Share your experiences with singles or being a single at the course

[Brooky03]

Just now, Brooky03 said:

Singles are very common.  Singles ASKING to join groups are less than common but not rare.  Groups forced to play with singles are not common and are indeed rare.

 

Thought experiment:

If you show up to a restaurant with 3 people, they’ll probably seat you at a table for 4.  Let’s say it’s a packed house even.  If a single shows up for dinner, should the restaurant seat them at your table?  It’s an open seat after all and the restaurant needs to maximize revenue.

 

If this is different than golf, how so? 

[JerryB]

8 minutes ago, Brooky03 said:

Thought experiment:

If you show up to a restaurant with 3 people, they’ll probably seat you at a table for 4.  Let’s say it’s a packed house even.  If a single shows up for dinner, should the restaurant seat them at your table?  It’s an open seat after all and the restaurant needs to maximize revenue.

 

If this is different than golf, how so? 

There's a whole King of the Hill episode based on this exact premise.  The restaurant had great food but cafeteria-style seating.  Hank wanted to eat there but hated having to sit next to random people.  I really have nothing to add but I'm definitely going to watch a couple episodes tonight, I really loved that show.

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

love being a single. do that 99%. if I get paired I don't mind. I am very socialable. 

[Kenny B]

1 hour ago, Vegan_Golfer_PNW said:

love being a single. do that 99%. if I get paired I don't mind. I am very socialable. 

I can vouch for sociable... at least when we were on the tees and when you reached the greens!!     {just kidding}

[Kenny B]

1 hour ago, Brooky03 said:

Thought experiment:

If you show up to a restaurant with 3 people, they’ll probably seat you at a table for 4.  Let’s say it’s a packed house even.  If a single shows up for dinner, should the restaurant seat them at your table?  It’s an open seat after all and the restaurant needs to maximize revenue.

 

If this is different than golf, how so? 

Happens all the time in Europe.  A friend of mine and I were in Vienna and were seated with two ladies in a booth.  I've never seen it here in the States.

[richk9holes]

I was a single today. Alone all day. Played 18 in 2:20. Around hole #6 I ran into another single so I started playing 2 balls. We never met up, but the guy in front of me was the worst type of solo golfer. By the 17th hole he had 4 in play and I was waiting for him. Zoom in and you can see him and 3 of the balls, he had finished putting 1 before I snapped the photo.

 

On #18 I watched him play out 4 balls again. All this as I finished my round birdie-birdie-par like a zen golfing monk.

The clouds opened up as I was putting my clubs away, the 14 people still on the course got drenched. I think all of us would have finished dry if everyone had played a single ball.

[vandyland]

14 hours ago, Brooky03 said:

Singles are very common.  Singles ASKING to join groups are less than common but not rare.  Groups forced to play with singles are not common and are indeed rare.

I play at municipal golf courses almost every week. There is a sign on the front of two of the clubhouses that says "during busy times, groups of less than 4 will be paired up with other players." I will try to get a picture of it next time I am there. 

It is always good to get the other side of the argument or fence on these types of issues. Just because I like playing with strangers rather than playing alone doesn't mean that is the norm for everyone. I respect that. More often than not, I have found that there is a general understanding at public golf courses that when it is packed, you pair up groups as much as possible to get people out there. Maybe that is not the case in your area or in your experience. 

I do have to quibble with the restaurant example though. Most any sit down restaurant prepares tables for specific parties and does not mix people. Other than "family style" tables, I have never seen that. I would say it is about as common as sharing a hotel room (hostels is an example but much more commonly you get your own hotel room). Grouping random people together is not a common practice at sit down restaurants. In your case, a better example might be if you were sitting at a bar and it was full except for one seat next to you. You are there with 3 of your friends. A stranger shows up and wants to watch the game and asks to sit down next to you. You say "no, sorry, I am trying to hang out with my friends." That bar goer then goes and stands in the corner and waits for someone else to get up and leave the bar while your empty seat sits there next to you so you can enjoy your time with your friends, at the expense of that other person's enjoyment. 

[russtopherb]

10 hours ago, richk9holes said:

I was a single today. Alone all day. Played 18 in 2:20. Around hole #6 I ran into another single so I started playing 2 balls. We never met up, but the guy in front of me was the worst type of solo golfer. By the 17th hole he had 4 in play and I was waiting for him. Zoom in and you can see him and 3 of the balls, he had finished putting 1 before I snapped the photo.

 

On #18 I watched him play out 4 balls again. All this as I finished my round birdie-birdie-par like a zen golfing monk.

The clouds opened up as I was putting my clubs away, the 14 people still on the course got drenched. I think all of us would have finished dry if everyone had played a single ball.

That's unacceptable. I play multiple balls when I'm walking a practice round, BUT I immediately move just to playing one ball if/when someone is behind me. I'm sure his argument would be "well if it was a foursome we'd have 4 balls in play" but that doesn't fly. I would have casually mentioned that at the clubhouse just so they're aware. In the long run, there's a lot more egregious behavior out on the course, but this is still something where this guy should know better.  

[StrokerAce]

11 hours ago, richk9holes said:

I was a single today. Alone all day. Played 18 in 2:20. Around hole #6 I ran into another single so I started playing 2 balls. We never met up, but the guy in front of me was the worst type of solo golfer. By the 17th hole he had 4 in play and I was waiting for him. Zoom in and you can see him and 3 of the balls, he had finished putting 1 before I snapped the photo.

 

On #18 I watched him play out 4 balls again. All this as I finished my round birdie-birdie-par like a zen golfing monk.

The clouds opened up as I was putting my clubs away, the 14 people still on the course got drenched. I think all of us would have finished dry if everyone had played a single ball.

No ranger on the course? this is totally out of the question. 2 balls... MAYBE... and then you only putt one of them out.

They need some sort of sign that clearly states if you're playing as a single and play more than 2 balls you will be asked to leave without a refund - at least I would if I ran the course. 

[Brooky03]

2 minutes ago, vandyland said:

I play at municipal golf courses almost every week. There is a sign on the front of two of the clubhouses that says "during busy times, groups of less than 4 will be paired up with other players." I will try to get a picture of it next time I am there. 

It is always good to get the other side of the argument or fence on these types of issues. Just because I like playing with strangers rather than playing alone doesn't mean that is the norm for everyone. I respect that. More often than not, I have found that there is a general understanding at public golf courses that when it is packed, you pair up groups as much as possible to get people out there. Maybe that is not the case in your area or in your experience. 

I do have to quibble with the restaurant example though. Most any sit down restaurant prepares tables for specific parties and does not mix people. Other than "family style" tables, I have never seen that. I would say it is about as common as sharing a hotel room (hostels is an example but much more commonly you get your own hotel room). Grouping random people together is not a common practice at sit down restaurants. In your case, a better example might be if you were sitting at a bar and it was full except for one seat next to you. You are there with 3 of your friends. A stranger shows up and wants to watch the game and asks to sit down next to you. You say "no, sorry, I am trying to hang out with my friends." That bar goer then goes and stands in the corner and waits for someone else to get up and leave the bar while your empty seat sits there next to you so you can enjoy your time with your friends, at the expense of that other person's enjoyment. 

I thought of the bar example, but the reservation example seemed more one-to-one since we're talking about reserved tee times.  When you reserve a table for 3, you expect to eat with just 3.  The table or booth is probably going to be one that accommodates and is set up for 4; the 4th seat will just remain empty.  It all comes down to expectations, I suppose.  There's usually no expectation of being able to save seats at a bar; it's understood that bar seats are a free-for-all.  There is, in my experience, an expectation that if you book a threesome, you're going to play the round as a threesome.

I guess better communication from the course would be what I'm after.   Online booking is probably the culprit.  Others mentioned that some courses don't allow singles to book online.  I don't love that either, as somebody who plays solo somewhat regularly, but I wouldn't mind some kind of limitations, either during busy times or in the case of a threesome already booked.

I had friends that worked the pro shop of the course 5 minutes down the street from where I grew up.  I would often play a quick 9 holes with them after their shifts and I'd naturally hear their stories of the pro shop shenanigans that day or week.  Anyway, this was back when all tee times were booked in person or on the phone, and it was explained to me that they would treat threesomes as a blocked off tee time unless they had no other choice.  I'm still friends with one of them and just texted him about this.  If a single came in and asked what tee times were available around a certain time, my friend would give him the times that were open or booked with another single.  If the golfer balked at those times, he'd expand it to the times with twosomes.  Pairing with threesomes was a last resort.

Admittedly, I have no idea how common that is.  The course was a formerly private course that turned public.  Membership fees weren't cheap, especially for the income level of the area, so the members wouldn't hesitate to raise a stink about some random being matched up with their group.  That might be why the pro shop there did what they did with tee times.  I don't know.

It's worth noting that most courses that I've played did/do not have marshals.  I wouldn't be shocked if there were instances where a single was slotted in with my group or I was slotted in with another group on the tee sheet but we all just teed off when we were ready and played separate.

[vandyland]

@Brooky03 I think this was good perspective. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and, if I am honest, I think I come at this biased because I often play as a single. I will also admit to online booking being a culprit because if I see a single slot open I will usually grab that rather than just a tee time all to myself. I say I do this because I don't want to be stuck in a sea of 4somes all day (which is true to some extent) but there is also a part of me that likes playing with people. I would say it is 65% weighted towards I want to play with others. I try to be respectful and stay out of their way and I have also been in 4 somes where it was 3 friends and I introduced myself on the first tee and then we didn't really speak outside of "nice shot" for the rest of the round. Just have to be able to read the room but, of course, not everyone can do that. 

Anyway, enough introspection from me, haha. 

[StrokerAce]

2 minutes ago, vandyland said:

@Brooky03 I think this was good perspective. I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and, if I am honest, I think I come at this biased because I often play as a single. I will also admit to online booking being a culprit because if I see a single slot open I will usually grab that rather than just a tee time all to myself. I say I do this because I don't want to be stuck in a sea of 4somes all day (which is true to some extent) but there is also a part of me that likes playing with people. I would say it is 65% weighted towards I want to play with others. I try to be respectful and stay out of their way and I have also been in 4 somes where it was 3 friends and I introduced myself on the first tee and then we didn't really speak outside of "nice shot" for the rest of the round. Just have to be able to read the room but, of course, not everyone can do that. 

Anyway, enough introspection from me, haha. 

I play as a single frequently and a few weeks ago I was paired with 2 guys that were riding and after the first hole they told me they were going to hang back and that I could go ahead if I wanted to. I'm a pretty friendly guy and we just started so I don't know what that was all about but that's happened to me a couple times.

the absolute worst (for me) playing as a single is when the course FORCES you to ride and you're in a golf cart with another single that is part of a threesome. I'm not a fan of riding in a cart with a stranger and I prefer to walk all the time.

[Kenny B]

There are times at my muni where singles are sent out alone; not many times, but it happens.  I've been one.  However, if I'm in a group and I see a single coming up behind us, I do not automatically let the single play through. At our course we can see the length of most par 5's and from the #4 tee box, we can see the all of the par 4 #3 hole from green to tee.  I've seen two singles playing individually behind us and a single and a twosome.  My feeling is that they can pair up.  If they don't, they don't get to play through.  Most times, if they pair up then they will not be waiting on us.  Letting singles play through the group every other hole is not my idea of a fun round.

[MNUte]

As my wife keeps reminding me, I'm not allowed to be single, even as a solo-player 

Joking aside, I have no issues with singles or playing as a single. If I get stuck behind a group, that's a great excuse for me to play a second ball and try some stuff out (e.g., playing more aggressively than I tend to). So to me, that's a massive win. 

It also comes down to time of day. If I'm there during peak hours, the chances of any singles playing is very unlikely and most of the courses in Salt Lake will combine groups to ensure that there are at least 3 playing together. But during off-peak hours they tend to be more relaxed about it. 

[vandyland]

I had a funny thing happen on Monday that made me think of this thread, apologies for the length:

So Monday was a holiday for many people so I went to my local muni without a tee time assuming it would be a lengthy wait. I got on the singles list at 8:50 am and made it to first position by 9:10 am. Pretty good considering they had been saying they were "all booked up all day." At 9:30 AM a 3some was making their way down to the tee and the starter stopped them and asked, "the tee time reservation says four players, where is your fourth." One member of the 3some responded, he is in the parking lot and will join us midway down the first hole. I was watching this closely from the practice green and was only 15 feet away so I heard the entire exchange very clearly. So they went on and teed off....and I watched. They made it through the first hole and no mysterious "4th in the parking lot" showed up. The 9:20 group went off and then the 9:30 group...and still no 4th person. I waited and waited. Finally there was a gap at 10:00, almost an hour after the 9:10 am group, and I was able to join a 3some. There is a junction point around the 5th hole where you can see the 8th and 9th holes easily and I saw the 9:10 group finishing up on 8. STILL ONLY THREE OF THEM. What did I do? I walked over and intercepted them on the 9th tee box and asked, "Did you all check on your 4th that was in the parking lot? Did he have a stroke? I still don't see him/her?" They responded saying their fourth said he was coming but never made it. And I repeated, made it to the course from the parking lot or was that just a lie you told to protect your tee time? They said, "alright buddy have a great day." And I had to tell them, one more time and for no real reason other than my own piece of mind, that people like me and the three other singles behind me were waiting to play golf and they were treating this place like their own personal country club and...aside from that...lying to people's faces. Overall I told them it was a bad look and selfish. I didn't curse or yell but I wanted them to know. Did I get the reaction or result I wanted? No. Did I feel better? Not particularly. Would I have wanted to play with those guys anyways? Probably not but I also lost an hour due to their BS. 

Side note: I checked their scorecard in their cart (yes I am a psycho) and they shot 97, 91 and 89...respectively. I shot 75 with an unplayable penalty included. So at least I have that? 

[chisag]

... While I occasionally run into a man/woman twosome that makes it very clear they want to play alone, usually because one or the other isn't a very good golfer. Playing for 40 years I don't think I have ever been in a situation where a 3some booked as a 3some and expected to play as a 3some. 

... Chicago is golf crazy for the first 3 months of their short season, visiting Orlando in winter was always packed and Phoenix from October to April is always full and difficult to even get tee times, mostly with golfers from out of town. So starters in these 3 locations always pair up any golfers when possible. I have played as a single;e and thankfully about 90% of 3somes I have caught when the course is full always ask if I would like to join them. The other 10% of the time they ignore me and if that is their attitude I probably would not enjoy their company anyway.

... I only play afternoons and almost exclusively Twilite so there are occasional gaps that aren't filled. Summer is a different animal and twosomes can be pretty common when the temps are 110* and over. But still I think it is understood you will be paired up with a single or 2some if there is an opening and the course is busy. 

[russtopherb]

I went out as a single Sunday afternoon expecting to be paired up but the starter sent me out alone. There was a twosome behind me and I asked if they wanted to pair up so they could tee off early. They wanted to play together since one of them was a beginner - no problem at all. The foursome in front of me waved me through on 3. That put me behind a twosome who I saw waiting on the #6 tee, which is right after a par 3. I thought maybe they were going to ask if I wanted to join. Nope. As soon as I started over from the fifth green they teed off and took off.

[GolfSpy_SHARK]

Was paired up with a an older twosome last week. Really nice folks, was an enjoyable 9 holes with them.

we were in #4 when we noticed a 4some jumped in front of us. Not a huge deal whatever….they were slow but it wasn’t too bad waited on the tee box for a few minutes for the rest of the holes. When the twosome bailed after 9 I fully expected this group to wave me up. They didn’t and clearly just taking up the sport which is fine but they proceeded to take approximately 20 shots total before getting to roughly 260 out.

I waited a few more minutes because there was a hill and I lost site of them….I hit and of course I get up to then and my balk was about 280 bottle of the hill…..right next to them still hitting

I apologized not knowing the course all that well and fully assuming they had vacated driving range. They were not receptive and kept playing the entire hole, I waited 5 minutes before hitting my wedge 2 putting to par…..I skipped a hole to get ahead of them and came back to 11 at the end of the round to wrap up the 18.

I honestly can’t believe they didn’t wave me through or at a minimum ask if I wanted to play through after I almost hit them

[GolfSpy_BEN]

As I am on Stay-cation this week, I have been booking tee times that fit in to what SWMBO and the kids want to do this week. I booked as a single for Monday morning 7:40am. The twosome I was to be paired with either didn't show or was later than 5 minutes, so the starter sent me off. There was a foursome ahead of me, but they played fast and I never caught them. I was in no great hurry, because a round played solo can be quite peaceful. I played my first shot and kept score off of it, but I also played another ball on most of the holes, purposefully hitting it to other areas so I could work on things while getting my round in. The group behind me must of shot north of 100, because even taking my time, they never had to wait on me. It was a nice round.

I have another round booked for Thursday afternoon at 4:30pm, where I am a single playing with a twosome. It's anybody's guess how that will go, but I hope it goes well.

[Brian A]

Have to say it’s mostly overall positive. Pops and I got paired with 2 singles last night to make 4. The two guys were great guys and fun to play with. On the other end I’ve been a single and been paired up with 3 and it’s been a good experience.  Only had 1 bad experience with a single joining us. Guy was an absolute jerk

[elight]

I almost never am able to put together a foursome. I have played every possible combination: single playing alone, single paired with another single, single paired with a twosome, single paired with 2-3 other singles, single paired with a three some, single paired with another single and a twosome... And I've been on the other end of most of those as well. 

I've never had an issue. You can usually tell very quickly whether or not folks are interested in socializing. I don't mind socializing but I also don't NEED to, so I'm fine with the level of socialization that the others want. I've never had a situation, though, where folks weren't friendly.