USGA has more meetings to help speed up play – Is it helping?

Written by Mel Sole on February 5, 2016. Posted in USGA

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My dad used to have a saying that I totally agree with. “If you want to get nothing done, form a committee.”

The USGA has put forth various efforts to speed up play, and I think the last one, which was the “While we’re young” campaign was an absolute disaster! It did absolutely nothing to speed up play! People will not return to a course that takes too long to play. Hire more rangers, charge a slightly higher green fee, and people will play if they know they will be off the course in under 4 1/2 hours! I played Pasatiempo in CA a few years ago, and it took 6 hours. If they gave me free green fees for the rest of my life, I would never go back there!

The USGA can learn from the busiest course in the world – The Old Course at St Andrew’s.

The course is busy every day, and yet I have never had a round over 4 1/2 hours there. In my first round there, we teed off at 7.40 am. As we were walking off the first green, the ranger rode up to us on his little scooter and said, “Gentleman, the group in front of you has been instructed to play at a 4-hour pace. You should finish in 4 hours if you keep up. If not, I will ask you to leave the course.” Guess what, we finished in 4 hours! The first group is told to play at a certain pace, and everyone is instructed to keep pace with the group in front of them. The last group should play at the same pace as the first group!

Thanks to Golf World for addressing this pressing issue!

USGA has more meetings to help speed up play - Is it helping?

The deliberate push from the USGA to speed up the game moved west to Brookside Golf Course in Pasadena, Calif., for the association’s third Pace of Play Symposium.

Data revealed during the two-day session will help the USGA’s smart team target ways tournaments and facilities can get faster. Research at the seminar showed definitively that better tee-time spacing will eliminate bottlenecks, whether on the LPGA Tour (where rounds were shortened by as much as 22 minutes) or at the everyday golf facility. To counter the view of course operators who want as many players as possible, speakers revealed findings that showed younger golfers are willing to pay more if they feel a course has taken measures to keep players moving.

To see the rest of the USGA’s effort to speed up play, go here!

Source: Geoff Shackelford Golf World Digital

Pictures: Bob Cotter

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USGA has more meetings to help speed up play – Is it helping?

My dad used to have a saying that I totally agree with. “If you want to get nothing done, form a committee.”

The USGA can learn from the busiest course in the world – The Old Course at St Andrew’s.

The deliberate push from the USGA to speed up the game moved west to Brookside Golf Course in Pasadena, Calif., for the association’s third Pace of Play Symposium.

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