The 2024 golf season was just like a rollercoaster ride full of ups and downs. But one thing remained constant: the issue of slow play. No Tour was immune to the experience of slow play. With the introduction of new PGA Tour rules for 2026, there’s hope that the issue of slow play will finally see some change. Interestingly, Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods’ innovative project, TGL, is also tackling this problem head-on. How? By introducing a shot clock.

Big names in the golf community such as Nelly Korda have spoken out against slow play. While the pace of play is a pet peeve of Korda’s, Charley Hull thinks it’s only fair to cease the Tour cards of the golfer after 1-2 faults. And now, Rickie Fowler has joined the list, sharing his hot take.

Fowler recently shared his thoughts on TGL’s short clock, saying, “When you have 40 seconds, that’s basically when you’re going to be stepping up.” The 36-year-old golfer was referring to the 40-second shot clock introduced by TGL to combat slow play. But here’s the catch: failing to hit the ball within those 40 seconds will result in a shot clock violation and a one-stroke penalty.

The rules allow four timeouts per team which can be used to skip the penalty. Over the 15 holes, the teams can have only two timeouts in a single session. They can’t be carried over to the next session if unused. The player or a team member can call it out to the referee, and the shot clock will be reset with forty seconds to go. However, timeouts have to be called before the clock runs out.

This development is exciting, especially since the PGA Tour has struggled to address the issue for years. But don’t worry; Fowler seems confident that he’ll adapt to the new format. “I don’t see any issue on my side,” he said. However, he bluntly warned his fellow PGA Tour members, saying, “I know there’s going to be issues that guys will come across. There’s going to be some timeouts used, that’s for sure.” According to the PGA Tour pro, “Guys that don’t practice and prep” will be the ones facing the major problem.

We agree that time doesn’t wait for anybody, right? Fowler recently gave the media a sneak peek of the TGL league from the SoFi Center, wherein he hit a bunker. Slow play has long been an issue in golf, with some high-profile players urging reform. Since 1995, only three PGA Tour players have been fined for slow play.

A glimpse of PGA Tour penalties for slow play

The first of these uncommon penalties was imposed at the 1995 Honda Classic. Glen Day, the Alabama native. He was punished with a one-shot penalty in the third round. But what’s the reason? Well, Day’s poor play forced 54-hole leader Mark O’Meara to wait for each shot, resulting in a round that took more than four hours to finish. Day’s score was then revised from 71 to 72.

Moving on to the second, and the most recent penalty for slow play on the PGA Tour. It occurred at the 2011 Zurich Classic. Miguel Angel Carballo and Brian Campbell were each penalized one stroke on the 14th hole. What’s the reason? Both players were assigned terrible timing in the team event, with Carballo originally going over his permitted time on the 12th hole.

PGA Tour continues to battle with slow play. But TGL’s 40-second norm surely seems much more promising. What do you think? Who has found a better solution to tackle the long, slow play issue? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.