Fixing Slow Play in a (Senior) League?

[Middler]

I’ve asked this less directly before, but I’m desperately looking for some way to fix slow play in a senior league. We have up to 60 players, and most players have no problem completing their round in 4 hours or less. It’s tiresome to wait 45 minutes after every round for the last couple foursomes to come in so we can finalize results - runs up the beer tab too. But we have a small group of slow players, who repeatedly spoil the group dynamic with thoughtless slow play. EVERYONE has repeatedly been told how to avoid slow play - our league admin has done everything he should, over and over. When they’re confronted, they make up BS excuses. But a few guys are incorrigible - with all the bad habits we all know well. IOW education has NOT helped, we need another idea. The only solution I can think of may be too extreme***. 

When I search online, it’s all suggestions on bad habits - they’ve all been told those suggestions dozens of times!

Have any of you found solutions beyond education?

*** Put all the known slow players at the end of the shotgun start, and have a time cutoff for $ awards. e.g. any foursome that shows up more than 4:30 after we (shotgun) start is not eligible for $ prizes. Unfortunately if any decent pace player gets stuck at the back, they’re punished along with the real offenders.

Rant: Yesterday I was stuck with two guys in a 4:45 hour round #&*$. Totally disorganized. Leaving their riding cart way behind. Reading putts forever. Not ready to hit when their turn. Scoring while sitting at the last green. Talking while others were hitting. Looking for lost balls when none of us were lost - WTH! One of them was fishing balls out of the water with his retriever in front of the tee we were on before we hit. When we asked him to move, he took his time and said ‘oh, are you guys ready to hit.’ If I’m in a foursome that falls behind with a gap ahead, I’m relentless about picking up our pace. Yesterday we were stuck behind an equally slow group (at least 1-1/2 holes behind), waiting for them several times, so our slow players had the excuse ‘we’re keeping up with the group ahead.’…

[DiscipleofPenick]

Normally I'd say a max score (net double or triple) would help solve this, but it doesn't sound like it's poor play that's causing the issue. If it's one group that's constantly the cause it could be easy to single them out without punishing the other groups, in case better players get stuck out there behind them.

[Shapotomous]

If it is that bad and the rest of the league feels the same way then give them their league fees back and tell them to please don't come back.

[BostonSal]

Relax.

What's the hurry?

You're playing golf, not running from the cops.

 

[DaveP043]

Consequences.  If a group finishes more than 20 minutes behind the group ahead, penalize them somehow.  And publicize the slow groups, nobody likes the label "slow", so just post the time, and the fact they were penalized.  Added strokes, no prizes, something.  If you are in a "slow group" 3 times in a season, you're out, no refund.  You can't start this in the middle of the season, but make it part of the rules from the beginning.

[Middler]

It does appear there will have to be consequences, more education is not the answer - we've do that constantly as a reminder. I'd hate to actually kick someone out, but I could definitely see identifying the slow players (three strikes or something like that) and putting them altogether at the back - ineligible for $ prizes if they aren't in before some time limit. If they want to continue fine, but I would think they would either quit or improve...

[Golfspy_CG2]

I was going to say exactly what Dave said.  Education is wasted on these old farts.  They know better snd they don’t give a damn.  We have a few like that in our Senior league. 
 

The only two solutions are making sure anyone who finishes more then 15 minutes behind the group in front forfeits any prize and is suspended from play for one week.

The next time it happens they are suspended from the league for the rest of the year 

Harsh..yes.  But it’s the only way to get the message across 

[Tom the Golf Nut]

It's even worse at a private course. People think because they are members they are entitled to take as long as they want. In fact last time I played there was a group teeing off on hole 4. Nobody in front or behind them. I was hitting a few warm up shots on the range. They were in the fairway when I teed off on #1. I had to wait and I mean wait a while before I could hit into the green on #5. That was ridiculous. They didnt even try to wait on the tee on 6 to let me play through. Then I just shot over and played the back 9 and came back later to play the holes I missed on the front.

[Golfspy_CG2]

1 hour ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

It's even worse at a private course. People think because they are members they are entitled to take as long as they want. In fact last time I played there was a group teeing off on hole 4. Nobody in front or behind them. I was hitting a few warm up shots on the range. They were in the fairway when I teed off on #1. I had to wait and I mean wait a while before I could hit into the green on #5. That was ridiculous. They didnt even try to wait on the tee on 6 to let me play through. Then I just shot over and played the back 9 and came back later to play the holes I missed on the front.

Our Senior league I mentioned before.  We do a reverse shotgun start.   We were in the first group out and started on 18.   One guy I know I said a brief hello before we started. They started on 15, three holes behind us.  When we finished we were riding past the 10th hole on the way back to the clubhouse.   They were on the 10th Tee!!  Do that math. They had FIVE more holes to play.   I can’t imagine being the groups behind them. 
 

i walked into my office after the round, at 12:45 from an 8:30 start.  That’s after washing up, putting my clubs away and grabbing something to eat to take to my desk.   

The pro said they finished at 2:00

I’m not one that likes speed golf. I’m completely happy with a 4:00 hour round of golf on a weekday and 4:15 to 4:30 on a weekend.  But 5:30 hours, good gosh.

That slow of pace is not the norm on our league fortunately.  But there is no excuse for it  

 

[DaveP043]

15 hours ago, Tom the Golf Nut said:

It's even worse at a private course.

It may be worse at YOUR private course, but not at all of them.  Some of the more prestigious private clubs in the northern Virginia area have the strictest pace of play policies that I've ever seen, and every member I've played with has been extremely conscientious about following the policies.  Playing slowly can lead to a member not being allowed to play until after noon on weekends, or not playing on weekends at all for a certain time period.  Private clubs often have enough demand, and enough of a wait list, that they don't need to cater to potential customers the way many public-play facilities must do. That allows them to develop and enforce pretty strict policies.

Edit....  I should add, most of the times when I get to play these courses are inter-club matches, usually held in the late mornings on weekends.  At that time of day, our matches are very seldom held up by normal club players, generally finishing in 4:15 or less for relatively serious fourball matches.  Our opponents are generally doing their best to make sure we keep up with the groups ahead, they don't want to be the ones who get the slow-play consequences.

Edited February 13, 2022 by DaveP043

[RollingGreens]

A partial solution is too make sure that group plays together each time and is the last one to tee off aj time so no one else gets shafted. The other part is to have a ranger continue to make them skip holes if they fall behind. Monetarily penalizing them would and should get their attention also 

[Middler]

49 minutes ago, RollingGreens said:

A partial solution is too make sure that group plays together each time and is the last one to tee off aj time so no one else gets shafted. The other part is to have a ranger continue to make them skip holes if they fall behind. Monetarily penalizing them would and should get their attention also 

The scheduler does that informally now, but there are more than 4 bad actors, so it’s the last two foursomes more or less. We still “get shafted” in that even though most of us are in, with no consequences in place, we all have to wait for the last group to turn in their scores (and often closest to the pin markers) to finalize results. Almost every round we’re all forced to sit around for about 45 minutes after our round for results…that’s gotten tiresome to put it mildly. I’m going to suggest consequences, and/or accumulated payouts (vs after each round) as others have noted above…

[pakman92]

Could you guys implement some rule?   If there are 2 holes open in front of a group, they have to skip a hole and take some kind of max score for the hole they had to skip.  I suppose either the course or the rest of the league has to agree to implement and enforce it.

 

 

[Middler]

1 hour ago, pakman92 said:

Could you guys implement some rule?   If there are 2 holes open in front of a group, they have to skip a hole and take some kind of max score for the hole they had to skip.  I suppose either the course or the rest of the league has to agree to implement and enforce it.

Everyone has already been told if they’re a full hole behind to skip, but no one does that I know of. When I’m in a group that falls behind, I’m relentless about closing the gap - but almost no one else wants to be the ‘bad guy’ so they say nothing, and then whine about slow play to the admin. Either everyone takes responsibility for their own group, maybe with other consequences, or nothing will change. And I’ll just play less with the league. It’s not the admins fault, he’s done everything right, but some players don’t care and/of they’re clueless.