ode
Bryson isn't the poster-child of slow play. He's simply adapted to the environment and the standards that have been afforded him due to the lack of any real enforcement of pace-of-play amongst his peers.
He's been granted acceptance into the slow-play ranks, by virtue of that.
Patrick Cantlay is another young player who's decided to extend his pre-shot routine, because of a lack of pace enforcement. During last week's tournament, Cantlay took no fewer than 13 glimpses at the flag on an approach shot, and that was after he'd addressed the ball. It took him over 40 seconds to pull the trigger.
I know these guys are competing for a lot of money, and since there is basically no enforcement of slow play - they feel they're entitled the same leeway as everyone else.
It just doesn't exactly help the product, both as it relates to viewership, nor the sponsors who spend 10's of millions of dollars as the title sponsor.
Once you consider why people don't tune in, it's always the same things... too much emphasis on putting, not enough coverage on full-swing shots, and then having the viewers have to spend a minute watching a player figure out how far he needs to hit a 110 yard wedge shot.
The televised game has become boring. The amount of time it takes them to factor in the rising tides, the location of the gravitational pull of the moon, the adrenaline factors of how far they're expecting to hit the ball with every last scenario being considered... the wind, the lie - it just doesn't bode well for televised viewers, who would rather channel surf than stay on the channel to endure all of that tedious bullshit.
Bryson isn't the reason why there is slow play on tour, why people choose to watch something else on television. But he's not part of the solution, either.
He seems to be a great kid, and I hope he does well. And hopefully he quickens his pace. I enjoy watching Rickie Fowler.... because he doesn't waste any time playing his next shot, whether it's a driver off the tee, an approach from the fairway, or a 20-footer on the greens. He may not be a major winning champion, but he's fun to watch.
A lot of these younger players today would do well to follow his lead.