23 replies to this topic

[Willie Malay]

...in a scramble? I'd rather just not talk about it.
But here goes. 4-man scramble, NO MULLIGANS. Behind this group all day. Would be one thing if they were hitting errant shots and just playing badly but everyone one of them stood over the ball for like 20-30 seconds before every hit and took 20-30 seconds after someone hit to decide to get ready to hit and then the 20-30 seconds to hit the ball. All those added up to a long day. We started on hole 5. At the "turn" (after hole number 18), so we played behind them for quite a bit,  they went in to get something to drink and we played through. By the time we got to hole 4 and finished, they were not even in sight behind us and we saw them tee off on number one!
First time I ever played through a group on a scramble. It was just horrendous to watch. The group that was originally behind us just laughed as we went through and then joked with us about having to then play behind them.
Plus it was cold and drizzling all day. Miserable day all around.

Edited by Willie Malay, 01 November 2012 - 11:09 AM.

[TNReb]

A scramble can be a lot of fun.. but unfortunately most tournament organizers (and participants) don't realize it's the slowest form of golf there is.  It can be BRUTAL!

[rufus mangler]

They were probably trying to win. Funny. Win a scramble.

Edited by rufus mangler, 01 November 2012 - 11:20 AM.

[RRFireblade]

First scramble ?  (Just saw that yes, it was your first so...yeh. Perfectly normal)



Oh , just a nit pick but passing a group who went inside for lunch on the turn isn't "Playing thru".

Edited by RRFireblade, 01 November 2012 - 11:50 AM.

[Willie Malay]

By far not my first scramble. Maybe my 200th. They didn't go for lunch just in to the bathroom or for a drink. They were at the tee by the time we teed off.  We just hit and left.

[rwill]

I stopped playing in 4 man scrambles. Way too much cheating. I will know the 4 guys on a team and know they are not great and they post a 54. Just rather not play.

[Veng]

Don't the know the only way to win a scramble is to cheat, not play good golf?  What the hell were they bothering to mess around on the course.

[cb24]

scrambles = lame!!!  Unless its like the Ryder cup (even then) golf is not a team sport.  I wouldnt mind if they just did lowest combined scores but all this best ball stuff is boring

[+Church]

I don't like 4 man scrambles.  So many people cheat and if you're not playing with someone you can have a good conversation with the wait will ruin your(at lease my) game.
And no, I have never played through on a scramble.  People get into a "I'm a tour pro" mode and take things too seriously.

[RRFireblade]

Willie Malay, on 01 November 2012 - 12:57 PM, said:

By far not my first scramble. Maybe my 200th. They didn't go for lunch just in to the bathroom or for a drink. They were at the tee by the time we teed off.  We just hit and left.

So what are you surprised by ?



I pass people like that all the time when they stop for lunch , hooked by the shot girls , etc.... it's no biggie.

[oakmhcky21]

I played in a charity scramble last weekend, we started on hole 8. well on either hole 15 or 16, from the time we pulled up to the tee box to us putting it took 45 min. we were the third group at the tea box with 2 groups in the fairway, it was a bend left so i could not see the 150yards closest to the green.

[soregongolfer]

The last scramble I played in took nearly 8 hours.  I missed a friend's wedding because I thought the tournament would be done in plenty of time.  I haven't played in a scramble since.

[J13]

Scrambles can be fun from time to time but I prefer better ball for team play.  Also in the scrambles I play in people are pretty honest and the better teams win.  But to be honest it's not really about winning a scramble as much as it is about drinking some beer at 8am and not be labeled an alcoholic.

[highergr0und]

J13, on 02 November 2012 - 06:23 AM, said:

Scrambles can be fun from time to time but I prefer better ball for team play.  Also in the scrambles I play in people are pretty honest and the better teams win.  But to be honest it's not really about winning a scramble as much as it is about drinking some beer at 8am and not be labeled an alcoholic.

+1 for sure.....   I don't care about the score.  I turn in my card and either win or don't win, and I believe my group has won 2 out of at least 100 played.  Typically it's a free day off work with a free round of golf and some free drinks and food.  I don't care if it takes a long time to get through the round.

[RobGW]

I've been in a group that did the same as you, passed a group that stopped (although I think they were rushing to the toilets - they were drinking heavily). I play a few scrambles a year, usually with my neighbors. We play exclusively to support the charity for whom the event is a benefit. We have no designs on winning anything because we play it straight. We have won a couple closest-to-the-pin prizes, as well as quite a few door prizes. We play it to practice hero shots, and to socialize with each other. While play is slow, I've never experienced some of the truly horrific rounds I read about from others. My worst was just under 6 hours, but most have been around 5.

[Tarkata]

Never played through on a scramble. Wow! I know it's slow, but they always are...

Most difficult play through I ever attempted was with these 4 Korean women, I am also sure they pretended to not understand what we were attempting to do. They could not be any slower, even if you tied logs to their legs. Unreal. I get the willies just recalling them....


Very nicely dressed, little hand made headcovers and quaint bling and high end clubs in their carts, all very tasteful. I think they were country clubers back home, which implies things about them, but i dare not articulate such...hell, we were walking and playing two balls each after a point (a 4some) and we still had to wait every single shot until we commandeered the problem...the scowls we endured were over the top given how quietly we watched them meander all over the damn course..

they were all like, Que pasa amigo? - which was weird, what with them being Koreans.

Never tee off behind a 4 some of Korean women.

[rogolf]

A Rules and Etiquette topic, really?  Don't take offense, just a poke at the moderators!  

[RRFireblade]

rogolf, on 02 November 2012 - 10:49 AM, said:

A Rules and Etiquette topic, really?  Don't take offense, just a poke at the moderators!  

There are no rules or etiquette in a scramble.

[Imp]

J13, on 02 November 2012 - 06:23 AM, said:

Scrambles can be fun from time to time but I prefer better ball for team play.  Also in the scrambles I play in people are pretty honest and the better teams win.  But to be honest it's not really about winning a scramble as much as it is about drinking some beer at 8am and not be labeled an alcoholic.

Bing-wait for it...-oh.

Scrambles can be fun if you want to have some fun. If you want serious golf, or fast golf, scrambles aren't for you.

And I'm the guy that has a bag of marshmallows in their bag and will leave marsmallows in strategic locations to have people think one of them bombed their tee shot, or toss one or two into the next/adjacent fairway when no one will notice.

--kC

Edited by Imp, 02 November 2012 - 01:58 PM.

[eric42434224]

Imp, on 02 November 2012 - 01:58 PM, said:

And I'm the guy that has a bag of marshmallows in their bag and will leave marsmallows in strategic locations to have people think one of them bombed their tee shot,

HA!  That is hilarious.  I am SO buying a bag of marshmallows this week!

[BuckeyePaul01]

I play in about 5 corporate scrambles per year for my company.  I hate scrambles, but it beats a day in the office!

With that said, the slowest scramble I ever played had groups of 6...........it took 7hrs 10min!  .....it was pure torture.

[Truman]

If you don't like the pace of play at these things, don't play.  The purpose is to raise money.  I don't like playing in them.  If I believe in the cause I just donate the entry fee amount.

[cherokee8215]

I usually try to avoid scrambles, unless it's a charity tournament at a private course I otherwise wouldn't get to play. Even then, if I know the guys I'm playing with well, I'll often try to talk them into ditching the scramble format and each man plays his own ball.

Most of the charity scrambles I've played in have a lot of "two or three times per year" players who don't understand (or don't care) how their actions contribute to slow play. Especially when it's late in the round and the beer has been flowing for a few hours.

[Sean2]

I play in one every year at out practice facility (first tournament of the year), but I've never had a group in front playing so slow we even entertained the idea of playing through. That had to be painful Willie.