A 12-hole golf course? Yep, they do indeed exist. And more might be on the way. Jack Nicklaus originally proposed 12-hole courses back in 2007, but he was largely ignored.
He brought it up again in 2011 as a way to save golf, which he pointed-out was struggling to engage the younger generation. This time, he wasn’t ignored, but rather criticized. You see, Mr. Nicklaus had recently built a 12-hole golf course and many accused him of just trying to boost his business.
But over the past few years, the golf industry has indeed grappled with ways to attract Millennials. And it’s no secret the game loses participation (from both potential and current golfers alike) because it takes far too long to complete a round – in some cases pushing towards 6-hours for 18-holes (especially on public tracks).
To combat this, the USGA launched a dedicated initiative to encourage more 9-hole rounds (our friend Stacy over at Golf for Beginners touched on this last week). But let’s face it, as long as it takes to play 18-holes, playing only 9 just doesn’t seem like enough. I guess those of us on a time-crunch could frequent more par 3 or executive courses, but shortening the length of the holes and subsequently not being able to hit your driver? To me, that really changes the game.
Ideally, what golf needs is a course with less-than-18, but more than 9 full-sized holes – including par 5’s. Thus the 12-hole (or even 14-hole) golf course might be just right. First off, greens fees would come down since there’s less course to maintain. And with less holes, walking courses would become more prevalent too. How many times have you become fatigued over the last few holes while walking 18? Well, that won’t be an issue if you’re only playing 12.
And it stands to reason if you cut the number of holes by a third, it should take only two-thirds of the time to complete a round. So if it typically takes you 5 hours to play 18-holes, it should take just under 3.5 hours to play 12. This is a much more manageable timeframe and it fits much better into a busy weekend schedule. And if you only have 90 minutes or so, just play the front (or back) 6!
But what about the handicap system on a course with less than 18-holes? Well, that can be adjusted fairly easily according to the USGA, which has stated they “would consider rating 12-hole courses in the near future.”
So what’s the issue?
It appears the biggest hurdle is the mindset of current golfers and golf course managers. “But par is only 48!” We golfers have a hard-time considering anything but the traditional 18-holes. In my opinion, it’s this kind of stubbornness that is holding the game back. We need to be reminded that 18-holes is a relatively recent (last century or so) standard number of holes a course has. In the past, courses have featured 5, 7, 12 and even 22 holes!
And likewise, you can put golf course managers in the same boat. When a course is about to fold, most managers don’t even consider selling-off acreage and creating a 12-hole (or even 9-hole) layout. They simply take the loss and close their doors.
Yet on the whole, it appears 12-hole courses would be good for golf – not only helping the industry economically, but also helping with participation from new and current golfers alike. Now if we can only get folks to start thinking outside the box, we might just be able to make golf a better game for everyone.
Feel free to throw in your two cents in the comments – I would love to hear your opinion, either for or against a 12-hole golf course.
We have a 12 hole course in my area and I’ve played it a few times. We had a great time. It’s a fun layout and it was definitely less time consuming than the standard 18. Only downside for the course was that we may have been the only group playing it because people don’t seem to be ready to embrace the 12 hole layout. Pretty much exactly what you said in the article. I think the standard weekend warrior golfer would really love a 12 hole course if they just gave it a fair chance.
Hey Spencer – is the 12-hole course near you an executive/par 3 course or is it full-length?
I would definitely play a course like this if they were available. So much needs to be done to make golf more enjoyable to a “regular” person.
It’s not a bad concept and may save time if that is what you want. But for me, being retired, I would probably be more interested in a 24 hole course.
Completely understandable as well, Eric!
Interesting…I read about Nicklaus discussing 12-hole courses. I am a big proponent of getting people out to play – many folks just don’t have time for 18!
What do you think about other initiatives like larger holes on courses?
Thanks for the comment (and inspiration for this post) Stacy! I like the idea of fewer holes on courses and a simpler rulebook for recreational play (which I’ll be posting about soon).
The larger holes thing was a fun idea but ultimately, it might be a bit too gimmicky for golf. General acceptance seem to hinge on compatibility with a handicap system. And while 12-hole golf courses and simpler rules can probably be universally accommodated into that system, it would be tougher to integrate the larger hole thing since they are so random (only a handful of courses feature and that’s only some of the time).
I just walked a quick 9 holes this morning and I would’ve loved to do a bit more. For me being a Stinky Golfer as well, I usually take the first few holes to adequately warm up because there isn’t time to do so. By the time I get to the 4th and 5th holes, I’m in the “groove” and wish there were a bit more.
That’s not a bad point, Victor – I too rarely have time to hit balls or even putt on the practice green. It does indeed take a few holes to warm up and a few additional holes after 9 could make up for that.
Playing 12-holes versus building 12-holes, just build 9 with a shorter loop the 2nd-time… maybe with different tees.
Our 430pm League Friday afternoons does have the time of daylight to play 18 holes, but a number of the league members play 1-9 for “skins” and league-play, then play a short-loop of 10, 17 and 18 before hitting the bar in the summer months when there’s additional daylight. In high summer, you can play a longer back loop of 10, 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18.
When I was in High School in the 70s, we played 9-hole Conference matches. One of the the schools home course was a small Private Club with a 9-hole layout that had double tees for each hole so you could play 18 “different holes”. The Par-5s were Par-4 the 2nd time, and some of the other holes were Par-4 or Par-3 depending on “front” or “back” loop for Par-70 course-total. For a “small course” they had large greens so on the weekends, they would put two pins in like at St. Andrews Old Course with different flags each-loop. Local rule was Hole-in-One valid for either hole, regardless of flag.
Ted – good point. And Jack Nicklaus mentioned in one interview that 18-hole courses wouldn’t have to remove any holes, rather just create three, 6-hole loops. So folks could play 6, 9, 12 or 18 holes depending on how much time they have.
If you Mahe golf courses 12 holes instead of 18 you will lose the dedicated weekends/retirees golfer. If a shorter time would be a draw to new golfers, why aren’t they lining up to pay 9 holes? It seems to be that the real purpose of this is to make the game all alone easier to play. A serious golfer is not looking to make the game simpler and I don’t see people running to 12 holes if they won’t go to 9.
I think this is a great idea. I’ve commented to my golf buddies that I tend to feel some fatigue and soreness in my arms and shoulders right around the 12th hole. We all start getting a bit slap-happy by 14. So a dozen would probably suit us perfectly.
In Germany we have an abundance of nine hole, full length, and short courses. Most 18-27 hole course also have their green fees set up for playing either 9 or 18 holes. Since my home club is a short nine hole, where the driving range takes up holes 7-9 during normal operation (land is tight here), the last three are only open during tournaments (or when no one is slamming the driving range), I (we) often play 2x or 3x 6 for a round of 12 or 18. So even if you only want to play 12 on an 18 course, I don’t think anyone can stop you from playing 12, then heading off into the sunset.
I think this is a great idea and have thought so since I first read about Jack Nicklaus comments over a decade ago. The key issue that you mention is club managers seldom thinking outside the box. They are a parochial group. I have been a shareholder at a course for 25 years and the leadership there is always more of the same. Declining enrolment has been a discussion since Jack launched the idea and courses need to think differently if they want to attract millennials. My observation with my own kids is 9 is all many want. Along with simplifying the rules, 12 holes may be the bridge solution to make the game more attractive for millineals and perhaps some females. I hope those that operate courses start to listen.