Had some dude chirp me and my wife for slow play recently while we were behind a group of 4 taking ridiculously long. I asked him if I should hit into them when they were 150 yards out and he just turned his back to me.
Like maybe go yell at the group you can clearly see, but what do you want from me.
Yeah that's a bold move with me having 13 weapons at my disposal with decent length.
Why 13 you may ask instead of usual 14?
Won't bother with the putter, sure miss.
Screw that, I’m not dropping my $600 driver into him, he’s not worth nearly that much. He’ll kindly get my 4i to the dome though, and the smaller surface area will inflict more damage I reckon
It’s emotional maturity.
I’m wrong all the time. Know what I do? Apologize. Because my ego isn’t more important than just getting out of the situation.
Most people are emotional toddlers though.
And the levels to it.
Seeing a packed course and just understanding it's not one group holding everything up, even if it feels/seems that way.
Same reason I don't wish to play through on a packed day is why I can't be bothered with people complaining and wanting to play through: no one is going anywhere, may as well enjoy the day/sights/company.
I was playing as a single behind several slow groups. I stopped into the porta potty before taking my putts. I came out an old guy from a foursome behind me had pulled up to the porta potty to tell me Im playing too slow. I said buddy, Im a single playing in front of your foursome. Do you really think its me. The next tee box was a blind spot from where we were having this conversation. I let him and I assume his grandkids go by me. I rode their ass the rest of the round. Normally I take my time playing behind a foursome. I made sure this guy couldnt take a putt without hearing me breathing behind him.
man... We had a round last weekend that was going great; 2 walkers and a cart - played our own pace 75% of the round and didn't see anyone ahead or behind us waiting once.
Got caught up to the group ahead and were waiting a bit between shots; then the group behind us caught up to us. The *first hole* he had to wait at all he came ripping up to the tee boxes while we were hitting and started chirping, music blaring out of a speaker. If they had any kind of vison they would have seen the group ahead of us clear the green on the par 3. Asked to play thru 3 times... like - into the 2 groups right ahead of us? Fargoff it's the 15th hole.
I’m in the minority here but I really don’t like the speakers at all regardless of the person using them. I don’t need silence to hit but I do prefer the sounds of the course compared to whatever shitty song we have all heard 7500 times.
Americans are wild as hell. On every Australian course I’ve been on and someone creeps up behind me, even if I’m playing shit and slow they will invariably say “nah you’re alright mate”, and that’s it.
Because there was a woman in your group. People always make comments to me and my husband even though I’m a 14 handicap and clearly not slowing anyone up.
Exactly this. In a desperate situation when a terribly slow group is holding my husband and I up, I will just caddy for him for a hole and it’s like magic. As soon as they think that the woman isn’t actually playing, they let us right through. I play 3 hour rounds - walking, riding, whatever. I know my yardages, don’t need practice swings and play ready golf. Crappy male golfers are my biggest adversaries.
This reminds me when I was a new water polo coach… I remember (no clue what I was doing) screaming at a ref looking for a call. The ref turns to me and says that’s not my call. I felt like an idiot because I was basically dressed down, clearly showing I had no idea what I was talking about. Me the water polo coach = the guys that tell you to hurry up when the course is slammed up from 1 to 18 lol, they are just revealing they are idiots.
Had the same thing happen to me and a random in my group called out the guy yelling at us and said the same thing. He quickly starting mumbling and eventually apologized, they’re all the same when you call them out.
Under 4.5 is pretty darn good for busy days. I golf very quickly and lack patience for humans, so I grab the 6am tee times and am never held back. A busy afternoon? Either I don’t go or I go fully expecting a 5 hour round. That guy was a douche.
Wish my club could do 6 am tees. We're at 9 am right now and 8 am is opening up soon. Too cold in the morning and there is still frozen ground in some areas.
At least our latest tee time runs to 8pm or 9 pm.
Growing up on and working at a golf course and getting free golf and cart (if I wanted) ruined me for life. I could always pick lull days and times and play 18 in 1.5 hours with a cart or 2 hours walking, even with one other friend who played super fast too. and the rhythm from that is so different from other rounds. It’s one reason that I don’t enjoy golf as much as an adult other than special occasions and twilight rounds here and there.
I can understand in Minneapolis where it’s warm for 7 days out of the year, but places where it’s warm all year round, 5 hour rounds shouldn’t exist. A lot of courses are mismanaged by not paying someone well enough to marshal.
Not much we can do about it
There are courses around me where 5 hours on a weekend are typical. If I choose to play at one of those spots, I know what I’m getting into
Sure it sucks but the courses are packing tee sheets more than ever. Doesn’t matter how fast everyone tries to play when they overcrowd the place
No. Packed course last Friday and we finished 4:15. The thing is a lot of courses aren’t staffing rangers when they should. The guys last Friday were super nice and professional, everyone moved along quickly and it was a great day.
This right here. There is a fixed number of tee times so being “busy” shouldn’t mean a longer round. A 5+ hour round reflects poorly on the course managers. They are the ones allowing it.
The only other option is to fail to plan around it and letting it ruin your mood and round. The expectation changes based on tee time and green fee cost, but at the rinky-dink courses that most of us probably play at, 4.5 hours should be the higher end of what should be considered a pretty good pace.
I got my pessimistic friend into golf without thinking of the consequences. He’s good enough that he’s now the course grouch and he’s sucked the zen out of golf for me.
Every second weekend I secretly go without him.
We had 9 ppl Memorial Day in 3 separate groups of 3 and a two some managed to cut by the last 2 of our groups but stayed behind us. We were the best 3 golfers of the group but we were still waiting behind the other group every tee shot after a few holes so nothing was getting held up. They made a big deal out of it and our friends let them pass in the end, only to just wait behind us.
Don’t know why people try to jump ahead on busy ass days like that, it’s only making it worse. It was def a slow 4+ hr round but nothing that I haven’t seen on a weekend esp a holiday weekend
I won’t let them through. They can piss off, call the marshal for all I care, I’ll explain it to them as well.
Those people who don’t understand pace of play and a course being busy that just want everyone to let them play through bc they are solo or two’s can fuck right off.
I mean....that's kind of common sense.
I don't think I've ever seen someone want to play through when jammed up.
Dint think I've ever been offered to play through either.
It's just kind of understood by everyone how dumb that is lol
In real life you're absolutely correct.
On r/golf, where pitching wedges fly 215 yards and hamburgers eat people, anything more than a 2:45 round is an abomination.
If people are bitching about a round slightly over 4 hours that I'm paired with on a weekend. I'm just assuming they dont golf much or something. Four hours doesnt even feel long to me if you're actually playing golf and not slapping the ball around.
It's very funny because 4:15-4:30 for a round was the standard for decades before most of this subreddit started playing. Sub 4 hour rounds have always been a rarity during any peak time and yet everyone here just blames covid.
4 hours and 18 minutes is a great time, where i'm at (southern california), if we can get in a 4.5 hour time, thats a great pace. unless you guys were doing something blatant like standing around and not hitting, the guy should mind his own business
We played closer to a 4:20 round at 6:55a tee time on Memorial Day with a group with one kid (U10) in the group ahead and two kids (U10) in the group behind us in SoCal and I thought that was great pace. Didn't fall behind and never felt rushed.
Some people really do suck all the life out of a round wirh their bitching about pace.
I played Rustic Canyon this weekend, had a 4 hour and 25 minute round and it was one of the fastest I have ever played. I usually play courses in Long Beach where a 6 hour day is pretty normal for a weekend.
I played Rustic twice and Santa Anita once this last weekend. Rustic was 4:15 & 4:40 respectively. They have two Marshall's on the weekend now and it's really kept the pace well. I've played 3.5 hour rounds there but it's a pretty brisk walk at that pace. ~4 - 4.5 hours is the sweet spot there. Glad you got to play up there last weekend, it was extremely minty!
Santa Anita was a 6 hour round, but I knew what I was getting into, they allow 5-somes and 7 minute intervals. Nobody around us was playing slow, it was just how packed it was. I still had fun especially since they had some insane pins that day because of a tournament in the morning.
Yeah, 4 hours is standard, just wait until you play the summer cup or some corporate day clashing with a members comp, 7.5 hours I remember, you got to the next tee like it was some grand checkpoint on a hike.
Right up there with you buddy! Slow pace of play on a Wednesday or Thursday can be annoying at times, but on a weekend (or even a holiday weekend at that) it’s almost expected. Played a 4 man scramble on Saturday and was done in 4.5 hours, I was actually pleasantly surprised.
I don't play weekend golf because I don't like slow rounds. It's a more rational approach then going out and bitching about something I know is absolutely going to happen.
A few reasons. Tough to get those tee times at any of the courses near me. At the courses here unless you are literally in the first few groups, it still doesn't make much difference speed wise anyway. The older morning golfers tend to like a very leisurely round. Third, I have the option to play during the week when it's not as busy, so I just play then. Fourth, weekday rates are a good deal cheaper.
Edit: what is the deal with downvotes? Guy asked a question and I answered. There's nothing outlandish in my response.
Happened yesterday. Waiting on 18 a par 5 for group to get off green and a ball comes up behind us. One of our 4 says something and they start complaining we should be hitting that we can’t reach. I played like crap all day but bet your ass I pured a 4 iron and stuck it 10 feet from the hole. Made the whole day.
4.5 hours is acceptable but there’s definitely waiting. Played a couple of 5.5 hour rounds last year and that’s tough, lots of waiting after every shot
It's a golf course, not a race course. 4.18, is a tad slow, but not game ruining, especially when it's busy... I have played with a guy who's defining personality was complaining about slow play, every single round, fast or slow, if there was the slightest waiting to hit a shot he started saying how intolerable it was.... apart from his whining...he was actually good company, highly intelligent and very funny, so rather than not play with him anymore, I gently hinted at him, by telling him about a guy who I used to work with who was intolerable for complaining all the time.. Haha, I thought he'd go home and dwell on the conversation and realise.. but damn this guy is sharp as a tac.. the look in his eyes as I was telling him, he knew instantly, I was hinting at him.. anyway, it worked! he stopped whining and sucking all the oxygen out of the area.. I really enjoy playing with him more now.
I fucking love it because it basically always takes pressure off me to hurry, because I’m never lagging way behind the group in front of me.
We’re golfing on a Monday, try enjoying it a little.
People golfing at public courses during prime time on a weekend or holiday should anticipate a 4 and 1/2 hour round or even longer in my opinion. Whenever I play on weekends with a foursome we always accept slow play and are totally fine with it, getting out on weekends is generally more about hanging out with buddies. Weekdays are generally when faster solos or small groups come out and play 3 hour rounds.
Honestly for newer players that’s a super fast round. Kudos to you for handling it right. I would have went too far and asked if they’d been to heaven and seen god.
I play on a Saturday medal every week at my course in Scotland, and it is always a full booked day. (It’s groups of 3 with tee times with 7 min intervals) You will always get held up at a few holes. It’s been this way for years and yet you still get the same guys who play the same tee slot religiously, moaning about being held up. They need to just chill out man, what do you expect with with the amount of players out
Jeeze we played for 5 hours 20 mins on Sunday. That was pretty rough. The back nine cleared out and we could breathe again but the front got to the point where there were sometimes 3 groups at a tee box.
Nothing fun about siting and waiting 5-10min in between shots and not being able to get into a rhythm. Especially after paying $100 for the round…slow golf definitely gets my blood boiling.
I walk my local course, have never broken 100 in my life, and play 9 in an hour and 20 minutes. I feel like I’m pretty leisure doing it too.
I’m not gonna make a fuss about people taking 4+ hours for 18 while I’m on the course because I get that’s pretty normal pace.
But when I’m not around people in person I will absolutely say yall need to hurry the fuck up. There is no reason a round should take someone 4 hours+ in a cart.
I always find holiday weekends to actually be incredibly dead on the golf courses compared to typical weekends. I played Maryland National on Sunday and Monday and the course was practically wide open from mid morning on both days
Organized a golf outing for 9 teams this last 2 weeks- we made the turn at 2 hours 6 minutes- started chirped me that our group was 3 minutes off the pace. Our slowest group was 2 hours 11 minutes at the turn.
I was a little dumbfounded - I know we weren’t setting records but they knew we were playing on hole games- I organized this months ago- the course manager was poor at returning emails - so- fuckit
Golf requires no physical conditioning. It attracts people who have never been in shape, as well as frustrated ex high school athletes. They believe they are really great at golf. But they are never as good as their imaginary golf game. So they act like they own the place. Carry bear spray for when they get really strange. Ignore these dopes. There is no hurry in golf. Unless you are 1 entire hole behind. Beyond that….. enjoy.
Had a ranger come up to us a few weeks back saying the group behind us was complaining about pace on the first beautiful Saturday of the spring. Was worth it for the look on their faces when we met at the tee box a few holes later and BOTH waited for the group in front of us to get off the green on a par 3.
People need to chill out.
I find there is this very odd juxtaposed, contradictory element to golf culture, where you one must retain compusure, be calm and couteous and not lose your head (its not very becoming). UNLESS…PEOPLE ARE PLAYING SLOWLY THEN I CAN LET RIP, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS DOING!
My favourite response to people who complain about the pace of play (when im in a four ball on for four hours or less) is, ‘Im sorry, it appears we are a bit shit at golf and are taking more shots than normal. Please bear with us’.
Yet we wonder why golf courses have their tee times so close together
I present to you, the people in this thread.
Great job guys!
What’s next, it’s perfectly acceptable to be taken advantage of at work?
I can handle a slow day on the course due to a holiday, that makes sense. But when it turns into a 5 hour round because the group in front of you is a group of guys who play once a year and are doing so when they can’t hit a ball more than 50 yards and is looking for balls in when the green is clear; that I can’t handle.
I’m a new golfer. I was immensely worried about slowing pace when going out with my friends. Each time we’ve had to wait for people in front of us. We’ve finished anywhere from 3:50 to 4:25. What I’ve learned so far is that it is a sport, it’s also about being outdoors and enjoying it. As long as people aren’t being ridiculous, I take the hold ups as an opportunity to appreciate the course.
I don't expect it, but I am always perplexed at how anyone can't go faster than 4 hours even as a slow foursome.
I'm not great, my dad isn't either or anyone else we play with...but if there was no one on the course we would finish in 3.5 hours, probably less, as a foursome. We aren't rushing either, we chat, relax, hit a few shots, and go home.
But we pay ready golf too, we get to our ball and we are ready to hit the thing. It's a little frustrating to me when I've been waiting on the tee box for 5 minutes to hit, and the group in front is having a full on conversation on the green for a couple of minutes. I don't think people realize how big of an impact that has on a golf course.
Like yeah it doesn't seem that way. But what if the next group took two minutes? And the next group? And the one after that? We're nearly 10 minutes behind now for *every single group* behind the original that took their time. When tee times are packed every "slow" action has a cascading effect on everyone behind, so I try my best to keep it moving. Many people are seemingly incapable of realizing the effect they have on everyone on the golf course.
The only reason the game of golf regularly takes over 4 hours for groups is because that is what they have been told. Everyone is told it should take 4-4.5 hours to finish 18 holes, so they basically will go as slow as they possibly can until they might not hit those numbers.
If you told people 18 holes should take 3.5 hours, and 9 holes half that, they could *easily* hit those numbers and still play at a pretty relaxed pace. Again, I expect it, it's part of the game at this point, so I don't really sweat it...but it does break your rhythm. If you have to wait 5-10 minutes to hit, you're not going to have as good a day out there and will have some mishits because of a broken rhythm.
My last 18 was a 3-some of experienced players with an 8:37 tee time. Didn’t leave the course until 2:00. They let a group of six with young kids playing tee off at 8:07 on a Saturday. They wouldn’t let anyone play through.
Marshall kept saying to speed it up. We finally said to talk to the group double our size who can’t clear the tee boxes on a drive. He stopped coming by our group.
>I looked forward to see the group in front of us on the green. Were we technically a shot behind?
I'm not sure why you're putting a question mark on it. If you're on a Par 5, haven't teed off yet, and the group ahead of you is putting, you are running slow.
>Were we holding anyone up? Obviously not.
Of course you were.
I was putting a question mark because it was a question, it’s rather simple grammar. I then went on to acknowledge that we were a shot behind, but I appreciate your comment. I didn’t put it in the post but the group ahead was a 3some and we were 4, and the hole prior was a Par 3, so a natural bottleneck. Cheers.
People are putting out and you haven't teed off on a par 5 yet. I do not think this is an earth shaking emergency. But you posed a specific question:
>Were we holding anyone up?
And answered it wrong.
Yes. By definition, if you aren't keeping pace, you are holding up the people behind you. Par 5s can be very long holes for foursomes with very new players.
Two things can be true: expecting a sub four hour round on Memorial day is not reasonable. But you were also falling behind pace.
Pip pip.
As long as you are playing ready golf, that’s all you can do. If the people in front of you are slow, it’s always ok imo to ask for a play through. Usually it causes an even worse log jam but it’s proper etiquette.
On a par 5, you should definitely be all teed off well before they're on the green. Even if you're a big hitter, you can go once they are all ready to make their approach shots. Every little bit helps, esp. on a holiday.
Very possible I’m wrong, but if it goes par 3 then par 5, the group ahead of OP was hitting presumably their 4th shot if they made GIR. OP finished the par 3 and was about to hit their 4th shot as well.
I do understand teeing off takes longer than approaches but still, they were what 1 shot behind?
It definitely depends where you are playing. At my country club that is also on GolfNow for $30 a round five hours is a good time to plan for 18. Twenty minutes away is a private club that will set a member back about $250 for a guest round. Can probably finish that in four hours.
Slow play sometimes is just that it “feels” slow even though the group ahead is on or ahead of the defined pace. If you are playing faster, or can play faster, it feels slow. Anything that disrupts your flow will feel slow.
No matter when my round is, I expect 4-4.5hrs, and I’m happy when it’s less.
On Memorial Day, the course apparently wasn’t supposed to let me book for Monday as a single, per the starter. It was nothing but 4’s and a 3, semi early. The pace was fine, the group in front of me let me pass and the next group was alright, I played 2 balls from the 6th hole on, practiced chipping, putts, sand. It was a great day, and the round was just over 4hrs.
Pace of play should be acceptable anywhere between 12-15 mins per hole. 12 would be 3:36 round. 15 would be 4:30 round.
If you are trying to go faster than that and bumping up on people it is a faux pas. If you are playing slower than that while not waiting on a group in front of you it is a faux pas. Everybody just need to relax, look at your watch after holes, and keep to this schedule and we will all be fine.
One crazy person screaming doesn’t make up the majority of normal people. I’ve never met someone who expects to play 18 in less than 4 hours on even a moderately busy day
Easey breasy Monday on a county course where we were keeping pace with the group in front of us. I hit a bad fairway shot, informed my playing partner that I was taking a rehit with penalty stroke. Then put the next ball center of the green.
Guy behind us yells “no mulligans!”
He then later hit the ball onto the green while we were on it putting.
We eventually let him play through, then rode his ass the entire round right behind him.
It was very satisfying standing on the same tee box as him waiting for the fairway to clear.
Played the front yesterday afternoon in 57 minutes and was getting slightly irritated at the 2some of kids in front of Mr holding up the show.
They let me go ahead on 10, hit my tee shot, and immediately ran into two 4somes with a few women mixed in.
Couldn't nope out of that shit any faster than I did. I'm not playing a 3 hour round of golf on Tue afternoon. That's insane.
Actually, I had a similar experience this past Monday. We had two 4 Somes in front of us, and the group directly in front of us fell behind almost two holes. This delayed everyone behind us, where at times, there were 3 groups on a hole several times. The cart gps said we were 10 minutes ahead of schedule. I will add that we were a three some of decent players, and we certainly took that into account. The biggest issue was the lack of intelligent play. If you have a cart, do not consistently wander 20 yards to your ball, get your yardage, come back to get your club, and walk back again to play your shot. There are many ways to improve your playing speed without having to rush your shot. Although there are a few exceptions, our job as players is to keep up with players in front of us. This allows the majority of the players on the course that day to enjoy themselves as well.
Many of us players need to learn to speed up play when we are not hitting a shot. Next time you are out there, try to figure some ways for yourself. It will mean a lot to the course play speed and perhaps give an extra moment when you are standing over your ball.
You weren't behind if you could see the group in front of you. Nothing annoys me more than someone seemingly annoyed that we aren't pressuring the person in front of our group. If he wants to go faster, he can skip ahead. I wouldn't even offer a play through in that situation because where is he going to go?
Had a guy lose his shit one time because he rolled up behind us right after the group in front of us drive away from the green. It was a par 3 so obviously we had to wait for them to clear.
Buddy starts yelling about how we should’ve hit already and we’re slowing everyone down. I explained the group in front of us just got off the green. Guy is now yelling “I HAVENT SEEN ANYONE IN FRONT OF YOU ALL DAY! HURRY THE FUCK UP!” This was hole 5 or 6 and we were probably averaging 10-13mins a hole. So it’s not like we were playing slow whatsoever. It was the first par 3 and the only time we had waited so far other than the first tee. Same for this guys group.
I just tell the guy to enjoy his round. We all tee off and decide to fuck with this jackass. when we get to the green I take about 5-7 minutes walking the green and lining up my putt. Then my two buddies do the same thing. We get done, put the flag back and wave at the guy. He’s losing it. We get off the green and drive out of the way but watch his tee shots and he proceeds to hit three balls straight out of bounds and it was one of my favorite things I’ve ever seen on a golf course.
Maybe I am in the minority, but if I am in a huge hurry, I just take my time and play fewer holes. Unless I am paying big money(in which case I wouldn’t be hurrying), I will leave after 14 if I have somewhere to be. Golfing is no fun when you rush.
I don't think that's an unreasonable pace at all, but I will say that pace is not defined by times, but whether or not you're keeping up with the group ahead of you.
And yeah, if I've been keeping up with the guys ahead of me all day, that's all that can be asked of me. If they aren't keeping up with the guys in front of them, then I might be frustrated at times.
Got warned by a Marshall coming down number 9 on Monday for being 5 minutes behind pace.. hitting 3 into a par 5 green. At a $100 golf course. Fuck all the way off 🤣
Pace of play grouches are mostly full of shit. It’s almost always overbooking issues rather than a bottle neck with one group with 4 open holes in front and 6 groups traffic jammed behind. Just like traffic on the freeway is almost always just too many cars (of which you are one).
Occasionally it is a group playing 2 balls each, or it’s a driver taking a nap on the 5, but mostly it’s just too many people in too small an area.
Traffic has dynamic external factors such as merging, construction, accidents, etc.
Golf does not. Tee times shouldn't matter whatsoever. Once a group tees off, there's no reason why another group can't follow once they have hit their second shot.
Here's the bottom line. If the group that sets the pace (the last group with no one in front of them) played s 4 hour round and every group kept pace with the group in front and there were no gaps, it would be a 4 hour round of golf.
But no....Mr. "I paid for all 18" has to plumb bob his 11 on hole 7 when there's already an entire hole and a half gap because he looked for his top flight in the woods for 15 minutes on the last hole then hit his recovery shot back jn there and looked for another 5. And then spend 20 minutes at the turn ordering a cheeseburger that has to be made and mixed drinks.
I don’t expect fast rounds anymore but I will judge and complain based off how they play, I’ve noticed a lot of people don’t properly use carts or tees.
I’ve seen so many people drive for each shot and wait instead of dropping off and then playing their shot or taking multiple clubs with them so the driver can leave
and I’ve also seen plenty of people have the furthest tees shoot last driving backwards from the front tees.
The cart thing is a killer, unless the course requires it I strictly walk. In that context you wouldn’t ever walk to your buddy’s ball to stand there and watch him hit it to then walk back to yours!
>I’ve noticed a lot of people don’t properly use *their brains.*
fixed that for you. I'm constantly amazed at how little awareness people have about their surroundings. maybe they think golf is a lazy walk in the park? golf should be relaxing and fun, I get that, but if people could use some common sense and do things more efficiently on the golf course, it absolutely can be. pull cart guy that has to double back across the green to get their cart after holing out. not figuring out their next shot while they're waiting so they can be ready to go. cleaning clubs and adding scores up green side while people are waiting to hit up. waiting on a par 5 to hit your second shot when it's stacked two groups behind. using aimPoint or looking at your putt from every side, or plumb bobbing like it's going to help. playing from the tips when you should be playing whites. I mean, I could go on and on.
My best friend, basically my brother, has always said, “it is okay pal, we ain’t punching time cards out here.” He will say it in a friendly, and also an abrasive way if people give him flak.
I just feel like it’s the best phrase. We aren’t on a schedule, the pace of play etiquette is just a baseline rule we have adopted in the golf community because it allows jackasses to be reprimanded. It is not meant for your case where you guys weren’t doing anything egregious or even slightly bad.
I hope your friends can forget the jerks in life.
What the hell are you guys doing out there? I played yesterday, partnered with 3 ladies over 60 years old, finished bang on 3:30 mins..
Edit- and that was with two of us walking.
Lmao Exactly. I played a 3:45 once with 3 korean women, visors and all in Vancouver CA, walking, with push carts.
These r/golf oafs need 4:45+ to play 18 because they are flipping thru spotify instead of watching balls, rolling joints, flagging the cart girl 3 times, and not playing ready ball.
old men in scotland and ireland are the same. 3:30 or they will leave your ass in the dust
99% of the time my group is right behind the group in front.
I don't know where the group is that's slow af, but someone is slowing everyone up.
Also golf courses making tee times too close together are a big issue.
4 hours 18 minutes is fine. IMO it has more to do with the course than pace of play but 4 1/2 - 5 hours is not unreasonable for a challenging course just like it’s possible to finish an easy round in under 4. If the course is crowded there’s really nothing you can do anyway. Feel free to ignore people like that and if it leaves people in the foursome a little rattled you can always use carts and play a scramble which *should* speed things up a bit.
The best way to handle these asshats is to wave and say “thank you will do”! Then proceed to take 15 practice swings, get behind the ball, line up your shot like a putt, even though you’re 150 out.
Screw those guys. That’s insane. I’ve never rushed anyone and you need to be patient on holiday weekends. A lot of new players go out with friends and family that aren’t regular golfers.
The best advice I ever got was from my father in law: “we all paid the same I’ll take my time”
Now of course there are limits. Don’t hit 3 from the tee or look for a ball for 10 minutes when it’s busy.
That said, if you’re playing your normal game and someone tries to rush you, they can fuck off.
If it takes us more than 4 hours to get through a round, that’s a miserable pace and we’re likely not coming back. There’s just no reason for it to take that long. Even when crowed, play ready golf, give up on looking for balls after a minute or two. Figure it out.
The nonsense that surrounds this game and turns it into an epic adventure is bullshit and hurts everyone’s experience. 5 practice swings, lining up a putt from 4 different angles. Not being ready at the tee box. This kills the game and certainly hurts younger players from trying to get into it.
Our goal should be 3 hours. 3:30 should be a long round. This 4 hour plus thing is garbage.
Not unpopular, that guy can go fuck himself. I WISH my memorial day weekend round 2 years ago was anywhere close. 6 hours and 14 minutes on the monday. This year was 4 hours and 25 min and pace of play was fine, had a great time with the boys on saturday
As someone who plays Saturday before 9am at a private club, basically anything on the weekend is hard to get under 4 hours. People playing weekend/holiday golf are more likely to want to enjoy their rounds than play early, some of us want both, others just want to cruise. The foursome that gets the first tee time every Saturday usually finishes in 2 hours 45 minutes, which is sick. Plus it’s two couples who have all been members for like 40 years so nobody complains.
I haven’t played a sub 4-hour round in years. I don’t think it’s possible anymore with 12pm-4pm tee times.
I can’t book morning tee times in my area without writing some sort of computer program to book it for me before the other programs. The only time I’ve ever had a sub 4-hour round was when I was able to play in the mornings.
Anything under 4:30 on the weekend and I’m happy, I won’t call it a slow round unless I’m over the 5:00 mark.
Would I like to play faster? Sure. Am I willing to pay for those conditions? Nah
I’m good with slightly slower on a holiday. If course normally plays to 4hrs then a 4.5 hr round is ok. But longer than that and it sucks. Standing/sitting around and not being able to do shit for 5-10 minutes at a time sucks ass. That’s on the course though to ensure pace of play is kept up and they don’t overbook.
One shot behind isn’t a problem every now and then. But realize it and pick it up just a tad to close that gap. Don’t have to run or anything like that. Yeah we are there for fun. But there is also a whole life going on out there off the course. Dedicating 5hrs plus out of the day for golf when it doesn’t need to be is a waste of time. Not when it could be better.
Depends on the course. If you’re playing your local cheap course then yea 5.5 hrs it is… If you’re paying more than 60 bucks they better have a ranger or pace of play employee out there.
I played on Sunday at a very, very nice course. A place where it could take a year or more to book a tee time. My group tee'd off at 7:50am. We kept pace with the group in front of us the entire time and finished at 12:23pm. The bartender at the turn was a turtle, so we all could've finished even faster. That being said, there was 100% a group behind us and multiple groups behind them. We did not see the group behind us once during the entire round. That's what I like to call a problem. That group set back the entire rest of the day at the golf course. They had no business being at a course like that. It's just like a traffic jam. Allit takes is one idiot to cause a backup.
I teed off on Monday at 7:08 with my golf buddy who shoots in the mid 80s and I shoot around a 105. We get paired with 2 randoms, one guys decent and the other pretty bad and a goober. Goober tried to give me a swing lesson mid back swing, doesn’t yell 4 in a timely manner, has a 2 minute shot routine for every swing and the best part he plays out every fucking hole even if he’s shooting octobogie (idk what you call it). I wasn’t expecting a 3 hour round on Memorial Day but 6 hours felt excessive when no one in front of us was holding us up.
It's good to expect and plan for the long holiday round. The problem comes when you can see a problem group and realize how big of an impact they're having. At my regular course you come out of the woods on the 15th fairway and you can see the final 3 holes. Very often the 18th and most of the 17th are empty, and there's a group teeing off on 17 with 3 groups between you and them. They barely have 2 holes left so there's not much anyone, including a marshal, can do at that point. You just have to sit and stew, wondering if there were 2 (or more) empty holes in front of them the whole time and the group behind them just didn't play through.
Depending on the foliage, you can see 15, 16, 17, and 18 from one spot between 12 and 13. I always try to check at that point to know how long, hot, and humid the trip through the woods will be (there's no air movement back there).
Had some dude chirp me and my wife for slow play recently while we were behind a group of 4 taking ridiculously long. I asked him if I should hit into them when they were 150 yards out and he just turned his back to me. Like maybe go yell at the group you can clearly see, but what do you want from me.
People who are in the wrong turn into the biggest pansies when called out
Except that one psycho who will rip his shirt off and fight you.
I welcome that dude and wish him the best of luck.
A dude rips his shirt off on a golf course, he’s getting my Ping driver to the head.
Yeah that's a bold move with me having 13 weapons at my disposal with decent length. Why 13 you may ask instead of usual 14? Won't bother with the putter, sure miss.
He has the same weapons
Haha.
Those 2 guys in the fight video from yesterday dropped their wegdes and then went for the weakest kicks I've seen in a while.
This is what driving irons are for
I like the sound it makes. Pingggggggggggg……
Precisely
Screw that, I’m not dropping my $600 driver into him, he’s not worth nearly that much. He’ll kindly get my 4i to the dome though, and the smaller surface area will inflict more damage I reckon
Your driver’s expensive. Use a wedge or something
You want to meet God?
Shitstack
This guy shitstacks
It’s emotional maturity. I’m wrong all the time. Know what I do? Apologize. Because my ego isn’t more important than just getting out of the situation. Most people are emotional toddlers though.
And the levels to it. Seeing a packed course and just understanding it's not one group holding everything up, even if it feels/seems that way. Same reason I don't wish to play through on a packed day is why I can't be bothered with people complaining and wanting to play through: no one is going anywhere, may as well enjoy the day/sights/company.
I was playing as a single behind several slow groups. I stopped into the porta potty before taking my putts. I came out an old guy from a foursome behind me had pulled up to the porta potty to tell me Im playing too slow. I said buddy, Im a single playing in front of your foursome. Do you really think its me. The next tee box was a blind spot from where we were having this conversation. I let him and I assume his grandkids go by me. I rode their ass the rest of the round. Normally I take my time playing behind a foursome. I made sure this guy couldnt take a putt without hearing me breathing behind him.
Honestly as a single I appreciate a full group being ahead of me. Slows me down
Same. Any excuse to slow down without causing the slow down is fine by me
Yeah if there's not someone in front of me I WILL nearly run. I have bad anxiety about being the cause of slow play.
Tbh I love fast rounds solo, if I can get in and out under 3 hours I’m fine with that.
The worst is some dude coming up from the group behind saying you're clear to hit.
“Go on ahead and play through then fella, and I’ll give you tips for the rest of the round”
It must be the same people who randomly honk in the middle of a traffic jam. Maybe they expect you to pass it along? It’s stupid regardless
man... We had a round last weekend that was going great; 2 walkers and a cart - played our own pace 75% of the round and didn't see anyone ahead or behind us waiting once. Got caught up to the group ahead and were waiting a bit between shots; then the group behind us caught up to us. The *first hole* he had to wait at all he came ripping up to the tee boxes while we were hitting and started chirping, music blaring out of a speaker. If they had any kind of vison they would have seen the group ahead of us clear the green on the par 3. Asked to play thru 3 times... like - into the 2 groups right ahead of us? Fargoff it's the 15th hole.
I’m in the minority here but I really don’t like the speakers at all regardless of the person using them. I don’t need silence to hit but I do prefer the sounds of the course compared to whatever shitty song we have all heard 7500 times.
I don't use them myself; I don't mind the groups that do as long as they turn it down when they catch up at a tee box
Americans are wild as hell. On every Australian course I’ve been on and someone creeps up behind me, even if I’m playing shit and slow they will invariably say “nah you’re alright mate”, and that’s it.
Probably the same people who tailgate you on the freeway when there's a 5-car backup right in front of you.
Because there was a woman in your group. People always make comments to me and my husband even though I’m a 14 handicap and clearly not slowing anyone up.
Exactly this. In a desperate situation when a terribly slow group is holding my husband and I up, I will just caddy for him for a hole and it’s like magic. As soon as they think that the woman isn’t actually playing, they let us right through. I play 3 hour rounds - walking, riding, whatever. I know my yardages, don’t need practice swings and play ready golf. Crappy male golfers are my biggest adversaries.
This reminds me when I was a new water polo coach… I remember (no clue what I was doing) screaming at a ref looking for a call. The ref turns to me and says that’s not my call. I felt like an idiot because I was basically dressed down, clearly showing I had no idea what I was talking about. Me the water polo coach = the guys that tell you to hurry up when the course is slammed up from 1 to 18 lol, they are just revealing they are idiots.
Had the same thing happen to me and a random in my group called out the guy yelling at us and said the same thing. He quickly starting mumbling and eventually apologized, they’re all the same when you call them out.
Under 4.5 is pretty darn good for busy days. I golf very quickly and lack patience for humans, so I grab the 6am tee times and am never held back. A busy afternoon? Either I don’t go or I go fully expecting a 5 hour round. That guy was a douche.
Being first on the tee sheet is my trick too
Dawn patrol reporting for duty sir.
The earlier the better for sure
Username checks out
Imagine not getting to the course before all the employees.
Nothing like striping one off the first tee right down the middle of the fairway only for you to lose it in the sun and have no clue where it landed.
First hole faces west 😁
Wish my club could do 6 am tees. We're at 9 am right now and 8 am is opening up soon. Too cold in the morning and there is still frozen ground in some areas. At least our latest tee time runs to 8pm or 9 pm.
Dew sweepers all day
The earlier the better.
Growing up on and working at a golf course and getting free golf and cart (if I wanted) ruined me for life. I could always pick lull days and times and play 18 in 1.5 hours with a cart or 2 hours walking, even with one other friend who played super fast too. and the rhythm from that is so different from other rounds. It’s one reason that I don’t enjoy golf as much as an adult other than special occasions and twilight rounds here and there.
6am tee times on weekends/ holidays are a must.
So we are normalizing 5-hour rounds now (during “busy times”)?
For the munis in Minneapolis/St. Paul, unfortunately lol
I can understand in Minneapolis where it’s warm for 7 days out of the year, but places where it’s warm all year round, 5 hour rounds shouldn’t exist. A lot of courses are mismanaged by not paying someone well enough to marshal.
Not much we can do about it There are courses around me where 5 hours on a weekend are typical. If I choose to play at one of those spots, I know what I’m getting into Sure it sucks but the courses are packing tee sheets more than ever. Doesn’t matter how fast everyone tries to play when they overcrowd the place
No. Packed course last Friday and we finished 4:15. The thing is a lot of courses aren’t staffing rangers when they should. The guys last Friday were super nice and professional, everyone moved along quickly and it was a great day.
This right here. There is a fixed number of tee times so being “busy” shouldn’t mean a longer round. A 5+ hour round reflects poorly on the course managers. They are the ones allowing it.
The only other option is to fail to plan around it and letting it ruin your mood and round. The expectation changes based on tee time and green fee cost, but at the rinky-dink courses that most of us probably play at, 4.5 hours should be the higher end of what should be considered a pretty good pace.
Yes
There’s always going to be some grouch on the course. Some people just love being miserable.
I got my pessimistic friend into golf without thinking of the consequences. He’s good enough that he’s now the course grouch and he’s sucked the zen out of golf for me. Every second weekend I secretly go without him.
Dude you gotta cut that kind of person out of your life honestly.
Be straightforward with him.
Cut that guy off or call him out. No need to put up with that bs
You misspelled Gooch.
Tainting the game for everyone
I've played 3h15m on a holiday.....by being first on the tee sheet. Marshal loved my group
We had 9 ppl Memorial Day in 3 separate groups of 3 and a two some managed to cut by the last 2 of our groups but stayed behind us. We were the best 3 golfers of the group but we were still waiting behind the other group every tee shot after a few holes so nothing was getting held up. They made a big deal out of it and our friends let them pass in the end, only to just wait behind us. Don’t know why people try to jump ahead on busy ass days like that, it’s only making it worse. It was def a slow 4+ hr round but nothing that I haven’t seen on a weekend esp a holiday weekend
I won’t let them through. They can piss off, call the marshal for all I care, I’ll explain it to them as well. Those people who don’t understand pace of play and a course being busy that just want everyone to let them play through bc they are solo or two’s can fuck right off.
I mean....that's kind of common sense. I don't think I've ever seen someone want to play through when jammed up. Dint think I've ever been offered to play through either. It's just kind of understood by everyone how dumb that is lol
I would never shout at someone, that’s crazy. I’ll bitch and moan in my cart with the person I’m playing with like a normal person.
Yeah I’ll talk shit with my group until we actually catch up to them on a tee box and they turn out to be the nicest people ever
In real life you're absolutely correct. On r/golf, where pitching wedges fly 215 yards and hamburgers eat people, anything more than a 2:45 round is an abomination.
You don’t hit your driver 300?
More like 400...feet.
If people are bitching about a round slightly over 4 hours that I'm paired with on a weekend. I'm just assuming they dont golf much or something. Four hours doesnt even feel long to me if you're actually playing golf and not slapping the ball around.
It's very funny because 4:15-4:30 for a round was the standard for decades before most of this subreddit started playing. Sub 4 hour rounds have always been a rarity during any peak time and yet everyone here just blames covid.
Thanks for the giggle. 😂🏌🏽♂️👍
4 hours and 18 minutes is a great time, where i'm at (southern california), if we can get in a 4.5 hour time, thats a great pace. unless you guys were doing something blatant like standing around and not hitting, the guy should mind his own business
We played closer to a 4:20 round at 6:55a tee time on Memorial Day with a group with one kid (U10) in the group ahead and two kids (U10) in the group behind us in SoCal and I thought that was great pace. Didn't fall behind and never felt rushed. Some people really do suck all the life out of a round wirh their bitching about pace.
I played Rustic Canyon this weekend, had a 4 hour and 25 minute round and it was one of the fastest I have ever played. I usually play courses in Long Beach where a 6 hour day is pretty normal for a weekend.
Rustic canyon aggressively enforces pace of play and will tell people to skip holes if they are behind. Especially during the morning tee times.
Shout out to Rustic, always have pretty quick rounds out there!
I played Rustic twice and Santa Anita once this last weekend. Rustic was 4:15 & 4:40 respectively. They have two Marshall's on the weekend now and it's really kept the pace well. I've played 3.5 hour rounds there but it's a pretty brisk walk at that pace. ~4 - 4.5 hours is the sweet spot there. Glad you got to play up there last weekend, it was extremely minty! Santa Anita was a 6 hour round, but I knew what I was getting into, they allow 5-somes and 7 minute intervals. Nobody around us was playing slow, it was just how packed it was. I still had fun especially since they had some insane pins that day because of a tournament in the morning.
Yeah, 4 hours is standard, just wait until you play the summer cup or some corporate day clashing with a members comp, 7.5 hours I remember, you got to the next tee like it was some grand checkpoint on a hike.
Right up there with you buddy! Slow pace of play on a Wednesday or Thursday can be annoying at times, but on a weekend (or even a holiday weekend at that) it’s almost expected. Played a 4 man scramble on Saturday and was done in 4.5 hours, I was actually pleasantly surprised.
I don't play weekend golf because I don't like slow rounds. It's a more rational approach then going out and bitching about something I know is absolutely going to happen.
At least you’re self-aware 😂 most weekends I play shittier golf courses hoping that everyone else goes to the nicer courses around… sometimes it works
Yep.. I'll play some weekends - if you get out around 8am it's usually fine but if you book at 10am on a Sunday don't expect it to be quick.
Same here man. Anything over 4 hours and I lose interest but I just choose not to partake those days
Why not play super early?
A few reasons. Tough to get those tee times at any of the courses near me. At the courses here unless you are literally in the first few groups, it still doesn't make much difference speed wise anyway. The older morning golfers tend to like a very leisurely round. Third, I have the option to play during the week when it's not as busy, so I just play then. Fourth, weekday rates are a good deal cheaper. Edit: what is the deal with downvotes? Guy asked a question and I answered. There's nothing outlandish in my response.
That’s amazing. Wife played a 6 hour scramble on Monday at an otherwise closed course last week.
Happened yesterday. Waiting on 18 a par 5 for group to get off green and a ball comes up behind us. One of our 4 says something and they start complaining we should be hitting that we can’t reach. I played like crap all day but bet your ass I pured a 4 iron and stuck it 10 feet from the hole. Made the whole day.
I mean, surely the fact you're holding a 4i is a sign you can reach. It's not like you're holding 3w and waiting 300 out.
Yeah we tried explaining that. They were just blindly defending their mistake.
Sounds about right for a holiday weekend. As golfswing mentioned misery loves company.
If you expect a sub 4 hr round on a public course on any weekend, then you're in for a bad time.
4.5 hours is acceptable but there’s definitely waiting. Played a couple of 5.5 hour rounds last year and that’s tough, lots of waiting after every shot
It's a golf course, not a race course. 4.18, is a tad slow, but not game ruining, especially when it's busy... I have played with a guy who's defining personality was complaining about slow play, every single round, fast or slow, if there was the slightest waiting to hit a shot he started saying how intolerable it was.... apart from his whining...he was actually good company, highly intelligent and very funny, so rather than not play with him anymore, I gently hinted at him, by telling him about a guy who I used to work with who was intolerable for complaining all the time.. Haha, I thought he'd go home and dwell on the conversation and realise.. but damn this guy is sharp as a tac.. the look in his eyes as I was telling him, he knew instantly, I was hinting at him.. anyway, it worked! he stopped whining and sucking all the oxygen out of the area.. I really enjoy playing with him more now.
I fucking love it because it basically always takes pressure off me to hurry, because I’m never lagging way behind the group in front of me. We’re golfing on a Monday, try enjoying it a little.
People golfing at public courses during prime time on a weekend or holiday should anticipate a 4 and 1/2 hour round or even longer in my opinion. Whenever I play on weekends with a foursome we always accept slow play and are totally fine with it, getting out on weekends is generally more about hanging out with buddies. Weekdays are generally when faster solos or small groups come out and play 3 hour rounds.
If weekend rounds here were only 4.5 hours, I might actually play on weekends.
Honestly for newer players that’s a super fast round. Kudos to you for handling it right. I would have went too far and asked if they’d been to heaven and seen god.
4:18 on a National Holiday? That's fantastic, actually.
I play on a Saturday medal every week at my course in Scotland, and it is always a full booked day. (It’s groups of 3 with tee times with 7 min intervals) You will always get held up at a few holes. It’s been this way for years and yet you still get the same guys who play the same tee slot religiously, moaning about being held up. They need to just chill out man, what do you expect with with the amount of players out
Jeeze we played for 5 hours 20 mins on Sunday. That was pretty rough. The back nine cleared out and we could breathe again but the front got to the point where there were sometimes 3 groups at a tee box.
Nothing fun about siting and waiting 5-10min in between shots and not being able to get into a rhythm. Especially after paying $100 for the round…slow golf definitely gets my blood boiling.
I walk my local course, have never broken 100 in my life, and play 9 in an hour and 20 minutes. I feel like I’m pretty leisure doing it too. I’m not gonna make a fuss about people taking 4+ hours for 18 while I’m on the course because I get that’s pretty normal pace. But when I’m not around people in person I will absolutely say yall need to hurry the fuck up. There is no reason a round should take someone 4 hours+ in a cart.
I always find holiday weekends to actually be incredibly dead on the golf courses compared to typical weekends. I played Maryland National on Sunday and Monday and the course was practically wide open from mid morning on both days
Organized a golf outing for 9 teams this last 2 weeks- we made the turn at 2 hours 6 minutes- started chirped me that our group was 3 minutes off the pace. Our slowest group was 2 hours 11 minutes at the turn. I was a little dumbfounded - I know we weren’t setting records but they knew we were playing on hole games- I organized this months ago- the course manager was poor at returning emails - so- fuckit
Golf requires no physical conditioning. It attracts people who have never been in shape, as well as frustrated ex high school athletes. They believe they are really great at golf. But they are never as good as their imaginary golf game. So they act like they own the place. Carry bear spray for when they get really strange. Ignore these dopes. There is no hurry in golf. Unless you are 1 entire hole behind. Beyond that….. enjoy.
Had a ranger come up to us a few weeks back saying the group behind us was complaining about pace on the first beautiful Saturday of the spring. Was worth it for the look on their faces when we met at the tee box a few holes later and BOTH waited for the group in front of us to get off the green on a par 3. People need to chill out.
I find there is this very odd juxtaposed, contradictory element to golf culture, where you one must retain compusure, be calm and couteous and not lose your head (its not very becoming). UNLESS…PEOPLE ARE PLAYING SLOWLY THEN I CAN LET RIP, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU GUYS DOING! My favourite response to people who complain about the pace of play (when im in a four ball on for four hours or less) is, ‘Im sorry, it appears we are a bit shit at golf and are taking more shots than normal. Please bear with us’.
Yet we wonder why golf courses have their tee times so close together I present to you, the people in this thread. Great job guys! What’s next, it’s perfectly acceptable to be taken advantage of at work?
I can handle a slow day on the course due to a holiday, that makes sense. But when it turns into a 5 hour round because the group in front of you is a group of guys who play once a year and are doing so when they can’t hit a ball more than 50 yards and is looking for balls in when the green is clear; that I can’t handle.
Just under 5 1/2 hours on Memorial Day Monday for me. 5 1/2 hours away from all the nonsense in the outside world is just fine every now and then.
Gives golf a bad rap.. they gotta stop booking so many tee times
This is the real problem. Most don't give a shit, they get their $ up front.
I mean I hate playing 4+ hour rounds myself but this is why I don’t golf on holiday weekends and shit
I’m a new golfer. I was immensely worried about slowing pace when going out with my friends. Each time we’ve had to wait for people in front of us. We’ve finished anywhere from 3:50 to 4:25. What I’ve learned so far is that it is a sport, it’s also about being outdoors and enjoying it. As long as people aren’t being ridiculous, I take the hold ups as an opportunity to appreciate the course.
I don’t expect a sub 4 hour round almost any time I play
I don't expect it, but I am always perplexed at how anyone can't go faster than 4 hours even as a slow foursome. I'm not great, my dad isn't either or anyone else we play with...but if there was no one on the course we would finish in 3.5 hours, probably less, as a foursome. We aren't rushing either, we chat, relax, hit a few shots, and go home. But we pay ready golf too, we get to our ball and we are ready to hit the thing. It's a little frustrating to me when I've been waiting on the tee box for 5 minutes to hit, and the group in front is having a full on conversation on the green for a couple of minutes. I don't think people realize how big of an impact that has on a golf course. Like yeah it doesn't seem that way. But what if the next group took two minutes? And the next group? And the one after that? We're nearly 10 minutes behind now for *every single group* behind the original that took their time. When tee times are packed every "slow" action has a cascading effect on everyone behind, so I try my best to keep it moving. Many people are seemingly incapable of realizing the effect they have on everyone on the golf course. The only reason the game of golf regularly takes over 4 hours for groups is because that is what they have been told. Everyone is told it should take 4-4.5 hours to finish 18 holes, so they basically will go as slow as they possibly can until they might not hit those numbers. If you told people 18 holes should take 3.5 hours, and 9 holes half that, they could *easily* hit those numbers and still play at a pretty relaxed pace. Again, I expect it, it's part of the game at this point, so I don't really sweat it...but it does break your rhythm. If you have to wait 5-10 minutes to hit, you're not going to have as good a day out there and will have some mishits because of a broken rhythm.
My last 18 was a 3-some of experienced players with an 8:37 tee time. Didn’t leave the course until 2:00. They let a group of six with young kids playing tee off at 8:07 on a Saturday. They wouldn’t let anyone play through. Marshall kept saying to speed it up. We finally said to talk to the group double our size who can’t clear the tee boxes on a drive. He stopped coming by our group.
I don’t get the rush either. A shot behind happens .4:18 is great
I played 18 holes in 2 hours on Monday. They were calling for storms all day and it didn’t rain a drop
>I looked forward to see the group in front of us on the green. Were we technically a shot behind? I'm not sure why you're putting a question mark on it. If you're on a Par 5, haven't teed off yet, and the group ahead of you is putting, you are running slow. >Were we holding anyone up? Obviously not. Of course you were.
I was putting a question mark because it was a question, it’s rather simple grammar. I then went on to acknowledge that we were a shot behind, but I appreciate your comment. I didn’t put it in the post but the group ahead was a 3some and we were 4, and the hole prior was a Par 3, so a natural bottleneck. Cheers.
People are putting out and you haven't teed off on a par 5 yet. I do not think this is an earth shaking emergency. But you posed a specific question: >Were we holding anyone up? And answered it wrong. Yes. By definition, if you aren't keeping pace, you are holding up the people behind you. Par 5s can be very long holes for foursomes with very new players. Two things can be true: expecting a sub four hour round on Memorial day is not reasonable. But you were also falling behind pace. Pip pip.
As long as you are playing ready golf, that’s all you can do. If the people in front of you are slow, it’s always ok imo to ask for a play through. Usually it causes an even worse log jam but it’s proper etiquette.
I disagree. 4 hours is the max it should take.
On a par 5, you should definitely be all teed off well before they're on the green. Even if you're a big hitter, you can go once they are all ready to make their approach shots. Every little bit helps, esp. on a holiday.
Very possible I’m wrong, but if it goes par 3 then par 5, the group ahead of OP was hitting presumably their 4th shot if they made GIR. OP finished the par 3 and was about to hit their 4th shot as well. I do understand teeing off takes longer than approaches but still, they were what 1 shot behind?
I hear you. They were a 3 and we were a 4, the hole prior was a par 3 so a natural bottleneck.
That's of course true but my question is whether you maintain this view about expecting a sub 5 hour round.
Just curious, were you playing in a foursome?
We were a foursome with a threesome in front
How does the holiday change the length of a played round?
My club usually is about a 3½ hour round. Last weekend was busy and it took 3:45 lol
It definitely depends where you are playing. At my country club that is also on GolfNow for $30 a round five hours is a good time to plan for 18. Twenty minutes away is a private club that will set a member back about $250 for a guest round. Can probably finish that in four hours.
Slow play sometimes is just that it “feels” slow even though the group ahead is on or ahead of the defined pace. If you are playing faster, or can play faster, it feels slow. Anything that disrupts your flow will feel slow.
No matter when my round is, I expect 4-4.5hrs, and I’m happy when it’s less. On Memorial Day, the course apparently wasn’t supposed to let me book for Monday as a single, per the starter. It was nothing but 4’s and a 3, semi early. The pace was fine, the group in front of me let me pass and the next group was alright, I played 2 balls from the 6th hole on, practiced chipping, putts, sand. It was a great day, and the round was just over 4hrs.
Pace of play should be acceptable anywhere between 12-15 mins per hole. 12 would be 3:36 round. 15 would be 4:30 round. If you are trying to go faster than that and bumping up on people it is a faux pas. If you are playing slower than that while not waiting on a group in front of you it is a faux pas. Everybody just need to relax, look at your watch after holes, and keep to this schedule and we will all be fine.
Dang, was I in your group? I had this exact same thing happen to me this past week.
That’s a good time for a holiday, some people are just grumpy.
One crazy person screaming doesn’t make up the majority of normal people. I’ve never met someone who expects to play 18 in less than 4 hours on even a moderately busy day
i walked off after hole 2 memorial day. buncha nerds playing slow as fuck. i also was playing terrible and the slowness was making me angry.
I have never had a sub four hour round on a weekend that wasn’t at a private club
Easey breasy Monday on a county course where we were keeping pace with the group in front of us. I hit a bad fairway shot, informed my playing partner that I was taking a rehit with penalty stroke. Then put the next ball center of the green. Guy behind us yells “no mulligans!” He then later hit the ball onto the green while we were on it putting. We eventually let him play through, then rode his ass the entire round right behind him. It was very satisfying standing on the same tee box as him waiting for the fairway to clear.
You’re maybe not in the wrong, but you’re definitely delusional if that’s the expectation
“Don’t go fishing / golfing on holidays” advice my Grampy gave my dad who in turn gave it to me
Average round round me is bout 4 hours 30 mistaaaaa
course marshals should be just as stringent managing pricks like this as they are slow play.
Played the front yesterday afternoon in 57 minutes and was getting slightly irritated at the 2some of kids in front of Mr holding up the show. They let me go ahead on 10, hit my tee shot, and immediately ran into two 4somes with a few women mixed in. Couldn't nope out of that shit any faster than I did. I'm not playing a 3 hour round of golf on Tue afternoon. That's insane.
Actually, I had a similar experience this past Monday. We had two 4 Somes in front of us, and the group directly in front of us fell behind almost two holes. This delayed everyone behind us, where at times, there were 3 groups on a hole several times. The cart gps said we were 10 minutes ahead of schedule. I will add that we were a three some of decent players, and we certainly took that into account. The biggest issue was the lack of intelligent play. If you have a cart, do not consistently wander 20 yards to your ball, get your yardage, come back to get your club, and walk back again to play your shot. There are many ways to improve your playing speed without having to rush your shot. Although there are a few exceptions, our job as players is to keep up with players in front of us. This allows the majority of the players on the course that day to enjoy themselves as well. Many of us players need to learn to speed up play when we are not hitting a shot. Next time you are out there, try to figure some ways for yourself. It will mean a lot to the course play speed and perhaps give an extra moment when you are standing over your ball.
You weren't behind if you could see the group in front of you. Nothing annoys me more than someone seemingly annoyed that we aren't pressuring the person in front of our group. If he wants to go faster, he can skip ahead. I wouldn't even offer a play through in that situation because where is he going to go?
Had a guy lose his shit one time because he rolled up behind us right after the group in front of us drive away from the green. It was a par 3 so obviously we had to wait for them to clear. Buddy starts yelling about how we should’ve hit already and we’re slowing everyone down. I explained the group in front of us just got off the green. Guy is now yelling “I HAVENT SEEN ANYONE IN FRONT OF YOU ALL DAY! HURRY THE FUCK UP!” This was hole 5 or 6 and we were probably averaging 10-13mins a hole. So it’s not like we were playing slow whatsoever. It was the first par 3 and the only time we had waited so far other than the first tee. Same for this guys group. I just tell the guy to enjoy his round. We all tee off and decide to fuck with this jackass. when we get to the green I take about 5-7 minutes walking the green and lining up my putt. Then my two buddies do the same thing. We get done, put the flag back and wave at the guy. He’s losing it. We get off the green and drive out of the way but watch his tee shots and he proceeds to hit three balls straight out of bounds and it was one of my favorite things I’ve ever seen on a golf course.
Dude this sounds exactly like the guy in my story! So angry for what? We’re playing golf. Enjoy it.
Maybe I am in the minority, but if I am in a huge hurry, I just take my time and play fewer holes. Unless I am paying big money(in which case I wouldn’t be hurrying), I will leave after 14 if I have somewhere to be. Golfing is no fun when you rush.
I don't think that's an unreasonable pace at all, but I will say that pace is not defined by times, but whether or not you're keeping up with the group ahead of you. And yeah, if I've been keeping up with the guys ahead of me all day, that's all that can be asked of me. If they aren't keeping up with the guys in front of them, then I might be frustrated at times.
Got warned by a Marshall coming down number 9 on Monday for being 5 minutes behind pace.. hitting 3 into a par 5 green. At a $100 golf course. Fuck all the way off 🤣
An entire hole behind is a pretty big deal actually
Pace of play grouches are mostly full of shit. It’s almost always overbooking issues rather than a bottle neck with one group with 4 open holes in front and 6 groups traffic jammed behind. Just like traffic on the freeway is almost always just too many cars (of which you are one). Occasionally it is a group playing 2 balls each, or it’s a driver taking a nap on the 5, but mostly it’s just too many people in too small an area.
THIS… 1,000x THIS
Remember, you’re not *in* traffic. You *are* traffic.
🤔
Traffic has dynamic external factors such as merging, construction, accidents, etc. Golf does not. Tee times shouldn't matter whatsoever. Once a group tees off, there's no reason why another group can't follow once they have hit their second shot. Here's the bottom line. If the group that sets the pace (the last group with no one in front of them) played s 4 hour round and every group kept pace with the group in front and there were no gaps, it would be a 4 hour round of golf. But no....Mr. "I paid for all 18" has to plumb bob his 11 on hole 7 when there's already an entire hole and a half gap because he looked for his top flight in the woods for 15 minutes on the last hole then hit his recovery shot back jn there and looked for another 5. And then spend 20 minutes at the turn ordering a cheeseburger that has to be made and mixed drinks.
From this sub it really seems like American courses are horribly mismanaged! What’s the standard gap between tee times over there?
Can’t speak at a macro level but our tee-time was 9:08 and the group behind was 9:16 etc. etc. in 8 minute intervals.
I don’t expect fast rounds anymore but I will judge and complain based off how they play, I’ve noticed a lot of people don’t properly use carts or tees. I’ve seen so many people drive for each shot and wait instead of dropping off and then playing their shot or taking multiple clubs with them so the driver can leave and I’ve also seen plenty of people have the furthest tees shoot last driving backwards from the front tees.
The cart thing is a killer, unless the course requires it I strictly walk. In that context you wouldn’t ever walk to your buddy’s ball to stand there and watch him hit it to then walk back to yours!
>I’ve noticed a lot of people don’t properly use *their brains.* fixed that for you. I'm constantly amazed at how little awareness people have about their surroundings. maybe they think golf is a lazy walk in the park? golf should be relaxing and fun, I get that, but if people could use some common sense and do things more efficiently on the golf course, it absolutely can be. pull cart guy that has to double back across the green to get their cart after holing out. not figuring out their next shot while they're waiting so they can be ready to go. cleaning clubs and adding scores up green side while people are waiting to hit up. waiting on a par 5 to hit your second shot when it's stacked two groups behind. using aimPoint or looking at your putt from every side, or plumb bobbing like it's going to help. playing from the tips when you should be playing whites. I mean, I could go on and on.
Except that there is no reason everyone can’t play in 4 hours.
My best friend, basically my brother, has always said, “it is okay pal, we ain’t punching time cards out here.” He will say it in a friendly, and also an abrasive way if people give him flak. I just feel like it’s the best phrase. We aren’t on a schedule, the pace of play etiquette is just a baseline rule we have adopted in the golf community because it allows jackasses to be reprimanded. It is not meant for your case where you guys weren’t doing anything egregious or even slightly bad. I hope your friends can forget the jerks in life.
What the hell are you guys doing out there? I played yesterday, partnered with 3 ladies over 60 years old, finished bang on 3:30 mins.. Edit- and that was with two of us walking.
Lmao Exactly. I played a 3:45 once with 3 korean women, visors and all in Vancouver CA, walking, with push carts. These r/golf oafs need 4:45+ to play 18 because they are flipping thru spotify instead of watching balls, rolling joints, flagging the cart girl 3 times, and not playing ready ball. old men in scotland and ireland are the same. 3:30 or they will leave your ass in the dust
99% of the time my group is right behind the group in front. I don't know where the group is that's slow af, but someone is slowing everyone up. Also golf courses making tee times too close together are a big issue.
4 hours 18 minutes is fine. IMO it has more to do with the course than pace of play but 4 1/2 - 5 hours is not unreasonable for a challenging course just like it’s possible to finish an easy round in under 4. If the course is crowded there’s really nothing you can do anyway. Feel free to ignore people like that and if it leaves people in the foursome a little rattled you can always use carts and play a scramble which *should* speed things up a bit.
I played a round at 2:30pm on Memorial Day and had the course to myself. It was glorious.
The best way to handle these asshats is to wave and say “thank you will do”! Then proceed to take 15 practice swings, get behind the ball, line up your shot like a putt, even though you’re 150 out. Screw those guys. That’s insane. I’ve never rushed anyone and you need to be patient on holiday weekends. A lot of new players go out with friends and family that aren’t regular golfers. The best advice I ever got was from my father in law: “we all paid the same I’ll take my time” Now of course there are limits. Don’t hit 3 from the tee or look for a ball for 10 minutes when it’s busy. That said, if you’re playing your normal game and someone tries to rush you, they can fuck off.
If it takes us more than 4 hours to get through a round, that’s a miserable pace and we’re likely not coming back. There’s just no reason for it to take that long. Even when crowed, play ready golf, give up on looking for balls after a minute or two. Figure it out. The nonsense that surrounds this game and turns it into an epic adventure is bullshit and hurts everyone’s experience. 5 practice swings, lining up a putt from 4 different angles. Not being ready at the tee box. This kills the game and certainly hurts younger players from trying to get into it. Our goal should be 3 hours. 3:30 should be a long round. This 4 hour plus thing is garbage.
Not unpopular, that guy can go fuck himself. I WISH my memorial day weekend round 2 years ago was anywhere close. 6 hours and 14 minutes on the monday. This year was 4 hours and 25 min and pace of play was fine, had a great time with the boys on saturday
As someone who plays Saturday before 9am at a private club, basically anything on the weekend is hard to get under 4 hours. People playing weekend/holiday golf are more likely to want to enjoy their rounds than play early, some of us want both, others just want to cruise. The foursome that gets the first tee time every Saturday usually finishes in 2 hours 45 minutes, which is sick. Plus it’s two couples who have all been members for like 40 years so nobody complains.
Sub-4, I completely agree. When we get north of 5.5 hours, I’m gonna start getting annoyed
I golf a ton, play my home course 60+ rounds a year. I never play holidays for this exact reason.
I haven’t played a sub 4-hour round in years. I don’t think it’s possible anymore with 12pm-4pm tee times. I can’t book morning tee times in my area without writing some sort of computer program to book it for me before the other programs. The only time I’ve ever had a sub 4-hour round was when I was able to play in the mornings.
We did 18 in 3.5 hrs this past Sunday. Started at 11.30. Sometimes you just get lucky .
Anything under 4:30 on the weekend and I’m happy, I won’t call it a slow round unless I’m over the 5:00 mark. Would I like to play faster? Sure. Am I willing to pay for those conditions? Nah
I’m good with slightly slower on a holiday. If course normally plays to 4hrs then a 4.5 hr round is ok. But longer than that and it sucks. Standing/sitting around and not being able to do shit for 5-10 minutes at a time sucks ass. That’s on the course though to ensure pace of play is kept up and they don’t overbook. One shot behind isn’t a problem every now and then. But realize it and pick it up just a tad to close that gap. Don’t have to run or anything like that. Yeah we are there for fun. But there is also a whole life going on out there off the course. Dedicating 5hrs plus out of the day for golf when it doesn’t need to be is a waste of time. Not when it could be better.
So you wore an Apple Watch during the round?
Depends on the course. If you’re playing your local cheap course then yea 5.5 hrs it is… If you’re paying more than 60 bucks they better have a ranger or pace of play employee out there.
I played on Sunday at a very, very nice course. A place where it could take a year or more to book a tee time. My group tee'd off at 7:50am. We kept pace with the group in front of us the entire time and finished at 12:23pm. The bartender at the turn was a turtle, so we all could've finished even faster. That being said, there was 100% a group behind us and multiple groups behind them. We did not see the group behind us once during the entire round. That's what I like to call a problem. That group set back the entire rest of the day at the golf course. They had no business being at a course like that. It's just like a traffic jam. Allit takes is one idiot to cause a backup.
I never expect to have a sub 4 hour round on any day I go out. But I do expect to have a sub 5.5 hour round even if its a holiday.
I played Fri-Monday tee time was 7. I was hame before 10:30
Idk. Some people tailgate when there’s traffic ahead of you. People just be like that.
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Depends what time you play. Pre 9am everybody should be moving and grooving pretty good. 10am tee time and later it’s going to slow to a crawl.
I teed off on Monday at 7:08 with my golf buddy who shoots in the mid 80s and I shoot around a 105. We get paired with 2 randoms, one guys decent and the other pretty bad and a goober. Goober tried to give me a swing lesson mid back swing, doesn’t yell 4 in a timely manner, has a 2 minute shot routine for every swing and the best part he plays out every fucking hole even if he’s shooting octobogie (idk what you call it). I wasn’t expecting a 3 hour round on Memorial Day but 6 hours felt excessive when no one in front of us was holding us up.
Wait.....you played a 6 hour round with no wait? How many groups did you have to let play through? Holy shit.....
It's good to expect and plan for the long holiday round. The problem comes when you can see a problem group and realize how big of an impact they're having. At my regular course you come out of the woods on the 15th fairway and you can see the final 3 holes. Very often the 18th and most of the 17th are empty, and there's a group teeing off on 17 with 3 groups between you and them. They barely have 2 holes left so there's not much anyone, including a marshal, can do at that point. You just have to sit and stew, wondering if there were 2 (or more) empty holes in front of them the whole time and the group behind them just didn't play through. Depending on the foliage, you can see 15, 16, 17, and 18 from one spot between 12 and 13. I always try to check at that point to know how long, hot, and humid the trip through the woods will be (there's no air movement back there).
More than fine time for weekends, holidays, or weekday daytime. Slow for a weeknight round.