Golf fans were disappointed with the pace of play on day one at The Open, with rounds taking six hours over the Old Course at St Andrews.
Drivable par-4s, double greens and a steady wind may have contributed, but players and fans were unimpressed with how long the rounds were taking. Tiger Woods' group went out at 2.59pm local time and were approaching the final green six hours later, by which point the grandstands featured plenty of empty seats.
Collin Morikawa played with Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele on day one and said he didn't know that the pace of play would be this slow.
"I figured it would be slow, but I didn't know it would be this slow," the defending champion said after his opening 72. "We were waiting on groups at tees, waiting on fairways. Xander and I talked about it, we're watching more golf than we ever have.
"You stay in the fairway, and you're watching two other groups play golf. That's part of it this week of just staying patient and make sure you're not rushing your shots."
Richard Bland looking unimpressed with the pace of play
How social media viewed the slow play:
Tiger etc heading for six hour rounds. Unacceptable. Including for so many of the paying punters who have long since departed.July 14, 2022
Matt Fitzpatrick on the 6:09 round: “It’s sad, really. Should never happen in golf.”July 14, 2022
6+ hour pace of play here?That’s slower than a charity scramble where 80% of the golfers play once a year. This is silly. DQ the entire field. 😁July 14, 2022
⏰ 💤 🥱 6 HOUR ROUNDS — Pace of play during round 1 has been incredibly frustrating at St Andrews. #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/oeIrXDaIdhJuly 14, 2022
Going to be over 6 hours for a three ball, music to Greg Norman’s ears. What happened to penalising slow play?July 14, 2022
The group to just finish took 6 hours and 5 minutes to complete 18 holes at #TheOpen. And it’s not slow play. It’s not the players’ fault. Figure it out, R&A. Ridiculous.July 14, 2022
6 hours to get around is nothing short of disgraceful.#TheOpen #SecretTourProJuly 14, 2022
This is absolutely brutal pace of play.July 14, 2022
Who on planet earth is allowing a 3 ball to take 6 hours @TheOpen Get a grip!! #TheOpenJuly 14, 2022
It's been 4 hours and 20 minutes and Tiger's group is on the 13th fairway. Just *painfully* slow out there.July 14, 2022
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