Pace of Play

Slow play is one of the leading causes of frustration among golfers.  Time to complete play at Lockwood should be 4 hours and 15 min.  Are you on time?  Check the scorecard – the maximum time to complete each hole is noted.  If you are keeping up the pace of play – good for you!  You probably already do many of the things below, but you might want to check it out anyway.  You just might learn something!

13 ways to play faster golf :

1. Choose the tee appropriate to your skill level. .  See scorecard for suggested tees. Playing from a tee that is not really appropriate for your skill level only adds strokes and time.  Note the ball’s flight on each shot.  Note the ball’s flight for each member of the group.  This should make it easier to find the ball. It is helpful to mark the ball’s flight with a background object.
2. Proceed directly to your ball and be ready to hit when it’s your turn.  Every time!  Don’t travel as a pack, going first to one person’s ball and then the next and so on. If you are riding in a cart, don’t drive to the first ball, wait for the first person to hit, and then drive to the second ball and wait for that person to hit.  Drive to the first ball, drop that player off, and drive on to the second ball.  The first person should hit their ball and then walk to the cart while the second person hits. Or park somewhere in the middle and both players walk to their balls.
3. Begin thinking over your next shot as you travel to your ball – the yardage, which club to use, wind, obstruction etc.  Take several clubs to the ball You won’t have to return to the cart to get the appropriate club.
4. Carry a few extra tees, ball marks, and a spare ball in your pockets.  You won’t have to return to your cart if you need one.
5. Limit your search for lost balls to maximum of 5 minutes.
6. Hit a provisional shot immediately if you think your ball has landed out of bounds or is lost.  This will eliminate the need to walk ahead to search, only to have to return to the original spot to replay a shot.
7. Retrieve your ball from the water only when it is readily visible.  Do not “hawk” balls during a playing round.
8. Limit practice swings to odd lies. Most of the time one practice swing is sufficient.
9. Begin lining up the putt and reading the break while others are preparing to putt.  If you are within reasonable distance of the hole, go ahead and putt out instead of waiting for everyone else to putt.
10. Limit your conversation if it interferes with or slows down play.  Never hold up play because you are in the middle of a conversation. Put the conversation on hold, take the shot, and then resume the conversation.
11. Write down scores after you arrive at the next tee. Never stand on or next to the green in order to record the score.  
12. Sometimes it is appropriate to play ready golf – the order of play is dictated by who’s ready, not who’s away.  
13. Use the groups ahead of you and behind you to gauge your pace.  If the group that teed off ahead of you is pulling away – putting a full hole’s distance between them and your group – you need to speed up.  If there’s no one in front of you, but you are holding up the group behind you, you need to speed up.

Time-saving Cart Tips

1. Share driving.  Ride when you’re away; drive when not.
2. Leave your bags or golf cart to the side of the green and in the direction of the next tee.  Never leave bags or carts in front of the green.