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Tee time intervals
- Thread starter Mando
- Start date
No idea but wonder how it compares to ~10min ideal golf times.
Probably depends a bit on the first few holes on the course. Further along, nothing prevents backups on a backup-prone hole.
You certainly want enough time for Hole 1 to clear, to avoid the grief of delaying tee-times. Last time I played The Canyon, the first hole was a quick one, the second a long one, so we played one hole and immediately hit a multi-group backup.
What does the USDGC use? 10 minutes?
You certainly want enough time for Hole 1 to clear, to avoid the grief of delaying tee-times. Last time I played The Canyon, the first hole was a quick one, the second a long one, so we played one hole and immediately hit a multi-group backup.
What does the USDGC use? 10 minutes?
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- Sep 25, 2008
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No idea. But i really,really don't want back ups, so spotters on tough early holes and 15 or 20 minutes between tee times ? 4th and 5th holes can cause backups.
I don't know. The problem is when you have a string of quick-playing holes before a slow-playing hole. No matter what you do, groups will rush through the former and back up on the latter.
But I guess if you figure out how long the slow-playing holes take to play, and set your teetimes based on that, you'll at least minimize the problem.
I've seen this formula to reduce backups, including at Earlewood's #18 which can get 4 groups standing on the tee, and it works well if you can get people to understand it:
Anytime you get 2 groups on the tee when the hole is clear, both groups drive, and walk to their discs. But the first group plays out the hole, while the 2nd group waits where their drives landed for the 1st group to clear. It really picks up the pace on backup holes.
I've also seen backup holes where a group drives, throws their second shots, and then turns around and spots for the next group to drive. It helps because searching for discs is often a major part of the backup.
For what all that's worth. To the question of teetimes, I see no problem in spreading them 15 minutes apart, if you're only doing 1 round in the day, and have time. It would be nice to play at an empty-course pace for the first few holes.
But I guess if you figure out how long the slow-playing holes take to play, and set your teetimes based on that, you'll at least minimize the problem.
I've seen this formula to reduce backups, including at Earlewood's #18 which can get 4 groups standing on the tee, and it works well if you can get people to understand it:
Anytime you get 2 groups on the tee when the hole is clear, both groups drive, and walk to their discs. But the first group plays out the hole, while the 2nd group waits where their drives landed for the 1st group to clear. It really picks up the pace on backup holes.
I've also seen backup holes where a group drives, throws their second shots, and then turns around and spots for the next group to drive. It helps because searching for discs is often a major part of the backup.
For what all that's worth. To the question of teetimes, I see no problem in spreading them 15 minutes apart, if you're only doing 1 round in the day, and have time. It would be nice to play at an empty-course pace for the first few holes.
Oddly enough, we haven't had too much of a problem with backups at Stoney Hill. Perhaps in part because we limit groups to foursomes. But the two places most prone to backups are very scenic places to sit and wait, so even if we have them they're not too bad.
It's 10 minutes at the Maple Hill Open.
That's probably the best way to minimize a bad backup. But it would only work if the problem hole was early enough in the course.
da Crippler
Eagle Member
It was 10 minutes at Ledgestone and didn't seem like there were too many problems. The last round at Eureka got a little slow halfway through as some of the women's groups started stacking up, mostly because of having to look for lost discs in the bush. If you can't get through a hole in 10 minutes, you probably shouldn't play in tourneys.
Foursomes or fivesomes?
I think group size might be something to factor in.
Regardless, even with backups later in the round, a bigger spread at the start might reduce the length of those backups. A big event doesn't have much choice, as they're trying to squeeze a bunch of people onto a course, but a smaller one might.
SD86
Banned
During the Worlds, I read somewhere that they were going with 10 minute intervals instead of "the normal 8 minutes", and that the 10 minute interval worked well. Looks like 10 minutes might become the standard, course-dependent of course.
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- Sep 25, 2008
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- 2,233
This is a tournament geared for folks who don't play tournaments because they are either lousy or hate to wait. In my case,both.Non sanctioned.foursomes.
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10 minutes is fine, but backup holes will back up.
IMO, the biggest cause for backups are straight par 4s (as in, not doglegs).
The people sitting on the tee pad insist on waiting for the group ahead of them to finish putting before they drive, because one or two of them has some crazy idea that he will land on the green with a 550' throw. Sometimes if the guy on the top of the card insists on waiting, I'll ask if I can go ahead and drive, since I'm not planning on getting all the way to the green.
If it's a dogleg where your drive absolutely cannot reach the green, you just wait for the group ahead of you to clear the corner, and then your group drives to the corner, so you have 2 groups playing on the hole at the same time.
The 2-group tee maneuver at 18 Earlewood works well, but I am also a fan of the Leapfrog Maneuver. We use it on 9 and 18 at Ashe County Park, and they should have used it at Eureka Temp 14. One group drives, and while they're walking to their discs, the group behind them throws over their heads.
This works great on big downhill holes. First group drives and walks to their discs (and maybe throws a recovery shot or two to get out of the woods). They then turn around and watch while the group behind them drives. This gets the added bonus of 4 extra people watching their drives to help with lost discs. While the second group is walking down the hill, the first group finishes their approaches and putts.
At Eureka Temp 14, there was very little risk of lost discs, but the long walk from the tee, around the lake, to the fairway was the perfect time for the second group to tee. Then the first group throws their approach shots while the second group is walking around the lake.
IMO, the biggest cause for backups are straight par 4s (as in, not doglegs).
The people sitting on the tee pad insist on waiting for the group ahead of them to finish putting before they drive, because one or two of them has some crazy idea that he will land on the green with a 550' throw. Sometimes if the guy on the top of the card insists on waiting, I'll ask if I can go ahead and drive, since I'm not planning on getting all the way to the green.
If it's a dogleg where your drive absolutely cannot reach the green, you just wait for the group ahead of you to clear the corner, and then your group drives to the corner, so you have 2 groups playing on the hole at the same time.
The 2-group tee maneuver at 18 Earlewood works well, but I am also a fan of the Leapfrog Maneuver. We use it on 9 and 18 at Ashe County Park, and they should have used it at Eureka Temp 14. One group drives, and while they're walking to their discs, the group behind them throws over their heads.
This works great on big downhill holes. First group drives and walks to their discs (and maybe throws a recovery shot or two to get out of the woods). They then turn around and watch while the group behind them drives. This gets the added bonus of 4 extra people watching their drives to help with lost discs. While the second group is walking down the hill, the first group finishes their approaches and putts.
At Eureka Temp 14, there was very little risk of lost discs, but the long walk from the tee, around the lake, to the fairway was the perfect time for the second group to tee. Then the first group throws their approach shots while the second group is walking around the lake.
Good points. Ashe County was one I was thinking of, though I got the exact procedure wrong. We've done that final maneuver at Stoney Hill, hole 17A, where you tee across the water, then walk the long way around. The next group, if they're ready, can tee....although, often, they waited to play the preceding hole, so they don't get the chance.
....the trick of some of these backup-alleviating schemes is getting players to understand and follow them. I suggest putting a sign at the tee to explain it.
Yup, tore my ACL in February, had surgery on May 2nd. I played my first round since surgery a couple of weeks ago, but it put a little strain on my hamstring, so I need to wait a few more weeks before I get back into playing. And I sure as heck wouldn't be able to handle throwing on hillsides yet. (Although it's still damn near 95deg down here ... I'd be willing to put up with a lot to get some nice mountain weather.
And you know what still blows my mind? I've never even played your course. For as much as I worked on Ashe and played Blackjack, I've never made it back up there since you built yours...
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- Sep 25, 2008
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My son tore his too,playing indoor football
...long recovery. I don't know if it was a deterrent, but we replaced all the homemade hanging baskets. Its taken 8 years to work out the kinks.Todd P just gave me the original signs from Ashe Park. When you do come,maybe we can pull him out of retirement.
