The idea is so simple in its design it is ingenious.
The folks at Monarch Dunes Golf Club in Nipomo, Calif., devised a great plan in an attempt to grow the game: simply remove the most common barriers people cite when they say they don't play, or don't play more.
"We wanted to attract more golfers," said Holly McGinty, the club's director of marketing. "We have an 18-hole course and a par-3 course, and they weren't getting enough play."
Last year, the club's 12-hole, par-3 Challenge Course received a bit of a makeover with new forward tees, less-punishing bunkers and optional 8-inch cups on each hole. Oh, and Monarch Dunes also will provide newcomers with a handful of clubs, balls, tees, as well as some personalized instruction, all for $10.
"We wanted to take away every excuse," McGinty said "People told us that it took too long to play, was too intimidating and it cost too much. We took all that away."
And people are coming.
McGinty couldn't pinpoint an exact figure, but said the program has resulted in "hundreds" of new players and more-than-passing interest from other courses in the area who like what they see enough to consider implementing a similar program.
The program has meant some changes for the golf course, a 6-year-old Pate/Pascuzzo design that measures 1,377 yards from the forward tees and 1,858 yards from the back. Bunker lips have been removed to make it possible to put from greenside hazards, each green now has a regulation cup as well as an easier-to-hit 8-inch hole. Green surrounds are mowed at seven-sixteenths of an inch, and greens are kept at 0.140, and walking paths mowed into the turf point the way toward a round that course superintendent Tom Elliott says can be completed, even by newcomers, in about 90 minutes.
"We're trying to simplify the game of golf," Elliott said. "We want new people to come out and play."
The club also maintains the Old Course, a 6,800-yard 18-hole layout, which also was designed by the Sacramento-based team of Pate/Pascuzzo.
With four tees and two cups (and two flags) on every hole, each ranging from 65 to 205 yards in length, the course is not only friendly for beginners, but continues to offer a challenge to more advanced players. The idea, Elliott said, first is just to get people to come to the course and play and eventually convert them into a serious golfer. So far, the plan appears to be working among those who've given the Challenge Course a try.
"The 8-inch cup is a novelty," Elliott said. "What we're seeing is that people will try that one or two times, then start playing to the regulation cup."
McGinty admits that the decision to rework an existing golf course and alter a business model made for some nervous moments. But it was a decision that had to be made.
"Sure it did, but we're glad we did it," she said. "We still have the integrity of the golf course, but have made it easier for beginners.
"This is not just about us and growing rounds here. This is about growing the industry, too."