6teesix – is this the future of golf?

It?s hard for most of us here at Golf Monthly to envision our sport as fast paced in any sense. After all, who doesn?t enjoy the escapism that only a full day on the course with one?s mates can provide? With that said, one too many six-hour rounds can also inspire us to enter the local insane asylum. Nobody wants to play from dawn until dusk every round.

So what happens when professional golfers try to take a page from twenty20 cricket and create an event that fundamentally changes everything we know and love about the sport? We get to behold the curious idea that is ?6teesix.?

Despite the strange moniker, the concept of 6teesix is actually quite interesting. Six teams of six players compete in a matchplay on speed format that requires teams to complete at least six holes per hour. This means that teams will play a full round in three hours at most.

Before you fall out of your swivel chair cackling with laughter at this thought, it begs mention that the inaugural 6teesix Challenge was held in mid-October at Vilamoura to rave reviews from the participants involved.

Darren Clarke, who captained the ?Rest of the World? team, had this to say about the event, ? The 6teesix format was actually a lot of fun. We need to find ways to increase regular golf participation and I am confident that many golfers out there will enjoy this style of play.?

Perhaps he enjoyed the format more because his team, which also featured household names Retief Goosen and Paul McGinley, soundly defeated the Lee Westwood captained England team. However, the English skipper himself also commended the new format. Westwood even went so far as to declare that, ?no one wants a five-hour round (anymore).?

Does this mean that the future of golf has arrived to completely transform the game we all know and love? I?ll believe it when I see the entire Ryder Cup played in one afternoon. For now, consider me intrigued.