Why an El Camino might truly grow the game

This is not, actually, about the car - or the Breaking Bad miniseries.

If I say the words “El Camino” to you, and you’re a normal human being, you probably think of this:

Not quite a car, not quite a truck…the El Camino. For the record, I used to hate this car with a passion - but now it’s so bad I think it might be good.

But if you didn’t think of this, you might have thought of … this:

This was a two episode movie (why they call it that instead of a miniseries is up to you to decide) after the series of Breaking Bad ended. It was fairly good!

But of course, that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the short course at Tobacco Road in Sanford, NC. Tobacco Road is a wild, often insane masterpiece of an 18-hole course that constantly deceives the golfer from the tee, with blind shots, green complexes that look like they were built from the imagination of Dr. Seuss, etc.

What the El Camino does is innovative in the way one thinks, “Why didn’t I think of that?”

Apparently, this used to be a secret element to the course (not dissimilar to the Sheep Ranch course at Bandon, which you had to be in the know in order to play), where in addition to the multiple tee boxes for the 18-hole course, each hole on the front nine has another tee box, discreetly placed roughly 80-120 yards away from the green. When you play the full course, you don’t see them whatsoever, and I’m not sure why, but they are in fact there.

It means that after you play 18, and maybe have some lunch and a drink or two, you can go back out - and for $25 - play the short course. Here, for instance, is the 8th hole that is typically about 150-160 yard par-3, reduced down to an 89 yard shot from tees that are sunk down below the elevated tee boxes.

Here’s the par-5 4th hole, turned into a 132 shot from the fairway:

Thanks to Golf Crusade for these photos and a great writeup on the course, at the link provided.

Just think about what this means for golf, though. You don’t have to play the full 18 holes to have access to El Camino. Imagine living nearby and getting to play the approach shots to these world class holes for $25.

And then, think about what this means for Tobacco Road. This is basically just free income. Yes, they could charge a “Twilight” rate for anyone who wants to risk not finishing all 18 holes like many courses out in my neck of the woods do, and - though I can’t find evidence of this on their site - perhaps they still do. But in addition to that, why not let folks go out and hit a few wedges (one hole is about 160 yards, so they’ll need a few extra clubs most of the time as well) and have a great time, while putting a few extra duckets in the club’s till?

While not every course is as compelling to do this, there’s literally no reason most courses can’t find a spot to drop a tee box roughly 80-120 yards away from the green, out of the way of regular play (e.g., not in the middle of the fairway) and create a fun approach shot. If you go to some big golf resort courses and see the famous short courses like The Cradle, The Sandbox, Bandon Preserve, The Baths, etc. - nobody is having more fun than the people playing those short courses.

This should be a model that other courses are RUSHING to implement. And yet, I don’t know of any other course that does this. Why not? This is how we grow the game - and in a way that doesn’t slow down regular play.

WHO IS WITH ME?