Hypothetical: would you rather join a Doak 8 ...

[Dan_Callahan]

... but you need a tee time to play and a round will take you 4.5 hours. Or would you choose a Doak 4, where you never need a tee time and you can get around the course as a single in 3 hours?

[John Kavanaugh]

I don’t want to live in a world where a guy like me plays as a single. For the most part the difference between a Doak 4 and 8 is 1000 yds. Bigger courses take bigger time.

[jeffwarne]

I don’t want to live in a world where a guy like me plays as a single. For the most part the difference between a Doak 4 and 8 is 1000 yds. Bigger courses take bigger time.

I'd join the club where I was least likely to prefer to play as a single...

[Don Mahaffey]

does anyone "join" an entity so they can be alone?

[Ira Fishman]

One of the reasons that “Hypothetical” is a good term in the Subject is that there are so few Doak 8s. So yes, I would be willing to spend more time playing a round than otherwise for that quality of course. And I am someone who thinks 3:45 for a foursome is too slow.


Ira

[mike_malone]

Are there Doak 8’s with 4.5 hour rounds?

[Dan_Callahan]

I ask because I was thinking about what I value most.

I love golf course architecture ... learning about the choices an architect makes, appreciating design when it is done well, etc.

And I think if I was on vacation and choosing courses to play, I would prioritize great architecture, even if it’s Pebble Beach and it might very well be a 6 hour round.

But day to day, I think I would choose the objectively “worse” course that isn’t crowded and as such makes it possible for me to run over after work, hop on the first tee, and bomb around before going home.

Just curious how many would take the opposing position.

This is not a value judgment about people who like to play alone vs those who prefer groups. And it’s not taking into account how many Doak 8s there are, where they are located, or how good the food is. Simply a hypothetical.

[John Foley]

I value the time alone on the course. Love walking 9 early or late as much as the weekly game, the men's night league or the trip w/ the gang where it is nothing but great memories. You can enjoy both.


Are place like Riveria, Belair, Olympic ever not 4.5 hour rounds? Those are the ones that come to mind where that isolation feeling may never happen.

[John Kavanaugh]

I value the time alone on the course. Love walking 9 early or late as much as the weekly game, the men's night league or the trip w/ the gang where it is nothing but great memories. You can enjoy both.


Are place like Riveria, Belair, Olympic ever not 4.5 hour rounds? Those are the ones that come to mind where that isolation feeling may never happen.

I got set up once with the boys at Riviera. Playing from the men’s tees it was no different than any other course in the country. Cept better  Why in the world would play be slow?

[John Foley]

I value the time alone on the course. Love walking 9 early or late as much as the weekly game, the men's night league or the trip w/ the gang where it is nothing but great memories. You can enjoy both.


Are place like Riveria, Belair, Olympic ever not 4.5 hour rounds? Those are the ones that come to mind where that isolation feeling may never happen.

I got set up once with the boys at Riviera. Playing from the men’s tees it was no different than any other course in the country. Cept better  Why in the world would play be slow?

Slow is not what I meant but crowded / packed such that the isolation feeling is pretty tough to find??

[Daryl David]

Are there Doak 8’s with 4.5 hour rounds?

Definitely

[Jim_Coleman]

   I suspect that most Doak 8's, especially the private ones, are sub 4 hour round courses.  More often than not they are serious golf clubs with golfers who get it.

[Michael Whitaker]

Why would you ever want to play as a single? That is golf masturbation (not that there is anything wrong with masturbation  ), but golf was meant to be a social game. Playing alone is a sad, sad idea.

[John Emerson]

Why would you ever want to play as a single? That is golf masturbation (not that there is anything wrong with masturbation  ), but golf was meant to be a social game. Playing alone is a sad, sad idea.

I quite enjoy playing alone.  Id day 50-60% of the time I prefer it.  The solitude is what I need to get my brain to turn off even if for a short period of time. 

[Michael Whitaker]

Why would you ever want to play as a single? That is golf masturbation (not that there is anything wrong with masturbation  ), but golf was meant to be a social game. Playing alone is a sad, sad idea.

I quite enjoy playing alone.  Id day 50-60% of the time I prefer it.  The solitude is what I need to get my brain to turn off even if for a short period of time.

That’s masturbation... not golf.

[Brian Potash]

Why would you ever want to play as a single? That is golf masturbation (not that there is anything wrong with masturbation  ), but golf was meant to be a social game. Playing alone is a sad, sad idea.

I quite enjoy playing alone.  Id day 50-60% of the time I prefer it.  The solitude is what I need to get my brain to turn off even if for a short period of time.

I'm very much with John on this one.  I too like to play a good portion of my rounds as a single.  Not all, but around 50% of the time as well.  My family recently joined a club where as long as I'm willing to play at off hours, gives me the opportunity to walk and finish in 2-3 or take a cart and finish in around 2. 


I love not having to wait, but also feel less pressure, or really no pressure when playing alone, which often makes it more fun for me.  Which is of course my main goal anyway.


I still try as hard as if I'm playing in a foursome or in a match, always grinding over every shot and competing against myself.


I know that puts me in the minority, but that's ok with me. 


John, looking forward to not playing with you sometime


Brian

[Matt_Cohn]

I feel like whichever one you'd joined, you'd wish you'd joined the other.

[Ally Mcintosh]

Of course golf is a social game.... But it’s also a peaceful game and solitude can bring peace.


Examples of occasions I like playing alone:


- Late evening on the links after a hard day / week, make up some holes, relax before bed


- A crisp, almost frosty, winter’s day where I’m just getting some fresh air on a stroll, just with a few clubs in hand. Don’t even want to stop walking to look at others. Don’t have time for talking. It’s cold.


I hate the idea of being a member of a commercial, slow course, Doak 8 or not.


Above said, company comes first. Just better in two or three balls and rounds of 3.45. It’s the dinner and drink with your partners in the restaurant after the round where the company really counts.

[Mark Pearce]

Of course golf is a social game.... But it’s also a peaceful game and solitude can bring peace.


Examples of occasions I like playing alone:


- Late evening on the links after a hard day / week, make up some holes, relax before bed


- A crisp, almost frosty, winter’s day where I’m just getting some fresh air on a stroll, just with a few clubs in hand. Don’t even want to stop walking to look at others. Don’t have time for talking. It’s cold.


I hate the idea of being a member of a commercial, slow course, Doak 8 or not.


Above said, company comes first. Just better in two or three balls and rounds of 3.45. It’s the dinner and drink with your partners in the restaurant after the round where the company really counts.

Agree with every word of this.

[Robin_Hiseman]

Yes Ally 100%. Sometimes there is nothing nicer than a quiet, solitary round in the circumstances you describe. A warm summer evening when you have a course to yourself is blissful.


Sorry Mike. Not getting your angle on this one at all.

[John Kavanaugh]

I might play alone if I could be guaranteed not to have to go through anyone. But really, that isn’t playing alone at all. That’s Cuck golf.

[Ryan Hillenbrand]

Why would you ever want to play as a single? That is golf masturbation (not that there is anything wrong with masturbation  ), but golf was meant to be a social game. Playing alone is a sad, sad idea.

I quite enjoy playing alone.  Id day 50-60% of the time I prefer it.  The solitude is what I need to get my brain to turn off even if for a short period of time.

I match up with John on this. Add me to the masturbation crowd I guess

[John Kavanaugh]

When I’m not golfing I spend most of my day watching and judging other golfers. My favorites are the golf cucks out playing alone watching the other groups with the hope of one day being asked to join. Poor little cucks pushing their little carts. Push, shoot, swing, repeat, over the hill they go.

[Jim Hoak]

Isn't there a third choice?  I love great golf courses.  And I love playing fast.  But most importantly, the number one criteria I have in a course/club is the quality of the other players/membership in general.  If the membership isn't warm and inviting, interesting and open, and just plain fun to be with and play with, I have no interest--no matter how good the course is--or how fast I can play.

[Ira Fishman]

Yes Ally 100%. Sometimes there is nothing nicer than a quiet, solitary round in the circumstances you describe. A warm summer evening when you have a course to yourself is blissful.


Sorry Mike. Not getting your angle on this one at all.

A crisp fall day on a quiet course too. Or first off the tee on the back on a hot summer day. But then again I am my own favorite person and my wife is my second favorite; hence, my preferences for playing companions. After the round in the bar is a different story.


Ira