Who's Fault is Slow-Play?

[PlaidJacket]

So whose fault is it? Me? You? Everyone else? Today I'm finger pointing and guess who I blame? The people running the course. Those people being the local Pro or owner of the course. They create slow play. Let me explain.

 

Yesterday I traveled to a neighboring community to play a local "hidden gem". It's a good one. They maintain the course well and the greens are awesome. I always look forward to playing there.

 

What we ran into yesterday was a "cluster". The course owner let - allowed; an impromptu scramble take place. Our tee time was at 9:30 but we weren't able to actually tee it up till almost 10:00. This backed up the entire golf course causing our round and everyone else's round behind these scramblers to be 5+ hour rounds. So, whose fault is slow-play? In our case yesterday it was the PRO! He alone created the situation. All he had to do is tell these guys NO. Instead he ruined everyone's round to satisfy a few.

 

Slow-Play I believe is largely created by situations like I encountered yesterday. Other times it's just the club or course Pro - management's desire to cram as many rounds into a day as possible. So the next time you hear that you need to speed it up tell them to go take a hike. They're the ones making golf slow!

 

 

[StrokerAce]

A good course ranger always helps too....sounds that at the very least he should have let you guys play through.

 

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[PlaidJacket]

A good course ranger always helps too....sounds that at the very least he should have let you guys play through.

 

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That's just it Stroker. There was no place for anyone to play through.

[BigtazzGolf]

I agree, sticking an unscheduled scramble infront of other scheduled times is wrong. He should have either said no to the group and to come back another day or simply tell them they'd have to fill up any tee times he had left and that the group probably wouldn't all play together.

Money forces courses to do the unfriendly, "not" grow the game type stuff on more than one occasion.

 

Tazz

 

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[Peterpc2828]

10000% the courses fault, even though they let this impromptu scramble play they should have had a ranger or two following and making sure they are playing the correct pace. To me, it's always the courses fault, at least at my county courses it's all about the $$$$

 

 

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[Eseay32]

In your case, the course pro...in almost every other case, it's the group in front of me.

 

 

Knoxville, TN. 6HDCP, Cally XR16 Driver, G25 3 wood, burner Rescue. Ping I E1 irons, Vokey SM5 52,56,60 & 2ball odyssey putter

[BIG STU]

PJ In the case you mentioned that was entirely the Pro's fault great mismanagement on his part. trust me if they keep that up no matter how good the course is they will run people off and will close. It has happened more than one time here. Somehow my old man would have gotten people in and accomodated and everyone would have been happy. Down here in the prime tourist season the name of the game is screw the locals and members and when business drops they are begging for business from us locals. That is good for us because then you get some unbelievable specials. LOl down here in the season the word is don't piss off the tourists.

 

Now another factor is golf course design. A lot of courses are too hard for folks to play in a reasonable amount of time. Here they have finally realized it and some courses have made changes to speed up play like designating some OBs as lateral hazards etc and putting drop zones past the hazard.

 

Another factor is folks themselves golf manners and common sense have went to hell in a handbasket just like society in general. A lot of people's attitude especially here is we paid our money and we are on vacation so screw you. The ones that really get me are the 'yuppie" type show up on the first tee with equipment and clothes looking like they just stepped off the PGA Tour. Proceed to play from the  tips when they can't break 100 from the forward tees and this is on 7000+ yard courses at sea level !Man if you go out at night around here you can hear them in the restaurants  "That course really ate our lunch today we played from the tips I shot 110 and Joe here shot 125" Like damn what fun is that?

 

Another thing that holds up play here is the beverage carts. I know I am ruffeling some feathers here but it is true. You get these out of towners flirting with the cart girl young enough to be their daughter or grand daughter and getting drunker and stupider by the minute. Hey if you want to drink and act stupid hitting on a young thing that you don't have a chance in hades to get any of go to one of the gentleman's clubs and stay off the course

 

This is basically what goes on here in the self acclaimed golf mecca of the world It may be different in your area

[null]

The fault is primarily on the players themselves

 

In your case it was caused by poor course management by the course itself, but under normal circumstances it's the player

[Kenny B]

My guess is the Pro knew these people and they were probably members of the club.  I doubt he would do that for total strangers.  My experience is that the Pro "takes care" of his regulars; you won't be coming back for awhile.

 

At my course, slow play is mostly determined by the quality of the players.  Play before noon and play is fairly quick, as most of the people playing are pretty good.  Even us old guys play quickly as we don'y have a lot of time left.      Play after noon and the beginners start coming out.  People that shouldn't be out on a course until they can reasonably hit the ball on the range, and when on the green, can hole a 20 footer in less than 5 putts!!!

[808nation]

1.  Poor course management

2.  Some rangers don't do anything except ride around in their cart and look for balls

3.  Group in front of you and in front of them, just a chain reaction...

[Kor.A.Door]

I think the pro tours are partially to blame as well. Everyone watches golf on Saturday and Sunday, and then when they go to the course they try to emulate what the pros do, you know, read the putt from every side, take 5 minutes to figure out what club to use. The pro game is not totally to blame, as others stated, the course needs to help with figuring out ways to speed up play. Telling someone to speed up doesn't actually work, you have to do something to slow groups.

[Kor.A.Door]

Simple solution, keep up with the group in front of you. When there is slow play, there is almost always a group that falls well behind the group in front of them and that backs up the entire course.

[sp0rtsfan86]

So whose fault is it? Me? You? Everyone else? Today I'm finger pointing and guess who I blame? The people running the course. Those people being the local Pro or owner of the course. They create slow play. Let me explain.

 

Yesterday I traveled to a neighboring community to play a local "hidden gem". It's a good one. They maintain the course well and the greens are awesome. I always look forward to playing there.

 

What we ran into yesterday was a "cluster". The course owner let - allowed; an impromptu scramble take place. Our tee time was at 9:30 but we weren't able to actually tee it up till almost 10:00. This backed up the entire golf course causing our round and everyone else's round behind these scramblers to be 5+ hour rounds. So, whose fault is slow-play? In our case yesterday it was the PRO! He alone created the situation. All he had to do is tell these guys NO. Instead he ruined everyone's round to satisfy a few.

 

Slow-Play I believe is largely created by situations like I encountered yesterday. Other times it's just the club or course Pro - management's desire to cram as many rounds into a day as possible. So the next time you hear that you need to speed it up tell them to go take a hike. They'yre the ones making golf slow!

I went to the college course while in college every weekend. Friday's were the worst, especially football season in SEC country. Once I ran into an 8 some. Evidently a frat booked two foursomes and joined up. They kept getting broken apart and then a few holes later would rejoin each other. Each cart had a case of beer and the rap music could be heard from more than 3 holes away. The course basically gave them one warning, a true final warning and even that didn't stop them. (By that point most groups bailed and I left after playing through)

Other times it's golfers. My dad's not fast. He takes erratic cart routes, tries to help find balls when his is still lost, and duffs a lot of shots. That being said, he's the first to pick up, rushes himself and doesn't take a lot of redo's. So he's slow, but it's not like he's taking forever on shots and hitting mulligan after mulligan- or worse the guy that plays 5 bunker shots and then finishes out for 10 (aka the guy that held us up last time). 

My point is it can be shoving a ton of golfers on the course at once, like your case, a bunch of friends playing together and playing as a 5,6, or 8 some or in my case a really slow golfer. 

[jbil8802]

I guess I'm spoiled now playing at a private club we never really have to worry about slow play.

 

I do agree at public courses on weekends though it's often times the fault of course management trying to squeeze in as many tee times as possible to generate as much revenue as possible. Still, you occasionally get stuck behind people that have no business being on a golf course.

[nicko]

All I know is that if I have to watch someone on the verge of a 100+ round back off their shot four times like Spieth and take twelve practice swings before hooking it into the woods I'm going to hit over them and continue on my merry way.

 

 

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[GolfSpyC]

I wish there were only a single cause as that would make it so much easier to fix...But here are my top 5 culprits, in no particular order:

 

1) $$$$ - And by that I mean so many courses (generally public) squeeze their tee times down to 7-8 minute intervals to get as many paying people on the course as possible. More people = less room for each person = slow rounds

 

2) Ignorance - There are a number of people who honestly have no idea how to keep pace...what keeping pace looks like...and there's no one trying to teach them

 

3) Accountability - This could/should be the rangers or course marshals - But generally, these guys are out there to work a couple hours, earn some free golf/range balls and put in their time. Hell, we have one guy at a really decent public course who is so deaf he'll often sit in his cart set in reverse, making that god awful high-pitched noise until someone comes up to him and tells him about it...and yes, this is the same guy in charge of making sure you can get around in 4 hours.

 

4) PGA Tour/Instruction - If kids see it modeled on TV, they're going to try it. Adults aren't much better. The more we push precise pre-shot routines and people try to perfect their swings, the longer everything takes. Every time I hear an announcer or instructor say something like "Don't swing until your fully committed" it gives license for people to pretty much take as long as they want - I'm not suggesting you should take a lash at the ball regardless of how you feel, but there's no reason you need to stand over the ball for more than 6-10 seconds. Our bodies work best/most athletically when we stay in motion and standing over the ball for 30 seconds guarantees you're going to hit a poor shot. 

 

5) Oddball - Situations like the one you incurred with the random scramble and course staff who have no clue what they're doing. 

[revkev]

The one above pretty much summarizes it.  I do miss Bayou for this reason - I could play a round of golf in 4 hours there - four hours from grabbing my clubs from my closet to putting them back which included 20 minutes driving time and another 20 minutes to warm up. 

 

It took 4 1/2 hours if I had a post round drink.

[numberonecoog]

A ton of factors. I dont think there is a single issue.

 

First is people playing the wrong tees or even courses being too difficult. Courses dont need every tee box except the front tees to have to carry 200 yards over a ravine. 

 

second is lack of knowledge. Some people just dont know they play slow.

 

third- gambling on the course. If you got 5 bucks riding on a putt you tend to look a little bit longer.

[PlaidJacket]

Gambling ain't got nothing to do with it IMO. Golfers have been gambling since Old Tom Morris invented Wolf. I don't think I've played a round of golf in 20 years without something on the line.  And still play in 4 hours on average.

The guys grinding over a $5 putt shouldn't be gambling in the first place if it's that crucial.

[StrokerAce]

Might have been mentioned already, but some people spend an unreasonable amount of time looking for a ball. Not sure what the unwritten rule is but more than 2 minutes and you start to slow things down.

ALSO on the green no need to look at your putt from all sides. Stand behind the ball pick your line and go...

 

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[StrokerAce]

Oh yeah. Everyone should know what ready golf means and abide by it too.

 

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[Kenny B]

Might have been mentioned already, but some people spend an unreasonable amount of time looking for a ball. Not sure what the unwritten rule is but more than 2 minutes and you start to slow things down.

ALSO on the green no need to look at your putt from all sides. Stand behind the ball pick your line and go...

 

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Well, the rule is you have 5 minutes to look after which it is lost.  But if it's not a tournament, then spending 5 minutes will significantly back up the course with 7-8 minute tee time intervals.  For casual play, I rarely see people go take stroke and distance except for provisionals.

 

If you want to be a good putter, you must look at your putt from all sides.  I spent the first 3 months at my new course trying to figure out the breaks on some of the greens.  If you don't play the same course all the time, then it is imperative.  However, you can look at the putt from different angles when approaching the green and waiting for others to putt.  You don't have to just stand behind the ball and wait for your turn.  

[BIG STU]

I think the pro tours are partially to blame as well. Everyone watches golf on Saturday and Sunday, and then when they go to the course they try to emulate what the pros do, you know, read the putt from every side, take 5 minutes to figure out what club to use. The pro game is not totally to blame, as others stated, the course needs to help with figuring out ways to speed up play. Telling someone to speed up doesn't actually work, you have to do something to slow groups.

LOL you are 100% correct. I can remember back in the 60s when golf was new to TV and people were taking up the game in our area in droves. My old man used to laugh at people plumb bobbing and he asked a few "what are you doing and why are you doing it?"  Most replied that they had seen the pros on TV do it and so they did it and had absolutely no clue why

[BIG STU]

Gambling ain't got nothing to do with it IMO. Golfers have been gambling since Old Tom Morris invented Wolf. I don't think I've played a round of golf in 20 years without something on the line.  And still play in 4 hours on average.

The guys grinding over a $5 putt shouldn't be gambling in the first place if it's that crucial.

ROTFLMAO!-- That last line is hilarious true but hilarious. But I will say back in the day when I was playing for real big bucks I would look at one more closely but then again I was and still am an instinct putter

[Golfspy_CG2]

The fault is primarily on the players themselves

In your case it was caused by poor course management by the course itself, but under normal circumstances it's the player

This says it pretty well in my mind.

[edmundcruz]

What a crappy experience! Management was at fault here.

[Badfish]

I just visited a course that I frequent 4-5 times per year.  It has a reputation for being slow on the weekends due to the thick foliage, and tight fairways.  This year they implemented a "ride-only" rule on the weekends.  It helped significantly.  I got through at least an hour sooner than usual.  While I love to walk, I also have times where time is a factor and riding is the only option.  For this course I believe it was a blessing.

[PlaidJacket]

Here's another case in point where course management creates slow play. I played Friday at a local club. The rough was so high, probably about 4"; that if you missed a fairway your ball was basically lost. From the fairway there was about 4' secondary cut of about 2" then the 4". I was playing with 3 other members of the club and they felt the same way I did about it. I get that during a major club tournament "they" might want to stiffen up the conditions a bit. But, the rough we encountered were everyday conditions according to members. A Marshall came by twice encouraging us to "pick up the pace". I recall one guy telling the Marshall we would if everyone split the fairway each shot. The Marshall retorted, "then hit the fairway or take a drop if you miss". What a crock. Stupid Marshall. If I were the members I'd demand a mower out there asap or were not spending a dime at the club until they do. 

[Thainer21]

It all depends on the situation. Course layout, players, weather, it can all come into play.

 

 

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[Fireinthehole]

Our pro allows groups of 5 to go off back to back and that wipes away 10-12 for the front nine as they don't let you play through, another course near by I love because of its age does the the same with three groups of 5 each day and again off at 9. I blame the pro for that and just not forcing them to let others play through. There is another course near by that does use their marshals to enforce rules and etiquette and it's always a sub 4 hr 18 there

 

 

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