European Tour chief executive Keith Pelley says a new format of the sport will be trialled ©Getty Images

A new six-hole format involving music and a shot clock, designed to increase the popularity of golf, is set to be introduced onto the European Tour, chief executive Keith Pelley has claimed.

Pelley revealed they will trial the different version of the sport from 2017 with a view to fully introducing it a year later.

“Different” clothing and fewer clubs would also feature under the format, aimed at growing the game among children and youngsters.

An international matchplay competition, similar to the Ryder Cup, is being touted as the best way to display the format rather than the traditional strokeplay, used at all four of golf’s annual majors.

“Yes, there'd be a shot clock and yes, there'd be music, and players would probably be dressed a bit differently,” Pelley told BBC Radio Five Live.

"Maybe they'd only play with five or seven clubs.

“It would probably be a country competition.

"So you could see England playing Scotland in a six-hole matchplay.”

Golf is attempting to follow the likes of cricket, where the shorter T20 format has continually grown in popularity ©Getty Images
Golf is attempting to follow the likes of cricket, where the shorter T20 format has continually grown in popularity ©Getty Images

The move comes as golf tries to align itself with sports such as cricket and rugby, whose shorter formats - Twenty20 and rugby sevens - have both enjoyed a rapid spike in interest since their respective introductions.

Rugby sevens will make its Olympic debut at next month’s Games in Rio de Janeiro, where 18-hole golf will appear on the programme for the first time in 112 years.

Basketball is another sport to successfully incorporate a smaller version of the main product onto its international calendar, with the 3x3 format thought to be considering a bid for Olympic inclusion in the future.

The International Hockey Federation are also pushing the case for Hockey 5s, a form of the sport which is particularly popular in less-developed nations.

“If you're not prepared to change, you're not prepared to be innovative, if you're not prepared to actually take chances, then sports will fall behind,” Pelley added.