Three passes for the closest shave is needed for some people but irration is not inevitable. It depends on technique and good preparation. The extra pass comprising lather application and shave only adds ~90 seconds.This is ridiculously excessive, I only ever do two and get a really close shave, of course you are going to get irritation by shaving your face three times.
I find two passes are okay and a close shave but a little short of BBS or near that standard.