JHGTC Tip of the Week 6/23/12

FIVE BASIC TIPS AND TERMINOLOGY FOR THE FIRST TIME GOLFER

1. Dress the Part                                                                                                                               

Many golf courses have dress codes. Find out what the dress code is at the course you're playing and dress appropriately. A pair of khaki shorts or slacks and a collared golf shirt will almost always meet the requirements, but it's a good idea to check beforehand.                                                                                                                

The policy for Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis is:                                                                               Soft Spike golf shoes only. Appropriate attire is required at all times.
- Men: Shorts must be no more than 3 inches above the knee.  Tucked-in collared shirts are required.
- Ladies: Shorts and skirts are also to be an appropriate length.  Women do not have to wear a collar; however, halter and midriff shirts or short shorts    are not permitted. Ladies shorts must also be no more than three inches above the knee.

2. Teeing Off

On the teeing ground, you must place your ball between the tee markers, either even with them or up to two club lengths behind them. Never in front of them. Tee markers are usually small, colored cones or stones or some other similar indicator. For example, if you're playing from the white tees, look for markers painted white.
As for who tees off first ...

3. Honors, Away and Ready Play

The player who has "honors" plays first from the teeing ground. On the first tee, this can be decided randomly (draw straws, play paper-rock-scissors, whatever). On ensuing tees, the player with the best score on the preceding hole goes first, the second-best score goes second, and so on. Ties carry over to the next tee box, so you keep your place in the rotation until you beat someone on a hole.

"Honors" determines who tees off first; what about the order of play on shots from the fairway? He who is "away" (or "out") leads the way. The player who is farthest from the hole always plays first, from any position on the golf course other than the tee box. The exception is when all members of the group have agreed to play "ready golf," meaning hit-when-ready. Ready golf can be played when a group is trying to speed up the round.

4. Play It As It Lies

One of the most fundamental principles of golf - an idea that much of the Rules of Golf is built around - is "play it as it lies." What that means is pretty simple - don't move or touch the ball! Where it comes to rest, whatever state it is in, you most likely have to play it as is.  There are exceptions spelled out in the Rules of Golf, but if you want to play by the rules, a good rule of thumb is this: Don't move the ball, don't touch it, don't pick it up unless you are certain that you are allowed to do so under the Rules.

5. Keep Up the Pace

Slow play has always been an issue on golf courses, and it's even more important as a beginner to be aware of your pace of play. You don't want to keep golfers behind you waiting, just as you probably don't want to be kept waiting yourself by slow groups ahead. Always be prepared to play when it is your turn to hit. Don't wait until it is your turn to decide which club to use, or to determine the line of a putt; use the time while others are hitting to make those decisions, so that when it's your turn you can step right up and play. If your group is slower than the group immediately behind yours - if your group is holding up another group - it's good etiquette to allow the faster group to play through. Not all groups will want to do this, but many will, and all that do will be very grateful for your show of etiquette.

REMEMBER:                                                                                                                                    

Always repair your ball marks (also called pitch marks) on the green.

Always repair your divots in the fairway. Repairing a divot might mean picking up the sod that you've chopped up and placing it back in the resulting scrape; or it could mean pouring sand or seed into the spot of the divot. If sand or seed are provided by the course (usually in a container that rides on the golf cart), that's what they want you to do.  JACKSON HOLE GOLF & TENNIS CLUB prefers that you use a combination of both options..if the divot is in one piece then replace  it, if not use the sand.  At the very least please fill with sand.                                                                       

Always rake sand bunkers after you've hit your shot to smooth out the sand so that ensuing golfers don't have to play out of your footprints.