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| The new 12-hole course will occupy land previously occupied by the back nine of the Faon course. |
Personally,
I believe it is an interesting idea that has merits on many fronts. A number of players complain that playing an
18-hole course often takes too much time in a time where young families are
confronted with an increasing offer of leisure activities and busy schedules
leaving them less time to enjoy activities like golf that require an important
time and money investment.
So it is
with those two premises that the club had the idea of developing a 12-hole course.
This course will offer a playing
experience similar to the best courses in the province, but in a reduced format
that will offer more than 9-holes to enjoy, but also less than 18. At a smaller price, and taking less time to
play, this could prove to please a young crowd, as well as aging players and
tournament organizers that will have the opportunity to play 12-holes fund
raisers, as opposed to the 6 hours rounds most are accustomed with today!
Curiously,
the idea was mentioned by Jack Nicklaus a few years back, but it seems it has
not been fully exploited since then. He
even organized a 12-hole tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club, one of the
most prestigious clubs he designed. In
it, cups of 8 inches were used instead of the regular 4.25 inches, and slow
golfers were penalized! Those are a
couple interesting ideas that are worth studying, the goal being of offering a
fun, but quicker experience.
 |
| New tees will be built to play a new hole towards the existing 10th greens |
How will
the club offer a 12-hole course on its existing layout? The back nine of the Faon course will be
slightly modified to make enough room for three new holes using some previously
unoccupied land, and by modifying two existing holes. The front nine of the Faon
course and the entirety of the Brocard course will be kept intact, offering golfers the choice to play 9, 12 or 18-hole rounds.
 |
| Favourite holes from the back nine of the Faon course will be integrated in the new 12-hole course |
Globally,
this will offer a 12-hole course with two par 5’s of 543 and 509 yards, four
par 4’s varying between 339 to 366 yards, and six par 3’s varying between 100
and 197 yards.
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| The club will continue to offer three regulation length nines for golfers who still want to play 9-hole or 18-hole rounds. |
Golf is
often perceived as a conservative sport well rooted in long lasting traditions.
Innovating ideas are few and far between
and the level of participation in the sport has been stagnating over the past
few years. Golf has to adapt and open
itself up to a new clientèle, and even simply retain the one that has become
elusive. I believe this can be done
without being in contradiction with the origins of the sport. It is thus with great joy I have accepted to
participate in this project, which, in my humble opinion, could become
significant for the future of the game.
Evidently,
it is not every course that can risk making this experiment. But a well-known course like the Parcours du
Cerf has all the ingredients to pull-off the gamble:
·
A
12-hole course that will offer an experience comparable to the best 18-hole
public courses in Quebec;
·
Three
other nines offering interesting and varied holes that have been amongst the
most popular in Quebec for the past twenty years;
·
An
inviting and spacious clubhouse offering good cuisine and a great ambiance;
·
Full
practice infrastructures
·
A great maintenance team;
·
And
a dynamic and innovative administration.
I will
be very interested in witnessing the golfers’ reaction to this new product next
year. I believe initiatives such as this
one are now necessary to insure the long-term viability of the sport. And I am quite happy to be part of this one.
