COMMENT: The slow death of golf

IT doesn't take much to get Peter Alliss grumbling these days but it's very often justified and almost always done with not inconsiderable wit and humour.

He had one particular niggle during the Masters and it was impossible not to agree. In fact, I thought he was quite restrained when discussing the issue of slow play.

The sad thing about bringing up this topic is that you automatically assume that everyone will be onside, that you'll be writing or talking to a receptive audience. But of course, nothing could be further from the truth.

Because while the five-and-a-half hour rounds at Augusta National were the fault of overly-fussy, highly-paid and extremely spoilt tour pros, the biggest problem lies at amateur level.

Tee it up any time between 9am and 4pm on a weekend these days and unless you're playing somewhere remote, exclusive or over-priced and you face a four-hour round at best.

Anyone hitting their drive on the 1st at 10.30am on a Sunday and expecting to be back in the clubhouse for kick-off in Sky Sports's first game of the afternoon at 1.30pm is simply deluding themselves.

But why is this just accepted? Why do we feel that is now the norm and that we are powerless to do anything about it? It has to be because there are too many people not bothered about taking so long to get round.

Probably, even, that the large majority aren't really concerned about five-hour rounds. Maybe they have nothing better to do afterwards or maybe they feel they have paid their money through a green fee or membership and they deserve to take their time and enjoy every minute of the experience.

Maybe they are just programmed to have slow rounds. Maybe they nothing different these days. Maybe every little thing they do on the course adds up to those five-hour rounds. It is a situation which seems unlikely to change.

There aren't enough people bothered about it and that very much includes the pros and the authorities. The Masters tournament is in the perfect situation to address the issue as it is an invitational event which makes its own rules. Yet they do nothing.

The PGA Tour, European Tour, USGA and R&A have done little if anything. Only the ladies tour in America has acted, penalising Angela Park. The Brazilian cried foul but found little sympathy.

Hopefully others will follow. If they do it will make tour golf (even) more appealing as a spectator sport but even more importantly it will get us club golfers getting a move on. All it needs is a bit of common sense which basically add up to being ready to play when it's your turn. It's not difficult.

And if you must read the line of your putt from every angle, do it quickly and when others are taking theirs. Don't wait until it's your turn and do a 360 of your putt.

It takes a lot for me to look admiringly towards Rory Sabbatini, but it was difficult not to commend his (granted) radical step of walking off the course as he played with the agonisingly slow Ben Crane.

Stands such as this might hold the key to a new attitude among the elite and subsequently the amateur golfer. Sadly, I'm not holding my breath.

By Chris Bertram