There are several things Clubs can do to make implementation of the mPace system more comfortable. Here are a few recommendations for making a smooth transition.

Policy

Develop a clear policy on what the Club expects of players. It should be clear and simple. The following is an example:

Pace of Play Policy
All players are responsible for their group’s pace of play. The Golf Operations Committee has set a maximum time of 4 hours and 10 minutes for the completion of 18 holes of Stableford/Par and 4 hours and 25 minutes for the completion of 18 holes of Stroke Play. In the event of severe weather conditions, the Golf Operations Committee may adjust the times indicated.

Your position in the field is directly behind the group in front and not directly in front of the group behind. At completion of your round, your group is expected to finish within 14 minutes of the group in front unless you are within the round times nominated above.

All players should actively practice “ready golf”. That is, at all times, be ready to play your shot as soon as it is safe to do so regardless of whether you are furthest away from the hole or not.

Any member deemed to be responsible for slow play will receive written acknowledgement of the incident. This acknowledgement shall be received by all players in the group.

Repeated offences within a six month period will result in a request to attend a meeting with the Golf Operations Committee or offer a written undertaking as to actions to be taken to avoid future offences.

Members may be directed to other documentation providing suggested methods for maintaining their position or winning lost time during a round.

Card template

Choose the 6 column miClub autoscore card template which includes tee time, player handicap strokes, player/result, marker/result. mPace can assist in setting up the tee times spreadsheet for submission to miClub. The times expected of the group at each tee is invaluable for providing early confirmation to the group as their position in the field. This is especially true when the group in front of them is out of touch.

Card Scanning

Arrange your scanner to make it easy for members to finalise and scan their card upon completing their 18th hole of play. Discourage the behaviour of delaying the scannng of scorecards. As long as all groups behave in a similar manner, the data collected will be reliable and very useful.

Member education

Prior to commencing any method of assessing pace of play, publish your intent to the members and detail the policy and methods. Allow at least 2-3 weeks for this information to get around.

Remove the play-through option

Think about removing the option of requesting to play through the group in front, or invite the following group to play through. Often this option leads to unnecessary confrontation and there are many ways to avoid the delay brought on by exercising this process. The use of provisional balls should be considered an imperative. Players who choose not to take this option are usually very embarrassed when they return to the tee. Encourage members to avoid this embarrassment.

Letter content

Decide on the content of the 2 types of letters to be broadcast. The softer ‘Late Swipe’ letter and the infringement ‘Gap Letter’ content needs to be agreed and also published to the members so they know what to expect.

Example letters can be found in the help documentation of mPace of Play Manager.
Gap Letter
Late Swipe Letter