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FootGolf, the fast-growing sporting craze that singlehandedly appears to have saved scores of golf courses around the globe from extinction, has taken off in Bahrain at the Royal Golf Club.
Management at the Riffa Views facility has been stunned by its instant popularity after taking a stab at the bigger ball option with a ‘soft launch’ and the Sunday evening sessions have continued to grow ever since.
“The feedback we received was very positive and has created an affirmative vibe as we have introduced something new which is fun and exciting,” said Stephen Havrilla, the Royal Golf Club’s general manager.
“We chose to introduce FootGolf to expand the range of activities available to the public and, most importantly, introduce non-golfers to the golf course with a long-term goal of developing them to become golfers.
“We had 28 people play in the opening event and the participants ranged from young families to groups of avid footballers.”
The sport combines football and golf with players kicking a football into giant-sized sunken cups on a golf course in as few shots as possible.
Last year, GulfWeekly reported how golf clubs were coming up with various ideas to attract customers in a high-speed digital age where time appears limited and fewer people want to devote four hours-plus on a pastime.
According to the National Golf Foundation (NGF), the sport had lost five million players in the US alone in the past decade and 20 per cent of the 25 million golfers now active in the country were likely to quit in the next few years.
Golf, though, responded to its own warning cries of ‘Fore’ by thinking outside of the time-honoured traditions of the game that was invented in Scotland in the late 15th Century as it faces arguably its biggest struggle for survival in the 21st.
Among the innovations, soccer balls instead of a dimpled Titleist or Callaway have proved to be the saviour. By October 2014, the game was offered at more than 240 clubs in the US.
The sport has financially saved many struggling golf courses and the Professional Golfers’ Association of America and World Golf Foundation have both acknowledged FootGolf’s contribution to helping generate more income, and noted that it may contribute to the growth of golf itself, as reported in GulfWeekly.
PGA of America president Ted Bishop said: “For the first time ever it’s not wrong for us to look at our sport and say that there are two types of golf that can be played. One is the traditional game that we watch every weekend on TV across the world and it’s the same game that many amateur golfers play day-in and day-out. But there is a whole host of other people out there that might enjoy playing more relaxed or looser forms of the sport just to see if they enjoy it. And, if they do, then ultimately the goal is to try to turn those people into customary golfers.”
He has been especially excited by the possibilities raised by FootGolf which involves a Size 5 ball being kicked from a set of tee markers to a green featuring a 21-inch hole. Par-three holes are between 60 and 90 yards long, par-fours range up to 150 yards and par-fives up to 250 yards.
“There are 50 million soccer players in the US compared to 25 million golfers and soccer is growing at an eight per cent rate per year so I view this as a great way to get a segment of the population on to the golf course,” Bishop added.
In Bahrain FootGolf lovers are playing on the challenging championship course designed by Colin Montgomerie, who is now winning major titles on the US Senior Tour and witnessing first-hand the sporting revolution.
“Our thought process was to run FootGolf in the evening as holes 10 – 18 on the championship course are floodlit,” explained Havrilla. “We also wanted the course to have a certain length to it to make it challenging for the players.
“The impact on the golf course is minimal and we will change the position of the holes every 30 days to give a new challenge to our FootGolfers.”
He urges players to ‘dig out your plus fours and Argyle socks’ and head to the Royal Golf Club for FootGolf every Sunday evening throughout May during the trial period.
The competitions kick off at 7pm every Sunday and are open to all. The RGC recommends players wear comfortable outdoor sporting attire and insist on using trainers only as the footwear choice, no spikes or cleats are allowed. Players can bring their own footballs or hire one from the club.
For more details and to sign up, call 17750777.
