Australian Masters: Monty hits out at Aussie Masters dawdlers

Colin Montgomerie wants a shot penalty for slow players as a means of speeding up painfully overblown rounds of tournament golf.

The Scot took five hours to get around the 6,290-metre Huntingdale course at the Australian Masters in Melbourne.

He gave himself a great chance of victory heading into the weekend rounds with a five-under 67 for five-under 139.

But Europe's former number one was far from happy with his day.

"I'm very critical of slow play and I don't know why it should be that way, there's no reason why we should be playing for five hours," he said.

"I think after four hours you should pick your ball up and walk in, and if you haven't finished then that's tough, really four hours is enough to play golf, especially in the early morning.

"I would make it four hours, whatever course you play, and everybody would have to stick to that time - and if they're behind that time, and there's not a reason for it, they get a shot penalty.

"Fining golfers is not a thing these days, a thousand dollars, it really doesn't affect things, but a shot penalty does."

Montgomerie, who said he had played with quick players, Australians Aaron Baddeley and Jarrod Moseley, was at a loss to explain what was the cause of the slow play in today's second round of the Masters.

"I was brought up to play golf in three hours, and why it should take two hours' longer these days I do not know," he added.

"There's obviously a lot more money involved in golf, but at the same time we're playing the same courses and I can't see why it should take this long.

"Every shot we played today we were waiting to play, and it doesn't help the rhythm of playing a round."