The hole story

Expect more eagles and birdies in Ohio ... all because of the Golden Bear.

The Golden Bear himself, the legendary Jack Nicklaus, has his own ideas on how to draw more people into golf. One of them is encouraging people to play six, nine or 12 holes instead of a full round if they are time-challenged or may not have the energy to go 18.

The other idea from Nicklaus focuses on seeing double. Well, almost.

Twelve holes at Nicklaus's home club, Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio, will feature cups that are 8 inches in diameter. That is nearly double the normal size of 4.25 inches. They will be in play for a 12-hole tournament that is scheduled Sunday and Monday.

"That would help my putting, as bad as I putt," says Paul Latshaw, CGCS, director of grounds at Muirfield Village Golf Club, and a 24-year member of GCSAA, who had to go find a large cup cutter for the event.

Nicklaus hopes a shorter round plus a larger target on greens might entice people who don't have the time to play golf or think it's simply too difficult.

"I think the game is a great game and in no way am I trying to change it," Nicklaus said in a prepared statement. "There are few bigger traditionalists than me, but I realize we need to start thinking out of the box. It's too important for us not to try.

"With so many sports and activities fighting for the time and attention of families, we need to think of ways to make our game more attractive and thus more inviting, especially to children and young adults. Perhaps what Muirfield Village is trying over Labor Day can help open a few eyes and a few minds."

Holes 1,2, 5-13 and 14 will be used for a 12-hole better-ball tournament Sunday; a 12-hole stroke play event is set for Monday. Latshaw says those 12 holes actually will have two holes per green (one of the holes being for the non-tournament players) with different-colored flagsticks to prevent any confusion. Those who are playing in the 12-hole tournaments are encouraged to play one tee up from where they usually play, and they are encouraged to play in 2.5 hours. They also will be penalized one stroke for every five minutes over the allotted time limit.

"We did a test for Mr. Nicklaus when he was in town (of the 8-inch cups), and he was happy," Latshaw says. "At first, we even talked about a 12-inch cup. He wanted it as big as possible."

Latshaw says his biggest challenge will be when the event concludes, ensuring the larger cups are level.

Nicklaus hopes clubs and courses throughout the world try what Muirfield Village is doing. He thinks clubs should expand the size of holes once a week or once a month to attract interest. In October, Muirfield Village is inviting youths, including high school-age students, to come play a 12-hole event utilizing the 8-inch cups.

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Jennica-Don Reynolds]

Interesting idea but it sounds too gimmicky to be used on a daily basis or to actually draw in more rounds of golf by the novice player.