LAURIE Canter believes more professional competitions will adopt the shot clock format in the future following last week’s event in Austria.

The Shot Clock Challenge in Atzenbrugg marked a new era for golf on the European Tour, with players given a set amount of time available before taking a shot.

Failure to hit the ball within 40 seconds of the previous player taking his shot resulted in a penalty.

Cumberwell Park’s Canter, who finished tied 69th after shooting four-over par, is in favour of the new ruling, while suggesting slow play isn’t necessarily exclusive to professional golfers.

He said: “Once you got used to the new format, it was a question of attitude. You had to be ready when it was your turn.

“The whole field can fall into a pattern of playing slowly because things are unfolding slowly in front of you.

“The 40 seconds during the shot clock is more than enough time to take a shot. It’s more the time from when another player has hit his shot and then time starts on you – players and caddies can deliberate for far too long.

“It was great and fun to be involved in. I enjoyed it and I don’t think it will be long until we see it rolled out more.”

Canter argued that significant breaks in play between holes goes unnoticed by the majority of amateurs that watch play on television, underlining that 17 three-minute walks from one hole to another equates to almost an hour of no play during a standard round.

“At the moment, slow play is getting blamed for a lot of things in golf, like participation levels going down,” said Canter.

“I don’t think there’s a correlation at all. Golf has always taken a long time, whether you play recreationally or on tour.

“It’s a sport that takes three-and-a-half or four hours. Realistically, if you’ve got that time to spare, you have more time available.

“I think in terms of making the game better to participate in on tour and as a viewing experience, there is value in the shot clock.”

While the former Spanish Amateur champion admitted introducing the shot clock to competitions will add to the viewing experience, he conceded it’s unlikely to have an impact on participation levels in the sport.

“Do I think mass participation will go up if there is a shot clock in golf? No,” he said.

“There are realities about playing golf on tour that amateurs do not see. For example, because the courses are long or the way stands are set up, we have to walk three or five minutes from the hole until the next tee. If you have 10 of those walks, that’s an extra hour.

“People say being out for five hours is way too long, but from the time the ball is hit off the tee to going in the hole we’re not on the course any longer than your average three-ball player.

“Realistically, if you put an average club golfer on our course, they wouldn’t get a sniff of doing it in under five hours. That’s just the reality.

“It’s definitely an interesting innovation and it won’t hurt golf, put it that way.”