Justin Thomas Unafraid of Telling PGA Tour Star Hard Truth as ‘Slow-Play’ Issue Divides Golf World

Slow Play! Is there anything more annoying than watching a golf round drag on at a snail’s pace? Yes, it has indeed frustrated everyone in the golf industry. Whether it is the PGA Tour players or the LPGA pros, everyone is equally fed up by the long-standing issue in the league. While some have come up with their own theories to curb this plague, the officials have also started actions to solve this issue. So obviously, players are pretty much vocal these days to even call out names.   

And Justin Thomas did exactly the same. During a quick Q&A at Atlanta Drive GC, Justin Thomas didn’t hesitate when asked who would rack up the most shot clock violations in the TGL season. His answer? Tom Kim. He’s not wrong either. Kim’s pace at the Travelers Championship was painfully slow, with fans watching him take what felt like forever to make a shot. It’s not just about preparation—it’s the way he lingers over the ball, as if every second might change the outcome.

But the slow play issue doesn’t stop there. Just ask Charley Hull. At the 2024 ANNIKA Invitational, rounds dragged on for almost six hours, forcing Hull to finish in near darkness. Exasperated by this she proposed drastic measures claiming, “If you get three bad timings, every time it’s a two-shot penalty. If you have three of them, you lose your [LPGA] Tour card instantly.” Bold? Absolutely. But frustration tends to breed boldness.

While this was still just words, PGA Tour officials took it to another level by amending the entire format and reducing the field size to 144, 132, and, in some cases, 120, which originally used to be a 156-player field. The logic? Fewer players, fewer delays.

Obviously, this came with its fair share of criticism from players, but with slow play grinding everyone’s patience, drastic times call for drastic measures. So is there any end to this ever-slow issue that has corrupted both PGA and LPGA alike? With the TGL around the corner, perhaps Tiger Woods has a plan to shake things up.

Will TGL bring hope to curb slow-pace play?

Slow play has frustrated golfers and fans for years. Even Matt Fitzpatrick, fresh off his RBC Heritage win last year, voiced his frustration stating, “This conversation has gone on for years and years and years, and no one has ever done anything, so I feel it’s almost a waste of time talking about it. I have strong opinions, but no one’s going to do anything about it.”

Well, not anymore, at least not in Tiger Woods’ league. With the TGL set to kick off on January 7, Woods has come up with some major moves, that are strict as well as effective. Players get 40 seconds to hit a shot, or they’ll be docked a stroke. Now that’s something interesting and sensible. Simple, effective, and classic Woods—because as he says, “Strokes [are] money.”

Woods, having endured slow play himself, seems perfectly suited to champion this change. It’s exactly the kind of bold, no-nonsense solution the game needs—and maybe, just maybe, it’ll finally speed things up.

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