So a full 18 takes maybe 4 hours to play today, with modern balls and clubs plus often a cart (and dependent on general skill and number of allowed Mulligans), but how long did it take with the older equipment (which can't hit as far) and strictly walking? How early in the morning would Bertie Wooster and his layabout friends need to start the round to make lunch at the Drones?
I don't know the answer to this but I have a couple of 'devils advocate' questions.
Have the technological advances in golf equipment benefited the man on the Clapham omnibus, as opposed to professional golfers, to the extent that amateur rounds of golf are quicker?
Has the improvement in equipment been offset by courses that are more difficult? Because the winning scores in the Open in the 1930s were in the range 280-300, whereas now it's in the range 270-290. That's over 72 holes, so if the professionals are getting such minimal improvements, how much quicker are the amateurs getting round?
And how common are golf carts? They are barely used if at all in golf courses in the UK that I'm familiar with. Of course, I'm not familiar with the kind of golf course that would have Bertie Wooster as a member.