LPGA stars respond to Charley Hull’s slow play outburst

It turns out that the fight to eradicate slow play on the LPGA Tour was not just a one-woman crusade.

Charley Hull reignited the perennial debate on Sunday after her runner-up finish at the Annika, a tournament overshadowed by glacial play.

The Englishwoman, one of the fastest players in the game, called for dithering offenders to have their tour cards taken off them if they are sanctioned multiple times.

“It’s ridiculous,” Hull said. “I feel sorry for the fans.”

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And Nelly Korda, who went on a five-hole birdie blitz to edge out Hull to her seventh title of the season in Florida, is similarly unimpressed that sluggish golf is going unpunished.

The world No.1, no slouch either, was forced to walk the 18th alongside Hull in the dark on Saturday as their round edged towards six hours because of slow play in the groups ahead.

“I personally think it’s a pretty big issue,” Korda said ahead of this week’s season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. “I think it’s not good for the fans that come out and watch us.

“If it was me personally, I would be very, very annoyed watching for five hours, over five hours, five hours and 40 minutes, close to six. I just think it really drags the game down. I think that it really, really needs to change.”

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“Players just need to be penalised. Rules officials need to watch from the first group.

“I think people just need to be ready faster. 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.”

Lexi Thompson, playing her last LPGA tournament as a full-time pro this week, concurs.

“Yes, I definitely think it’s an issue,” Thompson added. “Rounds shouldn’t be taking more than four and a half hours, especially in threesomes. Four and a half should be the max.

“Look, you’re going to hit a good shot or bad shot. Might as well not take that much time over it. It’s just a game. Just do your routine, commit, and hit it. It’s definitely a problem out here right now. So I don’t know what we’ll do to try to get it resolved but hopefully just play quicker.”

“I don’t really know why it’s gotten worse, but it has unfortunately,” she added. “There needs to be something done.”

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.