Each year, on New Year’s Day, we take resolutions for the upcoming year. But we soon forget those resolutions.
EXAMPLE: THIS YEAR I WILL PLAY GOLF STRICTLY BY THE RULES…
You will find below a few of those non-existent Rules we use when the golf season starts
HAPPY BALL
We always find very good reasons to use that rule on the first tee:
· Our body is not warmed up
· Did not have time to practice
· The baby did not sleep last night
· The wine was very good last evening
· I want to start my round in a good mood
MULLIGAN
During the round, we may sometimes hit a bad shot. This is not normal and there are reasons why we did not make a perfect stroke:
· A dog barked on my downswing
· A maintenance crew made noise and it bothered my concentration
· Another player in your group sneezed during your stroke (or he played with his keys)
· I did not use my Happy ball on the first tee, I as taking it now
· Je will redo the stroke because my brain was not ready
· It was not my turn to play
· I never miss that shot I will redo it
GIMMIE (A putt impossible to miss)
This is a very interesting rule. We all agree that it is not possible to miss a 3-footer. Those putts always go in the hole. So? Why bother trying it? Why should we take a Gimmie?
· All the previous reasons are valid
· That is an easy putt
· The hole is on an illegal slope
· I tried it only for fun because it was a Gimmie
A good habit is to give Gimmies to the other players early in the round to get Gimmies from them when needed later in the round
MAXIMUM 2 PUTTS (The greens are not nice)
Most of the above reasons are good to do a maximum of 2 putts. This is also often used on vacation or at the start of the season.
· On vacation, I want to have fun and I am taking only two putts
· The greens are full of holes
· At 20 feet, it is a maximum of 2 putts.
MOVE THE BALL IN PLAY (avoid injuries)
That non-existent Rule is sometimes more subtle. The player finds his ball in the woods behind a tree or on roots. The ball must be moved.
· Playing for fun, I don’t want to hurt my self
· A bad lie is not normal
· Grass is missing, I will move my ball because at the Masters they always have nice grass under the ball
· The ball should have never made a bad bounce
· Those trees should not be there.