Pace of Play at Pipers Heath

[WhiskeyFoxtrot]

Just curious what your longest round ever was?

I played at Piper's Heath on Sunday. There were 3 groups in our party, and I went off in the second. Caught up to the first group on the second hole, and our 3rd group also caught up. We called the clubhouse from the second tee but the marshals didn't seem to be able to do anything. At the end of the day, our first tee time was at 9:00 and we finished at 3:30 PM! (Including a 25 minute lightning delay) A total of 6.5 hours. We all found it to be quite absurd. It won't keep me from going back because its always one of the best conditioned courses around, but I thought it was interesting that this round took us 6.5 hours with minimal marshal intervention, yet when I played in April with a buddy on a wide open Piper's track we had a marshal talk to us on 2 occasions for being off pace by 2 minutes (based on his count, with no groups behind us...).

What's the longest a round ever took you?

[Benz]

Just curious what your longest round ever was?
...but I thought it was interesting that this round took us 6.5 hours with minimal marshal intervention, yet when I played in April with a buddy on a wide open Piper's track we had a marshal talk to us on 2 occasions for being off pace by 2 minutes (based on his count, with no groups behind us...).

The marshal situation at Piper's Heath has been their weak point for some time (years). I don't know whether the marshals have received poor guidelines or poor training or both. My experience there has been that the marshals treat the players more as inconveniences rather than paying customers. That said, whenever I have complained about the marshals (presence, lack of presence, instructions, actions, attitudes, etc.), Piper's management has addressed my concerns immediately.

[gotogolf]

I've never heard anything good about POP there (and for that matter across the street at Royal Ontario either). When the tee sheet is full, rounds are long.
BTW Benz how dare you complain about customer service, I've learned my lesson!!!!!

[gushamilton]

I played in a tourney there a few years back and while we were "waiting" for a group in front of us to finish on a par 3 green, we were told to play from the white tee's.

I just laughed at him and said no.

[WDM1980]

Just curious what your longest round ever was?

I played at Piper's Heath on Sunday. There were 3 groups in our party, and I went off in the second. Caught up to the first group on the second hole, and our 3rd group also caught up. We called the clubhouse from the second tee but the marshals didn't seem to be able to do anything. At the end of the day, our first tee time was at 9:00 and we finished at 3:30 PM! (Including a 25 minute lightning delay) A total of 6.5 hours. We all found it to be quite absurd. It won't keep me from going back because its always one of the best conditioned courses around, but I thought it was interesting that this round took us 6.5 hours with minimal marshal intervention, yet when I played in April with a buddy on a wide open Piper's track we had a marshal talk to us on 2 occasions for being off pace by 2 minutes (based on his count, with no groups behind us...).

What's the longest a round ever took you?

Piper's is notorious for horrendously slow rounds. I have tried many times to enjoy that course, I simply can't. The layout is odd and conditions are too soft for a heathland-style course. I could live with both of those issues; however, the pace is just not tolerable. I've never had an issue with a rude marshal; in fact, I've found them to be far too nice to slow groups. I recall standing on the 13th tee - the par three - I could see there were no groups on 16 or 17, no one on the 18th tee, with the lead group halfway up 15. The marshal explained that the group was a bit behind on the front, then took 10 minutes at the turn and are now lagging badly. He was encouraging them to move along. I wanted to suggest that he encourage them with a cattle prod or tell them to move to the next hole. The round took over five and a half hours. I think this is an issue with customer service focusing on the wrong thing. By not being firmer with the slow group, the course allowed one group to hold up and irritate every single group behind them on the course. That is a lot of people who won't want to go back to Piper's because of the POP. They prioritized 4 slow players over 80+ players. Those 80 likely won't be back. Were it me, I would have had the group skip a hole or had the pro beside the 14th green to escort them to their cars as they'd been on the course for over four hours and were ruining the experience of everyone else.

[nearace]

Try getting behind the league of guys named the old boots,really slow.

[Benz]

BTW Benz how dare you complain about customer service, I've learned my lesson!!!!!

I found that the customer service at Piper's Heath has always been very good. The marshals are the problem.

[TheSaxemachine]

Pipers can be a brutal round. Unless I can get out early I'm not going. The wind and the fescue make it torture for the average golfer. So much time is spent searching for balls and hacking out of the junk.

[DashRipRock]

I golf at Pipers in the mornings(before 9). Rounds are generally 4:15-4:30. Had a couple sub 4hr rounds. Fairways have firmed up. Course is always in great shape.

[Section ThirtyOne]

6.5 hours anywhere is unacceptable.

i would have demanded a refund/raincheque after 9 holes or sooner and walked off the course.

[golfunderpar18]

Just curious what your longest round ever was?

I played at Piper's Heath on Sunday. There were 3 groups in our party, and I went off in the second. Caught up to the first group on the second hole, and our 3rd group also caught up. We called the clubhouse from the second tee but the marshals didn't seem to be able to do anything. At the end of the day, our first tee time was at 9:00 and we finished at 3:30 PM! (Including a 25 minute lightning delay) A total of 6.5 hours. We all found it to be quite absurd. It won't keep me from going back because its always one of the best conditioned courses around, but I thought it was interesting that this round took us 6.5 hours with minimal marshal intervention, yet when I played in April with a buddy on a wide open Piper's track we had a marshal talk to us on 2 occasions for being off pace by 2 minutes (based on his count, with no groups behind us...).

What's the longest a round ever took you?

6.5 hours and we didn't even finish the round (think we had 2 if not 3 holes remaining but had to walk in due to darkness). I posted about it before here on TGN. I had booked about 5 groups for my stag many months in advance. The week before the course called and said they had a booking conflict and they asked (well, I had no choice) to move my group later. What I believe happened is the GM had an offer for a bigger tourney so they accepted the day/time/$ and just pushed me. Again I had booked many months in advance -- this was when the course first opened. when we played that day it was clear the tourney included golfers that had never ever played. it was like a circus. didn't know how to hold a club, how to swing. They took 15 minutes on a par 3 tee. We complained profusely during the round to the pro shop and after. In the end the GM provided vouchers to play again. Thought that was fair, but when I went to use them the following year they said they would not accept as they expired the same year (we golfed the first time in Sept). The voucher had no expiry date or any language whatsoever. I complained to the GM who in the end decided again not to accept the vouchers. Last time I supported that course. Had played a few other times and pace of play wasn't 6.5hrs but was brutal none the less. Never again.

[hoganapexplus]

6.5 hours anywhere is unacceptable.

i would have demanded a refund/raincheque after 9 holes or sooner and walked off the course.

I would have been out of there and asking for a raincheque. Had that happen at Elmira. They shoved a tournament in starting on #10. When we made the turn it was a logjam. Went in and got our raincheques.

[Big Shooter]

Played today. Tee time 11:24, but things were a little mixed up with the other twosome we were paired with, so we teed off around 11:40. Beautiful day, as anyone who was out today knows, and it was SLOW (well the group in front of us anyway).....but I didn't really care.

Funny thing happened when we got to the 15th green, my partner asked the guys ahead on the adjacent 16th tee if they could "please pick up the pace a little" (the group in front of them, feat. Ignatius Reilly, I believe, was on the 17th green already)
...It worked, we never caught them again!

Upon finishing, I realized that we played in 4 hrs. & 28 min. .....Nuthin' wrong with that!!

[Ignatius Reilly]

We started with a gap today - maybe a group didn't show?

We weren't the quickest group out there, but finished in 4:30 ish. We nearly caught the group in front a couple of times, then fell back. The group behind had to wait a few times for us - my guess was they waited on about 4 shots, and never more than a minute.

I'm pretty sure I saw Big Shooter at some point - when we were on about the 15th tee. Bright green shirt?

My group was 3 guys and a wife. She hit the ball a ton off the tee, but she (all of us) had trouble around the green. Really enjoyed the course, but the greens are both very quick and very undulating.

We never felt rushed or pushed and we never waited on the guys in front. We only really caught up to them on about the 9th, and it was never an issued after that.

[Big Shooter]

I'm pretty sure I saw Big Shooter at some point - when we were on about the 15th tee. Bright green shirt?

Yes, I decided against donning something conservative