Playing New Courses

What drives people to continue playing new golf courses? Surely it must not be boredom with their home course, otherwise they would pick a new one. I can not speak for everyone, to be sure, but I am certainly not driven by boredom. Typically I find myself motivated to play a new course simply for variety and fun. However, other times, I play a new course because I intend to learn something specific about golf design and/or features. But both of these amount to one thing, I play new courses "because they are there."

New courses are simply fun to play, even when the course is poor quality. There is always some level of excitement in seeing new features and holes for the first time. Even on courses that have been seen before, the excitement exists in seeing new features that were missed previously. New courses also provide variety. This variety can be anything from different shot types into greens to having to shape shots off the tee when that may not be required at the home course. Playing new courses, seeing this variety, keeps the golf game sharp by having to play new and different shots, rather than the same ones time after time.

Sometimes, though, I find myself going to new courses to see specific things. Perhaps, it may be that the course is generally highly regarded and worth seeing. It may be that a course is worth seeing because it was done by a specific designer on a specific type of site. But these courses are visited with a specific purpose and desire for growth in course design knowledge. 

At all times though, for the same reasons skydivers jump and climbers climb, I play new courses simply because they are there. Most of the time, I really need no reason to play a new course beyond  the fact that the door is open and the cash drawer accepting of my money. 

I don't intend to ever stop playing new golf courses....well, unless I manage to play every golf course that is currently in existence. Of course that will not happen. It is simply too much fun to go and play new golf courses, either with friends or with strangers who I meet on the first tee. That is one of the great joys of golf.

The Dunes Golf & Beach Club and Arcadian Shores

Johnny B playing some Jones family golf tomorrow. Robert Trent Jones, Se. classic at The Dunes and a Rees Jones design at Arcadian Shores. Dunes and Arcadian Shores are both prior Golf Digest Top 100 in America and Dunes is currently ranked among the Top 100 Public Courses in America. Should be quite a fun day. Photo tours and reviews to come shortly.

The Walking Golfers Society

So while I haven't said it directly, it could have been assumed by reading some of my previous postings about walking the course and having walkability being a key factor in my course ratings, I am a member of The Walking Golfer's Society. I am also involved in some of the website management. This is a great organization that is being run to provide golfer's who walk the course a place to go and be around like-minded individuals.

The Society and it's website is a great resource for golfers wishing to travel to different locations and find out what courses in that area are walker-friendly. The Walkability Rating section of the website lists courses using four different colors, Green-Yellow-Orange-Red, in terms of how walkable the courses are. Green being the easiest, Red the most difficult. There is also another color, Gray, for courses that are carts only. There is a huge number of courses currently rated on the scale and the Society is certainly accepting new ratings.

The website also has numerous Interviews and Articles, some by highly recognized individuals and golf writers. These articles range from personal testimonies on the benefits of walking to travel guides for different areas. These are a great resource for all golfers.

Course reviews also exist on the Society website, profiling a number of courses not available here.

At present, we are trying to plan a national Society event for next summer in Colorado. I am also trying to plan one for early next year in the Florida Panhandle or Southwestern Alabama.

This Society is something that we are trying to turn into a thriving online community for walking golfers. Hopefully you will swing by and join us. Enjoy the walk.