Rewarding Fast Play

Slow play is one of the most cited reasons why golfers have been leaving the game in recent years, so here’s a lovely little idea to encourage faster play.

Wycombe Heights Golf Centre has introduced a ‘Pace of Play Guarantee‘, which it describes as a rewards scheme for all of its visitors who finish their rounds on a weekend between 7am and 12pm in under four hours.

Any visitor who finishes their round in four hours or less will be automatically entered into a monthly prize draw for the chance to win an exclusive ‘Golf Day Package’ for four, worth over £400.

The initiative follows a scheme this summer in which those that finished their round in less than three and a half hours were offered a free pint of beer on completion.

“Slow play is golf’s primary issue. People simply don’t want to take five or six hours out of their weekends, so we’ve taken the lead and tackled the problem head on,” said Graham Rolland, general manager at Wycombe Heights.

“The feedback from members and visitors alike has been hugely positive. We’ve noticed a real difference in average speed of play since we began the rewards scheme, which is very pleasing indeed.”

The prize includes breakfast and coffee on arrival, driving range warm up with a 30-minute professional lesson, 18 holes of golf, buggies and lunch post-round. But we’d prefer the guaranteed free beer. That would get our skates on for sure.