Which Golf Rules (If Any) Are Okay To Break In Casual Rounds?
It's essential to adhere to the rules during all competitive and card-in-hand rounds, but how should the rules be applied during casual golf?
The Rules of Golf exist to provide fairness and clarity. As a result, they are very prescriptive and breaking them comes with varying degrees of penalties in both stroke play and match play.
Clearly, they should absolutely be adhered to during all competitive or card-in-hand rounds, and in no way are we suggesting it's okay to break the rules in those circumstances.
However, we all play non-counting, casual games or matches with friends and in this scenario different players often have different approaches to how they apply the rules.
So, which rules (if any) do we deem okay to break during casual rounds? Here, the Golf Monthly team have their say, and I'd be interested to hear your views in the comments section below.
Presumably in this scenario you are playing a friendly match. If so, then you might decide at the start that preferred lies are okay (if the golf course isn't in great condition).
You might also make certain calls as you play - ie. allowing a penalty drop instead of forcing your opponent to go back to the tee to hit another if they've lost a ball or free relief from a particularly bad lie.
As far as I'm concerned, you can break any of the rules you like in a friendly match as long as you both agree.
Grounding a club in a bunker I’m not fussed about, so long as they’re not digging a channel behind their ball before their swing.
Also teeing it up just in front of the tee markers - how much advantage are you really gaining by starting a hole an inch in front of everyone else?!
The answer is clearly none, but if I was pressed I would say marking the ball on the green.
I can't find my ball marker at the best of times, so in a casual round does it really matter?
If I turn my ball 30 degrees to align the line to my desired start direction, without placing a coin behind it, the fractional edging of a centimeter closer to the hole is going to make zero difference to the outcome of my putt.
I'd never do that in competition, but in a friendly knock it’s not that big of a deal.
Honestly, almost all of them! I am a huge believer in casual golf being purely for enjoyment and I very rarely even keep score if I am not playing in a competition.
I will move my ball out of a divot, just drop one down if i can't find it, chuck a couple of balls down around the green for some chipping after I have finished a hole (as long as I am not holding anyone up).
You name it, I will break it in a casual round!
Personally, I don't think it's okay to break any rules in golf, even in a casual round, as I wouldn't want any bad habits to start trickling into my game.
If I had to choose one, though, it would be either asking, or being asked, for advice when playing a certain type of shot.
For example, if you are on a par 3 and there's a lot of wind swirling, then asking what club they'd hit, or another one could be if you are short-sided with a chip shot, you ask how you should play it.
I think that could be seen as more beneficial, as you can take what you have learned from your playing partner into a competitive environment on the course.
I'm fine with my playing partners dropping out of a divot or from under a tree in a friendly game.
Also, when taking relief from a hazard, drop it roughly, i.e. don't bother measuring it out with a club. Don't bother going back to the tee if ball is out of bounds, either. And I agree with Matt in regards to sharing club advice.
I like to try and follow all of the rules if possible during friendly games so I don't put myself in an awkward position if I ever play a competitive round, but having said that, I'd say the obvious ones to break during a casual round include not putting everything out if it's within tap-in range and dropping where you think your ball has gone when you can't find it.
It's so frustrating to hit a good shot around or even over the 200-yard mark but then - because we're not afforded the luxury of spotters - you end up losing the ball, even though you believe you've hit it in a perfectly reasonable part of the course (i.e. the rough).
I'd say as long as you're not taking the mick with your drop position in a friendly game, just dropping a ball and carrying on with no penalty strokes is perfectly acceptable.
If you're not counting score or playing a match, then I couldn't care less if you break any rules.
However, in my usual friendly four-ball better-ball or skins matches we play at our club, we tend to play by the letter of the law.
The only occasions I can think where we might be a bit loose with rules are if a stone or tree root could cause damage to your club or wrist, so in that occasion I'd say it's fine to move your ball a couple of feet.
The correct answer here is whatever rules you agree to.
In every round of golf I play with friends, we play a match, whether we're playing a casual round or a club competition. In these matches, I want to have a fun, competitive match in which good shots win holes, not accidental rules breaches.
Accidentally touch the sand with your club before a bunker shot? Don't worry about it. Lose a ball off the tee that shouldn't have been lost? Take a lateral drop and play it as your third, but as long as I get a lateral to use later in the round.
Golf has a lot rules and it is easy to feel suffocated by them.
As long as you aren't marking a card for your handicap or skirting rules without the knowledge of your group, then play the game however way you want - we aren't playing the Open Championship here, we're here to have fun.
If I am playing with a friend I would let them move their ball out of a divot, provided it is in the fairway.
In every other round, that’s tough, play it as it lies, but in a friendly round, let’s have some fun and hit fun shots, not grind for scores or adhere to every rule to the finest detail.
Which rules are okay to break in casual rounds? Join the conversation below...