Matt Fitzpatrick calls on golf chiefs to deal with the long-standing problem of slow play after the Englishman won the RBC Heritage despite being frustrated by the notoriously ponderous Patrick Cantlay
- Fitzpatrick has hit out at the ‘ridiculous’ pace of play in professional golf
- He won the RBC Heritage despite having to contend with a tediously slow round
- Englishman fears Tour chiefs have little interest in tackling long-standing issue
Matt Fitzpatrick has hit out at the ‘ridiculous’ pace of play in professional golf and has called for the leading tours to get a grip on the situation.
The Englishman won £3million for his victory at the RBC Heritage in South Carolina on Sunday, despite having to contend with a tediously slow round.
Fitzpatrick, one of the quicker golfers on the circuit, appeared visibly frustrated at times by his notoriously ponderous playing partner Patrick Cantlay but he fears the PGA Tour and DP World Tour have little interest in fixing what has been a long-standing issue for the game.
He said: ‘If you’re in a three-ball, in my opinion you should be round in four hours, four and half absolute maximum – it’s a disgrace to get anywhere near that. You’re talking five hours and 15, five and a half hours at some venues and its truly appalling.
‘The problem is this conversation has gone on for years and years and years and no one ever done anything so I feel it’s almost a waste of time talking about it. I have strong opinions, but no-one’s going to do anything about it.
Matt Fitzpatrick has hit out at the ‘ridiculous’ pace of play in professional golf
The Englishman appeared visibly frustrated by the slow play of playing partner Patrick Cantlay
‘It’s like hitting your head against a brick wall. No one ever gets penalised. I think the last person to get penalised was the young lad (Guan Tianlang, a 14-year-old from China) at the Masters in 2013. I think that tells you enough about where people are at with this. It’s ridiculous really.’
A Tour golfer can be put on an observation list if they average more than 45 seconds per stroke over a rolling period of 10 tournaments, but there appears to have been no meaningful enforcement of the rule.
‘Slow play is a huge issue,’ added Fitzpatrick, who this week is teaming up with his brother Alex at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. ‘I was forcing myself the whole day (on Sunday) to walk as slow as possible and I was still fast, I was still ready.
‘I think it’s a real issue, way more needs to be done. The thing is I really like referees over here, they are great people, but I did not see a single ref all day. There were a few shots we were waiting and I don’t understand where they are all hiding. It does become frustrating when you are waiting so long.’