Fivesomes on a Weekend Morning

[Double Mocha Man]

28 minutes ago, iacas said:

Playing devil's advocate, a slow player in a group with four other players will make that group slower overall than the same slow player in a group with one other person. (And no, I'm not talking about it in terms of percentages, which would be stupid here.)

The twosome, even with a slow player, they'll generally keep up a reasonable pace. Add a slow player as a fifth, though, and that'll bog that group down a good bit more, as four other people are now being slowed down to accommodate that guy.

This assumes the other players don't almost just ignore the slow player, regularly play out of turn while he's looking over his putt from his fifth angle, etc.

One of the Great Mysteries of Life:  Why is the slow player always the default? Why can't the fast player in the group be the default?

[Missouri Swede]

19 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

One of the Great Mysteries of Life:  Why is the slow player always the default? Why can't the fast player in the group be the default?

Maybe Ben Crane and JB Holmes have the answer to that.

[Double Mocha Man]

20 minutes ago, Missouri Swede said:

Maybe Ben Crane and JB Holmes have the answer to that.

😊

[billchao]

1 hour ago, iacas said:

Playing devil's advocate, a slow player in a group with four other players will make that group slower overall than the same slow player in a group with one other person. (And no, I'm not talking about it in terms of percentages, which would be stupid here.)

The twosome, even with a slow player, they'll generally keep up a reasonable pace. Add a slow player as a fifth, though, and that'll bog that group down a good bit more, as four other people are now being slowed down to accommodate that guy.

Well that's why I kind of asked the question, because I don't really know. In my mind I think if you're playing behind five players, a fivesome will play faster than a twosome followed by a threesome. You're only waiting on one group to play a hole instead of two. 

[iacas]

1 hour ago, Double Mocha Man said:

One of the Great Mysteries of Life:  Why is the slow player always the default? Why can't the fast player in the group be the default?

Default what? The slow player is the one who holds up the group.

[Double Mocha Man]

32 minutes ago, iacas said:

Default what? The slow player is the one who holds up the group.

Understood.  But in the best of all worlds why can't the fast player in the group get everyone else to play at his/her speed?!  I know I'm dreaming.

[Sandy Divot]

6 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Understood.  But in the best of all worlds why can't the fast player in the group get everyone else to play at his/her speed?!  I know I'm dreaming.

I'm a fast player, and I can tell you that a slow player has never adjusted his pace to accommodate me.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, Sandy Divot said:

I'm a fast player, and I can tell you that a slow player has never adjusted his pace to accommodate me.

If they did they would spin out of control and their head would explode... you can't fix slow.

Someone needs to write the book:  "SPEED GOLF - Secrets to Playing Better by Playing Faster".  And it needs to go on the best-seller list!

[Yukari]

22 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Understood.  But in the best of all worlds why can't the fast player in the group get everyone else to play at his/her speed?!  I know I'm dreaming.

Like everything else in life: a chain is as strong as the weakest link.  Similarly, a group is only as fast as the slowest person.

If slow people played at a fast player's pace, they won't be slow players.

[Double Mocha Man]

A long time ago I posted here or on another golf site a bold idea for speeding up play and encouraging others to become faster.

The pro/assistant pro goes out with you for 9 holes and afterwards presents you with a card, either green, yellow or red.

Green = fast player

Yellow = moderate speed player

Red = Slow player

Greens get preferred tee times and can also play in the morning.  Or anytime they want to.  Yellows can only play midday or later.  Reds get the late tee times... and the slowpokes are all out there together!  Kinda like pole positions in the Indianapolis 500.

Wishful thinking, I know.  It would probably mess with the revenue of a golf course.

 

[dagolfer18]

7 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

The problem is that allowing 5-somes is bad course policy. That one super-fast 5-some may not be a problem itself, but then you'll have all the other 5-somes that will jam stuff up.

 

That’s the idea I had when I saw this question. 

[wavygolf]

Please dont ever play Oak Creek GC in maryland. They def allow this type of buffoonery.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, wavygolf said:

Please dont ever play Oak Creek GC in maryland. They def allow this type of buffoonery.

It's like Where's Waldo!  We've got to find the golfers in this picture.

[pganapathy]

On 9/27/2019 at 11:13 PM, billchao said:

Well that's why I kind of asked the question, because I don't really know. In my mind I think if you're playing behind five players, a fivesome will play faster than a twosome followed by a threesome. You're only waiting on one group to play a hole instead of two. 

Not true.  Unless somebody like JB or Ben Crane is in the 2 ball, they will probably be faster than the 3 ball.  Which means you will be playing at the pace of the 3 ball in front of you rather than the 5 ball.  Which will make your game quicker

[DennisMiller]

At the proshop where I worked part time, we supposedly didn't allow groups of more than foursomes. The problem was, every Tuesday afternoon, there was a little tournament hosted by the pro who was the co-owner of the course. Since the course runs through homes, you can see much more than the first hole and 9th fairway from the proshop window. As soon as they were out of sight, groups would join up and play between 5-8 together. They quickly developed a reputation for not letting people through and while Tuesday afternoon wasn't the busiest day of the week, I definitely noticed how dead we were after a while. Then internet ratings started mentioning it, but the owners didn't care. I definitely don't miss working there.

I've heard in the past reports claiming 5 or 6 play as fast as 3 or 4, provided they play ready golf. IMHO, i don't believe it.

Edited October 2, 2019 by DennisMiller

[David in FL]

1 hour ago, DennisMiller said:

I've heard in the past reports claiming 5 or 6 play as fast as 3 or 4, provided they play ready golf...

Generally, significantly faster.  

[Double Mocha Man]

1 hour ago, DennisMiller said:

... they play ready golf. IMHO, i don't believe it.

Ready golf does speed things up. But each golfer needs X amount of time to play 70 to 100 shots while everyone else is essentially standing around.

[Bonvivant]

7 hours ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Ready golf does speed things up. But each golfer needs X amount of time to play 70 to 100 shots while everyone else is essentially standing around.

The problem is that some players think that they need 2 minutes of other people staring at them while they check range, select club, stare off into space, take 4 practice swings with 10 seconds in between each one, and then finally strike the ball. I played with someone exactly like that on Sunday, and he was a very good golfer, but I wouldn't play with him again if you payed me. Anything outside of 10 ft was a 2 minute ordeal it seemed like. The worst was when he was aligning the ball on the green. Potentially 40 seconds of placing, standing up, checking line, getting back down to replace, ad nauseam. These people couldn't play a solo round with an empty course in under 3 hours. And I can't really say anything to them because the course was so slow that we are generally keeping pace, most likely because there is at least one of this type of guy in every group. I could see how a 5 ball could be played in sub 4 hours or even less, but they can't have one of these guys in it, and it seems like every group does.

The "everyone else is essentially standing around" part is what bugs me. You should have your range, club, and a few practice swings in (if you take any or many) before it is your turn to strike. That way when it is your turn, you step up to the ball, take a practice swing, and go. They shouldn't be standing around, they should be planning and preparing for their turn, not oogling someone else's set up. The only argument you could make against this is if you are riding in a cart with someone, and you don't get a chance to get to your ball at the same time because of distance from their ball. My counter argument to that would be to walk instead, or at least pull 2-4 clubs from your bag so that you can walk to your ball and set up. The other person can come pick you up after they are done, and you should be done with your shot by then.