Jordan,
Some of us do play like that, though usually more often in a limited fashion like trying to play with 2 or 3 clubs and a putter.
But the problem isn't the length itself so much as how it is achieved. Notice how Patrick isn't talking about just the fact he hit it shorter that matters, but how his reduced clubhead speed means he can't put as much backspin on the ball or hit it with as high a trajectory as before. That's what changes the game, and that's what brings more of the architectural features into play.
The thing that really changed the way good players use the driver today is the very high trajectory that gives drives that are almost all carry with very little roll under most conditions. It is a lot different than it was even 10 years ago. And over the past 30 years or so, many other changes have happened that have all moved toward players hitting the ball higher in the air so the ball flies further and rolls less. The only "architectural features" that affect you in the air are trees and wind, and today's ball is MUCH less affected by wind than it used to be thanks to computerized aerodynamic engineering trying to minimize that! If there was a way to make a ball that was less affected by hitting trees, I'm sure Titleist engineers would be hard at work on it right now (and Tiger, Shivas and I would be first in line to try them!)
If I leave my driver at home and play with only irons I will lose distance off the tee, but I still have all the same shots I have when I bring the driver, I'm just hitting them from further away (and perhaps less often from in the trees) I might make a 450 yard par 4 seem long again like it did in 1985 when I tee it up with a 1 iron and am still left with a 4 or 5 iron into the green, but I can still hit that 4 iron way the hell up in the air and hold most greens.
If I wanted to truly replicate what Patrick is talking about, I'd need to limit my clubhead speed somehow -- and that's hard to do as a "speed limit". I can hit it about the same distance as my normal shots with a swing where my hands don't go beyond chest high if I really accelerate the clubhead through impact. Obviously I can hit shots with less than full clubhead speed, but I don't know how I'd go about playing a round where I decided to limit myself to say 70% of my normal speed. How I know exactly where the limit is? If I need just a few more yards or a bit more spin on a particular shot how do I prevent myself from cheating a bit and going to 75%? If I just plain can't do it, there's no cheating, and I've got to invent some new shots or strategies to compensate. THAT'S what Patrick is talking about.