Is Slow Problem Play A On Tour?

Michael Weston speaks to numerous European Tour players in an effort to find out how much of an issue it really is in the pro game

- Michael Weston

These are turbulent times for golf. Forget about the Premier Golf League and USGA/R&A Distance Insights Project, one of the game’s most contentious issues continues to rumble on – slow play. It’s long been regarded as ‘the scourge of golf’ at club level, but in recent times it’s tour pros who have come under fire.

These are the players who should set a proper example, right? Well, last August, the European Tour announced its four-point plan to tackle slow play, and at the start of the year tougher measures were put into effect. Good times, you might say? Actually, it’s ‘bad times’ – very bad if you get caught dawdling. A “stressed” Viktor Hovland fell foul of the new rules immediately, receiving a ‘bad time’ for taking 59 seconds over a putt in Abu Dhabi. More controversy followed two weeks later when Graeme McDowell received a ‘bad time’ despite having completed an in-round interview with Sky Sports’ Tim Barter.

Players haven’t shied away from offering their opinions. South Africa’s Justin Harding took to Twitter to offer his, and highlighted what he believes is a flaw with the new regulations: “Turtles should be monitored AT ALL TIMES. Players who don’t take an age should not be responsible for them. Nor should our round be affected by their inconsiderate behaviour.”

For tour players, this is their living. They’re playing on tough courses; courses that are getting longer and longer every year. However – and this is something that will always get thrown back at them – they’re also in the entertainment business.