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Letting people play through

rudebhoy said:
Was out yesterday with my regular PP who is a beginner like me. The course was pretty quiet as it normally is this time of year.

Our course has 2 long par 5s in a row. As we were teeing off on the second par 5, I noticed a guy playing on his own coming down the first par 5.

A couple of shots later we are not far from the green and my partner is about to play. I looked back, to see the other guy in the middle of the fairway about 170 yards back, lining up a shot. He then hits it, and it heads straight towards my PP. I shouted at him to watch out, and the ball landed about 10 feet from where he was stood. No warning from the guy who played the shot.

The guy then marches up to my partner, says "are you a beginner?" then starts ranting on about how he was supposed to let people playing faster than him play through, then picks up his ball without completing the hole, and storms off in the direction of another hole (not the next one).

I am normally pretty aware of people getting held up by us, and always let them play through. I would have let this guy go in front of us as soon as we had finished the hole.

So, were we out of order and should we have let him though as soon as we saw him on the same hole as us, or was he just a nutcase?
Click to expand...



I am aware that in this instance the bloke in question may have been a nutcase. However, I am an extremely sociable person, and if I or any of my friends see a single player coming up behind, we always ask them to join us. Of course, if they didn't want to we would let them play through, but as yet this has never happened, as most people relish the company.
 
WWG said:
I am aware that in this instance the bloke in question may have been a nutcase. However, I am an extremely sociable person, and if I or any of my friends see a single player coming up behind, we always ask them to join us. Of course, if they didn't want to we would let them play through, but as yet this has never happened, as most people relish the company.
Click to expand...

Even if they are hitting balls straight at you?
 
If he deliberately hit his ball at me knowing it would be landing very close and possibly come close to hitting me, then I'd simply pick it up and put it in my pocket. Good luck to him trying to get it back...
 
ger147 said:
If he deliberately hit his ball at me knowing it would be landing very close and possibly come close to hitting me, then I'd simply pick it up and put it in my pocket. Good luck to him trying to get it back...
Click to expand...
I think the right place to put it is down his throat?

Anyway, as a fellow beginner, how do you let someone play through properly?
My assumption is that I can hit my ball down the fairway while the guys behind are still putting the previous hole. Then, once they hit the fairway or even the green, we can all walk up, they are likely further anyway, they play on, I follow once safe?

(currently only playing a 9 hol par 3 course but possibly going for a 1st 18 on Thursday/Friday, so it is time to know)
 
HankMarvin said:
So by doing this you slow him down ?

And everyone else behind you on the course, great idea.......not
Click to expand...

Yes, let him cool his heels for a minute or two. Or explode, if he prefers. Just to make the point that I won't be intimidated by him.

Same as if someone drives up right behind me on the motorway. I will slow down for a bit there too.
 
He'd have got his ball back but it would have been in my clenched fist at the time, people like him wouldn't care about being reported, he'll always think he's right, only 1 way to treat a bully, which is what he essentially portrayed himself as, fire with fire IMO, he was just an ignorant pig and a dangerous one at that and has no place on a golf course 😡
 
I play at the same course as the OP and this has happened to me once there at the 17th ( the op will know what I mean).

Mind you, we also have a few members who play very slowly and won't let anyone through! Easily adding the best part of an hour onto a round.
 
I often play on my own and would never dream of hitting a ball at the group in front regardless of how much they slowed me.

if someone was behind me I would ask to join them (unless they were a 4 ball) or if it was quiet I would drop another ball or practice around the green.
 
Guys like that bring out the very worst in me. I know people will say that all sports have them and that is true beyond doubt. I tell what though, this game of ours is rife with them

Whilst i am not saying i would have decked him, id o think it would have taken some serious self control not too have done.

Whacking a ball back in his direction is a little OTT as it could result in something pretty serious occurring.

I would not have minded rearranging his nose bone with my forehead mind you.

The pillock
 
rudebhoy said:
Was out yesterday with my regular PP who is a beginner like me. The course was pretty quiet as it normally is this time of year.

Our course has 2 long par 5s in a row. As we were teeing off on the second par 5, I noticed a guy playing on his own coming down the first par 5.

A couple of shots later we are not far from the green and my partner is about to play. I looked back, to see the other guy in the middle of the fairway about 170 yards back, lining up a shot. He then hits it, and it heads straight towards my PP. I shouted at him to watch out, and the ball landed about 10 feet from where he was stood. No warning from the guy who played the shot.

The guy then marches up to my partner, says "are you a beginner?" then starts ranting on about how he was supposed to let people playing faster than him play through, then picks up his ball without completing the hole, and storms off in the direction of another hole (not the next one).

I am normally pretty aware of people getting held up by us, and always let them play through. I would have let this guy go in front of us as soon as we had finished the hole.

So, were we out of order and should we have let him though as soon as we saw him on the same hole as us, or was he just a nutcase?
Click to expand...

Based on the what you've described, I would deduce:
  • He's unbalanced, you're not.
  • He's wrong, you're not.
  • He's a bell end, you're not.
  • He's friendless, you're not.
Console yourself with these "facts" and pity him.

Shep
 
i have had someone do the same to me and my pp when playing.the ball went just past me ,so my pp shouted back thanks for the warning mate ,which wasnt given.i on the other hand took my driver out of my bag and teed his ball up .then hit the most perfect shot with it ,i absolutely nailed it ,right into the lake that runs along side the hole. we never saw the bloke again.
 
Happened to me once....I was playing Kingsbarns in July and hit it right on the 10th.. Had to go over the hill on the right to find it but my playing partner was still on the right rough helping the search.

Three ball shows up and and one of them tees off missing my playing partner by a couple of feet. So I have a rant at the assembly on the tee and tread the ball into the ground...so now he needs a JCB to get it out!

Anyway we finished playing the hole and moved on....never got bothered the the rest of the round which surprised me as they were very tidy players and noticeably the held back on the tees so as not to make contact....they all looked a bit sheepish as well.

Finished the round and took the clubs back to the car. Finished packing up the car and noticed the trio walking back to the car park were I was just about the have a pop (verbally) at these the offending golfer until I noticed that it was Geoff Ogilvy. To his credit he apologized profusely and gave us a signed golf ball....Anyway I said to him 'what are you doing hitting a ball 20 yards to the right of the fairway with a 3 iron'....he replied 'so you notice I haven't won anything lately....' so we all had a good laugh and I bade him farewell and good luck at the Open which started the next day.

Popped into the clubhouse only to see Ian Poulter there with his son and father....one of them has a very nice Maserati....

I played like a tart.....
 
rudebhoy said:
.........The guy then marches up to my partner, says "are you a beginner?" then starts ranting on about how he was supposed to let people playing faster than him play through, then picks up his ball without completing the hole, and storms off in the direction of another hole (not the next one).

I am normally pretty aware of people getting held up by us, and always let them play through. I would have let this guy go in front of us as soon as we had finished the hole.

So, were we out of order and should we have let him though as soon as we saw him on the same hole as us, or was he just a nutcase?
Click to expand...

This is the paragraph that’s really interesting

Could you describe the ‘march’ was it like a military thing or brass band type march and was it a slow or quick march?
What was your PP doing while he covered the 170+ yards?
What tone of voice did he use when asking if the PP was a beginner i.e was it stern or concern?
Did your PP even answer his question, maybe with something like “yes actually I am a beginner, how did you know”
How long did the ‘ranting’ last and what did your PP do or say during this time, did he just stand saying nothing or did he engage in a conversation about the appropriate juncture to let a player through or the dangers of hitting a ball into a group in front?
When he ‘stormed off’ to play another hole, how did this storming differ from the earlier marching?

Got to agree with the general consensus, the single player sounds like a right nutcase, but the events as described sound pretty surreal themselves ;)
 
rudebhoy said:
A couple of shots later we are not far from the green and my partner is about to play. I looked back, to see the other guy in the middle of the fairway about 170 yards back, lining up a shot. He then hits it, and it heads straight towards my PP. I would have let this guy go in front of us as soon as we had finished the hole.
Click to expand...

Whilst the guy was out of order playing his shot directly at you, in the scenario above I would have quickly warned my partner what was about to happen and suggested he stopped what he was doing and stepped to one side.
He was obviously a lot quicker than you, and would have got out of your way fairly speedily.
Why wait until you have finished the hole to let him through???
As I say, no excuse for what he did, but I hate being pressured by somebody from behind.
 
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