As with anything else in life, it is important that you are following the rules why you are playing golf. Following the rules will provide you with a pleasant experience and will likely lead to you making a few new golf friends.

On the other hand, not following the rules will likely lead to a negative experience and will definitely not lead to you making any new friends at a golf course.

Golf course rules and golf rules in general are extremely important to follow. These rules have been set in place for a reason. Some of these rules have been created in order to ensure that you remain safe during your golfing experience. Other rules are in place to make sure that the game is played fairly and correctly.

Some rules are even designed to ensure that everyone else on the course has a good time along with you and that your game does not interfere with theirs.

Below I will go over some of the basic rules of golfing. Remember, it is important that you are familiar with these rules before you choose to go hit a course.

Basic Rules of Golfing
Just like with any other sport, there are a lot of rules that go along with playing a round of golf. However, if we were to discuss every rule of golf we would be here for days! Most of the rules of golf can be learned while playing the game.

The basic rules are the ones that are most important to learn first. These are the rules that ensure proper gameplay and safety as well as proper etiquette.

The following are some examples of the basic rules of golfing. You will be provided with some do’s and don’ts on what to do while you are playing golf. Remember, following these rules will make your golfing experience much more safe and entertaining. Be on Time
Almost all golf courses will require you to schedule a tee off time before playing a round of golf.

Make sure that you schedule this time for a time that you will be available and leave yourself about thirty minutes of extra time in case something comes up. The golf course staff will not wait long before skipping you on the tee off list if you are not there on time since other golfers will be waiting to play.

In most cases, you have to pay green fees when you schedule your tee off time so not being there will result in a waste of money. This can be especially frustrating for a group when one person does not show as it can ruin all of their plans of having a fun day golfing.

Keep a Steady Pace
It is important to keep in mind that other golfers are likely waiting for you to finish your hole so that they may tee off. For this reason it is important that you do not take too much time on a hole. If you are having difficulty finishing a hole and golfers are waiting for you it is the courteous thing to do to move off to the side and let them play through before you continue.

One way to avoid this situation is to try and schedule your tee off time for a time that you know that they course is not busy until you better your golf game. This is probably the better option for beginner golfers anyways.

Know Who’s Turn it is
Each player has to take turns while playing golf. In other words, no two players should ever be swinging on the same hole at the same time. The order in which the shots are taken is simple. The player who is farthest away from the hole is the one who swings. Even if this person goes more than once they will continue to swing until their ball is no longer the furthest from the pin.

Check Rules and Regulations
It is important that you check the posted rules and regulations for the course that you are golfing at. The reason for this is the fact that certain courses may have different rules and regulations than other courses.

Turn in All Scores
It is important that you turn in all score cards after you are done with your rounds of golf. Even if it is just a friendly game between you and your buddies it is still important. The scores from these cards are used to regulate the handicaps on the courses so therefore they are extremely important, even if you don’t think they are.

Clean After Yourself
When playing golf, you need to make sure that you repair any damages that you may make to the course during play. This includes ruts and divots. Ruts and divots should be filled so that the next golfer in line may have a pleasant experience. As well, if you happen to land in the sand trap it is the courteous thing to do to rake out the chip marks you made when using your sand wedge.

The previous were some examples of things that you should do while playing golf at a course. The following will be some examples of things that you should never do at a golf course.

Never Play in Lightning
People who really love to golf will tell you that it is hard to keep them from golfing, no matter what the weather conditions are except for one thing, lightning. Playing in lightning is extremely dangerous and has a high chance of leading to you being injured severely or fatally.

Think about it, does it seem like a good idea to stand on wet grass holding a metal club while there is electricity shooting down from the sky?

No Talking!
Silence is golden when someone is taking a golf swing. That is why it is important that you never speak while someone is setting up for a swing of while they are in the process of a swing.

Never Swing Towards a Person
You must never take your swing in the direction of another person. When doing your rounds and advancing from hole to hole you must always make sure that the hole is clear and that the group ahead of you has already moved on. People can be badly hurt when playing golf if rules such as these are not followed.

However, complying with this rule will surely provide you with a safe golfing experience.

Never Interrupt a Put
Making a good put requires a great deal of concentration and skill. It is highly important that you never do anything to distract someone or interrupt them while they are putting. This may include trying to speak to them, your phone going off. The worst thing you could do while on a golf course is walk directly in front of someone while they are putting.

Never Hold Up Players
As mentioned before, games of golf are scheduled by tee off times. Just as you do, other golfers have to pay fee in order to play and many of them likely have other things to do later on in the day. For this reason it is highly important that you do not take too much time to progress through the holes and that you never hold up other golfers.