Slow Pace, Lose The Ace!!!!!!

[mdl]

Originally Posted by iacas

Nope, junior players are slow. I stand by that. By and large, overall, juniors are the slowest people out there. They take everything so seriously, have to go through their checklist, have their routines, get distracted, and don't have a clue what "ready golf" is or how it works. Slow play has been increasing, and as new players enter the game, they are increasingly failed to be educated on how to play at an appropriate pace.

Duh "slow people are slow." That's a pretty pointless thing to say. Of course there are fast juniors and slow seniors. But the average pace of play of juniors is slower in similar settings than it is with any other age group. It's a generalization, folks, and you might not like 'em, but they're true.

I think everyone - everyone - deserves a kick in the ass. Get going. Hit the damn ball. Juniors need to see how to play quickly. I was taught - or learned on my own - how to play quickly. I know where to leave my bag, where to park the cart, how to do as much as I can before I hit my shot so I can fire pretty quickly after the previous guy's ball stops moving (or before, if it's a casual round i.e. ready golf). Everyone needs to speed up.

Erik, I don't doubt that among the sample of people you see, that the juniors are the slowest age group.  I also know for a fact that I've played with a good number of 16-19 year olds as a single or double grouped into a foursome at local public courses, and I can only remember one ~16 year old twosome who played as you say.  The rest have all been average or faster.

Though if a majority of the juniors I saw played like that one twosome (as it sounds like many that you see do), I'd want to strangle every 16 year old I every got grouped with before we even teed off on the first hole...

And you're right we all need to play faster, myself included.  I like that in casual rounds you feel free to hit as soon as the player hitting before you has struck the ball.  I do that sometimes as long as I'm not like right next to the guy who just swung, and I've wondered if people found it rude, even if I'm on the opposite side of the fairway and 25 yards ahead.

[Gas Hawg]

On my home course the juniors are definitely the slowest players out there. Not only are they going through their checklist, they are jacking around with their amigos on the tee, walking to each ball as a group, and reading greens for an extended amount of time... I have played behind enough to also see them tear up the course....

[ElWagonne]

Ok....allow me to play devil's advocate for a sec here.  For those on the board that mentor or teach golf to anyone (especially juniors), how many of you do any teaching concerning course management/pre-shot routine.  This in my opinion is what will help golfers play at a faster pace.

About juniors being slow, they have to learn it from somewhere, so teachers speak up

[Shorty]

About juniors being slow, they have to learn it from somewhere, so teachers speak up

They learn it from watching the pros on TV.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Quote:

Originally Posted by ElWagonne

About juniors being slow, they have to learn it from somewhere, so teachers speak up

They learn it from watching the pros on TV.

And teachers / coaches / parents who teach an overly complicated swing with oodles of preshot swing thoughts and checkpoints, TV pros who must question the ins and outs of every simple relief situation or the potential results of every shot choice (Webb Simpson comes to mind), and peers young and old who have no clue how to walk (or drive) with a purpose, leave their stuff in a logical location once they get near the green, and how to be honest with themselves when it comes to pace of play. We're probably all a little bit guilty in one way or another.

[ElWagonne]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

And teachers / coaches / parents who teach an overly complicated swing with oodles of preshot swing thoughts and checkpoints, TV pros who must question the ins and outs of every simple relief situation or the potential results of every shot choice (Webb Simpson comes to mind), and peers young and old who have no clue how to walk (or drive) with a purpose, leave their stuff in a logical location once they get near the green, and how to be honest with themselves when it comes to pace of play. We're probably all a little bit guilty in one way or another.

Definitely.  That's why I want to start volunteering with the First Tee and see if I can try to mentor a young golfer or 2.  One would think that if you're walking to a green to leave your bag on the side of the green closest to the next tee is simple, but you'd be surprised.

[RC]

The number one issue in golf, in my opinion and in a lot of surveys and opinions of other golfers, is slow pace of play.  Our game would be in much better shape is the pace of play was faster.  I also observe that juniors playing in tournaments are, in general, very slow.  Sure, there are exceptions, but junior tournaments have torturously long rounds.  If you play with a delibrate pace of play, then it would be courteous to go to your ball and prepare ahead of time,  You can usually determine yardage, select a club, and be ready without distracting anyone.  Be ready to play and do not start from scratch when it is "your turn."  Simple courtesies like that would help the game for everyone. My guess is if we were all conditioned to expect and to play 18 hours in four hours or less, we could do it and think it was normal and unhurried... but doing so requires a learning curve.