Good thoughts, Jeff, but not at all practical.
IMHO the central essence of golf for 85% of us iis 'Ball go Far!" My wife is a very good woman golfer who could never beat me (YET!) if we played off the same tees. I played Ladybank a few weeks ago in a 2-day competition with some seriously good players (scratch for 30-40 years), 4-5 HCP now. Even for them 400 yards was a a good drive and a good 2 iron on slightly up hill holes. Our scores were in the 75-85 range.
Give the Cayman ball to the flat bellies, and let us geezers hit whatever we can see.
Should I send some caymans to your son for Xmas, Jeff, so you and he could play the same game?
All the best
Rich
Rich,
He's grown-it's ugly now.
Rich, no one's asking you to play Caymans. Ball go far people can continue to play what they are.
The amazing thing is, it would affect no one except those WHO CHOSE TO PLAY the shorter ball.
I could play the forward tees with my wife, walk in 2 hours on the 4800 yard course with her and play MY game with the shorter ball.
has zero impact on ANYONE else if I play a shorter ball.
What amazes me, is that anyone could defend what currently goes on now with 5 sets of tees, players on different tees causing lost social interaction, handicap/slope/CR adjustments, gross wastes of land,$$, and maintenance, bastardizing of classic courses, new modern length 5+ hour monstrocities.....
AS MORE PRACTICAL......... than me playing a shorter ball with my wife.
Or my Champions tour buddy Scott Parel (297 driving average) playing the shorter ball (me with ProV) while we play Palmetto.
The problem is, such balls aren't readily available.because there is no perceived demandHickories are great and a really cool option, but they are quite expensive and then it REALLY becomes a game of who has the best equipment-to say nothing of the timing changes going back and forth from that to modern clubs.
A simple shorter ball-that I and others-can buy.
Open minds might just allow them to become available.
Surely there are more here than in mainstream golf,
Interesting that most just look at it as "how does this affect me" because they have a classic course they are comfortable playing with modern equipment. Good on you but your kids may not have that same luxury.
One by one, those courses are going away as modern monstrosities suck away the attention, the $$, and the biggest money spending members. Having high profile events at a modern monster further dilutes the paying member pool.
I have overseas friends who want to come over here and have me get them on Liberty National
probaly not in the Top 100 in the MET area, but big enough to gather the events and attention.
.
Inwood, Siwanoy, Engineersetc. all former highly regarded big brawny courses that hosted majors, that are now reduced to pitch and putts by elite players and no longer have their cashe due to technology.
No doubt the same is true all over the UK-----great courses? yes-- but if the better highly skilled players aren't chattering about your course and are instead filling up the modern monstrocities, your course, or another like it, is eventually on the way out.
and even if they come back they bring their 5 hour all day mindset with them.