Slow play

[paddyjk]

Is slow play a big problem? I've seen some comments that modern things like lasers slow things up, but from a personal point of view I don't experience slow play that often , played today in bogey comp as a 4 ball and we were round in just shy of 4 hrs I think. Not to say it's not happening as it certainly is, but why does it happen and what can be done.?

 

[Backsticks]

Slow is a relative term. Its certainly taking longer to play a round than decades ago, and the time is still lengthening. People are chosing to do more things, peripheral to actually hitting their ball. Things that simply didnt exist in the past.

People delude themselves about their particular cocktail of actions as taking no time, and so they arent contributing to slow play. But always point to what others do, that they themseves dont do, as causing slow play.
Until people concede they are ALL part of longer round times, and specifically stop doing superfluous actions that arent just hitting the ball, then they can have no complaint about 5hr rounds.

I dont find it a problem really. Half an hour here or there is no big deal. Slow play moaners though, who have their own selection of play slowing gimmicks, do annoy me.

There is only one solution - ban stuff. But nobody wants their particular affectation removed from their arsenal of time wasting habits.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

Just too obvious

 

[Bratty]

Never mind slow play, I wonder if "slow to catch on" is finally is dying out on the forum?

 

[paddyjk]

Just too obvious

Too obvious for what? It's a golf forum and slow play is apparently the bane of golfers everywhere, what would you prefer to talk about ? Mod edit….

 

[paddyjk]

Slow is a relative term. Its certainly taking longer to play a round than decades ago, and the time is still lengthening. People are chosing to do more things, peripheral to actually hitting their ball. Things that simply didnt exist in the past.

People delude themselves about their particular cocktail of actions as taking no time, and so they arent contributing to slow play. But always point to what others do, that they themseves dont do, as causing slow play.
Until people concede they are ALL part of longer round times, and specifically stop doing superfluous actions that arent just hitting the ball, then they can have no complaint about 5hr rounds.

I dont find it a problem really. Half an hour here or there is no big deal. Slow play moaners though, who have their own selection of play slowing gimmicks, do annoy me.

There is only one solution - ban stuff. But nobody wants their particular affectation removed from their arsenal of time wasting habits.

Bit of a ramble , guy in our group today had iron covers and a range finder . He was deffo not slow.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

We piloted on course marshalling in our Medal on Saturday as well as round start and end time recording. Typical three ball seemed to take just under 4 hrs or thereabouts, my group took 4:08 but we let a couple of two balls play through. The two balls took 3:25-3:30. All quite reasonable and acceptable we thought.

 

[Voyager EMH]

I find that slow play is caused by everybody else with no exceptions.

 

[Slab]

We piloted on course marshalling in our Medal on Saturday as well as round start and end time recording. Typical three ball seemed to take just under 4 hrs or thereabouts, my group took 4:08 but we let a couple of two balls play through. The two balls took 3:25-3:30. All quite reasonable and acceptable we thought.

Not forgetting the single biggest contributing factor/frame of reference that's often missed out whenever slow play rears its head and times start getting listed. For those of us not familiar, what's the typical distance (tee to green + green to tee)

Your 4:08 may be seen as rapid or glacial

 

[HPIMG]

I play with a guy regularly and he’s a really nice person and I do enjoy his company but he’s painfully slow. He has this routine he goes through with every shot and if he hits a bad shot he take ages thinking what’s went wrong. We have all had a joke with him about how slow he is but he doesn’t see it. Last week we are in a 4 ball and I say let’s let this two ball pass and the slow guy starts moaning lol we all said same thing, if you bloody hurry up we wouldn’t need to let anyone past. One time I played myself with him and round took just under 4 hours on quite a short course.

 

[Hobbit]

@paddyjk @Liverpoolphil

Guys, let’s keep it on track & ‘clean.’ I’ve deleted 2 posts and (mildly) edited another.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Not forgetting the single biggest contributing factor/frame of reference that's often missed out whenever slow play rears its head and times start getting listed. For those of us not familiar, what's the typical distance (tee to green + green to tee)

Your 4:08 may be seen as rapid or glacial

The club has determined a guide time of 3hr 54min for a 3 ball medal.

I was speaking with our Marshall in the clubhouse afterwards and he told me he had to give a few groups a bit of hurry/catch up ‘advice’

 

[paddyjk]

We piloted on course marshalling in our Medal on Saturday as well as round start and end time recording. Typical three ball seemed to take just under 4 hrs or thereabouts, my group took 4:08 but we let a couple of two balls play through. The two balls took 3:25-3:30. All quite reasonable and acceptable we thought.

The ranger will come round some times and and gee the odd group along ,but other than that there is a clock at the 12th that shows if your a tortoise or not.

 

[Golfnut1957]

I said most of this in the headcover thread, and it's worth expanding upon.

There are a few reasons for slow play, it could be that the semi-rough has been allowed to grow and if a player is not on the fairway then he is looking for his ball. Then there is the player who physically cannot walk any quicker, they should be cut some slack.

The biggest contributor to slow play however is a player's state of mind. Some people are oblivious to what is going around them and the impact they are having on the field. Some people don't see slow play as an issue and therefore don't care what impact they are having on the field.

There are a multitude of things that can be done to speed things up within a group, but if nobody within the group is willing or able then it isn't going to happen.

One last thing. In a full field event all it takes to ruin a day is for one of the early groups to be slow and lose their place. It is then nigh on impossible for the field to get back to a reasonable pace with the late starters looking to blame the groups immediately in front when the real culprits are long gone.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

How times change.
When I was a teenager [1960's] over two and a half hours around a championship par72 course was considered slow.

 

[Backsticks]

How times change.
When I was a teenager [1960's] over two and a half hours around a championship par72 course was considered slow.

Were lasers quicker to catch a yardage in thise days ?

 

[jim8flog]

I find it highly noticeable all round but would not put it down to any one reason.

When I first started to play here we did not even have yardage charts. Saturday morning comp the expected time to play the round was 3 hours 20 minutes and they often recorded start and finish times. These days a sub 4 hour round is an absolute rarity and it can often be 4.30.

The big change in that time is that all players back then were 24 handicap or better, we had fewer trees and less penal rough.

At the end of the day I think the biggest reason is slow players, we have a couple in our group - play with them and it will generally be 4 hours plus without
3-3.30. What annoys me the most about them is the refusal to acknowledge they are slow despite being told so by many players.

 

[Deleted member 31467]

Walk at a reasonable pace to your ball. Do all your prep whilst others are hitting their shots. You can have a 2 minute pre shot routine for all I care as long as you are doing it while others are playing their shots and obviously not getting in their way. Slow players are the ones that walk everywhere as a 4ball instead of going to their own balls, don't start getting ready until it's their turn to play.

It really is not difficult to get round a course at a decent pace.

 

[rulefan]

Is slow play a big problem? I've seen some comments that modern things like lasers slow things up, but from a personal point of view I don't experience slow play that often , played today in bogey comp as a 4 ball and we were round in just shy of 4 hrs I think. Not to say it's not happening as it certainly is, but why does it happen and what can be done.?

Boring and probably insoluble
176 posts on this topic less than a year ago.

Slow play…….

Since slow play has become the hot topic in recent years, I’ve really struggled to see what the exact cause is and the timeline in which it changed. As a kid (94-97) we would play a 4 ball in around 3 hours, all carrying with varying handicaps between 10 and low 20’s. Any comp rounds seem to...

forums.golfmonthly.com

 

[Deleted member 31467]

Boring and probably insoluble
176 posts on this topic less than a year ago.

Slow play…….

Since slow play has become the hot topic in recent years, I’ve really struggled to see what the exact cause is and the timeline in which it changed. As a kid (94-97) we would play a 4 ball in around 3 hours, all carrying with varying handicaps between 10 and low 20’s. Any comp rounds seem to...

forums.golfmonthly.com

Don't worry, I'm going to start a dress code thread next week