What Constitutes Slow Play?

[Darkfrog]

4 minutes ago, StuM said:

This made me think of a question, what is a reasonable amount of time to take at the turn?

I would say a couple minutes max for a quick bathroom break, and maybe purchasing some premade food/drink. My course has hot dogs and sandwiches premade starting at 11am, and breakfast burritos/sandwiches before that. There is a sign on the 8th green/9th tee area to call and order food ahead, otherwise you are restricted to the premade options. Sometimes new players on the course are inattentive, or ignore the sign, and then are annoyed when the restaurant won't spend 15 minutes making them a burger, fries, and bloody mary while they sit on the 10th tee box bottlenecking the back 9.

I also agree that if anyone is going to stop at the turn for refreshment/bathroom, it should be done in a manner that doesn't slow down the flow of the round. Usually I just tee off as soon as the fairway is clear, and then take care of anything else as quickly as possible.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, mcanadiens said:

Well. Not zero. But we are talking pit stop.

Change the fluid, tank back up and go, go, go.

Sort of like NASCAR.

I did forget about the pit stop.  But isn't that what the woods on #9 are for?

3 minutes ago, Darkfrog said:

I also agree that if anyone is going to stop at the turn for refreshment/bathroom, it should be done in a manner that doesn't slow down the flow of the round.

Speaking of flow... just pee fast...

[mcanadiens]

7 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

But isn't that what the woods on #9 are for?

Ha. 

A very popular public hiking/bike trail overlooks our nice wide-open ninth hole at Miami Shores. 

Nobody wants to wait for the Troy PD to execute an arrest of indecent exposure. Then we'd have a real pace-of-play problem.

 

 

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, mcanadiens said:

Ha. 

A very popular public hiking/bike trail overlooks our nice wide-open ninth hole at Miami Shores. 

Nobody wants to wait for the Troy PD to execute an arrest of indecent exposure. Then we'd have a real pace-of-play problem.

 

 

 

[StuM]

9 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

Well. Not zero. But we are talking pit stop.

Change the fluid, tank back up and go, go, go.

Sort of like NASCAR.

That is how I do it.  Ask the guys what the want when walking off #8 green and after #9 I go straight to the grill to get the items while they hit the toilet.  Ideally I have the items in the carts as they come back from the can and we head straight to #10 before eating anything.

Unfortunately, I've seen people that sit at the turn to consume their food before heading to #10 or they order some ridiculous item that is not ready to grab and they need to wait for it to be prepared which is as much the fault of the course as it is the player(s).  

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, StuM said:

That is how I do it.  Ask the guys what the want when walking off #8 green and after #9 I go straight to the grill to get the items while they hit the toilet.  Ideally I have the items in the carts as they come back from the can and we head straight to #10 before eating anything.

Nice... so you pick up the tab.  Is there room in your foursome next week?

[CarlSpackler]

15 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Speaking of flow... just pee fast...

Easy for you to say. Wait until you get to be my age and your prostate is the size of a grapefruit. 

[StuM]

15 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

I did forget about the pit stop.  But isn't that what the woods on #9 are for?

Unfortunately I occasionally have a lady with us and since it is "Client Golf" I do not feel it professional to hit the trees. 

3 minutes ago, Double Mocha Man said:

Nice... so you pick up the tab.  Is there room in your foursome next week?

I'll pick up your dog & beer but not your plane fare!

[David in FL]

20 hours ago, mcanadiens said:

Well. Not zero. But we are talking pit stop.

Change the fluid, tank back up and go, go, go.

Sort of like NASCAR.

Why not zero?

Why are so many people seemingly incapable of going more than two hours without a food or bathroom break on a golf course.  Do they stop to eat and or use the restroom every two hours outside of golf?  

If need be, throw a bag of peanuts or a candy bar in the bag, and go.  Save the hamburger/hotdog/fries for after the round. The entire golf course will thank you, and you just might enjoy it more.  😊

[Billy Z]

43 minutes ago, David in FL said:

Why not zero?

Why are so many people seemingly incapable of going more than two hours without a food or bathroom break on a golf course.  Do they stop to eat and or use the restroom every two hours outside of golf?  

If need be, throw a bag of peanuts or a candy bar in the bag, and go.  Save the hamburger/hotdog/fries for after the round. The entire golf course will thank you, and you just might enjoy it more.  😊

It is somewhat common and acceptable to have a sandwich at the turn. We had a saturday set tee time at 9:15 am, and at the turn it was lunch time. The course had a bar-b-q set up just for the folks making the turn, having hamburgers, chicken sandwichs, brautworst, already cooked and waiting. Golfers pass right by it as they walk from the 9th green to the 10th tee. It takes only a minute or two to get what you wanted, and move on. Most everybody partook, and enjoyed. I miss those days with some friends I don't see anymore. These days, I always keep a p&j or energy bars in my bag to facilitate the time taken at the turn. Some courses, and some people don't worry about the length of time they take for a round of golf, they look at it much differently then some in here. I like the 'ready golf' attitude, and if stopping at the turn for food is going to slow up the course I just pass it by, as these days I have food in my bag.

[mcanadiens]

57 minutes ago, David in FL said:

Why are so many people seemingly incapable of going more than two hours without a food or bathroom break on a golf course.  Do they stop to eat and or use the restroom every two hours outside of golf?  

I'm not sure "incapable" is the word here. For any regular golfer, there are plenty of rounds where you don't stop at all.  Probably the irregular golfer would be more like to make an event out of the round and stop for food and drinks.

Personally, I find food on the course awkward. The determining factor to stopping or not is often whether or not I need to refill my water bottle. Some days the course fills the water jugs on the course and sometimes they don't.  Sometimes it is hot enough that you go through a lot of water fast. 

The proclivities of the individual bladder aside, using an actual restroom beats watering the trees. If you are going right by it anyway, why not stop?

 

 

[boogielicious]

56 minutes ago, David in FL said:

Why not zero?

Why are so many people seemingly incapable of going more than two hours without a food or bathroom break on a golf course.  Do they stop to eat and or use the restroom every two hours outside of golf?  

If need be, throw a bag of peanuts or a candy bar in the bag, and go.  Save the hamburger/hotdog/fries for after the round. The entire golf course will thank you, and you just might enjoy it more.  😊

I agree with you about food, but sometimes Mother Nature calls. Some folks do have to pee during the round. Especially older folks. Women players have it tough because there are rarely port-o-John’s out on the course. Men can use the woods with discretion or or the afore mentioned PoJ when available. Pros use them all the time in tournaments.

[Darkfrog]

1 hour ago, David in FL said:

If need be, throw a bag of peanuts or a candy bar in the bag, and go.  Save the hamburger/hotdog/fries for after the round. The entire golf course will thank you, and you just might enjoy it more.  😊

 

8 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

Personally, I find food on the course awkward.

I usually throw an apple, PB&J sandwich, and a bag of nuts or an granola/energy bar type thing in my bag, and that's all I need food-wise. As a walker, I don't have any interest dealing with carrying a bag/pushing push cart, plus doing all the actual golf stuff like removing clubs/noting scores/etc., while also managing a burger/sandwich/hotdog/chips/etc. Plus, at my course, if you leave your food unattended for more than a few seconds, a crow, stellar jay, or coyote is going to be quickly enjoying your meal.

[CarlSpackler]

1 hour ago, mcanadiens said:

Personally, I find food on the course awkward. The determining factor to stopping or not is often whether or not I need to refill my water bottle. Some days the course fills the water jugs on the course and sometimes they don't.  Sometimes it is hot enough that you go through a lot of water fast. 

Back at Kittyhawk, you could have filled it from one of the ponds since they were (still are I suppose) the city's water well field. People have been known to go for a swim too.

[mcanadiens]

14 minutes ago, CarlSpackler said:

Back at Kittyhawk, you could have filled it from one of the ponds since they were (still are I suppose) the city's water well field. People have been known to go for a swim too.

I think you got to drink a bunch of that water to make the swim sound like a good idea.  

 

[onthehunt526]

On 3/13/2021 at 1:40 PM, PSherrard01 said:

This is a discussion that I have with people at my club on which there is disagreement. My club posts on its scorecard that a foursome should play in under four hours and fifteen minutes. However, it also says that a team is out of position when it is not one shot behind the group in front of it. People in my club regularly complain about slow play and certain players playing slow (as I would imagine people in most clubs do). But how slow does a group have to be before being pegged as "playing slow"? Some groups play much faster than others (sometimes because the players in it are younger and move faster) and it makes it difficult for a group behind it to keep up with them (especially if they are requiring more shots to get around the golf course). If a group is a hole behind on the back nine but they are still on the "course pace" of 4:15, are they playing unreasonably slow? 

I guess the question is, should slow play be defined by position or by time? Obviously the position rule only applies when a group begins play immediately behind another group, but in club competitions that is normally the case. 

I argue that a group is slow only if they are behind the course pace defined by the time established by the golf course, but others disagree.

Thoughts? 

My opinion. If you are a foursome and a twosome is on your ass, why not let them through? It’s better flow for everyone on the course. I’ve seen golfers who shoot over 100, play faster than scratch and better players. The ladies and seniors walking even with their shorter distance, are able to keep moving. 
 

In so many words if you’re playing a casual round, play Ready Golf. If you’re a foursome and ahead of Alina and I, as long as you keep up with the group in front of you, I don’t care.

Some tips to speed up play:

1. If you believe your ball may be lost or out of bounds hit a provisional. If the group behind gets up to the tee while you’re still there and you’ll be searching for a ball. Let them through...

2. Play Ready Golf. Be ready to play when it’s your turn and it’s safe to play.

3. Don’t beat yourself up for a bad shot. Call the zoo it’s just a game.

Finally, make sure you and/or your playing partners are paying attention to where each others shots are going.

[mohearn]

On 3/13/2021 at 1:40 PM, PSherrard01 said:

I guess the question is, should slow play be defined by position or by time? 

I'd say both, sorta.  For example, if a group is a hole behind because they have just used two 3-minutes blocks looking for a couple balls, that's fine. But that group should be mindful of the situation and hustle to close up the gap.  And if you're not looking for balls, you can, in a sense, "bank" the time for holes that don't go as well.  I know for me, I'd certainly be less annoyed with a group that was obviously trying to keep up.

That said, I think by paying my greens fees, I've earned the right to take enough time to properly go through my routine (in theory), search adequately for wayward balls, read greens thoroughly on birdie or par putts, etc...

So f I'm was on pace to finish in 3:40, and some yahoo is behind me thinking I'm slow and hitting into me, I wouldn't think that was acceptable.

 

As big an issue as this appears to be, I'd lay the blame squarely on the course operators for not managing things well.  I hate to see conflict or confrontation between groups.

[DaveP043]

15 hours ago, mohearn said:

So f I'm was on pace to finish in 3:40, and some yahoo is behind me thinking I'm slow and hitting into me, I wouldn't think that was acceptable.

I said it earlier, but I'll repeat it.  You can be playing at a very good pace, well within the acceptable pace at a specific facility, but if there's a faster group behind you and there's consistently space in front of you, you should ask them to play through.  That's not a slow play issue, its a "show consideration for others" issue.  And of course there's never any excuse for intentionally hitting into anyone.