You can’t hang about in this game. A shoot-out over six holes essentially means you have to come out with all clubs blazing.
“Fast starts are crucial, you have to play aggressively and birdies are the only things that are going to win holes,” said Richie Ramsay ahead of today’s opening session of group games in the GolfSixes. “You can easily get behind the 8-ball if you’re not up to speed.”
Talking of being up to speed, there is plenty of evidence to support the withering view that golf in general has been left wheezing and lagging behind other sports when it comes to branching out and trying new things in a competitive market place in which time is of the essence. In the whiz-bang superhighway of the digital age, many think golf is spluttering along a toll road with heavy roadworks.
“It’s just about thinking outside the box,” said Ramsay, who will partner Scott Jamieson in the team event as Scotland face a Six Nations-esque group featuring Ireland, Italy and France.
“I think this format does have longevity. You’re not going to build it perfectly in the first year but it’s an evolution and you have to find out what works and what doesn.t.
“I’m not saying this type of event is the answer to all the problems but it’s a very transferable event and you could move it anywhere.
“That’s an important thing, taking it to courses that are close to city centres where there are mass populations and where you can really engage with people.
“I think there is a lot of potential in the market golf is in. Those markets are ripe for the taking and we need to do it now rather than wait.”
While the fledgling GolfSixes remains very much a suck-it-and-see kind of occasion, Ramsay continues to savour any opportunity to represent his country and compete in the cut-and-thrust of team golf.
“When I was younger, my goal was to play in the Dunhill Cup because I always used to go along to watch it,” he said of that long-departed yet cherished international team tussle which took place at the Old Course
“I’m not saying this event is the Dunhill Cup but you should be proud to turn up and play for your country.”
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