Slow Play – What can be done?
Whenever pace of play is discussed in golf, it’s guaranteed to be a hot-button topic. Ask golfers for a slow-play story and you will be regaled with how a certain round was ruined by the blowhards in front of them.
But while there are numerous suggestions on how to speed up play, today’s focus is on perhaps the single biggest choke point — the putting green. Possibly more time is wasted in this area than any other on the golf course. Surprisingly, the biggest time wasters can sometimes be ranked in inverse order to handicap index.
Lining up a putt from all angles is best done while others are putting
It can be maddening to observe four good players play tee to green briskly and then dawdle on the putting surface as each putt is examined from four angles. And nothing is more demoralizing to the group behind than being in the fairway and watching this process unfold.
What can be done? Some of these suggestions could be considered fantasy or alien to the sensibility of the modern game, but in conversations with NCGA members, it’s clear nothing rankles golfers like slow play.
1) Bring back continuous putting. Nothing worse than a golfer who marks a two-footer.
2) Re-think etiquette. To the uneducated observer, it’s almost comical to observe the tap dance and re-routing golfers take to avoid stepping on a line. This point of etiquette has become extreme. Not to advocate stepping directly on a line, but simply stepping over a line will help move things along, especially since no one wears metal spikes anymore.
3) On the same vein, there’s no reason to mark unless the ball really is directly on a line. When you arrive at the green, clean the ball and put it back down. Marking really does slow the process.
4) Bet less money. If your life savings isn’t at stake, you might not take a half hour to line up that knee-knocker.
What else can be done? What do you think?
Players should continue to putt out once they begin, unless they would be directly in the line of another player. Today almost everyone marks and picks up after every putt…..that’s ridiculous. Putt it out and keep it moving.
May 10th, 2010 at 9:13 amHave your putt already lined up when it is your turn to putt. Be prepared and aware. I see too many players standing around rather than lining up their putt while others are putting. As long as you aren’t on someone’s site line or right next to another player.. .be looking at your putt and be ready to go when it is your turn. Lock and load! Only 2 things will happen.. the putt is either going to go in or not.
May 10th, 2010 at 9:35 amafter 15 years of officiating, amateur and pro….not being AWARE and not being prepared
May 10th, 2010 at 11:41 amare the most obvious concerns. and as the level of competition improves so does the clock. the timing change that the ncga started is on the money AND WORKS!!! let them play and if they are slow…. pretty simple…appeal…. discussion by committee …then penalize or not….
Players just need to be honest not only with there game but with them self, do really need to wait to hit when your 240 yards out when you can only hit your drive 230 and stop marking your ball unless someone ask and more time fixing your divots
May 10th, 2010 at 11:58 amHmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. When I got to the local public courses, the pace of play is painfully slow because of:
1. People who rarely golf and take 7-10 strokes just to get to the green.
May 10th, 2010 at 2:54 pm2. People who spend an inordinate amount of time searching for a lost ball.
3. Poor Marshal management who don’t ensure groups are maintaining the proper pace of play.
4. Public courses that cram tee times too close to each other. These are courses that are more concerned with making money than they are with ensuring a quality golf experience. Of course, I know they are a business, and money is important, but courses with chronic backups and slow pace of play lose my business as a result.
There are four main causes of slow play:
1) Excessive time on the green. I agree with the others commenting here, please putt out and be done unless you’re in tournament play.
2) Cart path only golf. If a course is requiring cart path driving only, management should emphasize walking the course. Players can walk directly to their ball and our already obese society gets an 1800 calorie burn the easy way. Cart path only golf is a monumental time delay. To make it worse are the morons who need to go look at their ball and THEN go back to the cart and get a club.
3) Play from the correct set of tees. Sure, you may hit the ball a long way but if you’re slicing and hooking into the woods, tall grass or water, you’re stuck searching for your ball. You might handle the distance OK on an occassional good shot but shot placement is the key.
4) Lazy Marshalls. We all know course Marshalls are retired guys who only care about the free greens fees they get for riding around in a cart all day. These guys do absolutely NOTHING to facilitate a faster pace of play.
Finally, my biggest gripe about pace of play is the the golf industry itself. Everyone wants to sell the hottest equipment, the funkiest outfits and pay for lessons but NO ONE in the golf industry emphasizes the need for etiquette.
May 10th, 2010 at 4:04 pmExcellent suggestions by all of the above. I was thinking just as Maureen offered: Do your lining up before it is your turn so you are ready to go. A co-worker went to the President’s Cup. “Never Again!”, she exclaimed, “these guys take forever to get off the green”. Lesson: we are just like kids, trying to emulate the pros.
May 10th, 2010 at 5:32 pmHit it, find it – hit it find it
Know your yardage, pick your club and swing
Stop lining up putts like you are in a US open competition – look and putt. We all putted better when we were kids adn did not watch the golf channel
When riding a cart – park behind the green closer to your next T not before the green and then walk back to a cart holding up the players behind you.
May 10th, 2010 at 8:05 pmPutt out. Don’t mark it when you only have a 2 footer to finish. If you have already gone over double par – pick up and try again next week. When putting for a double bogey, heck even a bogey, you don’t need to read it from every angle. You will miss it anyway – that’s why you are already putting for a double bogey people.
May 11th, 2010 at 1:48 amIn our weekly league we wave the penalty for sinking the putt or hitting the pin with your putt when the pin is still in. When someone “skulls” a shot across the green, we don’t wait for hin to get on to the green, we putt out. That alone saves about two minutes each time the situation occurs.
May 11th, 2010 at 11:07 amAt any level of play, time management is the key to speeding up play. In other words, be ready to play when it is your turn to play. Waiting for all others to be done before you start anything pertaining to your shot is unacceptable. On the green in particular, one can check the line at least from a couple of angles while others are putting. If another putts up close for a gimme, you can start placing your ball on the green and proceed into your pre-putt routine while the other playing is cleaning up his gimme. The etiquette of the game in modern times means using common sense and effective time management.
In tournament competition, at least 80% of solving slow play is playing in threesomes max with tee times at least in 9 minute intervals. If utilizing both tees or a shotgun, then tee off no more than 84 players in any one “wave”. Foursomes in competition guarantees 5+ hour rounds and cramming too many players on the course at one time also guarantees 5+ hour rounds. However, the most important factor in eliminating slow play in competition is having pace of play rules that are clearly communicated with contestants up front and that they know under no uncertain terms that such pace of play rules will be strictly enforced. When this is done, it is amazing how much more effective time management players demonstrate.
I founded and run the Scratch Players Championship, one of the top 25 in world amateur fields annually. No one has played over 4 hours & 50 minutes any round, any year since 2003 (the last time I attempted to tee off more than 84 players) and that event is never played on easy courses.
May 11th, 2010 at 12:00 pmThere are four main causes of slow play:
1) Too much time on the green. For the most part the people you’ll come across playing public courses have a handicap in the double digits and for that reason are never gonna be pros, so stop acting like your Tiger and getting down on your belly, looking at all angles and wasting time. Walk up and if not in the way of others mark your ball, clean it off and set it back down in position and set up your shot. when your turn take the shot. Play time and practice off course will make your putting better not more time staring at the same shot, as I have noticed the more time I spend contemplating a shot the more chance I mess it up. If your not making money with your game and it’s for enjoyment then keep pace and have fun.
2) People who rarely golf and take 7-10 strokes just to get to the green. If your falling behind pick your ball up and move it next to the players in your group that are better or nearer the green. There is no reason to keep others waiting because your golf game is not that great yet. Taking massive amounts of strokes and time will only make your game worse, it will make you feel rushed and take away the enjoyment of the game. If you feel the need to take every stroke then stick to playing small par 3 courses where you can practice and improve your game before hitting the more challenging 18 hole courses.
3) People who spend too much time searching for a lost ball. We all have hit a ball at one time or another into the brush bordering out of bounds. The problem is when you spend too much time looking for a ball you’ll never find or will take way too long to find and if you were to hit it would probably have been better just taking a drop. Take a brief look but if you find that the others in your group have already hit and your the one holding the game up then you have taken too long.
4) Poor Marshal/course management and golfers with no etiquette. I place these two issues together because there are far too many courses out there that let just anyone play. I know they are public courses but when you lax on dress codes and other restrictions you open the door to players who have no respect for others and the game. I have found myself at many times looking over at players wearing jeans and street gear with no golf shoes, talking loud and inappropriate and who don’t have any golf etiquette. The courses should be more worried about quality of player than the quantity. These type of players have no respect and do not care about keeping proper pace of play.
May 11th, 2010 at 1:21 pmThere is only one reason golfers are so slow: you’re not as good as you think you are. With the exception of Tour players (who compete for millions of dollars), it is often the experienced player who plays fastest.
Accept that you stink, spend the commensurate amount of time on pre-shot routine and execution, and all rounds will be under 4 hours, guaranteed.
May 11th, 2010 at 10:46 pmAs mentioned some courses are just booking out very short times between starting groups which makes for a traffic jam by the 3rd hole.
There are only two type of Marshals, ones that are always on you to keep up the pace, and the nice old guy that rides around and waves hi. We need more of the first type of Marshals, maybe they should be former Drill Sergeants.
A colored flag or card for the cart or to be hung on one of the groups bags to designate if they have appropriate handicaps to hit from the back tees. I’m usually a 4th with 3 strangers, they always seem to head for the back tee box. I think I’m out of my class, these guys must be damn good, and then I’m the long ball hitter at 62 years old and a 75mph club speed.
Also when was the last time a group waved you on to hit, seems like no one does that anymore. And its the par 3 holes where you always find the back up because of not waving on the group on the tee box.
Another gripe is on some courses the ‘No Cart Signs’ are way too far back from the approach area. So when you and your cart partner are short of the green by 75 yards you both have to hike out, hit and run back to the cart to drive to the green.
Putt out if you are within 4 feet on your 1st putt, there is just to many guys marking like it’s the 18th green on the US Open.
Also all golf carts should have a top speed of 120 mph, it will speed things up.
And if all the above fail then just go Old School and everybody in your group drive balls at the foursome holding you up. Yes it will end up in a fight and both foursomes will be kicked off the course, which helps speed up play for the rest of us.
May 11th, 2010 at 11:10 pmGive marshals the authority to do something about slow play. Most courses don’t allow marshals to do anything except give warnings or suggestions to speed up play.
May 12th, 2010 at 1:12 pmI don’t know how many times I have leaned over to my playing partner and said, “I wonder where that ball would have gone if he didn’t take 5 practice swings.”
If you really need that much preparation before your shot, do it while others are hitting their shot so that you are ready to go when its your turn.
May 12th, 2010 at 2:29 pmOn the green…
Continue to play ready golf. If you are ready first, putt first. You also don’t have to wait for somebody who is off the green if it’s going to be awhile before they are ready to hit.
Read the green as you ride/walk up to it and walk to your ball. 9 times out of 10 you’ll have your read by then.
If you are waiting your turn, by all means take your looks, but be ready to go when it is your turn.
If you don’t hole the first putt, immediately tell your partners whether you will finish or mark. That way the next guy can start his routine.
May 12th, 2010 at 2:37 pmCommon sense should be more common place.
Don’t wait for your cart partner to hit their second shot and then drive over to your ball. Drop him or her off at their ball and ride over to your ball and be ready to go once they’ve hit their shot.
All members of the 4-some should pay attention to the tee shots of their competitors so errant shots have a better chance of being found quickly.
If someone needs to tend the flag, don’t have it be the next person who will be putting.
The person whos ball is closest to the pin should be the one who pulls the flag so that eveyone else can be getting ready to putt.
The first person to hole out should pick up the flag and replace it as soon as the last person holes out.
May 12th, 2010 at 5:30 pmGentlemen, this question was about how to speed pace of play on the green. Continuous putting is really the only way to speed up the process. That eliminates all the unnecessary marking. Putt out, people.
May 12th, 2010 at 7:12 pmScenario – three balls on the green, one guy in greenside bunker. Bunker guy chunks out and is still away – we’ve all been there. Bunker guy tosses SW, finds rake, rakes bunker, picks up clubs, curses, climbs to green, etc. If somebody raked for him it would speed things up. See it all the time.
May 13th, 2010 at 9:28 amHave the golf manufacturing industry create single rider golf carts. Maybe 3 wheel jobs and room for one bag.
May 13th, 2010 at 12:40 pmMany great suggestions, cart path only – a three word phrase to be avoided at all cost like “no host bar”
Some suggestions that work-
1) Play ready golf
2) Putt out unless you are standing in someone’s line
3) If riding, don’t stop to put the clubs in the bag, get in the cart and get out of Dodge
4) An effective Marshal works at it. They find the hold up and address it.
5) you don’t have to spend 5 minutes looking for your ball. It is pretty easy to ascertain within a couple of minutes that the ball is adios
KOB
May 13th, 2010 at 4:29 pmMy Top Ten
May 13th, 2010 at 9:18 pm1)If you hit your ball off the fairway pick a object or tree in the area where your ball left the fairway makes it easier to find.Alot of times a guy shanks his tee shot and he is 300 yards down the fairway looking for his ball.
2)Instead of watching your buddy hit get your yardage and get your club ready so you can hit right after your partner hits.
3)Don’t take 500 practice swings 1-2 practice swings are plenty.
4)After the last guy putts outs go to the next tee don’t sit there and add your score you can add your score on the next tee box while your partners are hitting.
5)dont mark 1 foot putts, putt out.
6)If your walking leave your bag on the side of the green where the next tee is.
7)If you should be playing the whites don’t hit from the tips.besides shooting a high score all those extra shots slow every one else down.
8)play one ball,if you want to hit extra balls go to the range
9)If your playing with a new golfer help them play faster.
10)If your done putting pick up your partners clubs or grab the flagstick.
Many times when I’m with a slow group, they have no clue (or they don’t care) they are slow and holding up the rest of the course. They do all the things others are mentioning here but simply don’t understand the consequences of those actions. Or, worse, they say “I’m not holding things up” when clearly they are.
Perhaps a little more 1st tee briefing by the starter combined with some signage or leaflets or something to help share helpful information with people who are otherwise clueless.
A couple of things I’ve seen at some courses that seem helpful:
- Those carts with the GPS systems that tell you if you’re ahead/behind pace of play. Those systems could become more aggressive..e.g., you have to hit a “snooze button” or something to clear a popup that complains that you’re behind pace. Similarly, if the trend continues, your GPS contacts the mother ship and the club sends out someone to see what the problem is.
- One course I recently played (decided to not put the name here) has an ‘environmentally sensitive area’ to the right on their 1st and 2nd tees. Most (right handed) duffers send their tee shots off to the right. Giving them a break — a free drop back inside the course — helps to move things along.
- Marshal attitude. I’ve been stuck with slow groups and had to deal with Sgt. Marshall. Some of these guys are really rude and disrespectful. On the other hand, on one course I recently played where I ended up with a painfully slow twosome (same as prev bullet), I was with a slow group and a marshal came out to see what was up. He was very polite but persistent. The attitude made all the difference in the world, at least from my perspective. The twosome listened to him. The rude marshals raise hackles. I’ve seen interchanges between rude persons nearly go to fisticuffs, which further slowed play (sigh).
May 14th, 2010 at 6:10 amPlay Ready golf! None of this Honors BS. If you are ready to hit, step up and hit it regardless of it’s your turn or not. This works on the tee, in the fairway, or on the putting green. There’s no need for you to wait to hit your putt, while the other guy rakes a sand trap or something, just because he’s away. Also, if it’s a friendly round, concede some putts. No need to make a guy line up and hit a two foot putt. Just give it to him and move on!
May 14th, 2010 at 9:02 amGreat article.
I have to agree with previous posters. Many slow players have no clue how slow they are playing, especially if they don’t see anyone behind them. Most high cappers that mark short putts and take forever to putt are not losing strokes missing tap in putts. They are dropping their strokes tee to green. Putting out is the best solution.
I know this article is about slow play on the greens but I would also say it’s not being prepared. I see guys walking out to their ball in the fairway without any clubs just a GPS. Then they get yardage and walk all the way back to the cart for a club. You should have a general idea of the yardage and just take a few clubs with you.
May 14th, 2010 at 12:31 pmThere are many valid and outstanding points being made in here on how to speed up play. However, my feeling is that unless there is a penalty or incentive for playing faster, the same people will continue to spend the same amount of time. At my brother’s country club in Colorado a group that misses the 4 1/2 hour round is no longer allowed to make morning tee times. A second offense results in no weekend tee times. You’d be amazed at the pace . . . specially over the last 4 holes!
Similar to the NCGA tournaments, our golf club has instituted penalties for falling behind pace. We had a slow play problem with our tournaments until we instituted that rule. It’s amazing how people will hussle for 1 stroke.
An incentive is a more difficult proposition because you can only play as fast as the group in front of you. I think Santa Teresa’s “Pacesetter” program is about the best I’ve heard of with this regard.
May 14th, 2010 at 1:26 pm1. For people without GPS, better visible yardage markers so the player isn’t searching for the yardage marker.
2. In cart GPS should be more proactive about speeding up play. Personalized messages from the Marshal would be helpful.
3. One person putts until completed.
4. Encourage high hc to “max out”
May 14th, 2010 at 1:34 pmI play the majority of my golf as a single walk on player, and I see 2 majors flaws in everyone`s game, which results in slow play,
1. an unrealistic assessment of their game, which starts them off on the wrong tee, and there day & game go downhill, rapidly, from there…
2. they lack the fundamental knowledge of the golf swing, they need lessons, and the golf industry should incorporate proper swing mechanics with the marketing & selling of their new clubs, as part of the fitting process…
Aloha, peter b.
May 14th, 2010 at 4:00 pmWhen the USGA enforces a pace of play policy with penalty strokes at the US Open, when the PGA enforces a pace of play policy with penalty strokes at their tounaments and when Augusta National enforces a pace of play policy with penalty stroke, the pace of golf will improve dramatically.
May 15th, 2010 at 9:05 amSpeaking of penalties…I have to agree with Wes when he says that “environmentally sensitive areas give players a break with a free drop back inside the course–that helps move play along.”
Even with a one-stroke penalty in a tournament, play is markedly faster, and a lot more fun. The thing about the environmentally sensitive area is that you’re not *allowed* to go look for it. So you never spend the 5 minutes.
The major problem with a lost ball, in addition to the money you’re out, is the fact that you incur a stroke AND DISTANCE penalty, if you don’t find it. That is a powerful incentive to spend the time looking for the ball–because you will loss two strokes at best, and possibly more if don’t have a good shot when you replay the ball. AND the golfers behind you will be waiting while you travel back to the tee, and then come forward again. (See “The Stupidest Penalty in Golf” at treelight.com/golf/Stroke_and_Distance.html)
I’ve played in foursomes where any one of us likely to push a ball off line on any given shot–so we’re likely to look for 2 balls on a par 4. That’s 10 minutes right there, on consecutive misses. (One person misses on the tee, for example, and someone else misses on their second shot.)
Add 10 minutes to the time it takes to play most holes on the course, and a bit of extra time suddenly doesn’t amount to much. (Speeding up play on the greens also makes sense, of course. But the impact is dwarfed by the effect of lost balls, in my opinion.)
If “stroke and drop” were played everywhere, it would speed up play enormously.
May 16th, 2010 at 2:21 pmMeant to say “a bit of extra time (on the greens) suddenly doesn’t amount to much…”. Here’s that link again:
May 16th, 2010 at 2:23 pmhttp://treelight.com/golf/Stroke_and_Distance.html
Every golf course should post a sign like this: THIS IS A FAST PLAY COURSE, AND HERE ARE OUR RULES: (1) IF THERE IS A GROUP STANDING BEHIND YOU WAITING TO PLAY, THEN ALL GOLFERS IN YOUR GROUP MUST PICK UP AT DOUBLE BOGEY. (2) DON’T TAKE MORE THAN TWO PRACTICE SWINGS BEFORE A SHOT. (3) READ YOUR PUTT ONLY FROM BEHIND YOUR BALL. (4) PUTT CONTINUOUSLY. ONLY MARK YOUR BALL ONCE, AND ONCE YOU START PUTTING, KEEP PUTTING UNTIL YOU HOLE OUT OR HAVE TO PICK UP. THANKS, THE MANAGEMENT.
Of course, these rules could be suspended or modified for tournaments.
May 16th, 2010 at 4:18 pmSlow golfers are killing the game. I hate to be behind someone who takes 20 minutes to do a par 3. You lose your rhythm & your game suffers. I think when I person goes into the pro shop to pay for their game, the person in the pro shop should ask them if they know how to play READY golf & it should be made clear to them that that is the way they will have to play on that course. I have seen so many people just stand around trying to figure out if the other person is a yard behind them or in front of them & who should go first. Just play the damn ball. The suggestions that J. C. Andersen writes about just before my suggestion is so good but only if it is enforced. Marshals have to be serious about this. We all want to enjoy the game so we should be considerate of others.
May 16th, 2010 at 4:39 pmUNRESTRICTED WALKING = SLOW PLAY!! PERIOD!! California, north or south, is absolutely the worst state for slow play. And it is almost entirely due to unrestricted walking. And please don’t give me this spirit of the game stuff. For weekend/hack golfers WALKING IS THE PURE CANCER OF THE GAME! Don’t think so…take stock the next time you are out.
May 16th, 2010 at 6:31 pmAnd as for marshalls? Mostly a bunch of crotchety old men. And I will be damn if some old guy or kid who does not know my game is going to tell me what set of tees to play from.
May 16th, 2010 at 6:37 pmSeriously…arm the marshals ;<) All of the above comments are pretty much right on and are the reasons we see less and less younger players on our courses….5 hour+ rounds expecially on weekends, a lack of tolerance and empathy for people trying to learn, and too many men who think they can play like a pro…if they just take enough time at it…yea right!. Add the costs in time and money and there are too many other "sports" offering an enjoyable experience for less time and money. The causes are obvious… good luck finding a positive solution.
May 17th, 2010 at 8:09 amsimple: have the courses enforce 4:30 minute rounds. you walk up to the pro shop and put a sign politely saying that is the rule. put another sign at the range. have the person working in the pro shop remind players that is policy. have the first tee marshall remind players. put a sign at the first tee. put a sign in each cart.
make it all very polite of course as we all pay good money to play-
finally when the group taking five hours to shoot 97-the marshall isn’t the bad person when politely asks the group to skip a hole because they’re not keeping pace. done.
May 17th, 2010 at 4:33 pmFriggin amazing……not one of you admitting that the slow play is caused by unrestricted walking!!! Can’t wait to get back to Arizona! ALL of you are clueless!
You all are trying to hit drivers from the rough. You just won’t admit it.
May 22nd, 2010 at 9:45 pmToo much time on the green, especially as one commentator noted, on the part of better players; waiting too long to hit; playing the wrong set of tees (if you’re not close to single digits you shouldn’t be playing much more than 6200 yds.); not playing ready golf.
June 1st, 2010 at 2:16 pmIf a club gives a foursome a Two stroke penalty for slow play in a tournament , what score should be posted for handicap purposes, their actual scores or their actual scores plus a 2 stroke penalty?
June 7th, 2010 at 9:44 pm