Interest in speed golf?

[Shlax]

What's the fastest round of golf you've ever played and what do you think is the fastest round that you could realistically play without affecting your experience and performance?

It's known that a foursome of golfers paying attention and being ready when it's their turn can easily play their round in well under the typical 4-hour time. My usual early morning rounds where I join other solo golfers rarely takes over 3h15 even if there are other groups in front of us (i.e., most of the people playing at this time of day enjoy relatively fast rounds and that's one of the reasons why I do so). This is neglecting times where the course gets abnormaly backed-up for some reason.

I ask because I wondered what could be if it was broadly accepted that a round of golf should take a maximum of 3h30 instead of the usual 4h15 for example? Not only would it be a bit easier for everybody to fit a round of golf into their schedule, courses would receive more daily clients and generate more revenues as a result (granted, additional course maintenance would be required) and golf could become an activity that doesn't necessarily eats up half of your day and be accessible to an wider audience.

• My fastest round ever was just over 2 hours. I was playing my second round of the day solo because it was a rainy day and I basically had the course to myself. I shot close to my course handicap so it was a perfectly decent round and I did take the time to replace divots, repair pitch marks, adequately read my putts and pull the pin out on numerous occasions.
• I'd naively say that the fastest that I could realistically play a round without affecting performance and experience (and still replacing divots and repairing pitch marks) would probably be around 1h30-1h40. It would involve shaving about 1-2 minutes per hole from my fastest round ever so it seems possible at first and I think that I could still enjoy the game and have decent results at this pace (i.e., not be out of breath). Of course, this would involve playing solo and not waiting after anybody at the front.

What do you think?

Edited November 2, 2023 by Shlax
Typos

[Shlax]

Well... I should have educated myself on the topic before starting this thread.

I just read that Wesley Bryan holds the record for the fastest PGA tournament round in history with 1h29... and he looks absolutely spent!

Moreover, he also had the option to let his caddie replace the pin and repair his pitch marks + divots while he ran up to his next shot.

I then rescind my commentary above and maybe a 1h50 rounds seems more realistic!

Wesley Bryan Breaks Record For Fastest EVER PGA Tour Round | Golf Monthly

Edited November 2, 2023 by Shlax
Link

[Josh Parker]

If I get out in the morning before the men's group I can finish a round right at 2hrs. My normal group I play with all have Carts so we typically finish in 2.5-3 hrs and that's 3 of us.  We play ready golf and while I could probably do slightly better taking my time, don't feel overly rushed at that pace. 

[GolfSpy_KFT]

The three best 9 hole rounds I played this year were all finished in an hour and 10 minutes or less. Granted these were solo rounds, but I had a clear runway the whole time and massively prefer this to having to play slower. When I have to stand and wait to hit a shot, I get distracted, frustrated, etc., you name it. I want to hit my shot, analyze my next shot on the way to the ball, check distance, pull the club and go. I found it so much easier to stay in a rhythm this way. When playing with friends we also just play ready golf, so there's no sitting around waiting. Get to your ball and take your shot unless someone is ahead of you directly in the line of fire. Same for putting, doesn't matter who is out. If you're ready to putt, go for it. 

[chisag]

... Fastest I ever played was with my pard back in Chicago open a chilly late fall round. We had the course to ourselves and t'sone of those greens next to tee boxes easy walks. We finished in 1:50 and yes it felt like we were playing fast, but the upper 40* temps called for a brisk walk so we never felt like we were rushing. I would have to say my ideal time on an empty course playing with a walking 4some is 3:45. I like to set a pace and keep it for the entire round and 3:45 seems to be perfect for taking our time and enjoying each others company, while not rushing or wasting time either. 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

I have done it in 2 hours numerous times with a cart. My fastest walking was 2 hours and 15 minutes both on my old home course. I think the time could be a little better on a flatter course. My new home course’s layout is not conducive to quick rounds. Lots of distance between tees. It’s a six mile walk. 
But at 2 hours I didn’t feel like I was rushing either. 

[Shapotomous]

I did a 2 hr solo cart round this year.  I had planned to play only 9 or maybe 12 and hit a few extra balls trying some different shots.  When i got done 9 in 1:10 and saw the time I decided to see how far I could get before the designated quitting time.  (I had someone sitting with my mom and needed to get back so they could leave at a certain time)  There are a couple holes that would get me back toward the parking lot and I figured I would head to the car after those holes if the time had come.  I played one ball on the back, no extra practice shots, and made it around in 50 min.  I wasn't rushing, hit a lot of greens, was lucky the course was empty and the cart I had was pretty fast.  I remember thinking playing that fast may have only cost a few shots as I was misaligned on a couple and maybe playing slower I would have caught that. 

I think my optimal time for an 18 hole foursome is 3:00.  If it is longer than that I lose interest and start thinking about what I need to do when I get done rather than my next golf shot, my scores go up.  I am pretty useless in a scramble after hole 14 since they are usually 5 hour marathons!  

[cnosil]

I’ve done 18 with cart in about 2.   My normal group has finished in about 3:15 when the course was empty.  
 

Hard to give an expected time since course design will play a huge part in how long it takes as well as how much I need to look for balls.  The course I frequently play has some distance between some of the holes and on the rare occasion where we don’t get held up it is still a 3:45-4 hour round.