Slow play

[Deleted member 1740]

If you check back I intimated that players were on opposite sides of the fairway and not one in front of the other. Plus if you're the one 40 yards up on the right nobody is forcing you to hit it. Just saying that you should have the option to hit at the same time as the chap on the left if you want to. It's not a big deal is it? Use common sense.

It is if the chap on the left knifes his 2nd shot to side of your head whilst you're not looking.

I know from reading your posts that you like to disregard rules and apply common sense but this post is either a wind up or a contradiction of using said common sense.

 

[clubchamp98]

It is if the chap on the left knifes his 2nd shot to side of your head whilst you're not looking.

I know from reading your posts that you like to disregard rules and apply common sense but this post is either a wind up or a contradiction of using said common sense.

Yes I agree.
if somebody shanks one and your ahead of them your getting it full toss.

I was always told by my pro “ never get ahead of the player playing his shot”.

 

[Orikoru]

It is if the chap on the left knifes his 2nd shot to side of your head whilst you're not looking.

I know from reading your posts that you like to disregard rules and apply common sense but this post is either a wind up or a contradiction of using said common sense.

Incredibly unlikely if you've hit the same distance tee shot.. even a shank or a toe doesn't go straight right at 90 degrees.

As I said it was just an idea, wasn't planning to make it compulsory or anything. Using common sense you would know not to do it if you're in shanking radius of the other guy obviously.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

No drastic measures, soul-searching or pointed fingers required.

For our medal on Saturday with about 100 players out in 3 balls, we initiated marshalling and tee time/end time monitoring. The course is difficult at the moment with the rough, and it’s not easy at the easiest times. But the field managed to keep to 3hr 54min target round duration set by the club, even with quite a lot of ‘call throughs’ over the day. And the handful of two balls (due to drop outs) got round in under 3hr 30min.

For me the pace was perfect with us rarely having to wait to play, and not being pressed.

All that was required was advance notice provided to all players of what was being done and what was required of us; responsible and attentive groups, responding as and when necessary and requested by the Marshall, with ‘call throughs’ done properly (call through/stand aside/play up/stand aside).

 

[Backsticks]

No drastic measures, soul-searching or pointed fingers required.

For our medal on Saturday with about 100 players out in 3 balls, we initiated marshalling and tee time/end time monitoring. The course is difficult at the moment with the rough, and it’s not easy at the easiest times. But the field managed to keep to 3hr 54min target round duration set by the club, even with quite a lot of ‘call throughs’ over the day. And the handful of two balls (due to drop outs) got round in under 3hr 30min.

For me the pace was perfect with us rarely having to wait to play, and not being pressed.

All that was required was advance notice provided to all players of what was being done and what was required of us; responsible and attentive groups, responding as and when necessary and requested by the Marshall, with ‘call throughs’ done properly (call through/stand aside/play up/stand aside).

Interesting. A lot of call throughs, as in how many roughly ? More than normal ? Possible that is really what made the difference ? People play at different paces, and the cry is always from the faster players as if they are gods that slower ones should speed up. Could you safe if everyone just played at their normal varied pace, but the flock as a whole adjusted itself to that with more focus on playing through.

 

[Imurg]

Incredibly unlikely if you've hit the same distance tee shot.. even a shank or a toe doesn't go straight right at 90 degrees.

Clearly you have never played with Fragger.....nothing is impossible.

 

[Junior]

Our comps are 4 balls with 10 minute gaps We had a group right behind us at the weekend. We were waiting for the fairway to clear on the 2nd tee whilst they were putting out on the 1st 5 minutes after their alloted tee time.

One of our group lost a ball and we slowed up for a hole (but were always up with the group in front) and we were uming and arrrring whether to let them through. It wasn't a pleasant experience. One of their group walked in and posted something on the socials about it taking 2 hours to play 6 holes. We were conscious of time and kept looking. 2.15 hours for 10 holes, so about right for a Saturday medal. (4hrs 15 is about the norm). We do have a couple of short par 4s that are drivable down wind so we needed to wait for greens to clear which only seemed to exacerbate the situation. They're not call up holes but should be on days like last Saturday.

Slow play is a curse on the game but those who want to fly round at warp speed and don't care about what they score should also consider what time they play. Some folk care more about their bar time than they do the golf.

 

[ntommo]

At the end of the day if people play slow fair enough its up to them, BUT let the people behind you play through thats all I ask even if theres another group in front. Lots of times ive been in a 2 ball behind a 4 ball with no one in front of them and they just wont let you through

 

[Swango1980]

Our comps are 4 balls with 10 minute gaps We had a group right behind us at the weekend. We were waiting for the fairway to clear on the 2nd tee whilst they were putting out on the 1st 5 minutes after their alloted tee time.

One of our group lost a ball and we slowed up for a hole (but were always up with the group in front) and we were uming and arrrring whether to let them through. It wasn't a pleasant experience. One of their group walked in and posted something on the socials about it taking 2 hours to play 6 holes. We were conscious of time and kept looking. 2.15 hours for 10 holes, so about right for a Saturday medal. (4hrs 15 is about the norm). We do have a couple of short par 4s that are drivable down wind so we needed to wait for greens to clear which only seemed to exacerbate the situation. They're not call up holes but should be on days like last Saturday.

Slow play is a curse on the game but those who want to fly round at warp speed and don't care about what they score should also consider what time they play. Some folk care more about their bar time than they do the golf.

4 balls in competitions is asking for trouble to be fair. At my last club, it was 3 balls, but if total field was not divisible by 3, last group or 2 were 4 balls. When groups came in, the 1st fourball group were at least 30 minutes behind the 3ball in front of them. After all, there is the minimum amount of time it takes 1 extra golfer to play another 75 to 95 shots, plus whatever extra delay that player may bring (chatting, walking between shots, etc).

I can only imagine how slow things can be if nearly all the groups were 4 balls. As you said, at times your group will slow down due to looking for balls, but even at times you could play more quickly, you'll inevitably get slowed down by the pace in front. It is like golfers gridlock

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Interesting. A lot of call throughs, as in how many roughly ? More than normal ? Possible that is really what made the difference ? People play at different paces, and the cry is always from the faster players as if they are gods that slower ones should speed up. Could you safe if everyone just played at their normal varied pace, but the flock as a whole adjusted itself to that with more focus on playing through.

I get the feeling that there were more than normal, but as importantly I think with heightened awareness and knowing what was expected of us by the club (not just etiquette) call-throughs were done promptly.

My group let two 2 balls through (both times on par 3s) immediately they caught us…we had seen them coming and were ready to stand aside as soon as they arrived on the tee and were ready to play. And that we did. We waved them through; we stood aside; they teed off; we played on then marked our balls on the green and stood aside as they walked up; they played out; then we played out. By the time we got to the next tee they had pretty much cleared and we teed off with minimal delay.

Speaking with him yesterday, our Club Manager seemed very pleased with how things had panned out.

 

[RichA]

4 balls in competitions is asking for trouble to be fair. At my last club, it was 3 balls, but if total field was not divisible by 3, last group or 2 were 4 balls. When groups came in, the 1st fourball group were at least 30 minutes behind the 3ball in front of them. After all, there is the minimum amount of time it takes 1 extra golfer to play another 75 to 95 shots, plus whatever extra delay that player may bring (chatting, walking between shots, etc).

I can only imagine how slow things can be if nearly all the groups were 4 balls. As you said, at times your group will slow down due to looking for balls, but even at times you could play more quickly, you'll inevitably get slowed down by the pace in front. It is like golfers gridlock

Comps at ours are 3-balls, preceded by a 2-ball or two.

 

[Swango1980]

Comps at ours are 3-balls, preceded by a 2-ball or two.

That seems the most efficient set-up. Strangely, our club have 3 balls, but put the 1 or 2 2-balls at the end of the field. Not sure if that is just because that is how howdidido does the draw automatically?

 

[Crazyface]

Players just amble around the course, instead on a brisk walk. That's why it's slow. My misses walks at a right clip and that's how I notice everyone else is dead slow.

 

[Backsticks]

Players just amble around the course, instead on a brisk walk. That's why it's slow. My misses walks at a right clip and that's how I notice everyone else is dead slow.

So people want to amble. Let them amble if thats what they are comfortable with.

 

[3offTheTee]

Players just amble around the course, instead on a brisk walk. That's why it's slow. My misses walks at a right clip and that's how I notice everyone else is dead slow.

Perhaps some people do NOT want to amble but have no choice. This may be through age, bad knees, recovering from hip replacement

 

[GB72]

This is where the club needs to be more organised and maybe some are but it was not the case at my last clubs. At the weekend, the course is going to be busy and it is going to predominantly be 3 and 4 balls. As such, having too many 2 balls on the course is asking for trouble as they want to play through when, in fact, it is the pace of their small group that is contrary to the pace of a course most weekends. Constantly stopping to play 2 balls through slows down the whole course behind and really only benefits those 2 people. Clubs should be doing all that they can to pair up 2 balls or find a third looking for a game.

As others have mentioned, marshaling is another big thing. None at my previous clubs and so gaps appeared, people were not played through and the course slowed up. A few months of marshals pointing out the error of peoples' ways would soon improve things.

 

[Backsticks]

At the end of the day if people play slow fair enough its up to them, BUT let the people behind you play through thats all I ask even if theres another group in front. Lots of times ive been in a 2 ball behind a 4 ball with no one in front of them and they just wont let you through

You cannot let a group through if there is another group in front. Let them through once there is a clear hole or almost so that they have a gap to fit into.
Letting a 2 ball through a field of 4 balls just because they are faster just slows donw the whole field, and the 2 ball is not VIP with rights over everyone else. It happens. But its just bad luck and they have to suck it up. They can make no complaint about slow play either.

 

[D-S]

You cannot let a group through if there is another group in front. Let them through once there is a clear hole or almost so that they have a gap to fit into.
Letting a 2 ball through a field of 4 balls just because they are faster just slows donw the whole field, and the 2 ball is not VIP with rights over everyone else. It happens. But its just bad luck and they have to suck it up. They can make no complaint about slow play either.

I personally agree with this but there is a school of thought that the faster group must be called irrespective - when there is nowhere to go I am always confused by this.

My wife and I had an irritating game in France once where we were called through fourball after fourball on a Saturday morning, probably 7 or 8 times. The whole round felt rushed as we scampered through - the players were so nice and insistent that it seemed rude to refuse.

 

[Swango1980]

I personally agree with this but there is a school of thought that the faster group must be called irrespective - when there is nowhere to go I am always confused by this.

My wife and I had an irritating game in France once where we were called through fourball after fourball on a Saturday morning, probably 7 or 8 times. The whole round felt rushed as we scampered through - the players were so nice and insistent that it seemed rude to refuse.

Indeed. It's nice to be let through when there is a slow group in front, and there is space ahead of them. And clearly frustrating if they don't let you through, and you are much faster then them.

However, if I know there is group after group after group in front of them, I'm happy not to be let through, unless the group in front are really struggling on a hole. When groups let me through, I feel obliged to play even quicker than I'd like, to minimise their delay (which could be the completion of a full hole, as they wait for you to drive whilst they are down the fairway and they cannot restart until you clear the green). It very much feels like a rush, and don't really fancy that on nearly every hole if the course is full of 4 balls in front of you. So, I'm quite content to slow down my pace and give the group in front a bit more time to get away in front of me.

The golfers that come across the most arrogant on the golf course are the speed merchants that want to complete a round in under 3 hours, and stand with hands on hips and moaning when they go out on a busy weekend morning and all the groups in front don't just stop for them and roll out the red carpet. And this moaning can start within 30 seconds of their first hold up of the day. At the end of the day, golf simply isn't the quickest sport, and if you've somewhere to be on a Saturday / Sunday afternoon, then either don't play golf or tee off earlier.

 

[clubchamp98]

You cannot let a group through if there is another group in front. Let them through once there is a clear hole or almost so that they have a gap to fit into.
Letting a 2 ball through a field of 4 balls just because they are faster just slows donw the whole field, and the 2 ball is not VIP with rights over everyone else. It happens. But its just bad luck and they have to suck it up. They can make no complaint about slow play either.

Yes it’s this at ours in comps.
Course speed is three ball and if you’re one short it’s just tough.
If you lose a hole yes let them through.
but if your up with the group ahead they will just have to stay where they are.
All the members know this