IM SICK OF THIS *$#! whats ruining golf...

[abris33]

Look, slow play is a problem I will agree with that. However, golf is a game about discipline and patience. These to attributes have allowed me to become the golfer I am today. I'm not going to pretend to be a pro, cause I'm a long way from that ever happening. I just think people need to understand that the guy infront of them that just shot 110 for an 18 hole round may have just played the best round of his life. On another note, with the national amateur average floating right around "100", yes it is in fact 100, I do not think any golfer out there has any right to criticize another person's ability or game. I played with 3 guys yesterday who's average age was around 70 and they played the senior/women's tees at my course. It was by far the most enjoyable round this year. They were hitting 7W from 150 yds and their short games were the only good part of the their game. But the key was that they did not care what the score card said at the end. Face it everyone wants to shoot at least 1 stroke better than what they end up with. Unfortunately that is the most frustrating part of the game. So, no matter what your target score is, go out and enjoy the fact that you are standing upright and can still swing the club. Even if it is the more spasm than and actual swing.

i agree 100% w/ this. yes maybe they should have let you play through but guess what if they don't let you they don't let you. instead of worrying about that and how "horrible" they were just focus on your game. everyone wants to improve and the only way to improve is to focus on your game. the group in front of you was probably just out playing because golf is fun to them(like it is to every one of us on this forum). i have also found that it is fun to play w/ people that don't care about their score because they don't let the little mishaps get to them. this is their escape so they are going to make the most out of it.

[uuassistant2009]

i finally got backed up on here. thanks

[flanagan]

I agree that

A four hour round of golf is by no means a "race" for mid-handicappers. First, if you are riding, and I'm assuming you wouldn't be saying this if you were, that would be a totally ridiculous statement. If you are walking, four hours is easy.

It's not hard to shoot a couple of 50s and keep up with any group if you are ready to play when it's your turn, don't take endless practice swings and don't dwaddle on the greens (i.e., taking an eternity to read putts, not being ready to putt when it's your turn and endless marking of balls --just putt them out). Lowering expectations is merely making excuses for slow play.

[flanagan]

i finally got backed up on here. thanks

Probably because you appear to have now condemned slow play instead of defending it by pointing up the slothlike pace of college golf.

I think everyone would agree that tolerance of different skill levels is necessary. Frankly, some of the painfully slowest players I have had to follow are reasonably good golfers. And, some of the absolutely fastest players I have seen are in their 70s, but don't necessarily shoot in the 70s. All that being said, it's hard to get courses to effectively deal with the issue.

[uuassistant2009]

This is golf! and pace of play should not be an issue at all. Like i have said before, if you are out there and watching the clock you are playing the wrong sport. You don't hear baseball fans yelling because they had to sit at the ball park for 6 hours because the final score was 17-11 and neither team could pitch or play any defense. Just live with it and worry about you own game and not someone elses. If your game is like mine you will have plenty to worry about trying to get better.

[flanagan]

So much for giving you some credit. College golf is unfortunately the right place for your philosophy at this time, so you've got that, anyway.

[iacas]

...but it is almost equally annoying for a foursome of mid-handicappers (12-20) to be pushed through any semi-challenging 18 hole the course in four hours. I happen to enjoy the game for relaxation and the opportunity to "get away from it all" for a few hours. I'm a 14 handicap, and there's absolutely

Have you ever played golf where the game was founded? Four hours would be considered an incredibly long round over there.

And I'm sorry, but I've played golf with guys who can't break 90, and I've done it in well under four hours. Nobody was rushing. Everyone just did the little things - put the carts in the right places, played ready golf, etc. Try all you want to justify it, but you're just making excuses for inconveniencing others.

It's your own fault, and

Ah, there's the sense of entitlement this thread has been missing.

However, golf is a game about discipline and patience. These to attributes have allowed me to become the golfer I am today.

A dis-courteous, slow one?

On another note, with the national amateur average floating right around "100", yes it is in fact

Who's done that? All I've seen people say is that you can shoot 100 in four hours. Easily.

And I don't buy your guesswork that the average score's 100, but that's for another discussion.

This is golf! and pace of play should not be an issue at all.

Unfortunately, as you've no doubt noticed, it is.

You don't hear baseball fans yelling because they had to sit at the ball park for 6 hours because the final score was 17-11 and neither team could pitch or play any defense.

Funny, I recall hearing exactly those kinds of arguments: baseball takes too long, it's too slow, and football has overtaken baseball as "America's past-time." Discussion might have been ten years ago, but it happened, and it was real. Most other sports take place in about three hours.

[uuassistant2009]

Have you ever played golf where the game was founded? Four hours would be considered an incredibly long round over there.

the national average is 100, that i am absolutely sure of. I need to find it, but i am sure. And you are just like some of the arogant guys that i played against in college. you are all the same and think you should be on the tour. And if you are ever around columbus, ohio. I would love to see you and your 2.9 handicap on my courses. I can even get you a discounted rate. But as far as being discourteous and slow. I am neither, when i approach a slower group i simply wait and if they do not allow me to play through i just sit back and relax. I also walk everytime i play, so standing and waiting is not fun at all, but i don't care, where else would i rather be.

[laconic517]

some of these courses honestly were not designed to be played in 4 hrs imo.

If you have waste high grass that isnt a lateral hazard or heather you better expect some waiting. If you play by the rules and at least make an attempt to look for your ball stuff like that adds up throughout the day and IMO thats the courses fault for not having that area staked. Also people glaring at you when you hit a provisional is ridiculous.

4 hrs is pretty damn fast on some of the courses I play in the area. If you walk it just cant be done. Ive played as a 2some with nobody infront of us and my friend and I both play "fast" but by the rules and we can barely finish in 4:15. Do some of you seriously just drop a ball immediately and not even bother to look for it? I mean seriously thats not golf. I guess if you are an extremely high handicap it wont matter to your score anyway but id prefer to have my score be "real" and be able to count it for my handicap.

[uuassistant2009]

I try not to have to look for too many golf balls when i play. Somebody really smart once told me "Fairways and Greens" and everything else will fall into place.

And as far as playing by the rules. Sunday morning with your buddies is probably not the best place to use the full 5 minutes everytime you lose a ball.

[zeg]

The courses I play all make it very clear that 4-4.5 hours is the intended pace for 18 holes for a group of four, and they periodically place signs by the tees reminding you how long it should have taken you to get to this point. This seems to be a pretty well settled target at every course I've been to, but it's pretty hard to argue with a well-marked course rule like that.

One other thought, especially regarding letting groups through, etc. Remember, we're talking about etiquette. The rules of etiquette are not meant to be arbitrary regulations that you obey because someone codified them. The thought process shouldn't be, "This group wants to get through but the rules of golf don't actually REQUIRE me to do so, so I won't." The idea is you act so as to show respect and maximize everyone's enjoyment. So, to grab an example someone threw out earlier, if you're playing at a 3-hour pace and a group who wants to play a 2-hour pace comes up behind, there's no sense asking whether you have to let them through. You just ought to because it's the right thing to do. If you start thinking too hard about musts and rules, etiquette is already failing.

Not that it's a one-way street. If you're playing a tad faster than the group ahead, but overall at a similar pace, the polite thing to do might well be to slow down just a bit. If you're not clearly faster, a couple bad shots here and there could easily slow you down below their pace. So, obviously, it's a judgement call.

Of course, in reality, not everyone behaves well (or, more neutrally, agrees on the best way to behave), so we do have rules. Best not to get bent out of shape about them, though... and ffs don't ever endanger someone else just because you're annoyed by them. A golf ball hurtling through the air is a potentially lethal projectile.

[laconic517]

I try not to have to look for too many golf balls when i play. Somebody really smart once told me "Fairways and Greens" and everything else will fall into place.

theres a difference between 5 minutes and a minute glancing around a 30 yard radius. Groups behind can be incredible dicks over that. The course is slow as shit anyway and nobody is moving. Maybe if the ground wasnt soaking wet my ball wouldnt keep plugging and I wouldnt be having trouble finding it. I play with an incredibly slow guy and a guy whos pretty slow. They can definately be dicks over it. But if you are trying to push me when Im moving plenty fast and theres nowhere to go infront I get irritated. Im sure me looking for my ball for 30seconds - 1 min is really going to ruin your game so you can hurry up and wait on the next tee.

[clubhousehero]

First let me say i have never played a 6 hour round.

I have only been playing for a year but by the end of last year a started to slow down. I used to be a really fast golfer, 18 in 3 1/2 hours walking but my score showed. I hardly read greens and rarely took practice swings. Now i have slowed down and play better as a result. Still, it only takes me 4-4 1/2 hours now but that extra hour is better than anything else i could be doing. I play ready golf but do like to take some time every now and then to enjoy the enviornment. And yes, i do let people play though.

Don't know where i was going with this, just thought i'd share. Besides, thats what a forum is for anyway.

[Fat Slice]

If slow play were to be universally tolerated, ALL golf courses would go belly-up. End of story. Reasonable pace of play keeps golf courses financially viable.

[uuassistant2009]

except for the part where they are having trouble getting enough play so far this year. didn't you hear? we are in a recention.

[Fat Slice]

except for the part where they are having trouble getting enough play so far this year. didn't you hear? we are in a recention.

Right, we are in a recession, and we are having trouble getting people to play.

Do you think golf courses will do better financially with 4.5 hour rounds or 6 hour rounds?

[abris33]

This is golf! and pace of play should not be an issue at all. Like i have said before, if you are out there and watching the clock you are playing the wrong sport. You don't hear baseball

Funny, I recall hearing exactly those kinds of arguments: baseball takes too long, it's too slow, and football has overtaken baseball as "America's past-time." Discussion might have been ten years ago, but it happened, and it was real. Most other sports take place in about three hours.

iacas, the key word from uuassistant2009's post:fans. those claims that baseball is too slow are made by people who aren't fans of baseball(trust me i have had people argue that against me after telling them i play baseball). so by making this argument you are saying that you are not a fan of golf.

and to the OP the use of dollar signs and asterisks only makes you look like an idiot.

[Parker0065]

To me, the difference is golf 15 years ago compared to now. Years back, etiquitte and manners were more strictly adhered to on the golf course. The game was more friendly, and ,not coincidentally, less popular. Now, especially with the Tiger effect (not blaming Tiger, just pointing out that he has caused numbers of new fans of golf, and golfers), combined with society as a whole being less concerned with the etiquitte and manners, has caused issues like this.

You hit the nail on the head with that post, I agree completely!