Golf – which began over 500 years ago in Scotland – is often considered the most popular sport in the world. That’s why it’s not at all surprising that in 2015, a total of around 2.2 million took up playing the game.
While it’s not a sport that’s played at the professional level by everyone, it’s still trendy and great for building friendships.
If you’ve never played before, you may think that it’s not for you. However, there are plenty of reasons why everyone should take up the sport, even with home golf simulators.
The Basics
The sport is all about strategy. You have to be in complete control of your game – you can’t let your emotions get the best of you. Otherwise, you won’t be able to sink that one final putt, and it won’t be as fun. To be a better player, you need to:
- Know the basic rules and etiquette
- Practice regularly
- Always think about your next move
- Know how to hit the ball correctly
Rules You Need To Know
All players need to know the rules which are in place to make the game fair for everyone. They are pretty simple but make the game flow smoothly, and they’re the same for men and women. If you don’t follow or break a rule, you run the risk of being disqualified or even penalized. Penalties can be tricky, so make sure you know all the rules.
Here is a list of some of the most crucial and top ten rules that you need to know, follow, and abide by if you want to be a great player:
- Play the ball where it lies. This rule is pretty simple: you cannot move the ball to a more favorable position.
- Drop the ball within one club length. If you hit the ball out of bounds or into a water hazard, you can drop the ball as close as possible to where it went out of bounds – but only within one club length of the point where it went out of bounds.
- Take relief. If the ball gets into a hazard, there is a penalty of one stroke, which you can avoid by taking relief. Relief is a one-stroke penalty that allows you to hit your ball from the place it entered the hazard, but you must declare your intention to take relief before you play your next shot.
- Ball in motion must not be stopped. If your ball is in motion and you accidentally step on it or kick it, you breach the rules, lose your hole, and must re-hit your ball.
- Make sure the ball is in play. You must not disturb the surface of the green or touch the ground with your club, obstruct the line of play, and be careful not to damage the hole. If you do either of these things, you will be disqualified.
- Only one club at a time. You must not use more than one club when you play a shot. You cannot use a putter to play a chip shot or a sand wedge to play your tee shot.
- Remove loose impediments. Loose impediments are any objects on the green that are not a part of the course. Remove these objects before you can play a shot.
- Avoid damaging the putting surface. If you hit the ball onto the green, you have to avoid damaging the putting surface. You are allowed to repair ball marks, but you cannot repair pitch marks.
- No unplayable ball. You must declare your ball unplayable if it is in an area of the course where it is impossible to play. You cannot play a new ball if you hit your unplayable ball.
- No moving of stones or other obstructions. You cannot move rocks, twigs, or other obstacles in the fairway. You are allowed to move loose impediments – only to a point – but you cannot move anything that is a part of the course.
Go for the Alternative
Golf has a lot of health benefits, such as straightening your back muscles and improving blood circulation. Not only that, but it also generates more than $3.9 billion toward charitable giving year after year. If you want to participate in the sport but can’t go to the course, you can always use a golf simulator and play without leaving your home.
