Rory McIlroy has a brilliant idea to make golf more popular

This could be a legitimate way to convert the "good walk spoiled" brigade

Sometimes it's the simplest idea that makes for the best solution. That's certainly what Rory McIlroy thinks when it comes to solving the problem of the decreasing popularity of golf among young people.

The number of 16-25-year-olds playing the sport on a regular basis have almost halved between 2009 and 2013, according to a survey by Sport England. The world number one's big idea to get young people back on the links is to make the game quicker.

Everything's so instant now and everyone doesn't have as much time as they used to, so you maybe try some way of speeding the game up.

The Northern Irishman doesn't think that people have lost interest in the sport altogether. He claimed that the TV ratings for golf tournaments have increased. However, to get more people playing golf regularly, he thinks the pace of the game will have to improve.

The viewership in golf is up but the participation is down. People enjoy watching the game but gone are the days that you could spend five or six hours on a golf course.

Hat-tip to BBC