I expect to drive 55mph. it's the speed limit. Everyone else should just suck it and be happy behind me.

DannyDuberstein said:

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I think the attitude that somehow a 4some has more right to be there and that everyone behind them can just suck it even though there may be room ahead is a joke. Keep up or let people play through. Doesn't matter the group size.

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Read it again. Bird said even if a 4some is playing a 3 hour round, they're too slow if a single is pressing them. You're making up something that isn't being discussed.

Yea I think Danny gets what's being said. Something got lost in translation

Some of you need to get off the clock check. Again, room in front + faster group behind = play through. A clock is not needed for this. Just courtesy. It takes no time at all to let someone slide through if you have any clue how to do it properly.

DannyDuberstein said:

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Some of you need to get off the clock check. Again, room in front + faster group behind = play through. A clock is not needed for this. Just courtesy. It takes no time at all to let someone slide through if you have any clue how to do it properly.

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He literally said there was no where to go. Three groups on some holes and the course was overcrowded. Did you read anything on this thread?

gman-79 said:

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My FIL has been a golf pro for 49 years and as long as I have known him he has used the phrase " a onesome has no standing on a golf course". He is a pro emeritus now but when he was in charge he never let less than a threesome go off before noon on a Saturday.

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Everywhere should do this. There is no reason for a 1 or 2 to go off without pairing up on a weekend morning.

I have no problem pairing up. I have met some great guys doing this.

Yeah, that's the whole idea, it's a great way to meet new people to play golf with,

DannyDuberstein said:

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Funny timing because I went out to Sherrill Park yesterday morning (got there about 7am) and they ended up sending me out as a single. I told them I was good to wait for a game and did for a little while, but then they decided to go ahead and send me. I was technically sandwiched between two 4somes although they were fairly spaced (one was on the #2 green before the other was on the #1 tee), but it worked out perfect. The one in front of me played reasonably fast (probably 3:30). I walked, took a little over 3, and never pushed them. If I ever got within a shot of them, I'd stop down and practice my short game or hit some extra approach shots and let some cushion open up.

The 4some behind me never caught up. I think they were on 14-15 when I finished.

Bottom line - there is no one-size-fits-all rule based on the day of the week. Learn to play efficiently (ready golf, be a good cart partner that doesn't sit in the cart waiting for your partner to hit so you can then be driven 20 yards to your ball, etc), keep up, and when there is space ahead, know how to efficiently let a faster group slide through. When the course is stacked, be efficient but patient.

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I did not take his post to mean that extreme. He posted separately that he's fine being paired up. I think is basic issue was with a single essentially being told to **** off during certain parts of the week, which seemed to be the old-timer pro attitude above, which is a great one to have in a sport that has declined 20% in the past decade+. Not that hard to accommodate singles and make it work.

Being backed up because the course is crowded is one thing, but be ready to play once the group ahead of you has moved and know how far you can hit a ball. I was playing in a foursome yesterday and we had to wait every shot. The group ahead of us (3some) would wait until the group ahead was on the green before teeing off on par 4s and hitting their 3rd shot on par 5s. None of the three could drive the ball past 220. Then when they decided to tee off they had to go back to the cart to get a club or tee or ball. Each would hit 2 or 3 tee shots per hole. Took almost 5 hours to play 18 holes. This was at Briarcrest.

Quote:

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He specifically said the course shoukd not have put three full groups back to back to back because that didn't accommodate him as a single. That's why the old pro is right.

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Actually I said nothing about accommodating me. I said that it is ridiculous to put 3 fivesomes back to back to back. It doesn't matter how large any group behind that is, it will create a huge bottleneck like it did.

Zombie said:

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Quote:

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He specifically said the course shoukd not have put three full groups back to back to back because that didn't accommodate him as a single. That's why the old pro is right.

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Actually I said nothing about accommodating me. I said that it is ridiculous to put 3 fivesomes back to back to back. It doesn't matter how large any group behind that is, it will create a huge bottleneck like it did.

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You initially said 4somes or 5somes. Have you ever seen a tee sheet? It has 4 or 5 slots (people) per tee time. The course would like to fill all of those slots. They don't want to leave any room for you to play as a single in the middle.

Our course allows 5's. Pace of play is at or under 4 hours, even with multiple 5somes in a row. There's nothing wrong w that pace of play.

DannyDuberstein said:

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No one's 5some is ever the slow 5some.

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I hate 5's even though we usually end up playing that way. But if a course allows it and pace of play is kept, then there shouldn't be an issue.

Zombie said:

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Quote:

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He specifically said the course shoukd not have put three full groups back to back to back because that didn't accommodate him as a single. That's why the old pro is right.

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Actually I said nothing about accommodating me. I said that it is ridiculous to put 3 fivesomes back to back to back. It doesn't matter how large any group behind that is, it will create a huge bottleneck like it did.

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We have two different posters here. Some of what I was responding to was posted by KidDoc. Not just you.

But how long did it take those fivesomes to play? What's a 'bottleneck'?

Are there any Starters/Marshalls on the board? I'd like to hear some of your input on policies/procedures to how your course handles things.

My group (4) had a 2:30 tee time on Saturday afternoon at La Cantera in San Antonio. We pull up around 2:25, and there's a two some on #1 fairway, and then a 4 some on the teebox. So we're already behind.

As we play, we are waiting every single shot, we try to slow down, as there's no where to go in front of us, but low and behold, there's a two some behind us, who is also waiting on every shot. Behind them, yet another two some. On about hole #11, we see the two some and foursome ahead of us have actually joined together, so now it's even slower. I run into the Marshall on around #13, and asked why that was allowed to happen. He responded with "well, it doesn't matter, there's no where to go, you'd be waiting whether it was a 6 some or 4 some in front of you.

I was kind of dumbfounded to his logic. We couldn't ever see the group that was in front of now the 6 some in front of us, but either way, I'm not sure why a course (that WILL be full on the weekend) doesn't force groups into 3 or 4. The two two somes behind us should have been pair together, and the two some a couple of groups ahead of us should have been asked to wait until another single/two some arrived.

Is it really that hard to figure out?

I get this. If I was running a course I probably wouldn't allow fivesomes unless I knew they could get thru in 4 hours. But again its kind of tough when you are revenue driven and revenue is, in general, short.

That problem right there goes in my opinion to two things. One goes back to the be ready and don't be slow comments. Somewhere up front someone was slowing the entire group down. 2nd. That's tough golf course that will play a little slower with tourists that are not in a hurry.

I don't really have an issue with 5somes, but for a course like that, they should be prepared and equipped to pair accordingly before the day even starts. And when they get no shows, etc, they can adjust accordingly. Unless you're first off, or last of the day, a busy course should try their hardest to only allow groups of 3, 4 and maybe 5.

_lefraud_ said:

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On about hole #11, we see the two some and foursome ahead of us have actually joined together, so now it's even slower. I run into the Marshall on around #13, and asked why that was allowed to happen. He responded with "well, it doesn't matter, there's no where to go, you'd be waiting whether it was a 6 some or 4 some in front of you.

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Shame on the marshal, but I'm more surprised by the groups. I'd be curious to know what made them think it was a good idea to play as a group of six. That thought would have never even occurred to me.

You should've asked the marshal to let you join that group so y'all could play as a tensome to see what he would've said.

My guess is the 4some in front of our group thought that the 2some in front of them was the culprit for slow play, so they thought they would join them for a bit and try to play thru eventually.

Or maybe the 4some and 2some actually knew each other and their plan was to eventually join together without the Marshal knowing. After I talked to the Marshal, he came back a hole later and says, "Yea, I'm going to go tell the 6some to split up again" , which of course didn't help any with 2/3 holes to go.

It was a 5+ hour round.

The OP could've run into a tournament that started earlier in the day.

Not Briarcrest related but I live at Gleannloch in Spring and this morning around 8 when I passed the 1st hole there was a 3 some in the fairway and 14 carts at the tee box. I can't even imagine.

Could be a tournament

I miss the Old Briarcrest when it was a club. Very tight course that made you have some discipline at the tee. Not to mention the Greens were lightning fast. In fact, even today (minus the patches of grass on them) they are still faster than the Campus course. The campus course has too many golfers who don't fix their ball marks and have bumps all over them, plus they are super aerated.