I recently started cold approaching after quitting dating apps. When I go out with friends and approach girls at bars, my friends who are too lazy/scared to open girls on their own inevitably jump in, and more often than not they step on me or say something stupid and ruin any tension or momentum I'd built up to that point (guilt by association?). I don't usually mind it if I'm talking to say 2 or 3 hot girls in a group because obviously there's enough to go around. But for example, if I'm interested in and talking to the one attractive girl out of a group of average girls, it causes problems.

I'm not tone deaf -- I wouldn't just tell them to fuck off right in front of a girl I'm talking to. Is this something I need to address with them before we go out, or do I just take it in stride and try to keep things rolling with the distraction?