The LPGA Tour is finally cracking down on slow play, and World No.1 Nelly Korda couldn’t be happier about it.
“Finally,” Korda said with obvious relief. The tour announced tough new penalties this week that’ll hit slow players where it hurts – their scorecards and their wallets.
Players who take too long over their shots will face escalating penalties. Even going 1-5 seconds over the time limit will result in fines. Take 6-15 seconds too long? That’s a one-shot penalty. More than 16 seconds over? Two shots.
It’s a change that’s been a long time coming. Rounds that used to take under 5 hours are now regularly dragging on for 51⁄2 hours or more.
“At the end of the day, we’re a form of entertainment,” Korda explained. “If we’re taking really long out there, that’s not entertaining.”
The Florida native has been vocal about pace of play problems for months. Back in November, she didn’t mince words: “I would be very, very annoyed watching for five hours, over five hours, five hours and 40 minutes, close to six. It just really drags the game down.”
She wasn’t alone in her frustration. English pro Charley Hull even suggested cutting players’ tour cards for repeated slow play violations.
The new rules were announced Tuesday evening at a player meeting in Bradenton, Florida, where Korda is competing this week in the Founders Cup. The response from players was largely positive, though some had questions about exactly how officials would time shots.
Multiple-Major winner Minjee Lee backed the changes too. “Something had to be done at some point,” she said. “It’s 2025 and we are just implementing a little bit harsher rules to start with, and it’s going to be a great policy.”
The timing is interesting. The LPGA is currently between commissioners, with Liz Moore serving as interim chief after Mollie Marcoux Samaan’s December resignation. But if player reaction is any indication, this move to speed up play might be Moore’s first big win.
Korda summed up what many golf fans have been thinking: “I think implementing harsher rules is going to be good for the game of golf.”
