RPTR REMARKS ABOUT DEN TWR'S PRACTICE OF FREQUENTLY ASKING ACFT ON FINAL TO MAKES S-TURNS TO INCREASE SPACING FOR DEPARTING FLTS ON THE SAME RWY.

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ACFT X ON A VISUAL APCH TO RWY 17R. ON A 3 MI FINAL AT 170 KTS TWR SAID 'THERE IS A BOEING B767 GOING INTO POS AND HOLD AND ASKED US TO DO A WIDE S-TURN AND SLOW TO APCH SPDS.' WE STARTED THE S-TURN TO THE R AND FINISHED TO THE L; AND SLOWED. TWR SAID 'I NEEDED THAT TO THE L.' I GUESS REFERRING TO THE S-TURN AND CLRED US TO LAND ABOUT 2 MI FINAL. THEN ABOUT .5 MI FINAL SHE SAID 'GO AROUND' BECAUSE THE B767 WAS ONLY ABOUT 1/4 - 1/2 MI DOWN THE RWY. WE WENT AROUND AND CAME IN AND LANDED. IT WAS MY FO'S FIRST TIME IN DIA. HE WAS INEXPERIENCED AT LARGE ARPTS AND UNPREPARED; BEHIND THE AIRPLANE; AND DOESN'T INTERPRET ATC CLRNCS VERY WELL. I COULD HAVE TAKEN THE CTLS AND SLOWED RIGHT AWAY OR SOONER THAN MY FO DID; SINCE HE DIDN'T SLOW RIGHT AWAY. HIS EXCUSE WAS THAT TWR DIDN'T SAY SLOW IMMEDIATELY; BUT I THOUGHT THAT WAS IMPLIED; (SINCE TWR WAS PUTTING ANOTHER ACFT ON THE RWY) AND IT WAS KIND OF COMMON SENSE. ALSO TWR PUT AN ACFT ON THE RWY FOR DEP IN FRONT OF US THE WK PRIOR; AND I WAS FLYING WITH A DIFFERENT FO; WE ALMOST HAD TO GO AROUND THEN; SO I COULD HAVE USED THAT SIT IN TODAY'S APCH BRIEF. I HAD ONLY BEEN THERE TWICE PRIOR AND DIDN'T REALIZE THAT WAS COMMON PRACTICE HERE.