They always say honesty is the best policy, so I am going to level with you. It might be unorthodox for a golf writer to complain about the sport which is the centre of his professional universe, but there is often turbulence in any relationship.
I am obsessed with golf, madly in love with the game in fact, but there are still elements that I dislike which are beyond the acceptable level of golf’s random irritations.
These six things evoke a range of strong negative emotions, but they all have the same damaging impact on my enjoyment of playing or watching the sport – and I’d love to know if you feel the same way.
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Let me know in the comments box below whether they make your blood boil, or if you think I am being a little too dramatic, but be sure to share you own golfing annoyances too!
1. Good Golfers Complaining About Being Good
I can’t help the fact I am not very good at golf. I started late due to playing football for most of my childhood and adult life, and have since spent hours practicing and having lessons trying to improve my handicap.
Specific tools like AimPoint helped me to reach my lowest ever handicap, but I am still classed as a high-handicap golfer – and that’s ok in my opinion.
Low-handicap golfers don’t own the game, and have no more right than I do to enjoy it, so please don’t try to make me feel guilty when I shoot the round of my life one time and outrank you in the Saturday medal.
If you check my last 20 counting rounds you will see the standard of golf I typically play at – and it doesn’t make for enjoyable reading.
In all likelihood, my fiver entry fee each week has funded some of your successes over the years when I’ve been wallowing at the bottom of the leaderboard – but funnily enough nothing is said about the legitimacy of my scoring on those occasions.
So, instead of complaining that you ‘can’t win competitions’ due to high-handicap golfers, maybe take a moment for a little perspective and appreciate how many of ‘us’ would love to be in your position.
My performances on the golf course are turbulent, which is why I am a high-handicapper, but I shouldn’t be chastised for the odd good performance
(Image credit: Mark Newcombe)
2. Slow Play
There is nothing worse, in my opinion, than slow play.
This highly debated issue is often blamed on high-handicap golfers but, in reality, slow play is avoidable if everyone does their bit.
I previously outlined a 12-point action plan for golfers, green keepers and club managers, sharing the positive steps that can be made with appropriate tee time intervals, course set up and efficient preparation by golfers on the course.
Slow play is selfish – as it’s often a disregard for other people’s time and enjoyment, an ego move to make the course the toughest in the land or a desire to earn as much money as possible from green fees and subscriptions.
The solutions aren’t easy, but they are necessary to protect the game.
3. Dress Code
The golf dress code is a clear example of an unnecessary desire to hold onto the game’s past, when instead we should be looking towards its future.
I am all for tradition and history – it’s what makes golf so special.
However, dictating what people can and can’t wear on a golf course seems to be counterproductive to growing the game, especially when society has moved on from the times when the code was set.
If a group of juniors want to play in tracksuit bottoms and a sports top, or a two-ball wants to squeeze in nine holes after work in a pair of casual shorts and collarless shirt, why are we stopping them?
It doesn’t impact my enjoyment of the game in the slightest, and I can’t image why it would affect yours.
4. TV Coverage
Golf is one of the greatest sports on the planet to play, but it can be quite frankly dismal to watch at times.
The endless stream of studio filler, leaderboards and adverts make it impossible to sit and enjoy for any considerable length of time, and when we do see the action on the course it’s usually the same handful of players at the expense of the rest of the field.
I was so fed up with the Masters television coverage this year, questioning why we were missing so much coverage and seeing so few players, which is unlike any other sport.
You wouldn’t expect to only see half of the World Cup Final, or the Super Bowl, so it makes no logical sense why we have to accept missing so much of what is the pinnacle of our sport.
In my opinion, featured group coverage makes watching golf tedious – and I’d love to see more of the field at every event
(Image credit: Getty Images)
5. Cost
Golf is too expensive. Membership costs are rising and the price of participation is nearing sheer absurdity.
One day I’d like to get my two children into golf, but I know when that days comes it will cost me an absolute fortune.
A set of clubs, a bag, a glove, a pair of shoes, something to wear that meets the code, golf balls, tees and a few golf lessons is just the basic starter pack, which doesn’t even include paying a green fee to get out on the course.
I’d love to see an all-inclusive scheme for juniors to encourage their participation. A flat fee that parents can pay which includes all of the above and a few free rounds of golf on a voucher for your local club.
Better still, get some sponsorship and partially fund it to make the opportunity to play golf an attractive one for young people and families.
6. Cheating
There a few obvious signs to spot a golf cheat on the course, but I can’t imagine why anyone would take the game so seriously at the amateur level that they would feel the need to stoop so low.
Sometimes golfers unintentionally cheat, due to a lack of knowledge around the rules, but that is categorised differently in my books.
I once heard the phrase “That’s good for the card, but knock it in for the gallery” when standing on a tee box near a green where another group were putting.
How pathetic, just put the ball in and save your gimmies for your casual knock. I hope you enjoy your £20 pro-shop credit for coming third in the Stableford.
