Pace of play obsessions

[jamielaing]

but Jamie, its up to every player to get around the course at a reasonable pace, if you just leave it and say oh relax smell the flowers etc, is that going to improve things?

Not what I am saying. I am saying this is starting to take the enjoyment out. If everyone reads putts, lines up shots, takes a practice swing, has a PSR, walks to landing zones etc lets say the round takes 4 hours. You can play your best golf having given yourself your routine and you enjoy your day.

Conversely, walk up, hit, take 3 hours and I for one would hate it.

Absolutely, bags in the right place, leave the pin in, don't take 10 minutes to look for a ball etc etc fixes a lot. Lets just enjoy the game.

You don't go to the football and moan that the game took 90 minutes.

 

[patricks148]

Not what I am saying. I am saying this is starting to take the enjoyment out. If everyone reads putts, lines up shots, takes a practice swing, has a PSR, walks to landing zones etc lets say the round takes 4 hours. You can play your best golf having given yourself your routine and you enjoy your day.

Conversely, walk up, hit, take 3 hours and I for one would hate it.

Absolutely, bags in the right place, leave the pin in, don't take 10 minutes to look for a ball etc etc fixes a lot. Lets just enjoy the game.

You don't go to the football and moan that the game took 90 minutes.

TBH, this is exactly what i do, i love playing, but i hate standing around, if you want to take all day that's fine, just let faster players though that's all we ask.

i would mind if the round took you 4 hours, but not if it means i'm standing around for an hour during that, now that for me is taking the enjoyment out of it

 

[Reemul]

Not what I am saying. I am saying this is starting to take the enjoyment out. If everyone reads putts, lines up shots, takes a practice swing, has a PSR, walks to landing zones etc lets say the round takes 4 hours. You can play your best golf having given yourself your routine and you enjoy your day.

Conversely, walk up, hit, take 3 hours and I for one would hate it.

Absolutely, bags in the right place, leave the pin in, don't take 10 minutes to look for a ball etc etc fixes a lot. Lets just enjoy the game.

You don't go to the football and moan that the game took 90 minutes.

I see what you are saying but the reality is it's not one or the other. Most don't want to rush it but they don't want to stand around picking their arse for 90 extra minutes while the groups in front play slowly based on all the issues listed above. There doesn't seem to be an obsession with fast golf just a good steady pace of play taking as long as it takes while not taking 6 practice swings, marking cards on the greens etc etc. The actual solutions to the pace of play are generally easy to implement it's the players that are the issue and with no authority on the course to influence it things won't change.

But most are not obsessing over fast golf.

 

[Parsaregood]

Played in a Wednesday medal yesterday in a 4ball, one ofthe 4ball was a 72 year old who insisted on putting the flag back in to putt anything outside of 1 foot. He also had the most methodical and slowest pre shot routine, walked with the pace of a tortoise and the best of it was he had nr'rd on the front 9 so wasnt even playing well. I had allowed 4 hours for the round, me & another boy had to be somewhere afterwards so needless to say it was pretty painful. I'm not normally bothered by slow play but it was how tedious he was that really annoyed me. I'm sure if we played in a 3 I could have shaved 25 minutes off the round.

 

[Bunkermagnet]

I cant stand slow games, where you're stood waiting ov er every shot. As has been said by others, flow is what keeps the game good and you onoly need one person/ group to kill it for eveyone whos behind them that day.
It is mainly things like where you leave your trolley or standing around putting your club away when you can do that with the trolley moving that cause most delays I reckon

 

[JV24601]

Just read a couple of threads and as always there are comments of 'if everyone did that....'

I love how anything always gets pace of play comments. Maybe we should all stop reading putts, no practice swings, no assessing lies. If we set a minimum jog speed between shots we could all get round in 1hr45.

I appreciate slow play is an issue in golf. I appreciate we should all be looking to keep up with the group in front. But when did golf's sole purpose be trying to get round as quick as possible? Surely we should be trying to play well. Not overly worried about the time it takes. When I play golf I allow extra time on each side of the round. It means I can actually enjoy my round and not be worrying about being held up. Bare in mind, this is your hobby. You do this to enjoy yourself. Surely more time with your mates, out in nice surroundings, doing what we love is a good thing?

I am sick of hearing about slow play off people. Golf takes time.

*I am in no way advocating that we should slow down, I don't want 5 hour rounds. But are we not getting a little overly obsessed with this?*

Spot on post.

Too many people in general and at my golf club genuinely are obsessed with pace of play.
All I hear is the same people blabbing on about how it took them under 3 hours when the course was empty.

My opinion is that there shouldn't be a set time to do the round in. There's too many other things to factor in to make a set time.
Just stick to the basic rules/etiquette and you shouldn't be too far away from the rest of them.

For the record. My quickest round in a competition was with two guys I hopped on with and only knew to say hello to.
They flew round with me in tow at around 7am, in a spectacular 2 hours 25 mins. They both got 0.1 back and came nowhere near their handicap.
I got 0.1 back just. It was undoubtedly due to the pace of play which was just too quick as I changed to be like them.
I'll never do that again and always play my way now, which isn't slow, nor fast.

 

[IanM]

Golf takes as long as it takes. Just play with a little thought for those behind you eh?

 

[bobmac]

The only way to keep everyone happy speed-wise is to let everyone play at the speed they want to play.
Fast players out first, slow players out behind.

 

[Deleted member 21258]

Sorry to admit to it, but if every round of golf took 4.5 hours plus, I would just give up golf. as it removes all enjoyment out of the sport. Stop start stop start, does my head in :exploding head icon :

As a result, I tend to play later on in the day or at quiet times to try to ensure that the pace is free flowing and that I enjoy the golf. I do try to change my outlook/mindset when I play in comps/society days etc, to relax but some days I am successful and some I am not.

BTW it not the sport that is wrong for me, its the very slow play does not mix with enjoying the sport for me.

 

[Bxm Foxy]

2 of my playing partners are quite new golfers. They need reminding occasionally about doing a few things that hold us up. They just need educating.

 

[OLgolfer]

100% agree with the OP. Slow play is an obsession with some and that’s just as bad as slow play itself..!

 

[Scozzy]

I play most of my golf v early or v late to avoid the grind of a course full of people .Over the course of a year I don’t actually play that much 18 hole golf except a few medals and if a tie goes down 18 or extra holes.Lots of v early bounce games or 6 holes and a pint later on far preferred than a Sat tee time knowing it’s going to take all day watching people prowl the green like tiger as they attempt to hole out for triple...again!

I generally agree with op but it’s 2019 and we’re all busy,get on with it man!

 

[patricks148]

100% agree with the OP. Slow play is an obsession with some and that’s just as bad as slow play itself..!

Yes all those inconsiderate buggers getting around the course in a decent time, while not holding anyone up.. its killing golf

 

[Tashyboy]

Played Tuesday and we were the last fourball out before a women's match. A women's three ball followed us. By the seventh we had made up two holes on the fourball in front of us. The women were breathing down our necks. The fourball in front of us went in after 9 holes. We left the women behind. It felt like we were running to keep up a pace.
Today we set off again a fourball. The three ball in front of us never rang the bell on two holes. The two ball behind us caught us up regular even though we were not holding them up due to players in front. We went found in 1 HR 55 mins again it felt like we were running. There was no one on the back nine again and it was more leisurely. We did run down the 18 th coz IT bladdered it down. But it's not the best game to be playing when you constantly look at the clock.

 

[sev112]

I love it that the “obsessed” players are being told that golf is not the game for them if they can’t spare more time

Perhaps those who want the banter with friends , and smell the flowers, etc could just go for a walk in the countryside instead and do it as slowly as you wish and leave the courses less busy
I play much better when playing fast. Once shot 4 or 5 under handicap in a 2 ball at 7am. And was at home by 9am. Was very enjoyable . Playing partner played very well as well.

Having said that I think you can play as slowly as you want, take 10 hours if you want.
As long as you let everyone through who is playing faster (as per the rules say) and nit roll out excuses like “you can’t get any further”, and “letting you through will only hold up more people” that routinely get rolled out.

 

[happyhacker]

Problem is even letting players through takes time and slows things down to allow groups to slot in. It's the best solution but it's not ideal.

Bob has it right imo, we should be graded for speed of play and allocated tee times (for competitions) based on speed of play. I respect the right of players / groups to play at their own pace, but in a competition if an early group out is slow that's the whole day goosed for everyone else.

 

[Deleted member 18588]

The day that the two newish members that I played with in a Medal said that they thought we had "done pretty well" by getting round in 4 hours 40 minutes.

That was the day I stopped entering comps.

Apparently those younger than me all have such busy lives nowadays and yet they can afford to take an hour longer than a comfortable round need ever take.

 

[DCB]

I grew up playing a 6300 yard par 71 parkland course. Way back in those days a Saturday morning or Sunday morning were the busiest times of the week. We used to play round in just over 3 hours. We carried our bags, we played at the pace the course dictated and we had a great time. Roll on 45 years and the same course will easily see a 4 hour round, a busy summers Saturday morning will be closer to 41/2 hours. I have no idea why the round would now take so much longer, the course still dictates the pace of play, so has everyone slowed down ? I don't know, there is no simple answer to this, unless bob mac has hit on something in post #28

 

[Griffsters]

I get that slow golf is an issue but it just seems to be taking over. We are now getting to the point where people are rushing just incase they are accused of slow play.

This. Some people race round like their pants are on fire and get all stroppy at folk trying to enjoy their round in a relaxed manner. Perhaps some should consider that they are FAST rather than others are SLOW. The two extremes - both are selfish and completely oblivious to it.

 

[Wolf]

Whilst Bob's solution of put the fast out first and the slow out last has merits it will never work.

I can't say as I particularly want to race round in 2 hrs as I simply wouldn't enjoy it or play well, that being said I wouldn't want a 5hr round as I'd be bored off my tits.