LPGA introduce strict new rules to tackle slow play

Charley Hull sitting waiting to tee off on the 18th hole during the third round of the Kroger Queen City Championship

The LPGA have announced new slow play rules will come into play in March as the tour makes a strong bid to tackle the issue.

It’s no secret that slow play is a huge issue in the world of golf, we’ve all had five or six hour rounds out on the course. But it’s not just the amateur game that experiences problems with pace of play, both men’s and ladies’ professional tours encounter the problem on a regular basis, and it’s a real threat to the game.

The PGA Tour’s answer is to permit distance measuring devices in a bid to tackle the problem. Gary Young, the PGA Tour’s senior VP of rules and competition, stated that input from players and spectators indicated that allowing rangefinders could improve the speed of play.

Green reading concepts such as AimPoint have come under fire recently, with 2009 US Open champion Lucas Glover calling for them to be banned from professional tournaments, while LPGA star Charley Hull has made it no secret she wants to see more extreme punishments handed out. In November, Hull revealed her ruthless thoughts that the worst slow play offenders “should be removed from the tour”.

• Rory McIlroy and the PGA Tour have slow play solutions – but they continue to avoid the obvious fix

World No. 1 Nelly Korda has also been outspoken on the matter, calling for more boots on the ground. “People start their process a little too late and they stand over it too long. Again, I think we need more people on the ground to monitor pace of play. I don’t think we have enough people to monitor it.”

Facing mounting calls to crack down on delays, LPGA Tour officials are shifting responsibility to the players and will now enforce both fines and stroke penalties for those who exceed the designated time limit by as little as six seconds.

First reported by Ryan French of Monday Q Info, this is what the LPGA players can expect…

What are the new slow play penalties?

• Players that take 1-5 seconds longer than the allowed time to play their shot will receive a fine
• Players that take 6-15 seconds longer to play their shot will receive a 1-stroke penalty
• Players that take 16+ seconds will receive a 2-stroke penalty

There has also been an adjustment to extra allowances on players that are first to hit on each hole:

• First to hit on par 4s and 5s will no longer receive an additional 10 seconds (except on reachable par 4s)
• First to hit on par 3s, approach shots, and putts will still receive the extra 10 seconds

In 2024, the former policy led to fines for 22 players and two-stroke penalties for nine. Had the new rules been enforced last season, 23 players would have incurred a one-stroke penalty, while eight would have faced a two-stroke penalty.

The LPGA have stated that their aim is to improve the pace of play, not to impose the fines and penalties.

Will these new rules go some way to speeding up the game? We’ll find out when they come in to play at the Ford Championship presented by Wild Horse Pass in March.