Golf House Kentucky Pace of Play Policy
Guidelines & Procedures per USGA Rule 6-7
TIME PAR
“Time Par” is the maximum amount of time for a group to play a hole as established by the committee. A time par is established for each competition course and is listed in the Notice to Players and the official scorecard for each hole. The term “time par” also includes all official adjustments made by the committee to the times due to suspensions of play for weather, etc. Compliance with time par is determined by when the flagstick is placed back into the hole.
GROUP OUT OF POSITION
First Group: The first group is out of position if at any time during the round the group is behind the time par as detailed on the Notice to Players and the official scorecard. When starting on both holes one and ten, the first groups to play from tee #1 and tee #10 shall be measured solely against time par. If, after making the turn, either of the first groups catch up with the last group starting in front of them, the first group shall then comply with the “following group” requirements for pace of play.
Following Groups: A following group is out of position if it is:
- Taking more than the allotted time to play; and
- More than 14 minutes behind the preceding group based on flag-in time.
NOTIFICATION/TIMING
When a group becomes out of position, all players in the group shall be notified by a tournament official, “Your group is out of position and subject to timing.”
The group is to be notified either when they leave the green or leave the tee.
The official should state how many minutes behind the group is only if asked by the players.
If an official finds a group lagging behind, the official should radio other officials to help determine the cause, while waiting for a flag-in time. If a ruling, illness, or some other legitimate delay has caused the group in question to lose its position, that group is expected to regain its position within 2 holes of when the delay occurs. They should not be timed unless they fail to regain position within the 2 holes.
When a group is notified of timing, the groups behind them should be given a courtesy notice that the group ahead is being timed and will likely speed up.
WHEN A GROUP IS BEING TIMED
A player is permitted 50 seconds to play a stroke.
Strokes on teeing ground/through the green: The timing of a player’s stroke will begin when the player has had a reasonable opportunity to reach the ball or the tee, it is that player’s turn to play, and the player can play without interference. Time spent determining yardage counts as time taken for the stroke.
Strokes on the putting green: The timing of a player’s stroke will begin after a player has been allowed a reasonable amount of time to lift, clean, and replace his ball, repair his ball mark and other ball marks on his line of putt, and remove loose impediments on his line of putt. Time spent looking at the line of putt from beyond the hole and/or behind the ball will count as part of the time taken for the stroke.
PACE OF PLAY PENALTIES
A player who exceeds the 50 seconds to play a stroke will be notified by the Rules official as soon as practicable. The first time a player exceeds the 50 seconds to make a stroke, they will be given a warning. The warning, “any additional strokes exceeding 50 seconds violate the pace of play policy and could result in penalty strokes and ultimately disqualification.”
The following are the penalties, in sequence, for any player that violates the pace of play policy:
- 1st offense | 1 stroke penalty
- 2nd offense | 2 stroke penalty
- 3rd offense | Disqualification
Note: If a group being timed regains its proper position, any previous “bad timings” will be carried over for the remainder of that round in the event that group requires additional monitoring.
Any appeal of a pace of play penalty must be referred to the designated Official-in-Charge (OIC) of the event immediately upon completion of the round. The decision of the OIC is final.