The Slow Play Debate
Jaime Costanzo
Golf Industry Contributor and President, LPGA Amateurs Myrtle Beach - Bringing women of all skill levels together to grow the game and community.
The Experts' Take - The Slow Play Debate
...it has to start with the tour players!
Yes, I agree with the panel that the pros need to set a better example on pace of play for amateurs to follow. However the pros have caddies to read yardage books, select clubs, rake bunkers, repair divots and ball marks, read greens, along with a huge gallery and spotters to find balls that are rarely ever lost. The tournaments they play are well run and closely monitored on pristine courses. All things not available to the amateur. We need to ask the opinion of the amateur and hear their voices.
Here is my amateur opinion:
I feel we are beating a dead horse by asking amateur golfers to play faster when it's not quite their fault. How about asking golf courses to take ownership and change their mentality. For instance:
- Amateurs have a problem with lost balls. Some courses a lost ball can occur in the second cut of rough. Balls are lost in heavy overgrown, unkempt brush and wooded areas. Solution: cut the rough down to a level that the amateur can not only find their ball, but give them a chance to advance the ball. And either cut up the underbrush to lift it or thin it out. Perhaps manage it by cutting back the thick stuff around where the average drive lands to give them more room for slices/hooks. If you cannot manage these areas then mark the course better with red stakes. Many courses are not marked well and groups tend to stand around and debate the action.
- Dry out fairways just enough to give the ball more roll so they have a chance to get to the green in regulation. Make the fairways faster, not greener with too much water.
- Pay attention to quality around the greens so missed greens aren’t in bare spots/holes creating extra strokes. Courses pay more attention to greens as should be but completely forget the area around.
- Greens keepers need to use good judgement in deciding what will give fair results in choosing their pin placements. Do not be tricky trying purposely to confuse golfers. This creates frustration and undue delay. As per the USGA Rule 16-Requirements for Hole Location on the Putting Green, all are important but pay particular attention to #2. I can tell you that this one is never thought about. Note: these are requirements, not suggestions.
- Cutting/rolling greens to a true roll. Too fast with tough pins is a bad combo. Either make them a little slower with tougher pins or faster with easier pins. Although not noted in the requirements, better judgement should be used.
- Perhaps wider collars or three cuts of green rather than two can help the ball stop from running completely off. Cut fairway edges with wider 2nd cuts if you don't want to trim the rough too short. Many courses allow a natural tapestry to grow in waste areas. That's beautiful but be aware when saplings are getting too tall. Look at it from ALL tee boxes. The closer the tee box, the taller the tree becomes and clearing them off the tee becomes difficult. Make maintenance aware of tee boxes with overhanging limbs that create a squeezed fairway. Have them place markers in a fair position. Perhaps taking that limb down would be better. Corners on doglegs and overgrowth that occurs over many years should be maintained by keeping the original layout the designer of the course intended.
- Many courses employ people with little to no experience in how to group the tee sheet, manage and coral groups to be ready for the first tee, provide instructions and set expectations for the day. For instance, do not send out foursome in front of a three and if you see a two by themselves and another two 15 min later, marry them up. Have as little twos and threes as possible.
- As a course, make the turn experience as short as possible. Have someone who is good at getting golfers what they need as fast as possible and keep them moving. Beautiful girls don’t sell more, they slow up play. (Sorry guys but I pay attention to business and pace since I’m a chick, not a dude.) There are plenty of ways to promote food and bev after golf. Be creative.
- That brings me to the amount of drinking on the course. That’s where the bev cart and rangers come into play. Golfers have fun. Some entertain clients and some just want to get away for a while and let loose. All good. But when it gets out of hand and their chaos slows up play, it’s no longer fun for the field behind them. Bev cart needs to slow up serving that group and a ranger needs to be on them. The course is ultimately responsible for these drunks.
- Train your entire staff and train them often. Train them in their position, train them on safety and train them in golf etiquette. Ask them to watch their surroundings and by them being aware they can help keep the field moving. Your head super or greens keeper are usually out there roaming the course, bev cart, rangers. If they see something, say something to either the group or the proshop to handle the situation.
Lastly, golf associations should promote pace of play on a course level, not a player level. Create a training video using such points I have mentioned plus others I may have left out and send it to every golf course in their jurisdiction. Perhaps the USGA should take the reins on this and help promote courses to think and make changes.
Slow play disengages golfers and when they aren't having fun, they play less golf. Playing well + lower scores + faster play all = FUN, which turn out more rounds played.
MAKE GOLF FUN AGAIN!
Quality Control Investigator - NJDOL
5 年I think part of the problem with the amateurs playing is that some of them don't use common sense. I get it looking for a ball , raking a trap and fixing ball marks but you don't have to wait in the middle of the fairway when your drive goes 175-200 yards and you have 200+ into the green. Your drive barely made the 200 yard mark and now your pulling out a 5 wood, really. Also lining up a putt from 10 different positions is insane. also putt out if you leave it a foot short or long. Finish the whole and move on. Jamie your right , just like any other sport the Amateurs try to emulate what they see on TV, it's not going to happen.
Leadership & Performance Coach at Paul Monahan Coaching
5 年Thanks Jamie! Another very-well thought out article. And interesting discussion. (Enjoyed reading the thoughtful comments too.) At my club we have a pace of play culture of 3hr50min. (127 Slope from Whites) Everyone understands the expectation well and does their best to abide by it.?The skill level ranges from single to high double-digit handicaps... often (even, most of the time) all playing together. I rarely experience a round over 4 hrs. Having said that, what is interesting to me is that most everyone I play with does NOT operate under what I would call true "Ready Golf" playing behavior. Why not? My sense is that they are still stuck in old etiquette paradigms and as a result, simply will NOT allow themselves to show true Ready Golf behavior - probably because they don't want to offend. So, yes - even at a course with a successful 3hr50m pace of play culture, there is STILL opportunity to reduce the time it takes to complete 18 holes. Some of what I see on a regular bases leads to slower rounds.?For example: waiting for a playing partner on the other side of the fairway to hit before me. ?Or waiting for my playing partner to chip up from the other side of the green before I chip on from my side. Or marking balls when not necessary. Or six practice swings before hitting the shot...etc. I don't think golf should look like field hockey, nor should it put other players in danger of being struck by a ball. And we don't need to run. Golf payed quickly doesn't have to feel like a sprint. But I do think that there are many opportunities for golfers to play faster rounds and STILL enjoy themselves by doing three simple things: 1. Committing?to?gaining a better understanding of what ready golf really looks like. 2. Loosening their grip on their notions about what "proper" etiquette on the course is supposed to look like.? 3. Stepping up and actually showing ready golf behaviors. SO...I'm curious - do you think that there is an opportunity to influence more golfers to play the game in a ready golf mode?
Golf is the engine of good! Fun, Family, Friends, Forever!
5 年The main problem with pace of play is expectations.? Some golfers like to play in 3 hours; get out to the course, play a quick round and get other stuff done during the day. Some golfers like to play in 5 hours; get out to the course, take time enjoying the scenery, the company, have a few drinks, and not rush the experience of a day at the course.? Just reading that description is probably enough to frustrate the "3 Hour" golfer.?? Having a course that is more upfront about the expectation of your pace of play and possibly building a tee-sheet to accommodate different expectations could be very helpful.? 7:00 - 8:31 run 7 minute intervals (14 times) and only groups of 2 or 3 golfers with an expected pace of play of 3 hours.? 8:38 - 12:59 run 9 minute intervals (30 times) and only groups of 3 or 4 golfers with an expected pace of play of 4 hours.? 1:15 - End of Day run 15 minute intervals and have an expected pace of play of 5 hours.? If you want to play faster, play earlier.? If you come out after 1:00 don't expect to play fast.? If the course is more upfront about the expectations and accommodating to different expectations then it should make it more difficult to be disappointed with your pace of play. With all of that being said, my fastest round for 18 holes is 55 minutes, I've been frustrated about pace on rounds that take 4.5 hours and I have experienced and enjoyed rounds that are 5 hours.? Expectations can play a large role in our perceptions.? We need to get rid of a standard expectation of 4 hours and simply accommodate faster and slower golfers at different parts of the day.
Financial expert with extensive experience in technical accounting (revenue recognition, leases, M&A, goodwill, equity instruments and stock options), SEC reporting and Carve-outs
5 年I really dont agree that Tour players should be the ones to start the process.? The everyday amateur player can not compare their rounds to those played by a Tour player.? The amount of $$$ they play for is staggering and if they need a bit more time to think about their shots or situation, they should have it. The problem is the way golf is taught and how beginners learn the game.? The biggest issue isnt score to the average player but instead speed and thought process to approaching each shot, etc. Players should need to PASS a test of speed on the course for a round before being allowed to acess residency courses (State or County run courses).? This starts with each individual player.? Amateur tournaments are played by players who think they are playing the US Open and approach every shot that way and they really do not care what any else thinks.? Grinding over shots should not take MORE time but less. Their should be more common sense rules and specific ones to speed of the game etc.? All these type of things would help average players play quicker.? Have consequences and make sure they are applied.? If there are none, no one will follow them. Just my 3 cents worth.