As part of Playgolf WEEK, an Urban Golf event was staged in Adelaide s CBD, with a 7 hole street course located in and around the UniSA City West Campus. Urban Golf can be defined as essentially playing golf in a city environment and using the natural landscape as your golf course. The aim of the Playgolf WEEK Urban Golf activation was to bring the golf course into the city and to the streets of the City West, away from the traditional grass greens and fairways, to have a bit of fun and stage a FREE public event. There were no green fees, no dress code, no penalty shots and only a few safety rules with the main rule being a safety first approach . With one club, a pitching wedge or nine iron and using safe, specially designed street balls, slightly smaller than real golf balls and lighter so they glide through the air a little, players moved through the course in around 20 minutes, with most holes approximately 30 meters in length. With players hitting each shot off small patches of artificial turf, the idea to finish the hole was to simply hit the ball towards a target and land the ball on an artificial green where the flag was positioned, rather than having to hit the ball into a hole. Tricky little obstacles where created to cause a few challenges – like hitting over bike racks and upstairs. The PGA swing net was in operation manned by PGA Professional Chris Crocker, who was there to educate the players on grip and swing prior to them tackling the course. With the assistance of Splash Adelaide whose mandate is to bring the City s streets and spaces to life through a series of community run urban experiments and who aim to increase the vibrancy and vitality of the City, George St, within the Campus came alive with the sight of mobile food vendors including South American street food and the ever popular Weinerbago. At the conclusion of the 7 holes players faced a putting challenge to win a prize then made their way to the Worldsend Hotel to redeem well deserved beverage vouchers. Urban Golf strips back the game and makes it accessible to everyone, it s a great way for people of any age to try the game of golf in a different way. A fun time was had by all! A thank you to all partners for bringing this activation to life. To view all the photos from Urban Golf – Click here for Facebook Album Golf Australia has partnered with Urban Golf Australia (UBA) through providing a seeding grant to assist UBA in growing its number of participants throughout Australia. With the emergence of a number of new recreational pursuits that are now available to Australians, Golf Australia has identified the need to develop and support innovative formats of the game that connect with future golfers. Cameron Wade, Golf Australia s Director of Golf Development said, We think it is very important to support new innovative initiatives that grows participation and breaks down the barriers to the sport. Urban golf provides opportunities to engage with new participation segments and also to change some of the negative perceptions of the game.
Author: Christian Puccini / Golf SA