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Add Rory McIlroy to the list of golfers sick and tired of golf’s slow pay epidemic.

Speaking ahead of this week’s Northern Trust – the first of the three FedEx Cup Playoffs – the four-time major champ joined Brooks Koepka in condemning the time it takes to play 18 holes on the PGA Tour.

The Northern Irishman warned that, unless something is done about it, the issue will soon become an even bigger problem further down the pyramid than it currently is.

“It starts at our level because people try to emulate us,” said the 30-year-old.“I’ve heard stories of college events and how long they take. There’s no reason why it should take that long. It has to be addressed some way.”

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The answer, according to McIlroy, is for the PGA Tour to implement a more robust and penal slow play policy.

“The guys that are slow are the guys that get too many chances before they are penalised,” he added. “It should be a warning and then a penalty shot. It should be that you’re put on the clock and that is your warning. Then if you get a bad time while on the clock, it’s a shot. That will stamp it out right away.”

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Tiger Woods echoed McIlroy’s frustration.

“We’ve been fighting [slow play] for, God, ever since I grew up watching the game,” said the Masters champion. “We can only go as fast as the group in front of us goes. It’s important that the first group goes out and sets the pace, because as you know, the times get slower as you go on, and if the first group goes out slow or has rulings, hits the ball bad, it just logjams everyone behind them.”

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Brooks Koepka, who has become something of a poster boy for tackling slow play, reiterated his own ‘frustrations’ with it.

“I don’t think anybody likes waiting,” said the world No.1. “Especially if you’re going to be sitting on a tee box for 15 minutes to hit your tee shot. I get that you can take a long time for your thought process but once you’re done thinking about it, just go. What else is there to do?

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“It seems now that there are so many sports psychologists and everybody telling everybody that they can’t hit it until they are ready; that you have to fully process everything. I mean, I take 15 seconds and go, and I’ve done all right. So I don’t understand how they are taking a minute and a half.

Slow play – your thoughts?

What’s your solution to combat the increasing problem of slow play in golf? Do you even think of it as a problem? Leave your thoughts in our Comments section below.


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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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