There has been plenty of discussion recently about slow play in professional golf.
Whether it’s the stars of the LPGA discussing it or PGA Tour players talking about it in relation to recent changes on Tour, slow play is a universal problem in golf. Some players, including Matt Fitzpatrick, have even taken to social media to complain about pace-of-play problems.
Well, for one DP World Tour rookie making his first professional start, he wasn’t given any slack.
Jacob Skov Olesen was assessed a one-shot penalty during the first round of the 2024 BMW Australian PGA Championship on Thursday for slow play. Olesen, the 2024 British Amateur champion, advanced via DP World Tour Q-School to earn his card and was making his pro debut in the tour’s 2024-25 season opener at Royal Queensland Golf Club in Brisbane.
Olesen, 25, took 130 seconds to hit his approach shot into the 10th hole. That’s more than three times the allotted time (40 seconds) to hit a shot once it’s a player’s turn. Olesen made bogey on the hole and opened in 3-over 74.
With the uproar recently on pace of play, perhaps the penalty is a sign the tours are going to crack down more in the coming months.
While most golfers won’t mind paying fines for being slow on a shot, every single one will speed up when valuable strokes are on the line.