Beginner's Guide to Golf: Rules of Golf

The official golf rule book can be a bit tedious with over 100 pages. We are here to break it down and simplify it for you!

How to Score Your Round of Golf: 

After each hole, write down how many strokes it took you to get your ball in the hole. At the end of your round, add your scores from each individual hole and you will get your total score!  

Basic Rules of Golf: 

• 14 is the maximum number of golf clubs you are allowed to have in your bag at all times. Exceeding this number of clubs will result in a stroke penalty. 
• When hitting your ball from the tee box, you must tee up your ball behind the line created by the tee markers. Teeing up your ball in front of the tee markers will result in a stroke penalty. 
•  Marking your ball is a must! The penalty for picking up another player's ball is a stroke penalty. 
• Play your ball as it lies. You're not allowed to kick it or move it to a better spot. Beginning in 2019, you are now allowed to remove loose impediments- including leaves, loose twigs, and litter. 
• Out of Bounds. When your ball sails OB, you must replay the last stroke from your previous position. You will be penalized one stroke for this action.
• The rule of thumb for the order of play is the player furthest away from the hole will play first. 
• When taking a penalty stroke and you are forced to drop a ball, it must be dropped from knee height. 

Don't forget to have fun and give yourself some grace when beginning. It's not always about following the rules! 

WLDA and Symmetra Tour Pro Alex Phillips says "While learning the game, enjoy playing and don’t get caught up in all the nuances of the rules. They’re there to help you as you progress, but they’re not necessary to follow when you’re just out there to have fun and enjoy the day". 

Keep an eye out for our next blog series! We will be teaching all of our readers about different game play formats!