Are golf courses the greatest waste of space ever invented?

[nei]

Originally Posted by Malloric

Parks generally are about as natural as golf courses. Depends what you mean by "park." If you're talking neighborhood parks, yeah. They're basically less landscaped golf courses that are smaller and have different activities.

Eh. Neighborhood parks usually have some spots that are not short cut grass with spots left either landscaped with native plants or wild. And many golf courses are the size of larger parks, which often are more natural.

[Michael Way]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

The one a few blocks from us was definitely not created by cutting down forests, and they only have to water a few times in July/August, because the rest of the year it rains. Much better use of the land than a big box store and parking lot, storage units, or even condos.

http://pnwgolfreview.files.wordpress...07/6-tee-n.jpg

Beautiful. I think well designed golf courses are very pleasing and restful to the eye. Definitely not a waste of space. And though I don't play golf (I would if I could), I think it is a beautiful sport.

[Malloric]

Originally Posted by nei

Eh. Neighborhood parks usually have some spots that are not short cut grass with spots left either landscaped with native plants or wild. And many golf courses are the size of larger parks, which often are more natural.

I've never even seen a golf course that didn't either. Typical pro golf course is going to be 100-150 acres with something like half (for a 150 acre course) being grass.

Golden Gate Park, for example, has very little natural area, basically one tiny corner they forgot to do anything with before natural became "cool" again since there was so little of it left. It has the Oak Woodlands natural area. If you really want to natural though, and don't want to leave San Francisco, you go to Mt. Sutro, McLaren, etc. You don't go to Golden Gate or Presidio. They're about as natural as a golf course. Certainly you don't just go to a neighborhood park anywhere, at least not here.

Sacramento doesn't really have any. American River Parkway, sure. It's got a bit of everything, including the 18-hole golf courses and one 9-hole. But it's certainly not a neighborhood park.