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Lyle Slovick Instructor, Level I Affiliate Member United States Golf Teachers Federation Good Golf For Life.com ©2007 |
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Etiquette, or "Please Act Like You Have Some Manners" Simple rules of courteous behavior should be practiced by all golfers. For standards of etiquette found in the Rules of Golf click here Here are some of my own rules, many of which highlight my pet peeve in golf - SLOW PLAY (I hate it!): Rule 1. Patience is a virtue. If a golfer new to the game innocently violates a rule of etiquette, such as stepping in your line on the putting green, they shouldn't be made to feel as if they committed a crime. Take a moment to say, "Excuse me, but you need to be careful not to walk in someone's line of the putt if you can help it," or something to that effect. All of us have to learn lessons of all sorts, and golf teaches us new lessons every day. We need not have any "green rage" when we get to the course, instead it should be a place of refuge from a society that is increasingly uncivil. Rule 2. Drop your bag or park your pull cart on the correct side of the green. When you get to the green, note where the next tee is and drop your bag or park your pull cart in that vicinity, off the back of the green. There is no need to back track across the front of the green and then back to the next tee when others behind you are waiting to hit. Be smart. Rule 3. Golf lessons. Unless you are are a swing guru like Butch Harmon or David Leadbetter, don't give a lesson to someone in your group during a round. If you think you are that good, do it later on the driving range, where you won't hold up traffic. Rule 4. Be ready to hit. Unless you are playing a serious golf match, don't worry if you are "away." If you are ready and the others in your group see you are ready to hit your next shot, fire away. Rule 5. One practice swing only. It drives me crazy to see someone take three or four laborious practice swings and then dribble the ball 20 yards, then repeat the whole process!! Madness. Take practice swings while the rest of your groups is hitting, or if a single, take a quick one and go. Rule 6. Stop searching for the ball already. The Rules of Golf give you 5 minutes to look for a lost ball, but if it's deep in the woods or in grass that comes up to your waist, look for a couple minutes and then reload. Rule 7. Keep an extra ball in your pocket. Those of you over a 10 handicap, you know who you are. It annoys me when I play with someone who slices one out of bounds and then has to walk over to their bag to get another ball (usually the same guy who can't abide by Rule #2). None of us are Jack Nicklaus, so have another ball ready at all times. Rule 8. Putt out. When you lag your first put up close, please go ahead and finish up. No need to mark and read the green like Tiger Woods, just see your line and hit it. Gene Sarazen, one of the greatest players of all time, many times would never even read a short putt, he'd just whack it in the back of the hole. Rule 9. Extra mulligans. I personally do not believe in "mulligans" - the custom of hitting a second shot on the first tee if your first one goes bad. My philosophy is that the mulligan may turn out even worse than the first one. It just goes against my nature. Now, if the folks I play with want to, that's fine, as long as we aren't playing a match. But after the first hole, just play - if you want to hit more shots, go to the driving range. Rule 10. Stop talking. Some players love to talk and make some comment about every shot they - or you - hit. You don't need to tell someone why they shanked their ball onto the roof of that house, or point out where the trouble is on a hole just before they tee off. Be courteous and think before you speak. ** Bonus Rule. "If your opponent is badly bunkered , there is no rule against your standing over him and counting his stokes aloud, with increasing gusto as their number mounts up; but it will be a wise precaution to arm yourself with a 9-iron before doing so, so as to meet him on equal terms." (a suggestion from British golf champion Horace Hutchinson, 1886)
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