BrizoH71
Tour Rookie
Well, that was a waste of time... turned up at Peebles just after 12 noon for my tee-slot at 1254. Popped into the clubhouse for a bacon roll and a coffee, and got myself ready to play before reporting to the pro at 1235 to let him know i was there.
In front of me on the tee and waiting to go were 2x 4-balls and a junior 2-ball. It was at this point I should have either headed to the 10th tee, or just forget about playing today. I knew it was going to be slow going, but I wasn't prepared for just how slow it was going to be...
The first 4-ball were all middle-aged, late-50s, and every one of them took a wood off the tee; each failing to clear the rough which stretches 100 or so yards ahead of the tee. Our opening hole is only a par-3... as each of them waddled to the buggies, I saw cases of Kronenbourg loaded in the back, and it was a similar story with the second 4-ball and cases of Stella.
The second group were younger, but clearly attached to the older group in front as a society or works outing or something. One of the guys was decent, and pinged his tee-shot through the green. The second guy to go had clearly never lifted a club in his life... after taking a stance that was little more than a sleeve of balls' width, his backswing was akin to trying to start an outboard motor, but with so much wrist-cock he near chibbed the clubhead. His downswing was much like someone using a scythe to cut grass and it must have been the rush of air that blew the ball off the tee about half-a-yard.
After some laughter, the guy teed-up again and delivered a carbon-copy of his previous attempt. At his third attempt he managed to connect with the ball, sending it about 40 yards along the ground. He took 6 from that point to even reach the green. :ffs:
The other two guys were similar in ability to the older boys ahead and were clearly a bit embarrassed by their playing partner's clear lack of ability.
Credit to the two juniors, they offered to let me through (as they are supposed to at PGC) but I declined, as I didn't want to be stuck so closely behind the group in front. Peebles has some cracking junior players, but these lads weren't among them. However, they could at least hit the ball in the general direction they were trying to go.
Playing on my own, another pensioner group rolled up behind me. I tee'd off almost to time, splitting a 6-iron through the green. Just as I got to the green, the group behind tee'd off! Its a par-3 remember, but no-one really got close to the green to be a worry. However, I chipped and 2-putted and got to the second tee just as the juniors were teeing off. By the time I got to the fourth tee, the second of the 4-ball groups was just going off, and by the time I reached the 6th tee, the first 4-ball was just going off. One of them found the fairway bunker on the left and took 6 to get out... its a fairly shallow bunker, its not the effing road hole bunker! :tirade:
All across the course, in the bins at least were various cans of lager, bottles of cider and miniature whiskies. Clearly fresh pitch marks and divots hadn't been replaced, and bunkers hadn't been raked.
I played the 6th and then cut across to the 13th, where the course was clear. I checked my phone and it had taken me 1 hours and 40 minutes to play those 6 holes. Played 2 balls from there in, hardly seeing another soul. There was a group playing the 12th hole (a par-3) as I tee'd off the 14th and a group on the 17th green. Aside from that, the back nine was empty.
Walking down the 18th, I saw the first 4-ball group just leaving the 10th green. They had played 4 holes in the time it had taken me to play a 2-ball from the 13th. :nono:
Have to say I didn't enjoy myself today.. I didn't play too well, and so maybe I'm just looking for an excuse towards my own poor play, but I just couldn't get into any sort of rhythm with the speed of play ahead of me and having to hang about on the tee for 5-10 minutes before being able to play on, and then the same for every shot after. Part of me reasons that I should have expected it given the weather and the opening of tees to visitors for the full day. I have absolutely nothing against visitors, their revenue is much needed; however, while I'm clearly no Rory McIlroy myself, as people who have seen me play will attest, I would have liked to have seen at least have some level of ability. Behaviour too wasn't the best either, with plenty of shouting and swearing across the fairways between shots and groups ahead and behind.
If this is how visitor days are going to be, I think I'll be giving them a miss in future.
In front of me on the tee and waiting to go were 2x 4-balls and a junior 2-ball. It was at this point I should have either headed to the 10th tee, or just forget about playing today. I knew it was going to be slow going, but I wasn't prepared for just how slow it was going to be...
The first 4-ball were all middle-aged, late-50s, and every one of them took a wood off the tee; each failing to clear the rough which stretches 100 or so yards ahead of the tee. Our opening hole is only a par-3... as each of them waddled to the buggies, I saw cases of Kronenbourg loaded in the back, and it was a similar story with the second 4-ball and cases of Stella.
The second group were younger, but clearly attached to the older group in front as a society or works outing or something. One of the guys was decent, and pinged his tee-shot through the green. The second guy to go had clearly never lifted a club in his life... after taking a stance that was little more than a sleeve of balls' width, his backswing was akin to trying to start an outboard motor, but with so much wrist-cock he near chibbed the clubhead. His downswing was much like someone using a scythe to cut grass and it must have been the rush of air that blew the ball off the tee about half-a-yard.
After some laughter, the guy teed-up again and delivered a carbon-copy of his previous attempt. At his third attempt he managed to connect with the ball, sending it about 40 yards along the ground. He took 6 from that point to even reach the green. :ffs:
The other two guys were similar in ability to the older boys ahead and were clearly a bit embarrassed by their playing partner's clear lack of ability.
Credit to the two juniors, they offered to let me through (as they are supposed to at PGC) but I declined, as I didn't want to be stuck so closely behind the group in front. Peebles has some cracking junior players, but these lads weren't among them. However, they could at least hit the ball in the general direction they were trying to go.
Playing on my own, another pensioner group rolled up behind me. I tee'd off almost to time, splitting a 6-iron through the green. Just as I got to the green, the group behind tee'd off! Its a par-3 remember, but no-one really got close to the green to be a worry. However, I chipped and 2-putted and got to the second tee just as the juniors were teeing off. By the time I got to the fourth tee, the second of the 4-ball groups was just going off, and by the time I reached the 6th tee, the first 4-ball was just going off. One of them found the fairway bunker on the left and took 6 to get out... its a fairly shallow bunker, its not the effing road hole bunker! :tirade:
All across the course, in the bins at least were various cans of lager, bottles of cider and miniature whiskies. Clearly fresh pitch marks and divots hadn't been replaced, and bunkers hadn't been raked.
I played the 6th and then cut across to the 13th, where the course was clear. I checked my phone and it had taken me 1 hours and 40 minutes to play those 6 holes. Played 2 balls from there in, hardly seeing another soul. There was a group playing the 12th hole (a par-3) as I tee'd off the 14th and a group on the 17th green. Aside from that, the back nine was empty.
Walking down the 18th, I saw the first 4-ball group just leaving the 10th green. They had played 4 holes in the time it had taken me to play a 2-ball from the 13th. :nono:
Have to say I didn't enjoy myself today.. I didn't play too well, and so maybe I'm just looking for an excuse towards my own poor play, but I just couldn't get into any sort of rhythm with the speed of play ahead of me and having to hang about on the tee for 5-10 minutes before being able to play on, and then the same for every shot after. Part of me reasons that I should have expected it given the weather and the opening of tees to visitors for the full day. I have absolutely nothing against visitors, their revenue is much needed; however, while I'm clearly no Rory McIlroy myself, as people who have seen me play will attest, I would have liked to have seen at least have some level of ability. Behaviour too wasn't the best either, with plenty of shouting and swearing across the fairways between shots and groups ahead and behind.
If this is how visitor days are going to be, I think I'll be giving them a miss in future.
