CorporateGolfXtra 2023

View Poll Results: Who is to blame for slow play?

Voters
246. You may not vote on this poll
  • The Management for not spacing out the tee times

    39 15.85%
  • The Marshalls for not enforcing pace of play

    83 33.74%
  • The actual slow players, whoever they are

    176 71.54%
  • 6 hour rounds don't bother me

    2 0.81%
Multiple Choice Poll.
+ Reply to Thread
Page 2 of 4 FirstFirst 1 2 3 4 LastLast
Results 31 to 60 of 106
  1. #31
    Scratch Player byerxa is on a distinguished road byerxa's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    709
    Quote Originally Posted by rancherJ
    Byerxa,
    I have taken both my older boys(both younger than 11) in the afternoons to SB and I can assure you we were moving right along. I have no problem getting them excited about rounds there especially cause they love to drive the carti hopefully yours is an isolated incident. Maybe your daughter should play from the forward tees. Sounds like you have a young M.W. on your hands
    j
    I hope you are right. It's a sweet deal IMO - both greens fees, cart, and bucket of balls for $55 ($60 thus year?). I'll definitely give it a few more tries this year. It would be a win-win-win for all in the family. I get to play on a course I like, daughter gets to play as well and help drive the cart, and the "domestic" cost is 0 as I am spending time with my daughter out of the house . She actually plays fairly fast and she was able to deal with the greens. She had a good round on a par three course down in Myrtle this spring (missed a hole in one from 80 yards by 6 inches) so she is getting hooked on the game.

  2. #32
    Sand Wedge oneputtwonder is on a distinguished road
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    27
    If you want good pace of play, become a member. You typically do not deal with slow play of play at courses like Talon or Predator. And I'm sure Royal, Hunt, etc. pace is very acceptable...

    Comments? THoughts?

  3. #33
    Championship Cup sensfan63 is on a distinguished road
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    1,076
    In my opinion, slow play is caused by two things: the influx of golf courses that are most difficult for mid-to-high handicappers, and the reluctance of these players to play tees that are commensurate with their abilities.

    For example, I had the opportunity to play a few newer golf courses in the Toronto area last year, including Eagles Nest, Osprey Valley, and Bond Head. Now, for the good golfer, these are run-of-the-mill golf courses and you have just as much chance to play well here as anywhere else. But for the below-average golfer, some of the "new-age" course design characteristics just don't benefit pace of play. Actually, these "new-age" characteristics (tons of fairway bunkers, fairways separated by dunes) are a move BACK into links-style designs, but I digress. Because there are so many new golfers (and thus so many bad golfers) that want to play these courses, it just stands to reason that guys who take more strokes and get into more trouble take longer. Stonebridge has a few holes that I would consider borderline links-style and they definitely give the bad golfer a lot more trouble in proportion to the good golfer.

  4. #34
    Scratch Player byerxa is on a distinguished road byerxa's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    709
    Quote Originally Posted by sensfan63
    In my opinion, slow play is caused by two things: the influx of golf courses that are most difficult for mid-to-high handicappers, and the reluctance of these players to play tees that are commensurate with their abilities.
    That is something I am finding more and more prevelant with new courses today. There is rarely a set of tees I like. I can hit the ball not bad, and on a good day I can handle a course even up to the 6800yd range. However, I will rarely play from that distance on a tough course because, frankly, I am not good enough. But I do not want to drop down to 6000 yards - I find it is too short to be fun and the tee boxes are put in stupid places to compensate for the short length. Maybe that's why I like the Marshes - 6500yds from the Blues and not too punishing - just right for me.

  5. #35
    Scratch Player byerxa is on a distinguished road byerxa's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    709
    Quote Originally Posted by oneputtwonder
    If you want good pace of play, become a member. You typically do not deal with slow play of play at courses like Talon or Predator. And I'm sure Royal, Hunt, etc. pace is very acceptable...
    That is probably the #1 reason I will use to rationalize plunking the $ on a membership (if that day ever comes).

  6. #36
    9 Iron Vokey Design is on a distinguished road
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Posts
    55
    Stop looking in the woods for your used top-flight ball

  7. #37
    Pitching Wedge Golf_Putz is on a distinguished road Golf_Putz's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Carp, Ontario
    Posts
    49
    Reasons for slow play? Here's a 'top 5' that have afflicted me from time to time...

    5. Magnetic fields. No golfer can walk by the edge of any wooded area without being drawn into the magnetic field of a potential ball just lying there and waiting to be found.
    The same is true of any water.. balls in there send out mind waves that automatically place a ball retriever into the hand. And of course, if you get one... there's another just a little farther in...
    4. Pride - golfing with our buddies means outdriving the buggers no matter how far that little extra effort will hook the ball into the woods.
    3. Micklesonitis - "I know it will take a one in a million shot to make this, but I am going to try and bend this around those trees, over the water, and onto the green." Phil seems to have been cured of this lately... why not me?
    2. Tunnel Vision - I CAN see the green through that little gap between these 2 trees, so why should I play safely back into the fairway when I can just put this ball back in my stance and punch the little sucker right up to the hole and escape these woods without giving up a stroke...

    And the number 1 reason...
    1. PGA tours being televised - I saw this shot played last Sunday... if it worked for [put favourite golfer name here] then it should work for me too!

  8. #38
    "Richard"
    Guest
    ^^^ I'm guilty of so many of this but by no means a slow player. I make up the time wasted on the green and on the tee box but since most of the guys I play with are pretty slow so I'm not the bottle neck

  9. #39
    Way Beyond Help Colby is on a distinguished road Colby's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
    Location
    Ottawa (Orleans really)
    Posts
    3,770
    Quote Originally Posted by byerxa
    That is probably the #1 reason I will use to rationalize plunking the $ on a membership (if that day ever comes).
    Played Predator today. Walked it in just under 3 hours
    It could be that the purpose of your life is only to serve as a warning to others.
    Colby

  10. #40
    Scratch Player byerxa is on a distinguished road byerxa's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2004
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    709
    Quote Originally Posted by Colby
    Played Predator today. Walked it in just under 3 hours
    That place is 10 minutes from my house. Not enough time and money to join. You are going to make me cry !

  11. #41
    Caddy jmr73 is on a distinguished road jmr73's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    372
    Quote Originally Posted by oneputtwonder
    If you want good pace of play, become a member. You typically do not deal with slow play of play at courses like Talon or Predator. And I'm sure Royal, Hunt, etc. pace is very acceptable...

    Comments? THoughts?
    I agree. One of the main reasons I joined Clublink. I was tired of spending 5-6 hours on every weekend round at a public/semi-private course. I would say 70% of my rounds are under 4 hours and less than 5% are over 5hours.

  12. #42
    NFL Guru fundonny is on a distinguished road fundonny's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    At the intersection of old and young.
    Posts
    5,281
    But a lot of us can't afford that. Or would get divorced!!
    Donny Vantage NFL Guru, since 1974
    Money won is twice as sweet as money earned

  13. #43
    Sir Post-a-lot dH is on a distinguished road dH's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Posts
    1,557
    What is the website for Predator?? Where is it; heard someone talking about it today.

  14. #44
    Must be Single mberube is on a distinguished road mberube's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2002
    Location
    Hautes Plaines Golf Course
    Posts
    2,899
    I think you can’t blame slow players. If you are taught to play golf at a slow pace, it’s not you fault, it’s the way you learned. Pace of play is a big problem in America and it’s the local staff’s job to make sure that the pace is decent on the course. If every course would enforce a “two strikes your out” type of rule you would see a major improvement. Think about it. The last time you were on a course behind a very slow group. Do you see a marshal around? Rarely you’ll see any marshals enforcing the law.

    I have not played SB for a few year but back then the pace of play was 4:30h or lower and if you were slower then that a marshal would give you a fair warning. If he caught you slaking again you were off the course with a weekly rain check that you could use when it was not busy. Are they still doing this?

    I like what EC does. You can’t go down to the first tee until the group in front is off the first green. It’s easy then to pinpoint the slow groups.

    Mike
    Strive for perfection, but never expect it!

  15. #45
    Practice Pig ironmaster15213 is on a distinguished road ironmaster15213's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Pittsburgh Pa.
    Posts
    1,325
    I didn't get to read every post but I think another reason for slow rounds this time of year would be 6 to 8 inch rough. Long rough is great for Canadian and U.S. opens but really a bad idea for fast play, but it seems that a lot of courses only have one person that cuts the rough. You see a lot of people just off the fairway looking for their ball, and that adds time that really doesn't need to be added to a round of golf. Yesterday on the last hole, a par three, I was 5 inches off of the fringe of the green in 8 inch rough with the ball nesseled down. All I could say is where's Phil when you need him. and played and explosion shot with a wide open club to four foot and missed the side hill putt, I lost my match but now I can relate to playing in an open tournament!

  16. #46
    Founder Kilroy is on a distinguished road Kilroy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    22,281
    This poll is flawed.

    1) Management for not spacing out tee times
    If ALL players kept pace groups can play back to back without a problem

    2) The Marshalls for not enforcing pace of play
    I assume that means motivating the slow players to move faster

    3) The actual slow players, whoever they are
    Gee... ya think?


    There is only oe answer, the others are how courses try to accomoate the inevitable slow players.

  17. #47
    NFL Guru fundonny is on a distinguished road fundonny's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    At the intersection of old and young.
    Posts
    5,281
    If a course has a five minute separation between groups, like the Canadian used to, a slow day was inevitable. So I think 'management' is valid. Otherwise it wouldn't get any votes, would it?
    Donny Vantage NFL Guru, since 1974
    Money won is twice as sweet as money earned

  18. #48
    Founder Kilroy is on a distinguished road Kilroy's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2001
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    22,281
    If you think about it, Overbooking only backs up the first tee. You cannot put more groups on the course than it will physically handle. If you have a slow group on #3 it will back up al the way to the first tee and cause a gap on #4.

    9 minute tee times work because the slow groups do not have enough of a ripple effect to slow the whole course down. You only find 9 minute tee times on the more expensive courses because you get what you pay for.

    IF slow groups were eliminated alternating 7 and 8 minute tee times on a fully packed course would work perfectly. This is where the marshalls need to do thier thing.

    5 minute tee times are impossible and could not be maintained for more than the first 20 minutes of the day. I strongly doubt any course has tried that.

  19. #49
    Amateur BullDog is on a distinguished road BullDog's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    Beckwith Twp, ON
    Posts
    646
    Quote Originally Posted by ironmaster15213
    I didn't get to read every post but I think another reason for slow rounds this time of year would be 6 to 8 inch rough. Long rough is great for Canadian and U.S. opens but really a bad idea for fast play, but it seems that a lot of courses only have one person that cuts the rough. You see a lot of people just off the fairway looking for their ball, and that adds time that really doesn't need to be added to a round of golf. Yesterday on the last hole, a par three, I was 5 inches off of the fringe of the green in 8 inch rough with the ball nesseled down. All I could say is where's Phil when you need him. and played and explosion shot with a wide open club to four foot and missed the side hill putt, I lost my match but now I can relate to playing in an open tournament!
    I was going to ask you WHERE in the region you played where you saw 5-8 inches of rough until I saw that you're from PA. I don't think we ever see rough that is more than 2-3 inches deep in the greater Ottawa area - unless you're talking about massive lengths of fescue grass, which you'll never see in its short form on a golf course...

    ...or HAVE you seen rough like that around here??

  20. #50
    Practice Pig ironmaster15213 is on a distinguished road ironmaster15213's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Pittsburgh Pa.
    Posts
    1,325
    I don't know about the length of the rough in Canada but it's a killer down here in Pa. People are complaining about it big time but its just the amount of rain and the cool evening temps. grass just loves it. I played with a guy that works at the course and he's the one that told me that there is only one guy cutting the rough on each 18 hole course. I don't know what kind of grass it is but boy is it brutal when your right next to the green and have to try to spin the ball.

  21. #51
    Birdie Sunny D is on a distinguished road Sunny D's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    331
    Like others I don't know that there is one solution. Essentially I believe that slow play is everyone's responsibility on the course, the golfers causing the slow play, the one's behind who fume but don't call the pro shop to voice their concerns, the Marshalls and other course staff who allow it. As an aside last week I was in Florida playing behind a superintends of golf tournament. In the club house afterwards it was interesting to here their complaints. Number one -- the Tiger syndrome. Golfers who tee up from the back tees who have no business being there from a skill perspective, another thing I heard was people waiting for greens to clear when they have no hope in hell of getting the ball to the green in two shots let alone one. Novice golfers they can deal with it is the high handicapper who thinks they are better than they are that from their perspective is the number one cause of slow play.

  22. #52
    Singles Match Play Champ 2010 Ruskie is on a distinguished road
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Posts
    918
    Interesting... how long did that round take?

  23. #53
    Birdie Sunny D is on a distinguished road Sunny D's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    331
    If memory serves it was about a 4:15 minute round. The group of 4 that I caught up to ( i was a single) were all scratch or close to it. They were playing from the back tees and were pretty much GIR on most holes. Some really nice shaped shots. The greens are fast on this course usually but for that tournament they had them running at just around 12 or so. I did not have my best putting day....

  24. #54
    Golf Padawan nokids is on a distinguished road nokids's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Skins City
    Posts
    5,571
    This thread is old
    You only get out of something what you put into it

  25. #55
    Singles Match Play Champ 2009 Team Match Play Champ 2013, 2014 leftylucas is on a distinguished road leftylucas's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Pine Arbour Estates, Port Elmsley
    Posts
    7,855
    Yet here you are? SLOW POKE
    Lefty Lucas
    I am abidextrous, I once golfed right-handed and now I shoot left-handed just as badly!

  26. #56
    3 Wood THUNDAH is on a distinguished road
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Posts
    207
    Put the blame on stroke play. Match play or Stableford scoring would be a lot faster.
    He who hits last, walks alone

  27. #57
    Consistently present Kiwi is on a distinguished road Kiwi's Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    Old Orleans
    Posts
    1,383
    Best ball or "ready" golf would speed things up too. How many times have you seen the group ahead drive up to the first ball, find it, hit it, then drive to the next ball... and so on. There should be a test for cart drivers and if the Marshall sees them doing this, then make them walk, or cart path only.

  28. #58
    President's Cup Wknd_Warrior is on a distinguished road Wknd_Warrior's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    1,126
    I say the players. I have no problem with taking the right amount of time for a shot, untill you have used up your quota for the hole. At that point just get on with it.

  29. #59
    Moderator Team Match Play Champ 2013, 2014 BogeyGolf is on a distinguished road BogeyGolf's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Ottawa
    Posts
    3,590
    Who is to blame for slow play...I would have to say the people playing in front of me on the course....

  30. #60
    Golf Padawan nokids is on a distinguished road nokids's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Location
    Skins City
    Posts
    5,571
    The group behind me always has their hands on their hips.

    It's golf, relax, it's not a race to see who finishes in under 3 hours.
    You only get out of something what you put into it

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

     

Similar Threads

  1. slow play is killing me!
    By rezadue in forum Local Stuff
    Replies: 48
    Last Post: 09-26-2011, 02:23 PM
  2. Tell me how to deal with slow play, please!!!
    By HTN2 in forum General Golf Talk
    Replies: 31
    Last Post: 08-30-2009, 10:42 AM
  3. Slow Play in Tournaments
    By BC MIST in forum General Golf Talk
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 08-10-2008, 07:10 PM
  4. Slow play!!!
    By dougheg in forum General Golf Talk
    Replies: 56
    Last Post: 08-09-2008, 06:27 PM
  5. Slow Play
    By macspesh in forum General Golf Talk
    Replies: 16
    Last Post: 06-07-2007, 03:13 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts