2022 US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick has added his voice to the chorus speaking out against the slow play which is becoming increasingly frequent on both the PGA and DP World Tours.
Fitzpatrick chalked up his first non-major PGA Tour win on Sunday, claiming victory at the RBC Heritage in a play-off against Jordan Spieth.
In the aftermath of his impressive win in South Carolina, Fitzpatrick spoke out about one of the hot topics in the world of golf - namely, the slow play which was particularly controversial at the Masters earlier this month.
Matt Fitzpatrick calls out slow players on PGA Tour
Patrick Cantlay caused a heated debate about slow play on the PGA Tour at Augusta. The American golfer played in the second-to-last group on Sunday, and the final pair of Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm were visibly held up by Cantlay's slow movement around the course.
Koepka described Cantlay's play as "brutally slow," while Cantlay's playing partner Viktor Hovland was also visibly frustrated at the pace of his play.
Speaking in the aftermath of his win at the RBC Heritage, Matt Fitzpatrick has now given his take on slow play on golf's two major tours.
4 July 2022; Matt Fitzpatrick of England on the seventh during day one of the JP McManus Pro-Am at Adare Manor Golf Club in Adare, Limerick. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
The Englishman did not name Cantlay, but said that the issue of slow play was not a new one, and that officials on both the PGA and DP World Tours had been far too hesitant in previous years to issue any kind of penalty for antics such as Cantlay's.
He outlined what he believed would be a fair system, suggesting that the maximum time allowed to take a shot should be decreased, as well as imposing harsher penalties on those who failed to comply with such regulations:
In my opinion, if you’re in a three-ball you should be round in four hours, four and a half max. It’s a disgrace to get anywhere near that. You’re talking 5 hours 15, or five and a half at some venues and it’s truly appalling. I think they give us way too much leeway to get round.
The problem is this conversation has gone on for years and years, and no one has ever done anything, so I feel it’s almost a waste of time talking about it. The PGA Tour, DP World Tour, no one’s going to do anything about it.
I don’t think it’s a big enough issue in other players’ minds to do something. It’s like hitting your head against a brick wall. No one ever gets penalised.
For me the times [allowed to play a shot] need to be much less. When you’re not within those times, you’re going to be penalised and properly punished.
Slow play is a huge issue. I was forcing myself the whole day [on Sunday] to walk as slow as possible and I was still fast, I was still ready. Way more needs to be done.
It remains to be seen whether decisive action will be taken in regard to slow play at the world's biggest tournaments, but the comments of Brooks Koepka and Matt Fitzpatrick make it clear that some of the world's most recognisable names are growing tired of their peers' antics.
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