Ready golf, is kind of like etiquette of playing golf. It
is a general practice that most golfers follow so that they
are not paying slowly. Ready golf includes thinking ahead you
are ready to play when it is your turn. So here are some of
the principles the many golfers use so that they keep play
moving.
On The
Tee
Ready Golf, we often hear
means that the person who is ready at the tee should hit
first. That is simply not true. Ready Golf means that the
player with the honors should be READY to HIT FIRST. If the
player with the honors isn't ready, only then should someone
else should hit first.
On
The Fairway
Golfers are typically
at their worst AFTER they have hit their tee shots. How often
do you see players watch other players hit first, and start
thinking about their shot only when it's their turn? How often
do you see drivers of carts wait for their partners to hit
before driving to their own balls? How many times do you see
four golfers walk to the player's ball that is farthest from
the hole and wait for that player to hit, then move down the
fairway to the other balls as if they were a caravan?
Ready Golf means that ALL golfers should go to their balls
as soon as possible and get READY to play their shots. While
waiting to hit, PLAYERS should SURVEY their shot, SELECT their
clubs, TAKE them from their bags, and STAND at their balls
READY to step up and make the shot when it is their turn.
That's Ready Golf!
Ready Golf particularly means that
the DRIVERS of carts should DROP OFF their partners, let them
CHOOSE their clubs (take extra ones if required), DRIVE to
their own balls, and then get READY to play. DRIVERS should
NOT wait for their partners to hit the shot, and then drive to
their own balls to make their shots.
All players
should GO TO THEIR BALLS as soon as possible. The only time
players should wait for other players is if the first player's
ball is in front of the other players' in such a way that the
other players could be hit by the first player's shot. In
particular, a CARAVAN of players should NEVER CONVERGE unless
their balls are all in the same location. The only time
players should stop in a group and wait for a player to hit is
if the line of flight of that player's shot prevents the other
players from going to their own balls.
Hint:
Walk down the sides of the fairway to reach your ball,
determine your club selection while waiting, and then move
towards the center to your ball. You can usually get close to
your ball and get ready to play the shot, while players behind
you can still make their shots.
Helping To Find Lost Balls
It is important that everyone
try to help out to find a lost ball in order to keep playing
moving. But players should do it AFTER hitting their shots,
not BEFORE. How often do you see four or five players
searching for a lost ball, while NONE of them are getting
ready to hit?
Use common sense. The player who is
closest to the pin and scheduled to hit last should be the
first to help the player whose ball is lost, while the players
who are farthest away from the pin should PLAY THEIR SHOTS
FIRST. When the players farthest away have played their shots,
they should resume looking for the lost ball, while the
players who are closest should get ready to PLAY THEIR SHOTS.
In this way, slow play is not compounded because of a lost
ball.
Entering And Exiting
Greens
How many times do you see
players leave their clubs in front of a Green? When the
players finish, they then walk to the front to get their
clubs. ALWAYS, and we mean ALWAYS, leave clubs at the back or
side of the Green closest to the next tee. If a shot is played
in front of the Green first, the player should move his or her
clubs to the back or side of the Green before playing the next
shot. NOTHING is MORE ANNOYING than watching players walk to
the FRONT of a Green to retrieve their clubs AFTER everyone
has putted out.
AND don't stand around chatting and
writing down scores either. After the group has putted, go to
the next tee, so the group behind can play their shots.
BR>
Speeding Play On The
Greens
Emulating the pros around
the putting green has done more to slow down golf than any
other single event. How often do you see players waiting until
it is their turn to play, and then walking around the putt as
though they were putting to win a green jacket at the
Master's? Playing Ready Golf around the Greens means getting
READY to putt BEFORE it is your turn! Players should line up
their putts WHILE other players are putting, so they're ready
to putt when it's their turn.
Ready Golf also means
putting CONTINUOUSLY if the ball is not in someone else's
line, and if the player does not have to spend a lot of time
surveying the putt. If you miss a putt by one or two feet, for
example, and have an open stance to make the next putt, you
should MAKE the putt INSTEAD of MARKING the ball and waiting
for another turn -- unless it is a tricky putt and you want
extra time to survey it. In that case, mark the ball and
survey the putt while someone else putts. When it is your
turn, walk up to the ball, take your stance and make your
putt.
While there are no time rules associated with
putting, a rule of thumb is to get off your putt within 20
seconds from when it is your turn. This means you should be
able to approach the ball, take your stance and make your putt
within 20 seconds. Obviously, you can only do this if you
SURVEY the putt WHILE other players are putting.
When
you putt, you should always take your time, so you make a
smooth, unhurried stroke. Ready Golf DOES NOT mean RUSHING. If
you prepare in advance to putt, you can take your time AND
play Ready Golf.
Farthest
From The Hole
There is no reason
Ready Golfers can't play in the order of who is farthest from
the hole. In Ready Golf, the person farthest from the hole
should be READY to play first. There are, however, a few
common sense exceptions.
In a foursome in which one or
two players are walking and one or two are using carts, the
players with the carts should hit FIRST if they reach their
ball first and are Ready to play.
When someone hits a
shot, but is still farthest from the hole, players should hit
BEFORE that player if they are Ready. Here are two examples.
If a player hits a tree or some obstruction with a second shot
and is still farthest from the hole, the players closer to the
hole should hit first to speed up play.
If someone is off
the Green in a sand trap and hits it furthest from the hole,
the other players should not wait for that player to walk
around the green to play the next shot. Play should continue
until that player is READY to make the next shot. In fact,
NOTHING is more DISCONCERTING than watching three players on
the green WAITING while the fourth player cleans up the sand,
walks to the ball, surveys the putt and then plays.
Summary
Ready Golf means BEING READY to play, not
playing when you're ready. Here are some simple rules.