Pace Of Play - what can be done to improve it

[chellie]

There is really no need to rush to get round a golf course in a reasonable time. Just walk briskly between shots and don't faff about like the tour pros when playing your shots. Small things like leaving your clubs in the right place and marking cards on the next tee rather than on the green all help.

I already do all of that.
I don't take practice swings.
I don't line up balls for putts.
I read my line whilst my FC or PP is taking their putt.
I'm always stood ready to take my next shot with the club out.
I don't mark my card just as I'm off the green.
Bag is always on the correct side of the green to get to the next tee.
I walk quickly and was walking ahead of my FC most of the time today.
I had to take two provisionals today but my first were found quickly on both occasions.
Oh, and I had to don waterproofs when the heavens opened and then take them off when it stopped and it was sweltering.


Quite frankly after these two rounds I am sick to death of the anti slow play pressure that was piled onto us.

 

[Slime]

I'm currently watching the US Amateur Championship semi-finals.
The commentators are not happy!
One group has been told to get a move on ..................... four times!
Not once have they been put 'on the clock'.
The commentators have said that "the pace of play absolutely stinks, and until they're actually put on the clock, it will continue to do so. The USPGA MUST do something about this".
A damning indictment, indeed.

Slime.

 

[delc]

I'm currently watching the US Amateur Championship semi-finals.
The commentators are not happy!
One group has been told to get a move on ..................... four times!
Not once have they been put 'on the clock'.
The commentators have said that "the pace of play absolutely stinks, and until they're actually put on the clock, it will continue to do so. The USPGA MUST do something about this".
A damning indictment, indeed.

Slime.

There really should be a target maximum time for playing a round of golf, after which penalty strokes are applied. If players, especially tour pros and elite amateurs, are allowed to take as much time as they want over every shot, they will do so. I never notice tour pros calling a following group through when a ruling is required, so that slows down play even more!

 

[3565]

I already do all of that.
I don't take practice swings.
I don't line up balls for putts.
I read my line whilst my FC or PP is taking their putt.
I'm always stood ready to take my next shot with the club out.
I don't mark my card just as I'm off the green.
Bag is always on the correct side of the green to get to the next tee.
I walk quickly and was walking ahead of my FC most of the time today.
I had to take two provisionals today but my first were found quickly on both occasions.
Oh, and I had to don waterproofs when the heavens opened and then take them off when it stopped and it was sweltering.


Quite frankly after these two rounds I am sick to death of the anti slow play pressure that was piled onto us.

Here, here, I'm sick to the back teeth of it too.

 

[3565]

There really should be a target maximum time for playing a round of golf, after which penalty strokes are applied. If players, especially tour pros and elite amateurs, are allowed to take as much time as they want over every shot, they will do so. I never notice tour pros calling a following group through when a ruling is required, so that slows down play even more!

For who and what would that time be?

 

[Robobum]

For who and what would that time be?

Would there need to be a sst & a csst?

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Far too many variables to have set time limits for a round of golf

 

[duncan mackie]

I already do all of that.
I don't take practice swings.
I don't line up balls for putts.
I read my line whilst my FC or PP is taking their putt.
I'm always stood ready to take my next shot with the club out.
I don't mark my card just as I'm off the green.
Bag is always on the correct side of the green to get to the next tee.
I walk quickly and was walking ahead of my FC most of the time today.
I had to take two provisionals today but my first were found quickly on both occasions.
Oh, and I had to don waterproofs when the heavens opened and then take them off when it stopped and it was sweltering.


Quite frankly after these two rounds I am sick to death of the anti slow play pressure that was piled onto us.

Within the club environment this is the way I feel about all but the most intensive marshaling. This is because it needs intensive marshaling to establish and understand exactly what's really going on.

Everything else simple puts pressure on the innocent golfer (the one that is aware of their position, is already rushing and affected by the consideration for pop and others).

However, I do have huge hopes that by establishing not time based parameters but clear behavioural ones, the work that Mike's team is currently working on will provide a balance to what has, in some places, got out of hand.

 

[PhilTheFragger]

Far too many variables to have set time limits for a round of golf

Each course will vary, but it is certainly possible to get an average 4ball time for each course, plenty of times I have seen signs saying " you should be here in 2 hours 20 mins" etc
Any group who takes longer is potentially holding up the course and course marshals should ensure that any backed up groups are let through.

Of course that assumes that your course has a course marshal

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Each course will vary, but it is certainly possible to get an average 4ball time for each course, plenty of times I have seen signs saying " you should be here in 2 hours 20 mins" etc
Any group who takes longer is potentially holding up the course and course marshals should ensure that any backed up groups are let through.

Of course that assumes that your course has a course marshal

Again it will be full of variables in regards - competition play , social play , match play , 4BBB - captains day , club champs etc etc - so many different variables

It always should be judged on the day - if you have lost 2 holes to the group in front and you have the group behind waiting on every shot then you are slow for the pace on that day and need to either pick up your pace or allow the group behind through.

 

[PhilTheFragger]

Again it will be full of variables in regards - competition play , social play , match play , 4BBB - captains day , club champs etc etc - so many different variables

It always should be judged on the day - if you have lost 2 holes to the group in front and you have the group behind waiting on every shot then you are slow for the pace on that day and need to either pick up your pace or allow the group behind through.

Agree totally except it should be 1 hole lost to the group in front

 

[chrisd]

Cut the rough to manageable length, so you can find a ball fairly quickly but still have a tough shot to recover. Don't let tree branches swallow up balls, cut them to a height that a player can swing to get back into play and doesn't have to faff around taking drops. Play a reasonable amount of Stableford comps so that players can pick up - we had a bogey comp today and no one holed out more than a tap in if they were out of the hole. Have no more than a one practice swing policy. Get experienced players to advise newer golfers on ways to speed up, advertise that this will be done and ask people to accept the advice willingly. Have good sineage for the walk from green to next tees.

Just a few things!

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Will never see sanitising a golf course as a solution to slow play

 

[HomerJSimpson]

There really should be a target maximum time for playing a round of golf, after which penalty strokes are applied. If players, especially tour pros and elite amateurs, are allowed to take as much time as they want over every shot, they will do so. I never notice tour pros calling a following group through when a ruling is required, so that slows down play even more!

How are you going to enforce that, with rulings etc taking forever. How does that filter to club level. Will ruin it for club golfers who play for fun and shouldn't have that tarnished just because a few ruin it by taking too long

 

[Foxholer]

Agree totally except it should be 1 hole lost to the group in front

As long as 'lost 1 hole' is the proper definition, rather than that of the guys who want to get into the bar or away from the course asap!

Remember that you generally start nearly 3/4 to 1 hole behind the group in front anyway, so losing a hole on that group means 1 and 3/4s to 2 holes behind them. Anything between those 2 boundaries is really simply 'out of position' at worst - as is being up their backsides!

 

[Slab]

Does anyone know if their course has actually been pace rated?

Not talking about an expected time for a round being posted somewhere but was that round time derived from a proper pace rating for that course?

 

[delc]

Does anyone know if their course has actually been pace rated?

Not talking about an expected time for a round being posted somewhere but was that round time derived from a proper pace rating for that course?

Our course has notices that say you should have reached this hole by such and such a time, but this is rarely/never enforced. Obviously some courses take longer to walk round than others, particularly if there are some long walks between holes, but it should be possible to come to some sort of pace of play rating.

 

[delc]

As long as 'lost 1 hole' is the proper definition, rather than that of the guys who want to get into the bar or away from the course asap!

Remember that you generally start nearly 3/4 to 1 hole behind the group in front anyway, so losing a hole on that group means 1 and 3/4s to 2 holes behind them. Anything between those 2 boundaries is really simply 'out of position' at worst - as is being up their backsides!

There have been occasions when my playing group has lost a clear hole to a particularly fast group ahead, but the following group are nowhere to be seen! You can hardly call them through in that case, at least not without waiting for a long time!

 

[Slab]

Our course has notices that say you should have reached this hole by such and such a time, but this is rarely/never enforced. Obviously some courses take longer to walk round than others, particularly if there are some long walks between holes, but it should be possible to come to some sort of pace of play rating.

Yeah the USGA have had a pace rating formula for over 20 years and just updated it in 2013 which can be applied to any course. Do you know if how the hole times for your course were decided?

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

4hrs 10mins yesterday for 3 ball in a club 'major' stableford comp - much of the time played in pouring rain. Given the weather we thought that not too bad.