Slow play feels like it’s getting worse – but can we really do anything about it?

Golf is becoming pedestrian. Hanging around on tees, pacing about in the fairways, we once used to pride ourselves on breezing round the course.

Anything more than four hours felt like an aberration – and someone was likely to mention it if it became more than just occasional. Now four and a half is more like standard.

Team events, Texas Scrambles, and Pro-Ams? Well, you’re just adding on the minutes.

Nothing ruins my round more than waiting on every hole to hit a shot. I find it impossible to get into a rhythm. And if we’re double parked on a tee and I sit down? I’m not in the first flush of youth. I can feel the muscles tightening.

I am not alone in this irritation. In a recent survey of golfers by Golfshake, 74% of them said “slow play was their biggest frustration, narrowly ahead of handicap manipulation”. A bigger issue than the WHS? You know it’s serious.

I can’t sum it up any better than Golfshake did. “It’s a reminder that while golfers care deeply about fairness, nothing impacts every competitor on the day quite like waiting on every shot.”

Conditions right now aren’t helping. Many courses are fiery, bouncy, and balls are running into unexpected places. But do we just have to accept that a round takes however long it takes? Or are there some practical things we can do about it?

What can we do about slow play?

If your club has got marshals, great. You can pester them and get them beavering about the course tackling the tortoises. Most of us, though, can’t just call up a hotline.

We also can’t expect volunteers to fill the gaps and so we’ve become fatalistic when it’s not getting a move on in front.

We love to moan about it. But is there anything we can do about it? I understand the reluctance to get involved. As a referee, one of the more difficult jobs isn’t turning down players who want free relief. It’s trying to hurry along anyone who’s falling behind time.

I’ve yet to meet any golfer who believes they are slow so if it’s a struggle for rules officials, we can hardly expect the group that’s being held up to wade in. No one plays golf to get into an argument.

Could there be some administrative things clubs can do to force the issue if it’s getting out of hand. There are suggested round times posted at lots of them. Could clubs make it clear you should finish in a certain timeframe?

Most competition tee sheets are digital now, and you could require – as part of a Code of Conduct – that golfers write down on their scorecard when their rounds are over.

While I’m not suggesting for a moment you would immediately start handing out penalties for groups that are five minutes behind the finish time, slow coaches can’t hide from the numbers forever.

Carried out efficiently, clubs could build up data around how fast groups move around a course and if there are any regular offenders in the clock stakes. If there are, they can talk to them about their pace and present evidence – rather than relying on the emotional outbursts from a group that have been held up during any single round.

We need to dial down on etiquette

I don’t know if it’s because we just don’t school players in the way we once did, but etiquette has declined all over the course and pace of play is one of the areas we’re coming off worst.

It feels like there needs to be a catastrophe for a group to let another through these days. What was once routine – players were looking for balls so they waved behind – is becoming more of a rarity.

Players know too. If it gets to the point where you hit a shot and then start running, because you know the group behind is waiting, that’s not being considerate. It’s an admission that you’re in the way.

I don’t think many golfers expect a round to be a sprint. But if you haven’t hit a provisional, and then have to rush back to the tee, or if you’re finding itself in frequent trouble and are not keeping play moving, then you are the problem.

Many clubs have nights at the start of a campaign where they remind players of some of the regular rules they’re likely to encounter through the season. Is it worth doing the same for etiquette?

And here is a reminder that the rule book does implore players to recognise that “their pace of play is likely to affect how long it will take other players to play their round”. It adds: “Players are encouraged to allow faster groups to play through”.

Unreasonable delay of play does come with sanctions – one shot for the first breach, the general penalty for the second, and even disqualification for the third.

But it’s got a high bar, such as “continuing to search for a lost ball for several minutes after the allowed three-minute search time has expired”.

It’s better to dial down on etiquette and remind golfers of their responsibilities.

But we are getting on board with Ready Golf

Maybe your group is still waiting for its turn for play, and adhering strictly to the honour on the tee. That’s not really my experience anymore. Players are trying to play when they’re ready, and when it’s safe, and that is making a difference.

I still think we could do more when someone in a group gets into difficulty. Golfers are usually keen to help and will routinely leave their ball and wander over to assist a search.

They would do better to play first and then go and help. That could shave even more time off. It might feel pernickety but, given the frustrations golfers are clearly expressing in the figures above, every second counts.

Is there much clubs can do?

No one expects a competition set-up to be easy. If it’s an important event, everyone wants the course to be looking and playing its best. That can mean quicker greens, tough rough, and challenging pin positions.

That obviously lengthens round times, because the course is playing harder and players get into more difficulties.

Tee times play a massive part in round length. If clubs are jamming in three and fourballs at eight-minute intervals – and they may feel under pressure to do so if there’s a lot of demand to play – then there is just going to be a lot of traffic on the course. And as soon as something happens, it’s going to quickly back up.

Adding a couple of minutes onto each starting time would reduce the number of people who can play on a busy weekend, but those who do tee it up might thank you for it.

That’s as long, of course, as players stick to the times and don’t sneak out earlier.

So what do you think?

Is slow play becoming more of an issue at your clubs? What can we do about it? Let me know by leaving a comment below, or by getting in touch on X.

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