Golf Etiquette

[macanello]

Sorry for this rant but after 5 years of playing golf in the LOS, things have got way out of hand.

Yesterday I did not manage to finish my round at Pinehurst (teed off 5pm), walking off at the 11th after 4.5 hours of play. It seems that gambling has taken over from sportsmanship and Thais are betting large sums of money on the outcome of holes (confirmed by the caddies).

I have played Bangkok Golf Course, Green Valley, Sattahip and yesterday, Pinehurst and I have not managed to finish a round due to slow play. I would hang up myu clubs but I love the game and will return to teeing off at 7am weekdays in order to complete a round.

I have spoken with Golf Pros and Marshalls and they just seem to shrug their shoulders and smile (LOS style)

What is the solution as this is low season and the courses are extremely busy

Yours extremely frustrated

Macanello

[onnut]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

[johninbkk]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

No mate, you have not come across anything like a Korean, they are disgraceful on the course. Ask to play through, it's their call to invite you through. But sadly, this rarely happens........ Good luck. I'd be looking at other courses.

[QED]

You teed off at 5pm?? You will only get just over an hours play at the most. What where you doing until 9.30?

Reminds me of the old Stevie Wonder joke where he makes a large bet on a game of golf on the condition he could choose the time and the place. Gullible punter agrees.....they tee off at midnight

[Shotime]

No need to start racist talk. It's the same anywhere. Jack Nicklaus started it. I would skip a hole where there were six or more people dancing around the hole, and just proceed to the next hole. It was wide open after that.

I'm too shy to ask to play through. In LOS, sometimes the caddie would ask, and, usually they would say ok.

[OOB]

Come up here to Chiang Mai.

All courses are currently 800 Baht + caddy as part of the CM Golf Festival promotion (as is the fantastic Santiburi in Chiang Rai). The courses are virtually empty - we rarely have any round that reaches 4 hours.

[fiddlehead]

I found a lovely course up in Issan that is only 100 baht for green fees.

I played every day on our recent trip there.

Often times, I had the whole course to myself.

Then one day there was a group of 8 golfers in front of me and like you said, they were betting on the outcome of every hole and taking up to 40 minutes for a hole.

I just jumped in front of them and went back later to finish the hole i skipped.

I understand your frustration as, TIT but I do believe most of us prefer the no rules thing to the "way too many rules" of the west.

I have played courses in America where you MUST take a cart and stay on all cart paths, speed limits, no tee times available that day, etc.

I'll take Thailand over that baloney.

I play golf for exercise. What's this "must take a cart" crap?

Ok, rant over.

You had bad luck that day, that's all.

[Thailand]

Yep, this is Thailand etiquette does not seem to come in to it. Grin and bear, walk past them to the next tee. Worst are the 9 hole courses where we have had a 6 ball walk in front of us at the 6th hole!

Played at Mission Hills in China in December last year on the Olazabal World Championship course. Max of 4 players, if the marshals consider the play to be too slow then the players are told to pick up their balls and move to the next tee and are warned that their round will end should it continue. The marshals are not ignored as they often are here because a group contains a general, senior policeman etc.

I don"t see it changing here anytime soon. As OOB said we have lot of courses up here in CM and generally not too busy particularly now.

[somtampet]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

Thai players are just as bad and sometimes tee off with 7 players

BUT

THIS IS THAILAND

ACCEPT OR PACK UP,VERY SIMPLE REALY

I PACKED UP

[somtampet]

No need to start racist talk. It's the same anywhere. Jack Nicklaus started it. I would skip a hole where there were six or more people dancing around the hole, and just proceed to the next hole. It was wide open after that.

I'm too shy to ask to play through. In LOS, sometimes the caddie would ask, and, usually they would say ok.

Excuse me,have i missed something,where is the racist talk mr pc correct.I have looked everywhere and got myself into a right lather to find these racist remarks.Please help me where are the remarks,we dont seem to be having a kkk gathering on the courses do we

[somtampet]

Yep, this is Thailand etiquette does not seem to come in to it. Grin and bear, walk past them to the next tee. Worst are the 9 hole courses where we have had a 6 ball walk in front of us at the 6th hole!

Played at Mission Hills in China in December last year on the Olazabal World Championship course. Max of 4 players, if the marshals consider the play to be too slow then the players are told to pick up their balls and move to the next tee and are warned that their round will end should it continue. The marshals are not ignored as they often are here because a group contains a general, senior policeman etc.

I don"t see it changing here anytime soon. As OOB said we have lot of courses up here in CM and generally not too busy particularly now.

Doesnt have to be Mission hills,mr name dropper,any decent course follows these rules,but Thailand is not the same,we have to put up with it.

[Thailand]

BUT

THIS IS THAILAND

ACCEPT OR PACK UP,VERY SIMPLE REALY

I PACKED UP

I am sure you will be sorely missed.

[somtampet]

BUT

THIS IS THAILAND

ACCEPT OR PACK UP,VERY SIMPLE REALY

I PACKED UP

I am sure you will be sorely missed.

How did you know,the caddies were mortified they missed the big tips

[bkksteviejai]

As you have been here for 5 years you probably realise by now that just whipping round the course and being on your way is not that common in Bangkok. I know it can be frustrating. You probably already played there, but LamLukka is nice relatively quiet course during the week, Muang Keaw is on a Monday morning.....I just have to pick the places. I've only been to a couple of courses where I've seen the marshalls telling groups to get the arse in gear, but they were in Hua Hin, not Bangkok. If I do get stuck now , I just crack open a can of Singha and enjoy the outdoors!

[somtampet]

This is Thailand

why get upset,i tried to explain my thoughts and one or 2 didnt like it.We are 6,000 miles away from uk and still expect thethais to abide by the gold rules

<deleted>

they cant even keep a door open for you,but we accept this as we are all ready to catch the door before it breaks your nose.

[PattayaParent]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

No mate, you have not come across anything like a Korean, they are disgraceful on the course. Ask to play through, it's their call to invite you through. But sadly, this rarely happens........ Good luck. I'd be looking at other courses.

I've played a lot of golf with a lot of Koreans and the generalisation is not true.

In my experience the locals and the Farangs are the worse.

Edit: oh and women!

Edited July 4, 2010 by PattayaParent

[CanInBKK]

You teed off at 5pm?? You will only get just over an hours play at the most. What where you doing until 9.30?

Reminds me of the old Stevie Wonder joke where he makes a large bet on a game of golf on the condition he could choose the time and the place. Gullible punter agrees.....they tee off at midnight

I may be wrong but I believe the course the OP referred to has night golf.

I think gambling is a big factor that contributes to slow play but also players playing outside of their boundaries. I really don't get it when a 5-ball tees up on the back tees and none of them can drive the ball farther than 220 yards into the woods. Do they find the regular tees too easy? A score of 100+ not high enough? I'm not a golf discriminator but I do believe marshals should enforce some kind of "speed of play" rule.

[Forethat]

In the many rounds of golf I played in LOS, I have NEVER been invited to play through.

Night golf is almost always slow, simply because the rate tends to be lower than usual. Promotions are common, hence the high number of golfers with slow play as a result. Pinehurst? Excuse me, but who the he** wants to play at Pinehurst, the worst course in BKK? Poor layout, shitty greens, and packed with Thais and Koreans betting on everything - some of them even end up playing cards next to the tee and are too busy teeing off ...!

Marshalling the course would work, but informing someone that "you play bad, you dont comply, you're slow and need to move aside" is not possible in Thai culture.

Me and a friend teed off at sunrise and managed to finish the front 9 at Muang Keow in 1.25 and the back 9 in just under 3 hours...crazy.

I have found that the only solution to this problem is to play courses outside Bangkok. And when I say outside I mean at least an hour. Cascata is a nice example of a place where I have been able to finish a round in under four hours.

[RedNIvar]

I work near Pinehurst, and the golf course has been over exploited after they started offering night golf. Greed has taken over. There is a special promotion price for Thai's and since Pinehurst does not turn anyone away, the golf course get over grossly crowded. Gambling is a problem, but not the reason for slow play here. There are just too many golfers. Most golfers from Navanakorn Industrial zone, Bangpa-in Industrial, Hi Tech, and Rojana stop by Pinehurst for a round of night golf at least twice a week.

Tip for Pinehurst;

1. tee off at 3:30pm if you want to play 18 holes. It will cost you a couple of hundred bhat more, but you will get thought the first 13 or 14 holes fast (before the night golf crowd gets in), and have only 4 or 5 slow holes.

2. If you tee off at 5pm, just play 9 holes. Have a nice dinner at their club house and go home.

3.or if you are really looking for night golf in that area, try http://www.rachakramgolfclub.com/ . It is about 20 minutes drive from Pinuhurst, cheaper, much better maintained and not overcrowded.

[PingManDan]

There is usually "NO" golf etquette when there are a bunch of Thai's in front of you (usually a fivesome) they couldn't give a rats arshole about letting you go through, after all you are just a 'farang'

[kenny999]

There is usually "NO" golf etquette when there are a bunch of Thai's in front of you (usually a fivesome) they couldn't give a rats arshole about letting you go through, after all you are just a 'farang'

Not being let through because we are farang in my experience is rubbish, I have had a large group of Thai's in front of me and have been waved through, all the Thai's smile and say hello as I putt out and walk to the next tee!!

I play on a 9 hole course that is always quiet I have never had a problem with being waved through, this course is mostly avoided as it is a tough test and many balls are lost, my experience is with this course only as all the other courses on Phuket are far to expensive to play... one example is Red mountain 5500 green fee, you must have a caddy car 700 one person, caddy fee 300 then the caddy tip 300.. 6800 bht no way will I ever pay these prices!!

Just to make it clear I have only played 2 courses Phunaka and Tablamu, never had any problems with slow play or not being let through, so maybe I have been lucky!!

Edited October 3, 2011 by kenny999

[PingManDan]

There is usually "NO" golf etquette when there are a bunch of Thai's in front of you (usually a fivesome) they couldn't give a rats arshole about letting you go through, after all you are just a 'farang'

Not being let through because we are farang in my experience is rubbish, I have had a large group of Thai's in front of me and have been waved through, all the Thai's smile and say hello as I putt out and walk to the next tee!!

I play on a 9 hole course that is always quiet I have never had a problem with being waved through, this course is mostly avoided as it is a tough test and many balls are lost, my experience is with this course only as all the other courses on Phuket are far to expensive to play... one example is Red mountain 5500 green fee, you must have a caddy car 700 one person, caddy fee 300 then the caddy tip 300.. 6800 bht no way will I ever pay these prices!!

Just to make it clear I have only played 2 courses Phunaka and Tablamu, never had any problems with slow play or not being let through, so maybe I have been lucky!!

The worst offenders of this are Thai cops, Army, Air Force or any other group that thinks frangs are 3rd class people, this has been my experience always. You need to get out and play more often, and see what I mean.

There are also two payment systems here in Thailand, Thai price and farang prices, you can guess which of the two pay the most, now come on think real hard.

[kenny999]

There is usually "NO" golf etquette when there are a bunch of Thai's in front of you (usually a fivesome) they couldn't give a rats arshole about letting you go through, after all you are just a 'farang'

Not being let through because we are farang in my experience is rubbish, I have had a large group of Thai's in front of me and have been waved through, all the Thai's smile and say hello as I putt out and walk to the next tee!!

I play on a 9 hole course that is always quiet I have never had a problem with being waved through, this course is mostly avoided as it is a tough test and many balls are lost, my experience is with this course only as all the other courses on Phuket are far to expensive to play... one example is Red mountain 5500 green fee, you must have a caddy car 700 one person, caddy fee 300 then the caddy tip 300.. 6800 bht no way will I ever pay these prices!!

Just to make it clear I have only played 2 courses Phunaka and Tablamu, never had any problems with slow play or not being let through, so maybe I have been lucky!!

The worst offenders of this are Thai cops, Army, Air Force or any other group that thinks frangs are 3rd class people, this has been my experience always. You need to get out and play more often, and see what I mean.

There are also two payment systems here in Thailand, Thai price and farang prices, you can guess which of the two pay the most, now come on think real hard.

I have played a Navy course and never had a problem other than miserable caddy's, and yes I know their is a duel pricing system here which is not good, guess I have been lucky with the 2 courses I play.

[bkkjames]

You need to understand local mentality_in the west we want to finish asap, while here they look at it as the longer I take the better value I get.

Moving forward, an entrepreneurial course owner will figure out slow play is hurting his bottom line and will implement a time based payment system. Over 3.5 hours to 4 hours, get a bill of 300 baht extra. 4-5 hours +500 baht, 5+ hours, 1000 baht and a kick in the balls.

[Forethat]

You need to understand local mentality_in the west we want to finish asap, while here they look at it as the longer I take the better value I get.

Moving forward, an entrepreneurial course owner will figure out slow play is hurting his bottom line and will implement a time based payment system. Over 3.5 hours to 4 hours, get a bill of 300 baht extra. 4-5 hours +500 baht, 5+ hours, 1000 baht and a kick in the balls.

Great thought, but do it the other way around - add 1000 baht to the greenfee and pay it back if they can finish the round under 3.5 hrs, 500 for 4 hrs and so on.....

[PingManDan]

There is usually "NO" golf etquette when there are a bunch of Thai's in front of you (usually a fivesome) they couldn't give a rats arshole about letting you go through, after all you are just a 'farang'

Not being let through because we are farang in my experience is rubbish, I have had a large group of Thai's in front of me and have been waved through, all the Thai's smile and say hello as I putt out and walk to the next tee!!

I play on a 9 hole course that is always quiet I have never had a problem with being waved through, this course is mostly avoided as it is a tough test and many balls are lost, my experience is with this course only as all the other courses on Phuket are far to expensive to play... one example is Red mountain 5500 green fee, you must have a caddy car 700 one person, caddy fee 300 then the caddy tip 300.. 6800 bht no way will I ever pay these prices!!

Just to make it clear I have only played 2 courses Phunaka and Tablamu, never had any problems with slow play or not being let through, so maybe I have been lucky!!

The worst offenders of this are Thai cops, Army, Air Force or any other group that thinks frangs are 3rd class people, this has been my experience always. You need to get out and play more often, and see what I mean.

There are also two payment systems here in Thailand, Thai price and farang prices, you can guess which of the two pay the most, now come on think real hard.

I have played a Navy course and never had a problem other than miserable caddy's, and yes I know their is a duel pricing system here which is not good, guess I have been lucky with the 2 courses I play.

Yes I would say so

[WebBangkok]

Works both ways, we were playing at unico.

We are all beginners and there was a Scottish group behind us, they were getting pissed off and calling us "<snip> amateur ". So we decided its best wait at the end of the hole and let them pass. They thought we were waiting for a fight.

They were old blokes about 60 or so, overweight and we are all in out late 20's and 30's. It would of been a walk in the park, but we are smarter than to have a silly fight over golf.

Seems to me to be a lot of tension on the golf courses here. And yes I am Scottish.

Edited October 4, 2011 by metisdead
Expletive removed.

[kenny999]

Works both ways, we were playing at unico.

We are all beginners and there was a Scottish group behind us, they were getting pissed off and calling us "<snip> amateur ". So we decided its best wait at the end of the hole and let them pass. They thought we were waiting for a fight.

They were old blokes about 60 or so, overweight and we are all in out late 20's and 30's. It would of been a walk in the park, but we are smarter than to have a silly fight over golf.

Seems to me to be a lot of tension on the golf courses here. And yes I am Scottish.

All I can say is I seem to be very lucky with my local 9 hole very difficult course, very few people ever playing, and when I have had a group of Thai's or others in front of me they have been very nice and polite and waved me through.

[Speedking]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

No mate, you have not come across anything like a Korean, they are disgraceful on the course. Ask to play through, it's their call to invite you through. But sadly, this rarely happens........ Good luck. I'd be looking at other courses.

The Koreans and the Japanese as a group have the manners of a goat when on the golf course. They have dumbed down the sport by flocking to the public courses in hoards and have had a material deleterious impact on the quality of the game (worldwide) with the exception of a Michele Wie.

[kenny999]

Can you not just ask them if you can play through?

I always found it was the Japs who spoiled the game for everyone else. I met some very rude Japs on the golf courses here.

No mate, you have not come across anything like a Korean, they are disgraceful on the course. Ask to play through, it's their call to invite you through. But sadly, this rarely happens........ Good luck. I'd be looking at other courses.

The Koreans and the Japanese as a group have the manners of a goat when on the golf course. They have dumbed down the sport by flocking to the public courses in hoards and have had a material deleterious impact on the quality of the game (worldwide) with the exception of a Michele Wie.

Michele Wie is neither Korean or Japanese!! she is American coming from Hawaii...

My one experience of Koreans is at the driving range, they are very loud, on the good side some great girl bands are from Korea!!