MIND / UNDERCOVER PRO M
Everybody has Slow Play Wrong
deciding whether that fender scratch warrants an insurance claim or a po- lice report. Let’s put a shot clock on the greens. That’s where time goes to die. IT’S WHAT’S ON THE LINE. Few guys are truly comfortable out here, which maybe sounds ridiculous given all the extra money we can make now. The pressure of finances, points and status is constant, grinding away at you shot after shot, tournament after tourna- ment. On a tour where 190 guys play the minimum 15 starts for member- ship, maybe 25 or 30 feel “safe.” The calculations and ramifications can run through your mind over every putt, every chip, every drive. With the more closed nature of signature events and the amount of tour cards being reduced, I can’t imagine pace of play getting any
THE PGA TOUR ANNOUNCED at the Players Championship that it is cracking down on slow
over a tee shot? Everybody watching is thinking, Come on, hit the ball already! But put that same golfer on the green and suddenly we’re all patience and un- derstanding. Nobody bats an eye when a guy spends three minutes reading a putt from every angle. Dustin Johnson is the classic example. Tee-to-green, the dude is a blur. He hits before his name’s announced. But hand him a putter? Might as well pack a lunch. When he and his caddie, his brother Austin, circle a green, they look like two guys
play. The tour execs say they are going to publicly release the names of slow- play offenders and even assess penalty strokes. Great ideas, but what hasn’t been said is what’s causing all the five- hour-plus rounds. IT’S THE SHORT GAME. Ever notice how fans and even some players are quick to roll their eyes when someone freezes
ILLUSTRATION BY EVANGELINE GALLAGHER
8 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
JUNE 2025
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