The shortest 18 hole golf course

[Matt_Cohn]

Is it Presidio Hills in San Diego?

I played there yesterday for the first time in years. I had my rangefinder so I can say with authority that the longest hole was 91 yards. None of the others even reached the 80's.

Most holes were in the high 50's to low 70's. Holes 1, 10, 11, and 18 were under 50 yards. (As I mentioned in the "highlights" thread, I made a cool one-bounce ace on #10, but it was only a 40 yard shot to the back pin.)

I'd guess the course played 1,100 yards for 18 holes. The tippy-tips could probably stretch it to 1,400

Is there a shorter 18-hole course out there?

[Pete_Pittock]

Matt,
  I was thinking that McMenamin's Edgefield Manor course would qualify. It is in Troutdale OR, about five miles east of Portland airport. While no hole is over 80 yards the overall length is 1,111. But it only has seventeen holes. Why? McMenamin brothers coverted the old county poor farm buildings and grounds, and the distillery and brew pub make an excellent 18th and more.
  The McMenamins have converted a number of historic buildings in NW Oregon into combination pub/B&B and are quite successful.

[JeffTodd]

Is there a line where a course is no longer a "golf course" and is a pitch-and-putt course instead? There is an 18 hole pitch-and-putt in Voorhees, NJ that is under 600 yards long. The longest hole is around 40 yards.

[rjsimper]

Tori Spelling Pines, I'd guess, noses up to right around the 1000 yard mark for 18 holes, and I can assure you it is every bit a golf course.

[Mark_Fine]

We designed and built an 18 hole course in the Lehigh Valley for a First Tee facility.  The longest hole is 62 yards and the shortest is 27.  Total yardage is about 750 yards.  

[Tony_Muldoon]

Is there a line where a course is no longer a "golf course" and is a pitch-and-putt course instead?

Surely the dividng line between the two would be at least one Par4 as accepted i.e. over 250 yards.  However one of those and 17 shorter would be an odd fish indeed.

Here’s the excellent p&p across the bay from Lahinch at 30mph.  In Ireland I believe the rules for this kind of course allow holes upto 65m long.

[Mike_Cirba]

Is there a line where a course is no longer a "golf course" and is a pitch-and-putt course instead? There is an 18 hole pitch-and-putt in Voorhees, NJ that is under 600 yards long. The longest hole is around 40 yards.

Jeff,

Some years ago, in trying to catalogue all of the courses I've played over the years, I was left with this very perplexing question.

What, exactly, constituted a golf course, and was there a minimum yardage?

I wrote the USGA and learned the following;

As long as implements are used to loft the ball into the air along a natural surface to targets that are holes in the ground, meant to be "holed" in the least number of strokes, it's a golf course.

For course rating and slope purposes, the USGA sets a  minimum of 1500 yards for a 9 hole course and 3000 for an 18 hole course.  

However, just because a course isn't slope rated doesn't mean it's not a golf course.  

Make sense?

[JeffTodd]

Is there a line where a course is no longer a "golf course" and is a pitch-and-putt course instead? There is an 18 hole pitch-and-putt in Voorhees, NJ that is under 600 yards long. The longest hole is around 40 yards.

Jeff,

Some years ago, in trying to catalogue all of the courses I've played over the years, I was left with this very perplexing question.

What, exactly, constituted a golf course, and was there a minimum yardage?

I wrote the USGA and learned the following;

As long as implements are used to loft the ball into the air along a natural surface to targets that are holes in the ground, meant to be "holed" in the least number of strokes, it's a golf course.

For course rating and slope purposes, the USGA sets a  minimum of 1500 yards for a 9 hole course and 3000 for an 18 hole course.  

However, just because a course isn't slope rated doesn't mean it's not a golf course.  

Make sense?

It makes sense. All squares are rectangles but not all rectangles are squares, and all pitch and putt courses are golf courses, but not all golf courses are pitch and putt courses (thankfully).  

[Matt_Cohn]

Yeah, I don't know why a pitch-and-putt wouldn't be a "golf course" unless play is by a totally different set of rules (i.e., mini-golf).

[Ray Richard]

If you are ever near Sanford, Maine try out Pine Hollow, billed as a minature par 3, its a wild and wooly 18 holes all in the 50-70 yard range. The greens roll about 3 on the stimp and the prevalent pine trees will do a good job redirecting your golf ball, but its great fun. Try to finish the round before the big, mean, meat eating, Maine mosquitos take over.

I used to get together with 3 foursomes of golf course supers/pros and play 1 night a week, we would do some serious laughing when somebody would miss a 2 foot putt.

If you can't play, check out the clientele, you will see all types, from big "Jethro Bodine's" with denim overalls and a full set of clubs to fully made up local gals with high heels and long dresses, out on a date.  

[Steve Wilson]

Ray,

I was in Sanford, Maine two or three years ago and on the way for ice cream my girl and I stumbled onto Pine Hollow.  We had been thunderstorm and tornadoed out of a tee time at Cape Arundel earlier in the week so we decided any golf was better than no golf.  

After two chip ins and an improbably long putt I was two under "par" through the first nine when the mosquitoes came out, so with the prospect of a sub par round I wasn't about to quit.  Curiously, mosquitoes like me much better than they do Rosemary so it was no problem for her to stay out there and laugh as I tried to play golf with one hand and swat with the other.

Ultimately, I blew up on the back nine due to the mosquitoes.  It's difficult to read putts when your life is passing in front of your eyes due to blood loss.  But even more offputting were the loud, sustained and echoing belches emanating from the sated mosquitoes.  I may have been personally responsible for a population explosion of the little blood suckers.

If I'm near there again and have some time, I might try it again provided I could finish before the mosquitoes come out.

It's at times like this that I marvel at how many golf courses the members of the tree house have collectively experienced.  I suspect that we have covered upwards of 75% of them--maybe even more.