How Long Does It Take To Play 18 Holes Of Golf
- Everything You Need To Know
Are you looking to sneak in a game of golf between your other responsibilities, but have no idea how long it will take? Keep reading to find out how long it takes to play 18 holes of golf.
Time Frame
On average an amateur golfer takes about 15 minutes to complete one hole of golf, whereas professional golfers take about 10 minutes on each hole. With this in mind, it takes 3-4.5 hours to complete 18 holes of golf.
It may be beneficial to time yourself on each hole, and you’ll be able to estimate how long it will take you to complete 18 holes more accurately.
Why Does it Take That Long?
Not that there’s anything wrong with playing for 3-4.5 hours of golf, it’s just beneficial to know what contributes to that time frame so you can plan accordingly.
Party Size
One thing that can impact the length of time it takes to play for 18 holes is how many people you go with.
If you and a group of 4 friends go, it’s going to take longer than if you were to go with one other person. Playing with 4 people can take 4-5 hours, whereas playing with one other person can take as little as 2 hours.
Skill Level
New golfers are going to take longer than someone who has been golfing for a couple seasons. Especially if they are learning on the go. It may be best to take new players on a day that’s not super busy so there’s no rush, and so other players don’t have to wait.
Players who get pars or are close to it when playing with 4 other players may get done in around 3 hours, even if they don’t have a golf cart.
Travel
If you have a golf cart you’re going to have a shorter playing time. If you were to lose a golf ball it can be found faster using a golf cart. Riding can take around 3.5-4 hours whereas walking could take as long as 5 hours.
Availability
When there's more people on the course, it’s going to take longer to play. You may have to wait as long as 5 minutes to use the tee box, on top of the 10-15 minute time frame on each hole, and can result in a 4.5-6 hour game.
Obstacles
Depending on the difficulty of the course, the rough can add minutes to your game because of the time spent looking for your ball.
Additionally, if the grass is long it may make it more difficult when shooting chip shots. There may also be water hazards, trees, bushes, bunkers and just the natural elements that can affect the time as well.
All in all, just enjoy being out on the course and plan so you don’t feel rushed.
