Would golf be worse with no driver?

ZWExton · 2018-02-01T15:35:18+00:00

I made a joke in the Twist Face thread that we should take a stand against the $500 driver by playing the red tees with irons only. Sort of made me think -...

Would golf be worse with no driver?

mikeintopeka

We have a 9 hole course executive course in Topeka that is played as you wondered in your 'what if'. 5 par 3s, 3 short par 4s, and one short par 5. I'm already hitting 8 irons off the tee and easily could reach the par 5 in regulation with a short/mid iron for my 3rd shot even playing a 4 iron for the tee ball and my 2nd shot. I haven't been out there in 4 years because it's boring and not any fun for me.

It is a par 32 and par 64 after making two round trips. Coincidentally, it's where I'm going to try and seriously 'shoot my age'. 😁

sdandrea1

Part of the fun for me is trying to master the driver tee shot. I could see where moving up and playing irons only would be a fun diversion ocassionally.

Natpharm

We have a team in our league made up of 3 guys in their 70's-80's. One of them doesn't carry a 'wood' of any type, just irons, wedges, and putter. He hits the ball a good way, plays well, and is rarely out of a hole.

Their team has kicked the league's butt the past couple of years (and its not been close). Of course it doesn't hurt that one of the other guys averages 250+ off the tees (gold/forward) and has an overall game most anyone would love to have at any age... tough to beat.

rsvman

I think it would be fun to play like that once in a while. It would be cool if there were more courses like that, but still keep the regular courses, too.

sdandrea1

I've been going minimalist lately with good results, but the driver is in the bag. I shot 3 over today in my 9 hole league match with 8 clubs. Never wished I had the missing clubs.

2007 TM Burner 10.5*
The Perfect Club (21 degree original)
PING G10 5, 7, 9, UW, SW
Scotty Cameron Fastback.

ode

Golf would be different, IMO more challenging, and there would be a segment of golfers who would still play the same tees, so for that reason alone i'm against it. A few (~5) I put away driver and play the round....why? for sh1ts and giggles, it's fun to come in from different spots, and puts the pressure on my short game, ie getting up and down....sort of forces me to swing smooth vs. trying to get a little extra out if 3 wd. IMO for the avg. golfer 3 wd. is just as hard to hit as driver....I may be off on that but the head is much smaller that I think it may lead to a miserable round.

Par4QC

I couldn't do it, at least not on every hole, and there would be few I could. My most accurate clubs in the bag are driver and putter.

And they both go about the same distance most rounds.😭

PA-PLAYA

Par4QC

I agree. Driver and putter are undoubtedly the most two important clubs in my bag as it relates to accuracy and scoring.

No contest, not for me anyway.

shokosugi

For the most part, golf without a driver wouldn't be fun for me. I enjoy hitting driver and love tinkering and trying the latest and greatest. I know driver isn't always the smartest play, but its a hell of a lot more fun than hitting an iron off the tee. Having said that, for the occasional challenge, my buddies and I periodically play without drivers - we will sometimes play irons and wedges and putter only on an executive course or even from the tips on a regular course. Sometimes we take it a step further and play vintage blades from the tips with our tee off club being a 1 or 2 iron butter knife - makes the weekly skin game extra challenging and fun. Generally, I don't score much worse without the driver but certainly I would score better with a driver if I'm playing well. Either way, its fun once in awhile to play irons only but generally playing with a driver is way more enjoyable for me at least.

Rickochet

At 68 my yardage off of the tee has been dropping a bit each year. But, I still enjoy knocking the piss out of the big stick. It doesn't go as far as it used to, but neither do the drives of my buds and I enjoying occasionally nutting one and sailing by them. Booya. 😜

mikeintopeka

Rickochet occasionally nutting one and sailing by them. Booya.

You are supposed to declare those types of drives as a "Linda Ronstadt". I 'Blue Bayou' 😆

DC300

They have this, it’s called an executive course and if that my only option, I’ll watch paint dry or baseball on tv.

Golf, at its core, is an elitist sport, that’s why we have thousands of dollars in clubs, to go spend 5 hours of a day, riding around on courses that charge hundreds for the privilege to be there. The experience is not cheap, it’s not for the less fortunate and it’s sure as hell not better when you make it worse.

Until Tiger, it was a rich white (generally old) man’s sport, the only difference now is one odd generation that was inspired by a rich young black man who kicked all the old guys in the balls and took their sport, while acting proper of course. The sport is returning to the elites again as technology has somehow managed to make our lives more busy and less fulfilling, the middle class spends their time at work, the courses supported by them close and the richest survive. Check back in 10 years and let me now how your municipal courses are doing..

Point of story, don’t take away the exciting part of golf and hope it gets better just because early adapters are willing to part with $500 to have a “Twist face” driver.

professor

DC300
You're the one who's the elitist. The game of golf has no "personality attributes". Was Francis Quimet an elitist? Was Ben Hogan an elitist? Was Arnold Palmer an elitist?

Wow!

Spuzz

DC300 the only difference now is one odd generation that was inspired by a rich young black man

Have yet to find one single person on a golf course up here that says that.
Seriously. ZERO

rsvman

DC300 Just because it would make the game worse for you doesn't necessarily mean it would make the game worse for everybody. Some people might enjoy shotmaking, pitching, chipping, or even putting a lot more than they enjoy hitting a driver. For them, perhaps doing what the OP suggested with make the game better, not worse.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but please don't try to make everybody else share it.

MidwayJ

I would not want to play without a driver. For me it's one of the most fun parts of golf. Course length may be an issue on the PGA Tour because those guys hit it so far, but it's not with average golfers. Anyone can move up to the red tees and tee off with irons if they want.

Martee

I am not a fan of the $500 driver or for the $150 iron. Golf was intended to be a target sport, somewhere along the way it has given itself to bomb and gouge. It's makes for more interesting viewing and it gives hope to all the mere mortals that so long as long is in play, flaid away.

Shot making and Shotmaker are less in demand with current architecture, large greens, wide and fast fairways, and a extremely well maintained layout.

An obsercation which may or may not be universal is that most golfers who have play shorter layouts have very poor course management skills. The need to place the tee ball out to 210 yards on left side of a dogleg to set up the approach shot shouldn't be boring and based on watching pros at Hilton head and etc, it requires skill.

For me, golf is me against par, you still have to get ball in the hole in the fewest strokes, moving forward provides a better opportunity, but you still have hit the shot.

Rickochet

Martee Shot making and Shotmaker are less in demand with current architecture, large greens, wide and fast fairways, and a extremely well maintained layout.

No courses like that in my neck of the woods. Well, maybe Valhalla, but...

PA-PLAYA

Martee

Very true and excellent point.

Am I the only one who's made more than his share of bogeys on par3's with a wedge in hand?! Still gotta execute. And the funny part is that the closer the target is - the more precise we need to be to score.... a good analogy that kinda relates would be football teams when they get into the red zone... the playing field becomes more narrow, and subsequently the defensive coverage becomes tighter, and the quarterback has to be more accurate and the timing has to be more exact to execute a successful pass.

Look at some of the shorter holes on tour. This weekend at TPC Scottsdale, par4 17th is a great example. In a few weeks the tour will be playing Riviera and the short par4 10th hole is another example. What about next week when players tee it up on the iconic, short par3 7th at Pebble?

Now granted - there are different dynamics in play... narrow landing spots on those greens because they're very narrow greens depending on certain hole locations. The wind coming off the ocean on the 7th at Pebble... yet it's only measuring 106 yards. Some days it might be a soft LW. Some days it might be 3 clubs more depending on the wind.

Just because a hole might be a shorter distance tee-to-green doesn't mean it's easier. A lot of times it means one has to be much more precise. And, like you said - whether its a wedge from 100 yards, or a driver (or iron) from the tee on a narrow par4 - the shot still needs a fair degree of reasonable execution.

DC300

professor You're the one who's the elitist. The game of golf has no "personality attributes". Was Francis Quimet an elitist? Was Ben Hogan an elitist? Was Arnold Palmer an elitist?

Wow!

professor It appears we have somebody who had never heard of exceptions, but let’s go through these for you. Francis Quimet, poor, but grew up on a golf course due to family housing proximity. Can’t imagine how he got started. Hogan, again poor, got hooked as a caddie due again to proximity. Palmer, who’s father was a golf instructor was certainly never going to be interested in golf. C’mon man, grasping at straws much?

For the three guys you named that made it in golf there are about 10,000 that have made it in Basketball, baseball and football because they don’t have high entry costs. Pull your head out of your ass and look around, it’s enlightening.

DC300

Spuzz exactly how old are you and how many people from 35 and down are you talking too?

Tinker

Don’t agree that the game itself is elitest but if the blue collar player has left the game the clubs, courses and equipment companies carry a lot of the blame. I worked for a company called DuPont( at one time largest employer in Delaware) and didn’t get into golf until around 1989. The Dupont Country Club had three courses, hosted LPGA Championship every year, was available to employees and family and cost about 70 bucks a month. I started with a set of Northwestern clubs about 129 for entire set. The most popular irons with all my friends where Spalding Executives. Sears, Penny’s, Montgomery Ward where great places to get good affordable gear. If these clubs, courses and companies want the middle class back they need to offer them what they need at a price they can handle. New 500 dollar drivers aren’t the answer.

Weirfan

Tinker

Golf is incredibly elistist, perhaps moreso than any other game except Polo and Race Car Driving.
Here are some demographics on Golfers in the USA:
average golfer household income is $100,980, more than 200% greater than non golfers.
The average net worth of a golfer is $768,400
8 out of 10 have a net worth over $100,000
Half have a net worth over $250,000
1 in 3 golfers has a net worth over $500,000
14% have a net worth over $1,000,000

Employment

90% of Fortune 500 CEO’s are golfers
1 in 4 golfers own their own business
1 in 3 golfers are in top level management
75% of golfers recommend/order products and services at work.

House & Real Estate

91% of golfers are home owners
18% own at least 1 vacation home
38% are interested in purchasing a luxury leisure property
Their average home value is $480,000
Avid PGA Tour viewers are more than 200% as likely to own a 2nd home

Vehicles
The average golfer owns 3 cars
47% plan on buying a car this year
56% spent over $30,000 on their last vehicle.

Travel

Golfers take an average of 12.4 vacation days each year, usually on 2 main trips
Golfers spend $6,800 annually on their main vacation
64% of golfers took an international trip in the past 3 years
Golfers fly an average of 5.5 times every year

PA-PLAYA

Not all wealthy types are elitists, and sometimes when a person gets the feeling "he doesn't belong" has absolutely nothing to do with hoity-toity attitudes from others or a lack of income compared to others.

Private club members... sure - there are some clubs in the area where there is a high degree of elitist "privilege" in certain circles. But I've played a lot of local private clubs over the past decade through reciprocal agreements between our club and other clubs and I couldn't have felt more welcomed there.

So I think the private club stigma is unwarranted a lot of the time. In fact - I've seen an elitist attitude on display at just as many public courses over the years as I have during the 10 years I've been a private club member who's been fortunate to play other private clubs.

People don't have to spend 500 bucks for a driver, or 50 bucks for a dozen balls. They're not required to spend $100 on a collared polo or comfortable golf shorts/pants. eBay has all kinds of great deals for those looking to save money. Every big box store that I've ever been to has run deep discounts on older-model equipment, or a used club section.

But there is no denying that it takes a lot of time to get good at this game, a lot of patience, and for sure - daily greens fees have gone up. And sometimes there's not really a lesser-expensive option that's convenient enough distance-wise from where one works or lives to maintain the hobby at a reasonable level. Expense does factor in, but most of the time it has nothing to do with $500 drivers.

Let's face it - golf just ain't for everyone, for lots of reasons.