Can flexible golf courses save the game?

There have been a number of innovations in golf in recent years in a bid to not only attract new players, but also to retain the time-poor golfers who are finding it harder to fit in a game around their busy schedules. These have ranged from the out there ideas like Junkyard Golf to subtle rule changes and relaxing of etiquette on the course.

But one new way that’s become popular among golf course designers is the flexible course.

What are flexible golf courses?
Simply put, these are courses that don’t follow a single route. You won’t find the holes number in the standard 1 to 18 pattern, but will often find ‘loops’ of holes.

Early versions of this basically gave golfers the option of playing a course in reverse or splitting the front and back nine.

But the concept has since evolved to make fitting in a few holes easier. Some courses are creating loops consisting of just a handful of neighbouring holes that can be played once through or over and again to create the full 18-hole experience.

These loops are usually bunched by geography, allowing time poor and older golfers to play a round by covering less ground. Sometimes it can mean having a number of greens dotted around a smaller number of holes, allowing variety and choice on a much smaller parcel of land.
  

Why are they important for the future of the game?
As many of the modern golfers are older players, mobility is becoming an issue.

Many retired golfers might not have the stamina to play 18-holes or walk the long distances between holes. By introducing flexible lay outs it allows them to pick and choose the holes and how many they play. This, hopefully, means they’re more likely to turn up for a game as the pressure to complete a full round has been removed.

It also is a lot cheaper than paying to play the full 18-holes, which suits those who haven’t got the funds or who just want to try it out.

For those wanting to fit in some holes after work, or who don’t want their Sunday taken over by the game, they can fit in a loop in a couple of hours.

And finally, flexible courses can be created on smaller pieces of land, reducing the environmental impact of creating a golf course. It also means they can be built more affordably and added to developments like new housing and hotels at a lower cost, making the game more accessible to the future residents of these developments. 

Where can I find them?
Many of the new flexible courses are being built in the US. Last year, the fittingly named The Loop opened in Michigan. This course has a backwards and forwards rotation.

At the Trilogy at Ocala Preserve in Florida, there is even more flexibility. The course can be played as a standard 18-hole, par-3 or as a 6-hole course depending on tee configurations.  

There are 4 different versions to play at this residential home. The 6 holes form the Gallery Loop, while an 18-hole par-54 routing is called the Skill Course. The Players Loop is a 6-hole, par-24 routing. Going 3 times round this loop provides the 18-hole Players Course. And it’s all been fitted into just 50 acres of land.

Tiger Woods has also designed a flexible short course in Mexico called The Oasis, which can play as 3 long holes instead of a short course.