SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — While traditional golfers need to budget 4½ or even 5 hours to complete a full round of golf, participants at the U.S. Speed Golf Open at Temecula Creek Golf Club can finish 18 holes in less than one hour.
"Speed golf is a combination of your time, running the course, as well as your golf score," according to tournament participant Jonathan Flietstra.
Flietstra is the founder of the Speed Golf Chapter at Temecula Creek Golf Club, and he makes it sound pretty simple. But the game does come with some challenges you don't usually see on the course.
"It's not only catching your breath, but when you look down at your ball, you have sweat dripping off your hat," Flietstra told ABC 10News ahead of competition.
If that sounds appealing, keep in mind you probably can't show up at your local municipal course at 10 a.m. on Saturday for a round of speed golf.
"Because we play so much faster, we have to play at the shoulder times of the day. We have to play early in the morning, or we've got to play late in the evening. When it's light until 9:30, you can literally tee off at 8:30 p.m.," said Scott Dawley, organizer of the U.S. Speed Golf Open.
Dawley says participation in speed golf is booming, with numbers doubling or even tripling this year alone.
"The best way to get into it is to just get out to your golf course and just jog one hole," Dawley said.
This weekend, he invited the best of the best to the U.S. Open. But how good are these athletes?
According to Flietstra, "the winner of this event will play 18 holes in close to 40 minutes, and they're going to shoot close to even par."
And don't forget the most important strategy tip for every speed golfer.
"Because it's speed plus time, if you save a minute, you just got a birdie," Flietstra said.
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