Wednesday, June 28, 2006

A New Official Set Of Golf Rules Needed?

Hello. It's time to face facts. 90+% of all Canadian golfers do not play in a golf event where they play their own ball the whole way around like on TV. If that's the case, then why do these players use the same rules? Why is there only one set of rules? Why can't there be a "tournament set", like we have now, and what follows, which I'm calling the "regular set"?
All rules would be the same in "regular" golf as "tournament" golf, with the following exceptions:
  1. No "stroke and distance penalty" for lost or out-of-bounds balls. If you cannot find your shot, drop a ball where you last saw it with a one-shot penalty. So if your tee shot goes over an OB fence, your 3rd shot is from where the ball crossed the fence.
  2. Maximum two shots in the same non-lateral water hazard. If your 1st ball goes into a water hazard in front of you, hit your 2nd ball from the same side as before. If that one goes in too, drop your 3rd ball on the other side of the water.
  3. Maximum 3 putts per hole.
  4. Maximum "par + 2" shots to get to the whole. This means only 5 shots (including penalties) for a par 3, 6 shots for a par 4 and 7 shots for a par 5. After that, put your ball on the green. With these last two rules, maximum 5 over par scores for any hole.
  5. All putts "within the leather" are gimmies. No need to hole out every putt.
  6. Play ready golf, no need to wait for person farther away to hit. Farthest away rule only used if both players ready.
  7. Same rule for honour on a tee. If low shooter on last hole not ready, then someone else goes.
  8. Group one hole behind must skip that hole or let group behind go through.

I feel a lot of golfers are already using these rules unofficially. However, in order to avoid conflicts with someone who insists on playing "tournament" rules, the "regular" rules should be made official. The regular rules will make the game more enjoyable for everyone and speed up play, two big objectives of any golfer.

Regards,

Steve

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