Mackenzie- General Principles

[John Kavanaugh]

Come on John. You know the guys looking for balls don't care what the rules say and they're not looking at a five minute timer. Most of them just end up taking a free drop anyways. Still, every 90 second search takes another 90 seconds.

Ball searching isn't the only culprit in slow play, but it is one of many. Still, you're probably right. Get rid of all the long rough on courses and guys will still find a way to take forever to play. It's not like a round at Pinehurst #2 moves much faster than Whistling Straits.

Rustic Canyon is the slowest pace of play course I have ever played.

[Sean_A]

There are lost balls and there are lost balls.  In this day and age with narrowed fairways, on most holes, to lose a ball within 10 yards of the fairway due to rough is poor maintenance.  On a 40 yard fairway 10 yards wide is ONLY 30 yards from centre.  I think golf is slowed down by this sort course presentation simply because of numbers.  Nearly every golfer on the planet will hit a ball 30 yards off centre-line in any given round of golf.  I wonder how much that percentage drops when we take it to 40 yards off centre - John - I think you can see where I am going. 

Besides, not including hazards obviously, what is the point of a fairway corridor which has a part of it unplayable?  As an example, walking around Sutton Coldfield is a real eye opener in terms of width 85 years ago compared to now.  One can easily see the many abandoned bunkers in the trees/deep rough.  I look at these areas and wonder how much better the course would be if the playing corridors were pushed back out and the bunkers reinstated. 

Ciao   

[Jon Wiggett]

Besides, not including hazards obviously, what is the point of a fairway corridor which has a part of it unplayable?  As an example, walking around Sutton Coldfield is a real eye opener in terms of width 85 years ago compared to now.  One can easily see the many abandoned bunkers in the trees/deep rough.  I look at these areas and wonder how much better the course would be if the playing corridors were pushed back out and the bunkers reinstated. 

Sean,

this would have to exclude fertiliser, irrigation or herbicides in order to reduce the growth rate and include a raising the cutting height to allow the greenkeeeping staff to stay on top of the growth here in the UK. I wonder if the players would accept the 'lower' quality of the playing surface they would get? I think if the club sold it to them in the right way they probably would. I hope this would be the case.

Jon