Golf Etiquette

As with other sports, the manners and etiquette you use on the golf course defines what kind of a person you are and how you respect the game and the rights of others. To have bad golf etiquette can alienate you from potential friends and golf partners. Nobody wants to play with someone who does not respect the game or themselves. When you first start golf you may not know what good golf etiquette is. Even if you been on the links for years you might have forgotten a couples of rules or you might not know about some of them at all.

When getting around the course most people use carts. There is etiquette with carts as well. Most courses will have posted cart rules. When you see a cart path only, do not deviate from the course given. You could damage the greens or get the cart stuck. Some courses have a ninety degree rule. They do not want you to park you carts on inclines that are or exceed ninety degrees. Keep your cart out of sand traps or other hazards. They are not made to go four wheeling and you could severely damage the hazard.

Once you drive, please repair the divots that your club has made. Simply put the pieced of sod back in the hole your club has made and press it down. If the course is wet or very dry, your ball could make marks on the green, and it will kill the grass. Try to repair these scratches the best you can. When in a sand trap, rake it after you leave. The footprints you live in the sand can capture another player’s ball and make it almost impossible for them to hit it out.

Here are so other etiquette does and don’ts. When someone is taking a swing or trying to make a putt. Keep quiet. Noise distracts what the golfer is doing and could cost him a stroke. Don’t yell after making a bad shot. Your partner might not mind but the people on another hole will notice it. Watch your shadow. If you shadow fall across the ball your partner could misjudge his swing. Especially on the putting green your shadows can play havoc with your partners’ eyesight. Watch walking in the putting line of your partner. You wouldn’t think so but the weight of your body can leave a depression in the grass or soil big enough to change the path of the ball. It is best to walk around so the sun is in your face and there are no footprints on the putting green.

Keep a good pace while you are playing. If you start slowing down you could back up the entire course. Not only do you frustrate golfers behind you, you slow the tee time schedule off. If you are not moving fast enough, the course ranger will help you do so. A way not to slow down is never spend too much time looking for a lost ball. Take the stroke and put out a new ball. Wait until you are backed up by another player. If you have the time look into a couple of bushes. You may make up that lost ball by finding a new one.