Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2013 - 35

(punch shots
)
( The President's Desk
Let's Pick Up
the Pace
By Ken Gerzsenyi
P
art of the Minnesota Golf Association's stewardship
role in amateur golf is the intuitive desire to
see the game grow and prosper. However, over
the past decade or longer, golfer participation (as defined
by golfers and rounds played) has fallen below expectations.
While there are several well-documented reasons
behind this unfortunate trend, there is one factor that
everyone, from the USGA to the PGA and the MGA to
golfers at your local course, seems to be talking about
right now: pace of play.
Like many of the other issues, pace of
play is affected by many factors-including
several that we, as players, cannot
change: green speed, difficulty of course,
number of hazards, length of rough, etc.
But there is one key contributor that we
can all change, and that's how each one
of us plays and approaches the game.
Have you ever gotten out and played
just by yourself? It's an early morning
with dew on the grass and the sun on the
rise. You can hear a mower busily working
in the distance. You can smell freshly cut grass and
hear the birds singing. A slight breeze is keeping things
perfectly cool. It's going to be a beautiful day for golf (a
rarity this spring!), so you embark upon your round. You
have a thoroughly enjoyable time without hurrying at all.
You put the flag in on 18, look at your watch and realize
that you played in two and a half hours. Awesome. You
can get a lot more done with your day.
Now your favorite three partners join you for a round.
Four balls are in play versus just one, and suddenly those
two and a half hours become five or even six hours.
The fact that it takes twice as long when you add three
players to a round is negatively affecting participation in
the sport we all love. So what can we do about it?
Talking about it, which we will continue to do, isn't
solving the problem. American players are internationYou
put the flag in on 18,
look at your watch and
realize that you played in
two and a half hours.
ally known as slow players, given the feedback I received
on a friend's recent trip to Scotland. We can only change
this stereotype by improving the pace that we play.
Change is already underway in Southern California,
where the Southern California Golf Association has put
in place a pace of play pledge for their members to sign.
Beyond playing " ready golf, " the SCGA has additional
ideas to help speed up play at its courses. If you are interested
in learning more, visit www.scga.org/pledge (or see
the related story, p. 28).
I challenge our MGA members to play ready golf. If
you can shave 15-to-30 minutes off of your next round,
it will definitely contribute to the growth and enjoyment
of the game for all golfers in Minnesota.
I'm up for the challenge-how about you?
See you on the links, picking up the pace!
www.mngolf.org
Summer 2013 MINNESOTAGOLFER
33
PHOTO BY PAUL MARKERT
http://www.scga.org/pledge http://www.mngolf.org

Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2013

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Minnesota Golfer - Summer 2013 - 3
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