Keeping Pace is Important

When playing a round of golf, nothing ruins it quicker than slow play. Slow play kills any momentum you have going when you have to wait in between every shot. If you are a golfer and you are playing 18 holes there is no reason that you cannot be finished with your round in four hours or less. It is unfortunate but many golfers are taking closer to five hours a round, and that is outrageous.

Many times it is not the golfer's fault that the pace is so slow. Courses are in business to make money so they often times do not allow the proper amount of time between tee times, creating a log jam. There are also very few public course that have rangers on the course to make sure play continues at the proper pace.

However, for the most part, it is the golfers themselves that make the pace of play almost unbearable. Many times golfers just don't know the proper etiquette on the course and do things that bring play to a screeching halt. Unfortunately many new golfers tend to be the biggest offenders.

Beginner golfers tend to over think the entire game. If you are a beginner let me start by telling you that the odds are against you that you will ever break 90 let alone shoot par so learn to pick up the pace by doing the following:

When you get to your ball be ready to hit. Know what club you want to hit with, when you are a beginning golfer your shot choices are limited so choose a club and go. One other note, you will hit a bad shot whether you take one or ten practice swings so let's limit the practice swings. When you are first learning to play, pick up and move to the next hole if you accumulate more than double the par on each hole.

Quick Tips for Faster Play

• When it is your turn, be ready to hit. Choose your club on the way to your ball.
• Hit and sit, once you have hit your shot, fill in any divots and get ready to move, you can clean your club and put it away when you are waiting on the next player to hit.
• You are not playing for the US Open so there is no reason to take 5 minutes to read the greens. When people behind you see this and then you miss your putt, you may be hit into on the next hole!
• If there is a green open in front of you then you are causing the problem, pick up and catch up with the group ahead of you.

Whether you are a new golfer or you have been around for a while, make sure that you understand the pace of play, nothing ruins a round of golf like slow play.