.S. and many markets are overbuilt.  Courses are closing and rates are falling.  Private clubs are not immune.

Somewhere about 15-20 years ago a new winter sport gained popularity.  Snowboarding.  Initially met with much resistance by facilities and purists, tides changed and the activity became more mainstream.  So much so that I'm told there are more lift tickets sold for 'boarders than traditional skiiers.

A lot of effort has focused on expanding the use for golf courses to golfers.  9-hole alternatives.  I'm sure there are more but that's about it since there just aren't that many things you can do.

We're also being implored to think 'outside the box'.  With that in mind, no idea is too stoopid to be ignored.  Maybe this idea isn't exactly what will work, but it may lead to someone else thinking of something more viable.

What if golf course properties could be used for something related to golf or other than golf?

People could whack a ball around with a baseball bat, alleviating the frustration of playing it as it lies.  Bicyclists could stage races, akin to HS cross-country runners competing across golf courses in the early Spring or late Fall.  Dirt bikers might like trying killer jumps out of bunkers.  Maybe remote-control airplane enthusiasts could have a Capture the Flag type race/game contested from 7,000 yards with 18 battles making up the war.

Such an activity would need to be minimally disruptive to the maintenance of the course.  It wouldn't matter if the activity was stand-alone or could possibly occur simultaneously with normal golf use.

While initially skiiers dismissed snowboarding as a fad, I'm guessing it appealed to younger riders because it is fun and easier to get started.

Can you think of anything that people would pay to do on a golf course?  I'm guessing some operators will be open to trying something.  Of course, whatever ultimately catches on will no doubt begin in California.

[Joel Zuckerman]

Reminds me of a golf entrepreneur I happened upon at the PGA Show this past January.  It's truly amazing the energy people put into attempting to re-invent the wheel.  Here's the relevant portion of my column in a Hilton Head-area newspaper:

•   An English chap at a small corner booth pressed a football-shaped golf ball in my hand, which at first glance seemed to be a promotional oddity, like a massive animal head-cover, or jewel-encrusted putter.  But the oblong, dimpled orb is the key to a brand-new game he’s attempting to market called Golf Cross, where instead of depositing the ball into a hole in the ground, as has been the object for centuries, one endeavors to “kick a field goal” into a net, set up 20-or-so yards to the side of the green on a conventional golf course.  Speaking of which, players use conventional clubs to propel the ball, and apparently by tilting the top of the egg-shaped ball left or right on the tee, one can automatically slice or hook on command. www.golfcross.co.uk 

[Reef Wilson]

It's not exactly a new sport, but there is an executive course in Oceanside CA that has the course also setup with frisbee golf baskets near the greens. So the course will have a mixed crowd of golfers and frisbee golfers. Of course one of these discs landing can put some heinous dents in the green. For this particular course I think this was a good move in terms of getting more people out there and I'm curious to see if they stuck with the idea, though due to my more refined tastes in golf courses these days I don't see myself returning there.

While I have played it and have my own discs, frisbee golf is certainly not new has its own (mostly opposite) image problem, but certainly a first timer can go around and have a much more pleasant time than with sticks and balls, especially if they have thrown a frisbee before. And I must say that seeing a very skilled player is pretty darn impressive but not nearly as much as top "ball" golf players.

I've also always been fascinated by speed golf, though never enough to try it.

Reef

[Kalen Braley]

People could whack a ball around with a baseball bat, alleviating the frustration of playing it as it lies.  Bicyclists could stage races, akin to HS cross-country runners competing across golf courses in the early Spring or late Fall.  Dirt bikers might like trying killer jumps out of bunkers.  Maybe remote-control airplane enthusiasts could have a Capture the Flag type race/game contested from 7,000 yards with 18 battles making up the war.

Such an activity would need to be minimally disruptive to the maintenance of the course.  It wouldn't matter if the activity was stand-alone or could possibly occur simultaneously with normal golf use.

Can you think of anything that people would pay to do on a golf course?  I'm guessing some operators will be open to trying something.  Of course, whatever ultimately catches on will no doubt begin in California.

John,

It sounds good on paper, but its missing one key ingredient.  People already do these things but they can do it for free.

Bikers hit trails and vacant lots
Airplane enthusaists go to school or other open areas without charge
Ditto for capture the flag enthusiasts, they just go to existing parks or open areas that are already free.

So I'm not seeing where the revenue comes from on otherwise free activities.

[JohnV]

There is always Balf: http://balf.com/

[John_Conley]

Joel:

Great story.  It does seem pointless to 'reinvent the wheel', but non-golfers aren't playing and there's nothing you can do to stop them.  Perhaps they may want to play something else.

Reef:

That illustrates a great point.  How do you retain the core without alienating them when trying something off the beaten path?

Microsoft and Sony were pretty loyal to the core gamer crowd and the XBox 360 and PS3 are robust for that market.  Both are surprised at how well the dumbed-down Wii from Nintendo has done.  It appeals to a different part of the market.

Kalen:

So those examples may not be it.  If you owned a portfolio of languishing courses would you just watch their value erode?  There has to be something, no?

JVB:

I didn't know Balf existed!  That's awesome.  Great share.  We used to see how many times we had to hit a tennis ball to go around the block.  It would have been fun to try it on a regulation golf course with a ball that actually got out there.  Most people can bat a ball straighter than they can beat it with a golf club.  Have Balfers hit the inevitable discussion on technology?  Wood bat versus aluminum.  Also, do purists still think leagues should go without a DH...even 34 years after the American League adoption?  After all, this is a cross of baseball and golf.

[JohnV]

John,

It would appear from the web page that Clats (club / bat) are made of wood.  No Aluminium allowed.

[Richard Boult]

As a boarder who switched from skiing some 15 years ago at 35 years old, I like the idea of opening up golf to alternative "gear" and alternative "ways" to play the game, instead of making it's courses available for completely new uses.

Snowboarding saved the ski industry, not just by providing a new way to get down the slope, but by providing an alternative that is easier to master, more fun to experience, and lets you dress more comfortably and casually.  Snowboarding broke through some barrier (an uptight image perhaps) that limited sking's appeal.

Image

I think golf suffers from a similar image. Dress codes, slow play, complicated rules and too much etiquette permeate the game.  I'm not suggesting we abandon rules and etiquette, just lighten up a little (adopt a "boarder" mentality). Speed things up, avoid pre-shot routines, just hit the ball, loose the golf shoes, loose the golf carts, untuck your shirt, carry less clubs, lag putt without removing the pin, talk while others hit the ball, hit out of turn, even walk on each other's putting lines. Just keep the "play it as it lies" rules and have fun.

Variety

As Reef experienced at a course in So Cal, I'd like the option to play "disc" golf on a "real" golf course. But I'd also like to see more variety offered in how I play "real" golf. I'd like to see the course be rerouted every several times I play it.  Some days you play from the 1st tee to the 9th fairway to the 8th green, other days you play the "intended" 18.  Course operators (and golfers) could have a blast finding unique routings.  Some days the course might play 18 holes, some days it might be 12.  But it would never take more than 4 hours to finish.

Simplicity (and affordability)

Simplify the game so all you need is one single club that you adjust for height and distance. Just put a few balls and tees in your pocket and off you go with your one club (that also serves as a walking stick).  Part of snowboarding's appeal (and disk golf's appeal) is its simplicity.  One board, no poles.

Fun

It might be fun to get around the course on a bicycle or a mountain board (a skateboard with oversized "all-terrain" wheels)... all more practical if all you have to carry is a single golf club and some balls.  Gets rid of the need for a golf cart too!

I've tried speed golf.  I couldn't breath after the 2nd hole!

[Joel Zuckerman]

It might be fun to get around the course on a bicycle or a mountain board (a skateboard with oversized "all-terrain" wheels)... all more practical if all you have to carry is a single golf club and some balls.  Gets rid of the need for a golf cart too!


Art--This is quite the coincidence also..In the same column I quoted from earlier in this post, here is another "wacky inventor" I ran into (actually, he almost ran me over) at this years' PGA Show:

•   Turf Trike was invented by Jason Deal, who looks like he’ll be old enough to shave any month now.  It’s a three-wheeled, pedal-driven beach cruiser-type contraption, outfitted to hold a golf bag between the handlebars, with plenty of baskets and storage units.  It’s apparently targeted for those who want more exercise than a golf cart can provide, but aren’t willing or able to actually play the game the way it was intended—on their own two feet.  www.Turftrike.com

[Dan Kelly]

... my column in a Hilton Head-area newspaper:

The Island Packet?

[Joel Zuckerman]

Dan:

No--Bluffton Today...for many years known as The Carolina Morning News

[Steve_ Shaffer]

Possible second use: psychotherapy.

[W.H. Cosgrove]

Go cart races

Farming

[Dan Kelly]

Possible second use: psychotherapy.

I can see it now: Lucy Van Pelt, right behind the 18th green.

[Peter Wagner]

John C,

Snowboarding largely supplanted skiing for at least 2 fundamental reasons I can think of:

1.)  Both sports can be done concurrently without major disruption to either and;
2.)  The traditional skiing business was in a major financial world of hurt (Necessity is the mother of invention!).

Skiers objected to boarders for many years but the mountain operators HAD to allow boarding - they needed the money!

IMO, for any new sport to take hold on golf courses the above 2 points would have to be satisfied.  (Sorry Bolf.)

From a golf course standpoint I can think of an answer to #1 but the timing is wrong as golf is pretty well off financially at the moment.  Even if you had the perfect co-sport right now you would be displacing golfers and they wouldn't let that happen during daylight hours.

- Peter

FWIW, I think the TurfTrike has merit.

[SPDB]

I can't recall the specifics but didn't Nicklaus design a course that was intended to be played using a reduced flight ball (somewhere in the order of 30-50% in diminished distance). Not a related use, but definitely a rethinking of the paradigm, particularly where space is an issue. 

[John_Conley]

I can't recall the specifics but didn't Nicklaus design a course that was intended to be played using a reduced flight ball (somewhere in the order of 30-50% in diminished distance). Not a related use, but definitely a rethinking of the paradigm, particularly where space is an issue. 

Cayman.  Dimples on the outside.

[SPDB]

Dimples on the outside.

As opposed to?

[John_Conley]

Dimples going inward.

[Peter Wagner]

{sigh, it's like talking talking into a hurricane...}

Here's some info on the Cayman concept:

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HFI/is_10_52/ai_78802841

http://www.amickgca.com/cayman.htm

http://www.golftransactions.com/20050321_nicklaus.php
(scroll down to the 4th question and answer)

http://cgi.ebay.com/Golf-Ball-Vintage-CAYMAN-by-Jack-Nicklaus-Bramble_W0QQitemZ220209232120QQihZ012QQcategoryZ88444QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247

http://www.theroyalgazette.com/siftology.royalgazette/Article/article.jsp?articleId=7d224123003006d&sectionId=70

[Tom_Doak]

I still have a Cayman ball somewhere around here.

It wasn't popular for two reasons:

a)  You couldn't get the thrill of hitting a long ball, and
b)  The odd distance ratio as you started playing pitch shots would throw off your judgment of distance for real golf.

[John_Conley]

Plus, Tom, I remember it getting thrown around in wind.  It was closer to a ping pong ball in weight than a golf ball.

[Pat Brockwell]

The question at hand assumes that every one on the course is playing golf.  I see any number of activities on the course, few of which are really golf.  Some use golf as a method for getting into some one else's wallet,  social climbing, corporate laddering, taking a walk, looking for lost balls, bird watching, annoying a spouse or friend, sunbathing.  Snowboarding vs skiing is a good analogy for coming up with a way to avoid engaging in the real thing.

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