easy to implement ways & ideas to speed up recreational golf round.....

[Fourputt]

1) 24 inch rule, ( auto gimme) is inside of 24 inches, pick it up and do not putt or mark. 1 stroke added

Anymore????

Be ready to play when it's your turn, play your shot, then move out.  Stop screwing around with things that don't matter to the shot (cleaning clubs, marking scorecards, picking  your nose, etc) unless you are waiting on someone else, and even then if you have the opportunity, then play your shot out of turn.  Order of play is irrelevant.  If you aren't ready to play when it's time to play, then you are the problem.

And don't worry about this silly 2 foot gimme suggested above.  If you make my first paragraph your mantra, you will have plenty of time to putt out and play by the rules.

[Spitfisher]

Haha! I wanted to post something along the lines of this. If people want to make up rules that help them play faster, more power to them. Personally, I do not do this and I still am a fast golfer. It is not hard to play efficient without skipping shots. To each their own though, as long as you play quickly in front of me

Perhaps you missed the point, its not about the fast guys its the slow guys!

[Spitfisher]

Be ready to play when it's your turn, play your shot, then move out.  Stop screwing around with things that don't matter to the shot (cleaning clubs, marking scorecards, picking  your nose, etc) unless you are waiting on someone else, and even then if you have the opportunity, then play your shot out of turn.  Order of play is irrelevant.  If you aren't ready to play when it's time to play, then you are the problem.

And don't worry about this silly 2 foot gimme suggested above.  If you make my first paragraph your mantra, you will have plenty of time to putt out and play by the rules.

I hear you about the 2 foot gimme, but more than often someone marks it, or they feel they will be standing in someone's line etc. then they stand over the 2 footer like they are about to win the US open. I say just pick it up to keep things moving, collectively all of these ideas will keep things moving.

[turtleback]

1) Every time you hit the green just pick up and add 2 strokes because we always 2 putt anyways.

2) Skip the tedious driving from the teebox thing and hit 2nd shot from the 150 on par 4's

3) Take a par on all par 3's because they get backed up

4) If you feel like playing and know you'll do good just record a personal best and tell everyone you played but weren't at the course because it takes too long

Right on!

I've never understood why the rules should be changed for the benefit of people who aren't following the rules anyway.  The don't play by the old rules, what makes anyone think they will play by any new rules?

[chrstianrockboy]

In regards to the lost balls in the rough, if course maintenance crews  could rake or mow leaves in the fall. Ive looked for minutes in rough with leaves and know I'm only a few feet from the ball.

[Fourputt]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fourputt

Be ready to play when it's your turn, play your shot, then move out.  Stop screwing around with things that don't matter to the shot (cleaning clubs, marking scorecards, picking  your nose, etc) unless you are waiting on someone else, and even then if you have the opportunity, then play your shot out of turn.  Order of play is irrelevant.  If you aren't ready to play when it's time to play, then you are the problem.

And don't worry about this silly 2 foot gimme suggested above.  If you make my first paragraph your mantra, you will have plenty of time to putt out and play by the rules.

I hear you about the 2 foot gimme, but more than often someone marks it, or they feel they will be standing in someone's line etc. then they stand over the 2 footer like they are about to win the US open. I say just pick it up to keep things moving, collectively all of these ideas will keep things moving.

Apparently you don't realize that some of us play by the rules, all of the time.  It doesn't take any longer to do it right, so why not?  If you are in the habit of not putting out, how did you establish  that 3.5 handicap?

[Lihu]

1) Ready golf at all times 2) short hitters always drive first, and every one in a group hits from the same tees. This speeds things up so you don't always need to wait until people on the fairway clear their second shots. 3) shortest hitter determines the tees to be used 4) shortest drive starts moving towards the ball right away, proceeding with caution. Takes his second shot immediately after the last tee shot. 5) If it's busy then everyone should play the forward tees 6) putting should be limited to 4 minutes after pulling the flag. Everyone gets ready to shoot. Then hits in rapid succession. Wait for everyone to hole it before removing the balls. 7) if one person is still off the green, then others can putt in then replace the flag. This is if it is within chipping distance, and said person is not ready to shoot. 8) I agree with gimmes at 2 feet. 9) always place the bag/cart on the route to the next tee box. Lastly, have a small child who can drive 240 yards. Speeds things up in front of you? :-D

[Strandly]

I'm not a fan of gimmes unless they're less than 6 inches away but whateva'.  One of the speedier things to do that I've noticed is simply taking a couple clubs with you when you leave the cart.  Maybe carry an extra ball too.

[rkim291968]

Apparently you don't realize that some of us play by the rules, all of the time.  It doesn't take any longer to do it right, so why not?  If you are in the habit of not putting out, how did you establish  that 3.5 handicap?

Well, that's just it.  It does take longer in some cases.   I watched too many 4-somes line up those two foot putts, see it from all angles b/c they happen to be betting on every hole on a busy Saturday while the group behind them is waiting. This happens a lot in metropolitan areas where there are not enough courses and the course is sending out 4 & 5-somes every 8 minutes.    Why can't those four-somes apply match play concept on those days and give those 2 foot gimmies to each other?

I age while just watching them putt.

[Crim]

Well, that's just it.  It does take longer in some cases.   I watched too many 4-somes line up those two foot putts, see it from all angles b/c they happen to be betting on every hole on a busy Saturday while the group behind them is waiting.   This happens a lot in metropolitan areas where there are not enough courses and the course is sending out 4 & 5-somes every 8 minutes.    Why can't those four-somes apply match play concept on those days and give those 2 foot gimmies to each other?

I age while just watching them putt.

I still think picking it up is a bad idea though. Maybe they need a rule that within two feet to take less then 10 seconds or something like that. But 1 and 2 foot putts can be surprising at times and it's smart to take a whack at it.

If someone is marking a 2 foot putting instead of just putting in...well then that's the problem. Once you're close, knock it in.

I honestly feel like there's a gigantic void in my round if I don't put it in the cup on EVERY HOLE.

[pepsiplusconker]

I would really hate to play at some the clubs you guys are at.

At my club, it seems even a slow group gets around in 4 hours, me and a friend get around in just over 2 hours 30 mins a best, but we power walk to the ball all the time, play out of turn etc.

From the rare slow groups I have seen, it's always people waiting for each other, playing in turn, people will stand by their ball for ages while the other guy eyes up his shot, decides what club to hit, looks at his line on the green from every angle.  If I'm thinking about shot selection, or the line of the putt, I just tell my buddies to play on and I'll go after them.

[MS256]

I still think picking it up is a bad idea though. Maybe they need a rule that within two feet to take less then 10 seconds or something like that. But 1 and 2 foot putts can be surprising at times and it's smart to take a whack at it.

If someone is marking a 2 foot putting instead of just putting in...well then that's the problem. Once you're close, knock it in.

I honestly feel like there's a gigantic void in my round if I don't put it in the cup on EVERY HOLE.

I play in several games and go by whatever "rules" were set up for each game (long before I got there). In our regular Saturday game they played "inside the leather" for years but this year decided to putt everything out because some people were stretching it and giving putts that not only weren't gimmies but not even inside the leather.

Makes no difference to me either way. I'm a pretty good putter and it's probably to my advantage to make some of the other players putt those inside the leather putts. BTW I've seen quite a few of those missed this year. I even saw the best player at the course miss one from less than a foot a few weeks ago when he tried to just "knock it in" and we ended up losing by one stroke. He said after the round that would never happen to him again and he was always going to mark from now on.  Haven't missed one myself but I've come very close to missing one a few times when it caught the grain and barely got inside the lip.

It was obvious that the average time per round for each team went up about 30 minutes per round when we started putting everything out. Our rounds are reasonably fast anyway (the last team is in at about 3 to 3 1/2 hours). When "inside the leather" was used a 3 hour round was rare for any team.

[Fourputt]

I would really hate to play at some the clubs you guys are at.

At my club, it seems even a slow group gets around in 4 hours, me and a friend get around in just over 2 hours 30 mins a best, but we power walk to the ball all the time, play out of turn etc.

From the rare slow groups I have seen, it's always people waiting for each other, playing in turn, people will stand by their ball for ages while the other guy eyes up his shot, decides what club to hit, looks at his line on the green from every angle.  If I'm thinking about shot selection, or the line of the putt, I just tell my buddies to play on and I'll go after them.

This is the thing.  Slow players aren't slow because they agonize over 2 foot putts.  They are slow because they don't play ready golf.  They are fiddling around when they should be hitting the ball.  They are never where they are supposed to be, when they are supposed to be there.  Change that mindset and the 2 foot putts are irrelevant.  Anyone who thinks that 2 foot puts are a major cause of slow play isn't very observant.

[krupa]

Slow play is not caused by following the rules and putting out.  It's caused by idiots who don't care that there are other people on the course.

I've seen people:

• Watch their friend hit the ball, then get out of the cart choose a club, then go to their ball.  I've seen this at tees and on the fairway.
• Hit their ball OB or in the water, go help their friend find his ball, then come back and hit a new ball from their previous position
• Buy drinks from the cart on the 9th fairway when they're about to make the turn in front of the clubhouse
• Have conversations on the green of a par 3

I know this thread isn't meant to be a bitchfest but you have to identify the causes of slow play before you can fix it and based on my observations, I don't think that following the rules is the cause.

[Perfect Slicer]

It's been said a few times above, but slow play would not be a problem if people came to the course ready to PLAY GOLF, and then actually PLAYED GOLF when they were on the course. If you are not moving to the ball, preparing to make a stroke/ waiting on others to make a stroke, or making a stroke, you are not PLAYING GOLF. Sure, golf in a group is a social activity, and there will be conversation, but if you are not doing the above while you are conversing, you are holding up the show. I think courses should have large signs telling players to play ready golf, and to disregard playing order based on distance from the hole.

I would be against any effort to make people pick up when the score rises. Slow play is not caused by some guys hitting too many shots. How are you to learn if you keep picking up? The first year I started, I could blow out a 130, but the guys I played with who shot in the 80's were never waiting on me. Score is no indication. I could (and seemed like I did) plunk one in the water every time there was water anywhere near the hole, drop one and hit again. 30 seconds max. 3 strokes on the card. Sometimes 5. Then play out the hole decently. I could be at par while still on the tee box (2 in water/OB), and play out a par/bogey from there and consider it a good hole.

[Lihu]

1) Ready golf at all times 2) short hitters always drive first, and every one in a group hits from the same tees. This speeds things up so you don't always need to wait until people on the fairway clear their second shots. 3) shortest hitter determines the tees to be used 4) shortest drive starts moving towards the ball right away, proceeding with caution. Takes his second shot immediately after the last tee shot. 5) If it's busy then everyone should play the forward tees 6) putting should be limited to 4 minutes after pulling the flag. Everyone gets ready to shoot. Then hits in rapid succession. Wait for everyone to hole it before removing the balls. 7) if one person is still off the green, then others can putt in then replace the flag. This is if it is within chipping distance, and said person is not ready to shoot. 8) Gimme at less than 1 foot. 9) always place the bag/cart on the route to the next tee box. Lastly, have a small child who can drive 240 yards. Speeds things up in front of you? :-D

[kw purp]

Put timers in the carts so if you have not completed your round within 3 hours your cart automatically drives itself back to the club house with your clubs thus ending your round. Problem solved.

End the horrific conversations on the tee/green about your job/health/family/other topics no one in your group cares about and hit the ball.

[butt3r3dt0ast]

I hear you about the 2 foot gimme, but more than often someone marks it, or they feel they will be standing in someone's line etc. then they stand over the 2 footer like they are about to win the US open. I say just pick it up to keep things moving, collectively all of these ideas will keep things moving.

Apparently you don't realize that some of us play by the rules, all of the time.  It doesn't take any longer to do it right, so why not?  If you are in the habit of not putting out, how did you establish  that 3.5 handicap?

This is the thing.  Slow players aren't slow because they agonize over 2 foot putts.  They are slow because they don't play ready golf.  They are fiddling around when they should be hitting the ball.  They are never where they are supposed to be, when they are supposed to be there.  Change that mindset and the 2 foot putts are irrelevant.  Anyone who thinks that 2 foot puts are a major cause of slow play isn't very observant.

Fourputt has captured the point I was making. You don't need to cut corners and make up gimme rules to play faster. It can be done, quite easily I might add, without. Obviously some people are not competent enough to do this, which is unfortunate. If you want to do those things, then that's fine. But I'm just saying you don't need to do those to be faster... You just need to be smart and ready.