Golfing Tips and Rules
Features a host of golfing tips and rules for the new golfer.
General Points:
- Be aware of the local rules on both the score card and notice board.
- Place an identification mark on your ball in case someone else is using an identical ball.
- Count your clubs as you may carry no more than fourteen clubs.
- You may not change balls during the play of a hole, but if you damage your ball you may change the ball after asking your opponent or fellow competitor.
- Always use your proper handicap.
- Know your tee off time.
- Whilst playing a round you may not give or ask anyones advice except your caddie or partner. You can ask about rules, the position of hazards or the flagstick.
- You may not give advice to your opponent or fellow-competitor.
- You cannot hit a practice shot while playing a hole, or from any hazard.
- The ball can be cleaned when you are allowed to lift it. On the green a ball may be cleaned when lifted except when it has been lifted to find out if it is unfit or for identification purposes because it interferes with play.
Tee Shot
- Tee your ball between the tee-markers or a little behind them and not in front of them. You may tee your ball up to two club lengths behind the markers.
Playing the Ball
- The "honor is given to the player who had the lowest score on the last hole and has the right to play their ball first on the next hole.
- The player whose ball is farthest from the hole plays first whilst playing a hole
- The ball must be played as it lies. You cannot move it to a better spot.
- Your lie must not be bettered by pressing down behind the ball, the club may be grounded lightly behind the ball and your intended swing or line of play may not be improved by bending or breaking anything growing, such as tree limbs or weeds
- In a hazard, you may not touch the sand, ground or water with your hand or the club before or during your back swing.
- In a hazard you cannot remove loose impediments but you can remove obstructions such as bottles or rakes.
- The ball must be struck fairly with the head of the club. You may not push, scrape spoon, or rake the ball, and must not hit your ball while it is moving.
The Putting Green
- You cannot test the surface of the green by rolling a ball or scraping the surface.
- You can brush away leaves and other loose impediments in your line of putt
- Repairs should be done to ball marks or old hole plugs if they are in your line of putt, but you cannot repair marks made by spikes or shoes.
- Your ball should always be marked by putting a small coin or other marker behind it. When you want to pick it up to clean or get it out of another player's way, it must be placed in the same spot.
- The flagstick should be removed or attended to when putting on the putting green, or you must add two penalty strokes to your score for the hole. If your ball is off the green, there is no penalty if you play and your ball strikes the flagstick, provided no one is holding the flagstick.
Ball in Motion Deflected or Stopped
- It is called a "rub of the green." if your ball hits an outside agency eg bird, rake, etc. and there is no penalty and the ball is played as it lies.
- If you hit the ball and it hits you, partner, caddie or equipment, you incur a two-stroke penalty and the ball is played as it lies
- If your ball hits your opponent, his caddie, or his equipment, there is no penalty; you may play the ball as it lies or replay the shot.
- If your ball hits another ball and moves it, you must play your ball as it lies. The other ball must replace it. If your ball is on the green when you play and the ball, which your ball hits, is also on the green, you are penalized two strokes in stroke play. Otherwise, there is no penalty.
Lifting and Dropping the Ball
- Before lifting your ball it’s required that the position of the ball must be marked with a ball-marker behind the ball before you lift it.
- When you drop a ball, stand upright, hold your arm out straight and drop it.
If a dropped ball hits you, your partner, caddie or equipment, it must be re-dropped without penalty. This also is the rule if the ball rolls into a hazard, onto a putting green, out of bounds, to a position where free relief has been taken, more than two club lengths from where it was dropped or nearer the hole than its original position.
Ball Assisting or Interfering with Play
- If a ball is moved by you or your partner on purpose or accidentally, add a penalty stroke to your score, replace and play it.
- If someone or something other then your partner moves your ball there is no penalty, but it must be replaced. If wind or water move the ball you must play it as it lies.
- If you address the ball and the ball moves, add a penalty stroke and replace the ball.
- If a loose impediment lying within one club-length of the ball is moved and the ball moves, add a penalty stroke, replace it and play it. On the putting green, there is no penalty.
- Your ball or any other ball may be lifted if you think it might assist any other player or you can have any ball lifted if it might interfere with your play.
Loose Impediments and Obstructions
Natural objects that are not growing or fixed such as leaves, twigs, branches, worms and insects are loose impediments. These may be removed except when your ball and the loose impediment lie in a bunker or water hazard. If you have removed a loose impediment which causes your ball to move, the ball must be replaced and you incur a penalty stroke.
Identifying a Ball in a Hazard
- A hazard is a bunker or water hazard
- If sand or leaves cover your ball; you may remove enough of the sand or leaves to be able to see a part of the ball.
- A ball can be lifted to identify it anywhere except in a hazard. You must advise your opponent or fellow competitor before you lift your ball to identify it
Water Hazards
- If your ball is in a Water hazard identified with yellow stakes or lines then
- play again from where you first played the ball into the hazard
- Take a drop any distance behind the water hazard keeping a straight line between the hole, the point where the ball last crossed the water hazard and the place which the ball is dropped
- If your ball is in a Lateral water hazard identified with red stakes or lines then
- you may take a drop within two club-lengths of where the ball last crossed the hazard but no nearer to the hole which incurs a penalty of one stroke
Lost Ball or Out of Bounds
If you think your ball is lost or out of bounds you may play a provisional ball from the spot where your first ball was played from. You must advise your playing partner that you are playing a provisional ball, and play it before you look for the first ball.
- You are allowed 5 minutes of searching the ball is still not found it is lost
- If a ball lies beyond the inside line of objects like white stakes, fence or wall that marks the playing area it is out of bounds
- You must add a penalty stroke to your score and play another ball from the spot where the last shot was played if it is out of bounds
- If the first ball is found in bounds, continue play with it and pick up the provisional ball. If the first ball is lost or out of bounds you must count the strokes with the first and provisional ball, add a penalty stroke and play out the hole with the provisional ball.
Unplayable Ball
If your ball is in a difficult situation eg. under a tree or outside a water hazard, and you decide you cannot play it, you must add a penalty stroke and do one of the following:
- Go back and drop a ball where you played the last shot from and play from there
- From the unplayable lie measure two club-lengths and drop a ball and play from there
- Maintain the unplayable lie between where you drop the ball and the hole. You may go back as far as you like in a straight line and drop a ball and play from there
You must proceed under the water hazard rule if taking relief when your ball is in a water hazard.
Obstructions
- Artificial or man-made objects such as bottles, tin cans, rakes, etc are movable obstructions and may be removed. If the ball moves when moving an obstruction, it is to be replaced without penalty.
- immovable obstructions are Sprinkler heads, shelter houses, cart paths, etc., and you are able to take a one club length drop with no penalty from the obstruction
Casual Water; Ground Under Repair; Animal Holes
- If your ball or your stance is in casual water, ground under repair or a burrowing animal hole, you may either play the ball as it lies or drop the ball within one club-length of that place not nearer the hole which gives you relief.
- If your ball is in casual water, burrow etc., and you cannot find it, determine where the ball entered the area and drop a ball within one club-length of that place without penalty.
- If your ball is on the wrong green, find the nearest place off the green, which is not nearer the hole, and drop the ball within one club-length of that place.