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"How Golfers Can Save at Least 2 Shots a Round

- by Neil Stelling B.Sc, MBA
http://www.secretsofgolfsuccess.com

© DigiLectual Inc. 2003

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How many practice shots did you hit last week ? How many
drives ? How many chips ? How many putts ? How many
bunker shots ?

We've all done it ! Many hours on the range. Ball after
ball. Searching for that lower score.

When I started playing golf about 5 years ago, I almost
lived at the driving range. Okay now I'm more experienced
(?) I don't practice so much, but a few years ago I
wondered how I could play 'smart' rather than 'hard'. I'd
just finished playing a round where I had a couple of
disagreements with my match opponent. His ball hit my bag.
My ball went up against a boundary fence. We spent ages
studying a rule book, wondering what to do, and made
decisions which turned out wrong.

After the round, I realized that a complex set of rules
govern Golf. Trying to lower my score by better driving
and putting wasn't easy, so maybe I could find another way
? Okay I have to drive and putt during a round of golf !
But maybe I could lower my score by a couple of shots a
round if I could use the rules properly to my advantage ?
Here's just a few things I learned during my research.

I often asked Partners and Opponents for advice. What club
did you just use ? What's the yardage to the green etc.
Rule 8 covers this and you must be very careful ! It's
okay to ask anyone the distance from a permanent object
e.g. a tree, to the center of the Green (you must specify a
point on the green). But you can only ask your caddie or
partner the distance of a ball to the green.

When you're playing a new course, one of your group plays
there every week. When can you ask for his 'local
knowledge' ? When you can't see what you're aiming at,
then anyone can give you advice on what line to play. Maybe
he stands behind you and points the way to aim for a hidden
dog-leg shot or over the top of a hill. He must move off
the line before you hit your shot. If you can see the flag
stick, then he shouldn't give you a line. I'm often told to
'keep it left' or 'leave it short' but some of this advice
could be against the rules and lead to penalties in a
serious competition.

What happens when you get on the putting green and various
impediments lie between your ball and the hole. You can
repair ball marks, and brush off loose impediments (only
with your hand or a club), but you can't repair spike-marks
or push down any raised tufts of grass.

I hope this short report gives you some idea of the
complexity of the rules, but also shows you how you can
save shots.

So keep practising … but get yourself a Rule Book and study
it carefully !

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Neil Stelling is Marketing Manager of DigiLectual Inc. and
a keen amateur golfer. For a free mini-series on 'How to
use the Rules to save at least 2 shots every Round' go to
http://www.secretsofgolfsuccess.com or send an email to mailto:golfsecretsminiseries@digilectual.com?subject=subscribe