Are You Ready for a Round of Golf Being Just 9 Holes?

I knew it would eventually get to this, and it finally has. Golf is cutting the course by nine holes to attract more players. To play an 18-hole round of golf takes approximately 4 or 5 hours, and that maybe about two hours too long for some people.  With that in mind, many courses are starting to get golfers into the mind-set of 9 holes being considered a round of golf instead of 18 holes. One reason is that golfers don't have the time it takes to play a "full 18-hole round" of golf. But they probably can find time to play 9 holes or use 2 hours of their day to play.

The game has been going through a downturn lately because of many factors including the time it takes to play. Other factors are the cost of the game and an aging population. According to Time Magazine in 2005, 30 million Americans ages 6 and older played golf. By 2011, the game had lost 4 million players. The number of rounds played also took a hit as that number fell from 500 million rounds to 463 million rounds.

All the indicators are showing that the public is slowly warming up to the idea of a round of golf being 9 holes. Just think of the scenario. You can play a 9 hole round of golf and tell your buddies you shot "a 69 today." Until they catch on, you look pretty good out there.