Dealing with "Stop & Go" golf on a ridiculously crowded course

[ERdiesel]

So I played a NYC muni on Labor Day and it was ridiculously crowded. 12:37 tee time, probably didn't tee off until 1 pm. By the time we got to the fourth tee, it was 2:30. Basically an hour and half to play 3 holes!!! I had a pretty bad round, been hitting in the mid 80's lately but yesterday shot in the low 90's even though this particular course was pretty "easy" as in straight and wide fairways. I was getting tired by the 5th or 6th hole, it felt like i played a whole 18 holes even though we didn't even hit that many shots. It was basically hit, wait....wait......wait.....wait.......wait......wait......wait......hit........wait.....well you get the point. I just couldn't get myself into a rhythm and my muscles never felt "loose". I was actually starting to doze off just waiting to take my next shot. Back 9 opened up a bit (i think people just got tired and went home early) so the total round finished in a little over 6 hours.

Any advice on dealing with this? And can this really dramatically affect your game to the extent where it can add 10 some more strokes to what you would normally expect to hit?

[Alohaed]

Let me guess..... you played Forest Park, Douglaston??? Was that correct: 12:37 tee time, not teeing off til after 1pm? That is fantastic! I hope you weren't complaining on this. I've waited over an hour many times to tee off at these places. My advice, do not play these courses. For the same amount of money(which is disgusting) and travel time, I can play 18 holes on LI. Most places are around $65 for non Nassua County residence AND the round is barely over 4 hours. Add in the 30+ minutes or more(depending on beach traffic) each way....... And a better class of golfers too.

[delav]

My local course is a nice public course in the area, but it does get very crowded on evenings and weekends.

I've resolved to not play during peak periods. Staying in a good state of mind and solid physical rhythm is important for golf, and it's also hard for me to wait between shots without loosing feel and flexibility. If you carry a bag and walk the course, 6 hours is a long time to be on your feet too. If you have to play the slow rounds (tournaments, rounds with father in law, etc) make sure you drink water, stretch and remain active during delays between shots.

[kilbyman]

6 hours is absolutely absurd, as well as the course not doing its job to get you going on time. I would deal with the problem by avoiding it.

[ERdiesel]

Let me guess..... you played Forest Park, Douglaston??? Was that correct: 12:37 tee time, not teeing off til after 1pm? That is fantastic! I hope you weren't complaining on this. I've waited over an hour many times to tee off at these places. My advice, do not play these courses. For the same amount of money(which is disgusting) and travel time, I can play 18 holes on LI. Most places are around $65 for non Nassua County residence AND the round is barely over 4 hours. Add in the 30+ minutes or more(depending on beach traffic) each way....... And a better class of golfers too.

Was Dyker Beach in Brooklyn. First time there. I got there at noon for a 12:37 tee time thinking i would hit a few balls at the range and hit the practice green. Ummm, found out that they don't have a range and don't even have a practice green!!! To make matters worse, when i checked in at the pro shop at noon for the 12:37 tee time, they told me i couldn't check in and pay, until the groups scheduled to go out ahead of me checked in first. WTF? She told me to check back in 20 minutes to see if i can check in then. Ummm okay i told her, i need to check back to see if i can check in? It would have been comical if it wasn't so stupid.

[JWL1957]

I played Pelham Bay and Split Rock earlier this year and the rounds ended up turning into a pilgrimage. Both rounds were over 5 1/2 hours. I guess with 10 million people cramped into such a small area, its going to be that way.

As far as staying loose, or keeping your mind on the game? ..........Good Luck pards.

[Alohaed]

They're all the same. And at Forest Park, when you get to the first par 3, it comes to a complete halt. There are at least 3 groups waiting ahead for the next hole. As for waiting for tee time, one course(I am not mentioning) is notorious for making you wait because although you are told specific wait time, they always sneak who they know, before you. Now you are waiting an additional 20 minutes at least. Again, these places are not worth it. I've even waited 90 minutes to tee off, ON A TUESDAY MORNING. That notorious par 3 also had 5 groups waiting that day. And the round was almost 5 1/2 hours. I took a vacation day for this????????

[JWL1957]

Was Dyker Beach in Brooklyn. First time there. I got there at noon for a 12:37 tee time thinking i would hit a few balls at the range and hit the practice green. Ummm, found out that they don't have a range and don't even have a practice green!!! To make matters worse, when i checked in at the pro shop at noon for the 12:37 tee time, they told me i couldn't check in and pay, until the groups scheduled to go out ahead of me checked in first. WTF? She told me to check back in 20 minutes to see if i can check in then. Ummm okay i told her, i need to check back to see if i can check in? It would have comical if it wasn't so stupid.

Dyker Beach? Never heard of it. I played a Dyker Meadow (private club) as a guest about 20 years ago. Am I missing some thing here? Thats the only course that I knew of in Brooklyn.

[ERdiesel]

Dyker Beach? Never heard of it. I played a Dyker Meadow (private club) as a guest about 20 years ago. Am I missing some thing here? Thats the only course that I knew of in Brooklyn.

Yup Dyker Beach in Brooklyn. Not sure how long it's been around but it's one of two NYC munis accessible by subway.

[JWL1957]

Yup Dyker Beach in Brooklyn. Not sure how long it's been around but it's one of two NYC munis accessible by subway.

ahhhh...... just did a search on Dyker Beach GC. It is the old Dyker Meadows course. Ididnt know the city bought it.

[ERdiesel]

Yup Dyker Beach in Brooklyn. Not sure how long it's been around but it's one of two NYC munis accessible by subway.

In all fairness to Dyker Beach, it was the best kept/maintained of the NYC muni's that i've been too (only been to Van Cortlandt and La Tourette). Nicely kept greens and fairways (other munis have large patches of dirt on the fairways and greens) and even has real fluffy sand in the bunkers unlike the other NYC muni's i've tried.

[ohiolefty]

I do two things

1. Stretch and stay loose, without swinging a golf club: Taking lots of extra golf swings is going to wear out muscles you'll use in your swing. I just try to stay loose and limber. I have a bad back, so this is vital on days when it's cold or when play is going slow or, god forbid, when it's cold and play is moving slowly.
2. Think/discuss things other than golf while I'm waiting around: If you're waiting to hit shots and all your concerning yourself with is waiting to hit shots then the result will invariably be bad shots. If I'm not chatting, I try to purposely let my mind wander. Very often, I'll also turn my back to the group in front of me. You have a sense, especially if it's backed up, of how fast things are going to move and very often you can hear shots being hit or hear guys chatting after they finish up on the green, and that'll let you know when it's time to get back into golf mode.

[O.B. Right]

I used to play sometimes in Southern California and, because I always played the least expensive courses, I was always dealing with 5 and 6 hour rounds. When I moved up here to coastal Northern California I thought my days on crowded golf courses were over - until I realized it only takes 2 slow groups ahead of you to make a 6 hour round. One slow group you can often play through but I find that the slow group in front of me doesn't worry about letting people play through as long as there is a slow group ahead of them. Now, add one impatient group behind you and you can be every bit as miserable as if you were on a fully packed course, even if you're the only 4 groups out there!

I just try to deal with it. Maybe I'll play a couple of extra balls or, sometimes I get pretty into my tee box chipping games. If the rest of the course is wide open I will skip 2 or even 3 holes - or go back and replay the hole I just played if nobody is behind me (I am very regular at this course and know the layout well . .more importantly, I know the staff well enough to get away with it if I were to get caught doing this. It would actually be a good opportunity to give them crap about not doing thier jobs with pace of play except, for the same reason they never do anything about slow groups, I know they'll never catch me skipping holes :) )

Oh - another thing I do when the course is really packed. I will actually wait for the slow group ahead to finish the hole before I start, this allows me to at least play the hole with some continuity. You know, as long as that group behind me isn't too impatient.

[sacm3bill]

They're all the same.

Exactly. I always expect a 5+ hour round, and that is rarely not the case - at least at any of the cheap and/or muni courses I play. I do think there's a correlation between cost of the round and speed of play - and I don't think it's necessarily because affluent golfers are faster players (although there probably are more slow players at the cheaper courses simpy because they are inexperienced and uneducated about pace of play etiqutete), I just think the more expensive it is the fewer people can afford it, and therefore the fewer people there will be trying to move through the course on any given day.

[Joeyvee]

God damn am I glad I moved out of NYC. I wouldnt know how to deal with that. We get crowded courses here but only if you really ask for it. Theres always a few empty cousres you can play during the week.

[Boyder]

Reading these posts make me feel like I am truly blessed to live in the Midwest! The longest I have ever waited was 5 or 6 minutes ... most days the course I play most often I have pretty much to myself - not that it doesn't have its peak periods, but I play mainly 1st thing in the morning and late in the afternoon/evening.

[soloredd]

I'm fortunate to have a job where I can play mornings on weekdays and avoid golf courses on weekends and holidays. However, I decided to go out yesterday afternoon to my home course as a single. I called the course around 10AM and they said the afternoon was wide open and I could get on as a single. I got to the course around 1:15 (tee time 1:30) and it looked sparse so I asked to just jump on right now. Pro shop told me go for it, I should have a quick round. By the time I got to the 4th hole I was waiting on the tee box for a foursome in front. Ok, I figured I could catch them on this hole (long par 5) and get ahead of them but to no avail. There was a twosome in front of them (yes, twosome) who were the ones holding things up. A guy who works at the course and his lady friend. This guy had no courtesy at all and he absolutely sucked at golf. Dragged the round down big time. Finally, a twosome caught up to me on the 6th hole, we grouped up, and by the 7th hole there was a 2-deep back log on the par 3 tee. Another twosome caught up to us and we grouped up for a fivesome (all walking) and still managed to play quicker then the asshats ahead of us. It was ridiculous.

Only myself and another guy decided to play the back and it was pretty much the same. The foursome ahead of us was pounding beers, only out there for the camaraderie (which was fine, until they started leaving clubs and headcovers all over the course). And they were in carts, two each, and they refused to play ready golf with the carts (which made it all the more frustrating, watching carts come BACKWARDS toward you). It was stop and go all day and for sure messed with my head - I was +4 on the front, went +13 on the back. What's even funnier is the foursome finally said something to the guy and girl on the 17th TEE! So the guy tees off, long par 3 and tops it, doesn't let the girl hit at all, hits his 2nd on or near the green then picks up. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!

1) never saw a marshall 2) $40/round didn't deter the bad folks 3) the guy who worked at the place should be fired - that's unacceptable, in my opinion - on a course that is HEAVILY maintained by members

[Rexx]

So why not just skip around them? Get ahead and then play 2 balls on "similar" remaining hole(s) to the one(s) you skipped. Yeah, you'd like to play them all legitimately, but that's the choice, I guess.