Thank you for taking the time to read this information on our pace-of-play program. We would like to suggest that you also familiarize yourself with our Course Operations Guidelines found on the Championship Course and Executive Course pages.

Saratoga Spa Golf hosts over 40,000 rounds of golf annually. In the recent past, 5½-hour rounds were commonplace, and the vast majority of our customers were dissatisfied. One of the new, core values of Saratoga Spa Golf is our commitment to a 4½-hour round of golf. We feel that this reasonable pace of play is fundamental to our customer’s enjoyment of the game and our facility, and one of the primary reasons the golf course is in such high demand. In order to maintain that pace, we have developed, and very carefully administer, the pace of play program described below.

Our pace of play effort begins with the scheduling of your tee time. When making a tee time at Saratoga Spa Golf, you will be asked to affirm your commitment to a 14½-minutes per hole pace of play. Including a 10-minute break between nines, this will result in a 4½-hour 18-hole round of golf. It is essential that we monitor pace on a hole-by-hole basis. While it is generally achievable for a slow group to improve their pace in order to regain their position on the golf course, and finish on schedule, it usually takes hours to untangle the logjam they created behind them. This explains why we are so vigilant about apparent minor slowdowns. Please do not be offended if you are reminded about your pace when you are only a few minutes behind schedule. This is our way of attempting to prevent small problems from escalating, and we must do this if the golfers that start later in the day are going to be able to enjoy a comfortable pace-of-play. (Remember: we almost never have an open tee time.) When you arrive at the golf course and check in with our starter, you will once again be asked to commit to play in 14½-minutes per hole. If you are unable to make this commitment, we respectfully request that you choose another golf course. During your round, our on course assistants will monitor your pace of play. Communicating by radio with our starters, they use accurate information regarding your actual starting time and a timing chart to gauge your progress. The timing chart shows us where you should be on the golf course at any given time. If you fall behind a 14-½ minute per hole pace, you will be asked to adjust your playing speed accordingly. If, after 2 reminders, your group has not regained its place, you will be asked to move forward on the golf course to the position that will put you back on pace. If you are unwilling to do this, your group will be asked to leave the golf course. Cooperate fully with our pace of play assistants and golf professionals. They are simply trying to provide the most enjoyable golf experience possible for all our customers.

We hope that you will support our pace of play program and find our solutions to be an innovative and positive step in dealing with the problem of slow play.