Basic Rules of Golf
Play by the rules… why do we need rules for social games?? Well do we have rules by the way! But don’t get nervous. This can be simple.
In the beginning there were just 13 rules of golf, drawn up in 1744 by the Honorable Company of Edinburgh Golfers in Scotland, the first organized golf society. By the way, Golf stands for Gentlemen Only Ladies Forbidden. Ouch, that hurts! The code was adopted almost word for word by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews when it drew up its own “original” rules in 1754. The articles were revised in 1755 and again in 1809, and these three sets of laws form the foundation of the rules we know today. I promise not to quiz you on the dates!
Now, however, there are 34 rules, most of them quite lengthy, plus a section on etiquette, a section on definitions, four long appendices, a set of rules of amateur status and a book a decisions on the rules that runs well more than 500 pages. Whew!
Do you have to memorize all this? No, never. Should you be familiar with the rules, so you know where to look in the book when a situation arises? Probably, at some point. When you start playing with others for money, marbles or drinks, you’ll want to play by the rules as much as possible, because you know that they will. Knowing the basic rules will actually help you, not hurt you. When playing in tournaments, an acquaintance with the rules is very helpful.
Golf is about fun. It’s also about honor and sportsmanship. It’s also about the challenge to do your best, whether it be on a single shot, a hole or a round. Meeting that challenge brings the self-satisfaction, which breeds the fun. Meeting that challenge within the rules is what makes the game so fascinating. Attaining a goal by violating the rules doesn’t satisfy anybody.
THE BALL
“The Game of Golf consists in playing a ball from the teeing ground into the hole by a stroke or successive strokes in accordance with the rules.” That’s pretty easy, however, playing a ball means playing one ball. You’re not supposed to substitute another during the play of a hole. If you have any questions you can’t answer during that hole, play a second ball, scoring that one as well, until you can come into the clubhouse and ask the correct ruling on that hole.
THE STROKE
A stroke is a forward movement of the club made with the intention of striking the ball. Intention is the key word here. If you voluntarily stop your forward stroke halfway down, it’s not a stroke, because your intention died. If you go through with the swing it’s a stroke, even if you miss the ball. There is no penalty if a ball falls or is nudged off a tee before the forward stroke begins. Also you can’t push, scrape or “spoon” the ball. There has to be a back swing, no matter how short, and a forward swing.
THE HONOR
A player who had the lowest score on the previous hole has the “honor” and is entitled to play first on the next tee. The rules say this has to happen, but if this player stops to tie a shoestring or otherwise dawdles, somebody else should step up and hit it. It simply saves time and nobody cares. That’s if you’re not in a tournament, of course.
HAZARDS
Hazards are just that. They can be hazardous to your score. They also may swallow your golf ball. There are technically two and actually three kinds of hazards. Following is the list and how to deal with them.
Water hazards – Any body of water or ditch (even if there is no water in it) marked by yellow lines or stakes. Everything within those boundaries is the hazard. A water hazard also includes a lateral water hazard, which is marked by red lines or stakes. This can get a little confusing, but hang in there. A water hazard is a lake, pond, river, stream or whatever that lies in your path to the green. You have to hit your ball over it. If you don’t do that, god forbid, and your ball drowns, you must drop a ball keeping that point between the hole and where you drop the ball. You can drop as far back as you want, providing you follow that provision, and, unfortunately, you have to add a penalty stroke to your score.
A lateral water hazard – (the red line for stakes, remember) is one that generally runs parallel to the hole. You can’t drop behind it, so you must drop within two club-lengths outside the point where the ball last crossed the hazard line. Or you can drop in the same way on the opposite side of the hazard, as long as it’s the same distance from the hole. Again, tack on that extra stroke.
If your ball ends up within the confines of a hazard but not in the water and you can play it, make sure you don’t ground you club, which means letting it rest on the surface. That’s a no-no and costs you a penalty stroke. Touching the grass but not the ground is okay.
Bunker – As you already know, this is the sand trap. You don’t have to drop out of it and take a penalty, but you have to play out of it. The basic rule here is that, as in a water hazard, you can’t touch the sand with your club before you make the stroke.
OUT OF BOUNDS
Out of bounds areas are usually defined by white stakes, sometimes by a line on the ground and sometimes by a fence or wall. The entire ball must lie out of bounds. If any part of it is in bounds, you can play it if possible. The player is the sole judge of whether it is out of bounds. Remember, that this is a game of honor. You cannot, however, remove the stakes, dismantle the fence or remove the wall even if it interferes with your swing. You can stand out of bounds to play a ball that is in bounds.
If your ball goes out of bounds, you must count the stroke and replay the shot, adding a penalty stroke. This is called the stroke and distance penalty. You count the stroke, you lose the distance and add another stroke. In other words, go back to where you hit the original shot and do it again. In the case of a drive, you’re now hitting your third shot from the tee. Obviously this can be damaging to you score, not to mention you financial health if you have a little wager going.
LOST BALL
If you hit your ball into rough, bushes, trees or other trash and aren’t sure where it is, you have no more than three minutes to look for it. If you can’t find it within that time, the ball is lost and you have to replay. The rule is the same as for a shot out of bounds, count the stroke, return to the original spot, add a penalty strike and hit it again.
PROVISIONAL BALL
If you think your ball may be lost or out of bounds, you’re allowed to hit a provisional ball to save you the time and effort of trekking back to hit another. If your first ball is indeed out of bounds or can’t be found, play the provisional. If your first ball is found and in play, put the provisional back in your pocket.
When you hit a provisional ball, you’re supposed to announce, “I’m going to hit a provisional ball.” If you’re in a tournament and you don’t do it that way, the provisional ball becomes the one in play even if you find you first ball.
UNPLAYABLE LIE
Sad to say, we all sometimes hit balls into places where we can’t play them, usually lodged against a tree or under a pine or imbedded in a bush. When this happens to you, you have three options: (remember the player becomes the sole judge of whether a ball is unplayable)
1. You can drop within two club-lengths of the spot where the ball lay, not closer to the hole, which is the most commonly used and best option if you can get adequate relief from your predicament:
2. You can proceed under the same rule as for a ball that is lost or out of bounds, returning to the original spot and replaying:
3. You can drop as far back as you want from the point where your ball lay, keeping that point between you and the hole.
In each case you count the stroke that got you in all this trouble and add a penalty stroke.
ON THE PUTTING GREEN
There are a few special rules here that you should know. You can repair ball marks or old plugs on the putting surface, but you can’t tamp down spike marks. You can’t stand astride the line of the putt when you make a stroke, as in croquet.
Watch out for other balls on the putting green. If your ball is on the green and strikes another ball on the green, you incur a two-stroke penalty in stroke play. If it’s your ball that is hit, by the way, you replace it without penalty. In any event, it’s always a good idea for everybody to mark her ball when it is on the green.
If your ball is on the green and it strikes the flagstick in the hole you are penalized two strokes in stroke play.
If your ball is off the green and you hit onto the green and any of the above happens, you will not be penalized.
CART PATHS
We have many cart paths on the course. If your ball lands on the cart path, you may remove it one club length, no closer to the hole. You will not receive a stroke penalty for this terrible injustice.
These are the general rules of the game. I have also put a link in this website which allows you to learn the rules of the game even further (should this interest you). Some people may claim to know all the rules, and may tell you the rules incorrectly. It has happened to me and cost me penalty strokes or even a golf tournament. It’s a hard way to learn I was wrong. Check out the R & A Rules https://www.randa.org/en/rog/the-rules-of-golf Have a great game 🙂 don’t be 🙁