“READY GOLF”

AT HORSLEY LODGE

 A GUIDE TO MAINTAINING A GOOD PACE OF PLAY AND PROVIDING ENJOYMENT FOR ALL

At HORSLEY LODGE, we want all players to maintain a good pace of play so that everyone playing the course enjoys their game without the frustration of feeling they are being unduly held up.

If you have the course to yourself – take as much time as you want but if others are playing around you and especially in competitions, please follow these guidelines and above all – KEEP YOUR PLACE IN THE FIELD. 

Players or groups who are regularly reported to lose holes and hold up play may be subject to sanctions regarding future competitions or booking times.

THE PRINCIPLE OF “READY GOLF” AT HORSLEY IS THAT ALL PLAYERS SHOULD BE READY TO PLAY AS SOON AS IT’S THEIR TURN(… not wait till it is their turn and then start to get ready!)

IT IS THE JOB OF THE ‘GROUP’ TO ENCOURAGE EACH OTHER TO KEEP UP A GOOD PACE AND TO USE THE PRACTICES EXPECTED AT HORSLEY LODGE.

SOME PRACTICES WE WANT ALL PLAYERS TO ADOPT

ON THE TEE

Please ensure you are on the starting tee and ready to play 10mins before your tee time .

If the player with the ‘honour’ isn’t ready another player should play first. If longer hitters need to wait for a forward group to clear then a shorter hitter who can’t reach them should play first.

Try to avoid or eliminate elaborate pre-shot routines involving unnecessary practice swings.

Have you glove on, your tee ready and have picked your club before it is your turn to move forward and hit away off the tee.

Everybody should follow the flight of all balls and if a ball looks as if it might be lost or have gone out of bounds always play a provisional ball

ON THE FAIRWAY

All players should go on to their own ball – not all move from one ball to another like a caravan. Walk ahead of shorter balls keeping safely to one side and assess your shot while others are preparing for theirs. If you are player B, C or D you should be ready to play as soon as the previous player(s) have hit. ie; glove already on – distance assessed – line chosen - club in hand – play away!

If a forward player is clearly ready first and can play safely (ie is not going for a green while a player further back is going to…) then indicate you are ready and play away first…..

LOST BALLS

If a player cannot immediately find their ball then they should begin searching (noting the time – 3 mins maximum allowed) Other players in the group should hit their balls first THEN join in the search.

It’s really frustrating to watch a group ahead all searching for a ball and then after finding it see that they still all have to go and hit their shots. If a group searching for a ball are going to hold up the following group by more than a minute or two they should stand aside and call them through.

ON THE GREEN

Emulating the pros around the putting green has done more to slow down golf than any other single event – avoid being part of this problem!!

Put you bag or trolley at the side of the green where you will exit to move to the next tee.

Generally play in turn from the farthest ball unless that player is not ready…..(for instance they might have hit from a bunker and need time to rake the sand, clear their shoes and swap a wedge for a putter)

Otherwise use common sense! Assess and read your putt while others are putting out. Don’t wait until it’s your turn and only then start some elaborate ’green reading’ exercise looking at your putt from every angle under the sun!

If you can continue putting without stepping on someone else’s line then do so until you hole out…. You don’t need to mark your ball and then re-align it on a ‘sharpie-line’ when you are only 18 inches from the hole!!!  If this practice was applied consistently it could save up to a minute a group on every green (15 minutes a round??)

Leave the green promptly. If you are marking a card, do so on your way to or at the next tee.

ORDER OF PLAY

The Rules determines that the ball furthest from the hole should be played first. However, the Rule states that if a competitor plays ‘out of turn’ there is no penalty and the ball should be played as it lies – unless the Committee decides that players have agreed to play out of turn to give one of them an advantage – in which case they are disqualified from the competition.

At Horsely Lodge we have decided that keeping to the principles of ‘Ready Golf’ will be a strategy to maintain a good pace of play and as long as it is not used specifically to give an advantage as identified in the Rules then there is no debarment from ‘playing out of turn’.

However, in match play the Committee expect players to maintain the principle of playing the furthest ball first and that while there is no penalty, a player who plays out of turn can be asked by their opponent(s) to retake the shot from the same position.

IF EVERY PLAYER CUT 5 SECONDS FROM PLAYING EACH OF THEIR SHOTS IT COULD SPEED UP A FOUR BALL ROUND BY 15 – 20 MINUTES

MOST IMPORTANTLY – IN COMPETITIONS & WHEN THE COURSE IS BUSY

KEEP YOUR PLACE IN THE FIELD

WHEN THERE ARE GROUPS PLAYING CLOSE BEHIND YOU DO NOT ALLOW A GAP TO OPEN UP IN FRONT OF YOU….

This policy and publication has been agreed by the Directors of Horsley Lodge Ltd and the Committee of Horsley Lodge Golf Club ©2017 and 2021 [Subject to revision regarding any changes to the Rules of Golf published by the R&A]